Where in the U.S.A. Is Carmen Sandiego? (1996)

Where in the U.S.A. Is Carmen Sandiego?
The former box cover artwork of the game. It was redesigned when Broderbund was sold to The Learning Company in 1999
Developer(s)	Brøderbund
Publisher(s)	Brøderbund
Distributor(s)	The Learning Company
Series	Carmen Sandiego
Platform(s)	Windows, Mac OS
Release date(s)	1996
Genre(s)	Educational
Mode(s)	Single-player
Distribution	Optical disc

The remake version of Where in the U.S.A. Is Carmen Sandiego? was released in 1996 by Windows and Macintosh and features Lynne Thigpen playing "The Chief" from the World game show. The game's opening credits finds Carmen arriving in her underground V.I.L.E. outpost in Washington, D.C., as she and RoboCrook plans to steal America's greatest treasure. Carmen later contacts each of her 39 V.I.L.E. operatives telling them to begin their missions.

The Deluxe Edition released in 1998 (also sometimes subtitled as "version 3.5") added an "ACME Global Language Link-Up" satellite which quizzed the user on facts about the current state they were visiting.

The Chase

After receiving enough clues to where the thief went, the player may choose the next location on the map and travel to the next state.

Unlike in the previous games, the image of the locations took up most the screen, with the game options only taking up the bottom third of the screen. Each location had an elaborately painted backdrop that could be scrolled around a full three hundred and sixty degrees. Each location provided clues in the form of several bystanders and scraps of paper lying on the ground. The scraps of paper exclusively provided clues about the suspect's appearance.

The warrant and the arrest

Another change is that the user is not given dossiers describing the members of V.I.L.E. and that all the clues given about the suspect are physical traits, enabling the user to identify the crook on sight. This means that the user will have to compile a full warrant rather than one of just enough traits to distinguish which crook is responsible. In the final destination, the crook is seen walking around the location with several innocent bystanders, meaning the user will have to use the warrant to identify which person is the criminal. The crook's name is only given after the arrest, in which a newspaper (U.S.A. Someday) appears with a headline declaring the criminal has been captured. If the person arrested does not match the warrant, they will be found innocent and released just as they would if the warrant were inaccurate or not issued. Eight of the thirty-nine crooks captured over the course of the game each provided a single line of verse. These eight verses, once pieced together, created a part of Carmen's letter to RoboCrook:

Dear RoboCrook,

Soon we'll pull off the perfect theft-

A scheme of grand design.

The greatest treasure in the states

will very soon be mine!

When we convene for our exchange,

Don't get caught by surprise.

Be sure you don't forget

That I'm a mistress of disguise.

I've made myself look shorter

And that's harder than it sounds.

I've transformed my slender size

By putting on some pounds.

An apron's tied around my waist.

My slippers hide no socks.

Underneath my red bandana

Lies a wig of golden locks.

Signed, Carmen Sandiego

Upon returning to Washington, D.C. on the final case, the Chief calls to inform the user that the thief is Carmen Sandiego and because that Carmen is a master of disguise, she will not look anything like what the user would expect. The user must find the person who matches the description in Carmen's letter to RoboCrook. If the right character is arrest, she will shed her disguise, revealing her true identity as Carmen, who will escape along with RoboCrook in a drilling machine made out of the spare parts he has been trafficking throughout the game. The user and all the seven Good Guides pursue Carmen and RoboCrook down the tunnel they create and discovering along the way that Carmen steals the Declaration of Independence from the National Archives. The user and the Good Guides pursue Carmen to her underground V.I.L.E. outpost, later revealed to be below the Capitol Building, where the user and the Good Guides eventually manage to disable RoboCrook and trap Carmen in a display case before she can lock away America's greatest treasure. Afterwards, the user is later inducted into the ACME Detective Hall of Fame and retired. If the user accidentally arrests the wrong character, Carmen will escape and breaks three of her henchmen from ACME prison and the user has to arrest them to follow Carmen's trail again.

Characters and animation

Another added feature were the ACME Good Guides, a group of colorful characters who, if called upon, provide information about the United States. If the user calls an ACME Good Guide during a case, that guide will call back later to inform the user whether or not their warrant has any errors. If the user wishes to take tours with the Good Guides and travel to states without the inconvenience of having to track a crook, "explorer mode" is available.

