5 stars (Colorful, unique & fun play areas!) ...

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This CD-ROM may end up being your child's best friend as he or she uses puppy power to devour bones, rescue fellow pups, and ultimately defeat the woman dogs love to hate, Cruella De Vil. Cruella is about to go bankrupt because her new line of toys has failed miserably: kids would rather play with their pets than Cruella's creations. So she reprograms her toys, transforming them from heaps of shiny junk into robot pet-nappers. Kids can assume the identity of Domino, a boy pup, or Oddball, a spot-free girl Dalmatian puppy, and set out to rescue fellow puppies. The puppies are stashed in crates in 16 locations that are increasingly difficult to navigate: when pups--er, kids--collect enough bones, rescue enough puppies, and stay away from Cruella's minions successfully, they move up a level of play and on to a different location. A toy store, the inside of Big Ben, and Piccadilly Circus are just a few of the places that must be thoroughly sniffed around before completing the game's big goal: a battle with Cruella herself. Other critters bearing clues, buried treasures, slick surfaces, and additional opportunities to solve problems make Puppies to the Rescue a real tail-wagger. There are mini-games hidden within some levels that can be accessed separately, a sticker book that kids can piece together as they collect stickers on their puppy quest, and animated sequences that reward problem-solving and move the plot forward. The cute-as-heck puppy actions will please parents who prefer no violence; kids can make the pups run, jump, sniff, dig, and tumble, but the most destructive weapon these pups have is their toy-destroying bark. This CD-ROM is Windows only, and movement through the program is by keyboard or game pad; thankfully, the keying is more intuitive than some of Disney's other recent offerings. And unlike some movie tie-ins, this spot-on game does justice to Disney's beloved Dalmatian franchise. (Ages 8 and older) --Anne Erickson

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