Zoombinis Mountain Rescue
| Zoombinis Mountain Rescue | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Developer(s) | The Learning Company |
| Publisher(s) | The Learning Company |
| Engine | Proprietary/Custom |
| Platform(s) | Microsoft Windows, OS X |
| Release date(s) | Microsoft Windows
|
| Genre(s) | Educational, puzzle |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
| Distribution | CD-ROM |
Zoombinis Mountain Rescue is an educational puzzle computer game developed and published by The Learning Company.
Story
After the foundation of Zoombiniville, the Zoombinis find peace once more, until a small group of them get trapped inside a cave seeking shelter from a storm. They meet up with strange creatures called Boolies who occupy a city known as Booliewood. As a result of the storm, the Boolies have been scattered across the land, and their leader, the Grand Boolie Boolie, has disappeared. The goal of the game is to recruit a total of 400 Boolies to Booliewood to resurrect the Grand Boolie Boolie.
After they have all returned, the Mighty Boolie Boolie returns and the game ends.
Other puzzles in the game include multi-dimensional movement, rotation puzzles, and several deduction problems, as well as new versions of puzzles from its predecessor.
The graphics have been upgraded in this game and the Zoombinis now use 3D graphics. There are now three difficulty levels for each puzzle instead of four.
The term Boolie is a pun of Boolean, the type of logic used for the characters here. The Boolies are either happy or sad, and can't be both.
Puzzles
Route 1
Turtle Hurdle
The puzzle is fairly similar to the predecessor's puzzle, The Lion's Lair.
Zoombinis must be ordered on 16 turtles by a certain body part. If the wrong zoombini is placed, the turtle will shake the zoombini to the correct turtle, and one of the beams under the dock breaks. If all of them break, the dock collapses, and the leftover zoombinis must return to zoombiniville.
- Not So Easy: Only 1 body part is revealed, shows all clues in order. 3 support beams.
- Oh So Hard: Only 2 clues are shown. 4 support beams.
- Very Hard: A secondary body part is added, only 1 clue for each body part is shown. 6 support beams.
Pipes of Paloo
The puzzle is fairly similar to the predecessor's puzzle, Stone Rise.
Zombinis must be placed on pods next to each other based on the body part shown between the pods. If they match, the pipe's circuit will continue, when the grey pipes turn blue. If you are ready, click the switch. You only get 1 try on this.
- Not So Easy: Pods are arranged into 8 rows, 2 pods on each row.
- Oh So Hard: There is 1 pod that connects to 5 rows, 3 pods on each row.
- Very Hard: There is 1 pod that connects to 3 pods, that also connect to other pods.
Aqua Cube
The zoombinis get trapped in the corners of a hollow cube. One or some of the corners contain fleens, and must be avoided. There is a control panel at the bottom-right that controls the glowing ball. You do not know what lever pushes the glowing ball at what direction. The objective is to move the glowing ball to the zoombinis, while avoiding the fleens. You only get a certain number of moves.
- Not So Easy: There are 8 corners, 6 moves. Every move must save a zoombini group.
- Oh So Hard: Still 8 corners, 6 moves. There is a warp button that allows multiple movements with using only 1 move. During warping, the glowing ball does not pick up any zoombini or fleen unless at the finish. It is not possible to gather all the zoombinis without using the warp button.
- Very Hard: There are 16 corners instead of eight, 11 moves instead of six, and four levers instead of three.
Route 2A
On Routes 2A, 2B and 3, Zoombinis go in groups of 8, unlike 16 in route 1 and all 4 routes in the predecessor.
Beetle Bug Alley
There is a wall of beetles and markers. Use the tablets to arrange the beetles to their markers with the same color. Each tablet moves certain beetles. Once you are ready, flick the switch to open the 4 doors depending on what beetles match their pod, and you will have to solve another puzzle to open the 4 doors again for the zoombinis.
As difficulty increases, there will be more beetles and tablets.
Chez Norf
You must feed all the norfs in the station in order to pass. Click on a norf and it will give you a clue of what they want. Some clue are about other norfs.
- Not So Easy: 4 Norfs, 2 servings: Drink and main dish
- Oh So Hard: 4 Norfs, 3 servings: Drink, main dish, and desert
- Very Hard: 6 Norfs, 3 Servings.
Route 2B
Bubble Bumpers
The puzzle is fairly similar to the predecessor's puzzle, Bubblewonder Abyss, except that bubbles don't pop when zoombinis bump next to each other.
Magic Mirrors
Try and find the real fleen by firing balls into mirrors. It will show how many traits that fleen has in common with the real one. Don't waste your balls or you will have to use zoombinis!
- Not so Easy: 6 mirrors per section
- Oh so Hard: A board of mirrors
- Very Hard: An even bigger board of mirrors and fewer balls to use
Route 3
Snowboard Gulch
Get the zoombinis past the norfs! Pick a zoombini that will go down the slope (tree diagram) depending on its features. Don't hit the norfs!
- Not so Easy: Simple diagram shown
- Oh so Hard: Simple diagram not shown until the end
- Very Hard: Complex diagram not shown until the end
Boolie Boggle
You need to change the sad boolies into happy boolies! Roll the balls to hit the boolie. Based on the binary numbering system, if you hit a sad boolie (zero) it will become happy (one), and if you hit a happy boolie, it will become sad, but its neighbour on the left will become happy.
- Not so Easy: 2 boolies per row. Up to 3 balls at a time
- Oh so Hard: 3 boolies per row. Up to 4 balls at a time
- Very Hard: 4 boolies per row. Up to 5 balls at a time
Booliewood
This is the town where all the happy boolies go to once they are picked up by the zoombinis at the Boolie Boggle. The player must collect more boolies so the mayor, the Grand Boolie Boolie, comes back to town. Once the Grand Boolie Boolie comes back, unlike the predecessor, the player cannot collect anymore zoombinis from Zoombiniville.