The Arithmemouse Addition Subtraction Game Review

Of all the addition subtraction games that I have tried Tinman Learning's "The Arithmemouse Addition Subtraction Game" is one of the best. Why? I'll just jump into my bullet point lists.

What I like:

Designed to challenge younger and older children by providing ones & ones, ones & tens and tens & tens questions.

Designed to appeal to boys and girls. Players can select to be Arithmemouse, Aggy or Toby.

Random questions.

Intuitive gameplay.

Encouraging feedback along the way.

Timed questions. (Players can't stop.)

Free demo.

Column method tutorials.

Affordable price. Check the site for the current price.

What I didn't like:

Tutorials need a little polish. They are accurate, but younger players will need some help here. But even with more polish, I imagine you can't expect a program to do everything. Just read the tutorials to your child to help them better understand the material. The column or "borrowing" method can get challenging.

I like the flying on surfboards, but I think my son likes running about on foot better-- like in the game Arithmemouse Times Tables.

Times Tables Warp Review

Tinman Learning also makes a game called Times Tables warp which is a multiplication game that works on Macs and Mac mobile devices including iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad1 and iPad 2. Links for both games can be found here:

Times Tables Warp Apple Desktop and Laptop Version
Times Tables Warp Apple Mobile, iPad,iPod Touch,iPhone

It is a good multiplication game that teaches times facts 1-12. It follows the same pattern as Arithmemouse Times Tables, but appears to be designed to appeal to older players adding two new characters. (Both appear to be robots as well, Toby and Aggy.) In this game, the player finds himself or herself flying on space surf boards gliding towards times tables questions with several multiple choice answers. The player selects the right answer by flying into it. Space debris provides a small game element. Children can select to blow up the debris or ignore it. For the mobile version, the child simply tilts the iDevice left and right and forward and back to move the character.

What I like:

Arcade skills come second to learning.

No life meters.

Feed back feature. At the end of each level there is a review of level performance that does not discourage the player.

Timed test. (Because you can't stop on your way to select an answer, the tests are timed.)

Characters that appeal to young and old, boys and girls.

Intuitive controls.

Great music.

What I don't like:

I wish the file size were a bit smaller, but that's the way it goes. Better games require bigger size to download. You need to connect to wifi to download this one. Do it, it's worth it.