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Giant Trouble
Publisher: Skyreader Media

Giant Trouble is an easy read for iPad that will appeal to a broad age range, thanks to its "Read to me" option and comic-book styling. If you've spent any time reading comics on the iPad, you know the device is superbly equipped to display them, but Giant Trouble doesn't use the frame-by-frame convention common in readers like Comixology. You view the book one page at a time, and some panels are interactive. Brief animation or sound effects make the experience more engaging for readers, without breaking away from the written word or turning the book into an outright game. We've seen some interesting adaptations that do use game mechanics to good effect, but it would be easy to tip the scales too far, especially in the eyes of parents looking for their kids to spend more time reading than playing games.

You may have heard the tale behind Giant Trouble before. It revolves around a real-world place called the Giant's Causeway, that is imbued with special qualities in Irish folklore. Giants notwithstanding, the causeway appears to be the result of volcanic activity, but it does have the appearance of a man- (or Giant) made bridge. The story beyond its construction goes into the battle between two giants, and how intelligence and trickery can overcome brute force. Giant Trouble isn't exactly a non-violent parable, but it does illustrate how keeping a cool head in the face of impossible odds can help. It also makes for a fun story with kids who will appreciate the underdog aspect of Giant Trouble; it's the same feeling one gets while cheering for Jerry against Tom, or Roadrunner against Wiley Coyote...

The price is right at one dollar, considering how brief the experience is for all but the earliest readers. A few add-ons that would greatly elevate Giant Trouble are more interactivity or game elements, and more historical context. Linking to Wikipedia content around the actual location this story is depicting seems easy enough, or at least to have offered a few pages explaining the legend of the place... Similarly, there are lots of ideas for simple games buried in the story that could have been teased out and developed. We've read enough interactive books with kids to know that this is actually a fairly common practice now, so Giant Trouble may leave your little ones looking for more. Considering the extended library Skyreader Media is building for iPad, that may not be a hard wish to grant.



-Fridtjof, GameVortex Communications
AKA Matt Paddock
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