The animation in the game closely imitated the look of traditional animated cartoons. The animations that alert the user that the correct destination has been reached featured either Carmine from Junior Detective Edition, a pair of bumbling janitors named Rick and Nick ICK, or RoboCrook. These animations, as well as the animations that depicted the arrest of the crooks, featured much use of cartoon physics (with cartoon sound effects). Ivan Idea will summon his floating orb that sprouts a large glove that flattens the crook; Herman Nootix will literally throw his book at the crook to trip them; Dee Plomasy will trap the crook with her turban; Renee Santz will play her saxophone, where a musical note will trip the crook; Rock Solid will toss his tree and hit it with his axe, causing the tree to split into several logs that traps the crook; Ann Tickwittee touches her magic lamp to summon a Genie to capture the crook; and Kim Yoonity will give the crook her balloon that causes them to float up and Kim later pops her balloon that causes the crook comes crashing down.

Critical reception

A review by William T. Yates for the website WorldVillage Software Reviews on March 9, 2005 praised the game. The review concluded with "The whole package is well-designed and constructed. The graphics are good as is the sound. And there is no shortage of content, both educational and recreational. In fact, it’s hard to differentiate between the two. Broderbund has done an excellent job and provides you with excellent value". The game was given a rating of 5 globes.^[1]

Allgame said the game "represents a huge leap forward in the Carmen Sandiego series" as it is the first one "presented in more of a graphical format", as opposed to the older games which were largely text-based. It gave the game a rating of 4 stars out of 5.^[2]

A review of the game Where in the USA Is Carmen Sandiego? off TopTenREVIEWS summarised by saying "The interesting facts that are included in Where in the USA Is Carmen Sandiego? are fun and educational for the whole family. It has long since been a favorite of geography students. The software is quite old, but still playable with the right operating system". Whilst stating that "this program specializes in USA facts and material", it continued to say that "it does not have materials for the entire globe". The verdict was that "this is a good product with a lot of great facts about the United States". The game was given an overall rating of 2.5/4 stars.^[3]

List of stolen items

Each of the 50 states (plus Washington, D.C.) has only one item that can be stolen from it.

State	Item Stolen	Good Guide
Alabama	Rocket City	Dee Plomasy
Alaska	The Alaska Oil Pipeline	Ivan Idea
Arizona	The O.K. Corral	Rock Solid
Arkansas	The Dripstone Trail from Blanchard Springs Caverns	Renee Santz
California	Hollywood Walk of Fame	Rock Solid
Colorado	Pikes Peak	Kim Yoonity
Connecticut	All the hour hands from the American Clock & Watch Museum	Renee Santz
Delaware	All the state's certificates of incorporation	Kim Yoonity
Florida	The countdown clock from the Kennedy Space Center	Ivan Idea
Georgia (U.S. state)	The recipe for Coca-Cola	Kim Yoonity
Hawaii	The sand from Waikiki Beach	Ann Tikwitee
Idaho	America's first ski lift from Sun Valley	Rock Solid
Illinois	The recipe for Chicago-style pizza	Renee Santz
Indiana	The checkered flag from the Indy 500	Ivan Idea
Iowa	Field of Dreams	Dee Plomasy
Kansas	The Little House on the Prairie	Rock Solid
Kentucky	Abraham Lincoln's log cabin	Kim Yoonity
Louisiana	The receipt for the Louisiana Purchase	Herman Nootix
Maine	Every lobster bib in the state	Ivan Idea
Maryland	The Mason-Dixon Line	Dee Plomasy
Massachusetts	All the socks from the Boston Red Sox	Herman Nootix
Michigan	The hand crank from Henry Ford's first Model-T	Ivan Idea
Minnesota	The Mall of America	Renee Santz
Mississippi	The paddle wheel from the Delta Queen riverboat	Renee Santz
Missouri	The head of the Oregon Trail	Renee Santz
Montana	The Continental Divide	Rock Solid
Nebraska	Chimney Rock	Ivan Idea
Nevada	Hoover Dam's drain plug	Kim Yoonity
New Hampshire	All the ballot boxes from the presidential primary	Herman Nootix
New Jersey	The Jersey Turnpike	Ivan Idea
New Mexico	The Bottomless Pit from Carlsbad Caverns National Park	Ann Tikwitee
New York	The electronic billboard from Times Square	Kim Yoonity
North Carolina	The Wright Brothers' runway from Kitty Hawk	Herman Nootix
North Dakota	The entire town of Rugby	Herman Nootix
Ohio	The Pro Football Hall of Fame	Herman Nootix
Oklahoma	John Wayne's boots from the National Cowboy Hall of Fame	Ann Tikwitee
Oregon	All the water from Crater Lake	Rock Solid
Pennsylvania	Valley Forge	Ann Tikwitee
Rhode Island	The Breakers	Renee Santz
South Carolina	The flag pole from Fort Sumter	Herman Nootix
South Dakota	The Mitchell Corn Palace	Ivan Idea
Tennessee	The gates to Graceland	Renee Santz
Texas	The Dallas Cowboys' playbook	Ann Tikwitee
Utah	The organ from the Mormon Tabernacle Choir	Rock Solid
Vermont	All the maple syrup in the state	Kim Yoonity
Virginia	Monticello	Dee Plomasy
Washington	The Space Needle	Kim Yoonity
Washington, D.C.	The card catalog from the Library of Congress	Dee Plomasy
West Virginia	Seneca Rocks	Dee Plomasy
Wisconsin	The recipe for sharp cheddar cheese	Rock Solid
Wyoming	The schedule for Old Faithful	Rock Solid

