| Jirbo, Inc. (all apps) |
| Memory Match (free) (Age 3+) | |||||||||||
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| Memory Match : Child Development Edition (Age 3+) | |||||||||||
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Big-T (3yo boy) loves jigsaw puzzle games, so I went searching for a memory match game and found this app by Jirbo Inc. Its really nicely done. Big-T loves it, frequently sitting down with Mum or Dad to take turns playing together.
Note the free version has advertisements in it. There is a paid version as well without advertisements. I must say that if you like the free version, maybe you should considering purchasing the paid version (its not that expensive) to encourage Jirbo to make more quality games like this for children.
The Application
On startup you are shown a screen full of “cards” with “J” on the back. You then touch two cards to flip the cards and expose the images. If they are the same, its a match and they stay visible. If not, they hide again and you try again. You keep playing until all matches are found.
The Good
- Clean, simple user interface.
- What it does it does well. For example, when you get a matching pair, you get a nice little sound effect and animation around the two images. Not over the top, but nicely done.
- It feels like the randomizer puts similar cards generally close to each other (I could be wrong). I consider this a good thing as it makes it easier to play for young children. I think a bit of a challenge that can be mastered is better than a harder challenge that frustrates.
- Compared to a the physical box game you might buy at the shopts, you don’t have to manually shuffle real cards to start a new game (instant setup time) and you don’t have to clean up afterwards. However some may consider sitting down with physical activity to be better overall.
The Bad
Very minor negative comments – I struggled to come up with any really.
- The images are all cartoon images of faces. Nothing wrong with this, but other images might have delivered greater educational value.
- It proves Big-T has a better memory than Mum and Dad. Hrmph!
Educational Value
The more you practice remembering things, the better you get. More neurons get created in your brain. So while memory matching games such as this do not teach concepts, they do help develop brain capacity. So I have given it a higher end score.
My Score
4.5 stars. I give it a high quality score because of the minimalistic user interface design (nice and simple), but what it does do it does well (e.g. good quality sound effects and animation when you get a match). Its currently a favorite for Big-T (and has been for a little while now). Educational value I score a little lower because it only does so much – exercises the memory. It does not teach anything with the images for example.
Get it in iTunes
More information, screen shots, and user reviews can be found in the iTunes store.
Other Suggestions
- Matching: Elephant Song, Preschool Adventure, Shape Builder – the Preschool Learning Puzzle Game, ABC Match, iPushFit Jigsaw, Animal SNAP!
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