Encore Software has begun shipping five new titles in its line of National Geographic software for Mac OS and Windows. The new titles range from reference guides for history buffs and travelers to educational software for families and students.
The titles include:
The Complete National Geographic: 112 Years Collector’s Edition — a 32 CD-ROM set that contains the complete archive of all National Geographic magazines published from 1888 to 2000, including more than 196,000 pages of text, more than 185,000 photos and illustrations, and more. The set costs about US$100.
The Complete National Geographic – 30 Memorable Years — an 11 CD-ROM set highlighting events and coverage from the ’70s, ’80s and ;90s. It includes more than 50,000 pages of text, more than 50,000 photos and illustrations, and also includes a bonus CD-ROM, The Complete National Geographic: 2000 Year In Review. The set costs about $30.
The Complete National Geographic – 10 Legendary Years — a five CD-ROM set highlighting the magazine’s coverage throughout the ’90s. It incorporates more than 18,000 pages of text and more than 18,000 photos and illustrations, and it also includes The Complete National Geographic: 2000 Year In Review bonus CD-ROM. This title runs for about $20.
The Complete National Geographic: 2000 Year In Review — this title is also available separately, for about $10.
All of the new National Geographic titles published by Encore Software require a Mac running System 7.5 – 9.1, 32MB RAM, 70MB HD space, 640×480 16-bit color display, and 4x CD-ROM.
Encore has also produced a National Geographic title specifically for kids, called National Geographic Trivia Trek 2002. The title features more than 2,000 geography questions — good for more than 60 hours of unrepeated game time, according to the developer — based on info created for the National Geographic Bee in Washington, D.C.
Immersed in a game show-style setting, kids answer political, physical and cultural geography questions in three increasingly difficult rounds. Each player has to advance through all three rounds to finish the game and win. It features surprise puzzles and “lightning rounds” too. Animated characters like BuzzBee, Kung Fu Stick Man, Schnoz Worm, Shrimp Rabbit, Trout Mummy and others will keep kids engaged.
System requirements call for a 266MHz or faster processor, System 7.5 or higher, 32MB RAM, 10MB free hard disk space, 640 x 480 resolution monitor with 256 colors, and 4x CD-ROM drive. The game sports multiplayer capabilities and has been developed for kids ages 10 and up. It costs about $20.