V.I.L.E. Villains

The V.I.L.E. agents the player runs into are the following:

Quotes

Luke N. Ferloot: You may have netted me, but my money is still on Carmen Sandiego!

Perry Syte: Rats, I've been caught! I guess this time I bit off more than I could chew.

Ann Arky: I tried to be unpredictable, but you found me out anyway!

Paul Lution: Curses! All my foul plans have gone up in smoke!

Dan Gerous: I'm all yours, flatfoot; but they haven't built a hoosegow yet that can hold me!

Tim Tation: Drat! I couldn't resist one more crime, and now I'm going to do some time!

Kat Astrophic: Oh, this is a disaster! But Carmen will move much faster.

Boone Doggle: Catching me was a tall order, but you made short work of it!

Bob Sled: I thought I pulled a snow job on you, but you put me on ice!

Noah Clue: I thought I could relax, but you uncovered my tracks!

Joy Ryder: Just when my plans rolled into high gear, you come along and stall my engines!

Rhonda Voo: Curses, I've been caught! I didn't expect to meet you here.

Beau Zoe: I've been spied! I don't suppose it would help to say I was just clowning around…

Billy Flop: Darn! You got the drop on me before I could make my big splash!

Cora Spondent: I guess the writing's on the wall. I hope I get letters in jail!

Dee Linquent: I can't believe you found me! I suppose it's too late for a plea bargain…

Buzz Word: You found me?! I'm speechless! I guess you got the last word in.

Hope Less: Oh, my! I didn't expect you to catch up with me! Relish your victory while you can…

Emma Welcher: I'm caught! I knew I should've stolen away when I had the chance…

Gil Tee: Go ahead and take me in, but Carmen is still gonna win!

Carrie Kature: Oh, no--I've been caught! I guess it's back to the drawing board…

Diane Toshop: I have to give you credit for catching me, but Carmen will still make out like a bandit!

Ivana B. Rich: You may have me over a barrel, but I'm bankin' on Carmen to roll me back to freedom!

Ben E. Ficiary: Oh, dear! Pardon me, but is there any chance they'll pardon me?

Deb O'Nare: My word! You may be smiling now, but Carmen will have the last laugh!

Buck Aneer: I thought this would be smooth sailing, till you lowered the boom on me!

Charlie Horse: Don't expect me to congratulate you for catching me. I'm a sore loser!

Rob Burr: You've won this match, but Carmen Sandiego is way out of your league!

Bee Smirch: Go ahead and read me my rights, but you'll never get Carmen in your sights!

Belle Igerent: You may have pulled the rug out from under me, but Carmen's plans will still floor ya!

Where in America is Carmen Sandiego?: The Great Amtrak Train Adventure

This was a cross-promotional version of the game which featured Amtrak's logo on the travel map, among other things.^[4] It was released in 1998. A Travel Weekly article explained: "Amtrak said its version of the [game], [would] help drive family sales to agencies. The special spring fares [were] valid for sites highlighted in the game...Travel agents [could] offer their clients coupons to purchase the game for $7.95 plus tax, which is $2 off the advertised price."^[5]

Where in the USA is Carmen Sandiego? School Version

In 2004, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt released a school edition of this game. The new version included "the "State-A-Base", an electronic database filled with essays, maps, music, color photos, and video clips that can be searched by key word". Also, all the data within the program was updated to 2004; the game could be supported on Windows XP, Windows 2000 and Mac OS X; 50 printable state outline maps were provided, which could be used in classrooms; and a Full Install Option which allowed teachers install and run the software without the CD. The "Teacher's Resource CD-ROM" included a comprehensive user's guide, 19 lesson plans, tutorials, blackline masters, and an annotated bibliography of resources.^[6]

References