''Number Munchers'' is a 1986 video game and a spin-off to the title ''
Word Munchers''. It was made by
MECC
The Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium (later Corporation), most commonly known as MECC, was an organization founded in 1971 best known for developing the edutainment video game series ''The Oregon Trail (series), The Oregon Trail'' and i ...
for
Apple II
The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...
, then ported to
DOS
DOS is shorthand for the MS-DOS and IBM PC DOS family of operating systems.
DOS may also refer to:
Computing
* Data over signalling (DoS), multiplexing data onto a signalling channel
* Denial-of-service attack (DoS), an attack on a communicat ...
and
Macintosh
The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and ...
in 1990. The concept of the game was designed by R. Philip Bouchard, who also designed
''The Oregon Trail''. Two versions of the game were released being the Consumer Version (for home use) and the School Version (for classrooms). After
The Learning Company
The Learning Company (TLC) was an educational software company founded in 1980 in Palo Alto, California and headquartered in Fremont, California. The company produced a grade-based line of learning software, edutainment games, and productivity ...
acquired MECC, the game was rebranded as "Math Munchers".
Gameplay
The player controls the muncher who must move around a grid and munch on numbers that match the logic rule above, while avoiding the threatening troggles. As the player progresses the levels, the logic rules have bigger numbers and harder difficulty and multiple troggles pursue the muncher.
Modes of play
There are five different modes of play in Number Munchers to advance players' mathematical skills. These modes include Multiples, Factors, Primes, Equalities, and Inequalities:
* Multiples - the objective is to find multiples of the number given. If presented a 3, one would select numbers like 3, 6, 9, 12, etc.
* Factors - the objective is to find factors divisible by the number given. If the number is 12, one would choose to eat 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 12.
* Primes - this mode helps players find prime numbers that are only divisible by 1 and themselves. e.g., 2, 3, 5, 7, 11, 13.
* Equality - this mode gives players the chance to find equations equaling the current number. If given the number 6, one would 'munch' 3 x 2, 3 + 3, 12 / 2, and so on.
* Inequality - this mode gives players the number and they must select the equations that DO NOT equal the current number. If given 6, one would eat equations such as 4 X 2, 18 / 9, and 3 + 5.
Troggles
The Troggles are
monsters
A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...
with two legs and a large head, whose goal is to eat Muncher and/or disrupt his progress by rearranging things on the board. Levels 1, 2, and 3, contain only one Troggle on the grid at any given time. A second Troggle appears starting with level 4, and a third appears starting with level 8. After approximately level 18, the game (especially the movement of the Troggles) accelerates to make responsible munching more difficult.
There are several type of "Troggles". Each type of Troggle moves in a specific pattern. There are five
species
In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...
of Troggle, each of which has an English and a mock-Latin (
binomial
Binomial may refer to:
In mathematics
*Binomial (polynomial), a polynomial with two terms
* Binomial coefficient, numbers appearing in the expansions of powers of binomials
*Binomial QMF, a perfect-reconstruction orthogonal wavelet decomposition
...
) name:
* Reggies (''Trogglus normalus'') (magenta on Apple II, red in DOS, purple on Macintosh) - simply moves in a line unless redirected by a safety square in its path.
* Bashfuls (''Trogglus timidus'') (green on Apple II, blue in DOS, pink on Macintosh) - moves in an arbitrary manner on the gameboard, unless approached by a Muncher, in which case he moves away from the Muncher. It became purple in later releases in the series.
* Helpers (''Trogglus assistus'') (green on Apple II and DOS, magenta on Macintosh) - this
ant
Ants are eusocial insects of the family Formicidae and, along with the related wasps and bees, belong to the order Hymenoptera. Ants evolved from vespoid wasp ancestors in the Cretaceous period. More than 13,800 of an estimated total of 22 ...
-like Troggle eats all answers, leaving nothing behind. It became purple in later releases in the series.
* Workers (''Trogglus laborus'') (purple and white on Apple II and DOS, magenta and white on Macintosh) - this Troggle adds new answers and/or changes existing answers as he moves around.
* Smarties (''Trogglus smarticus'') (green on Apple II and Macintosh, yellow on DOS) - has large teeth and glasses, and the most difficult Troggle to avoid; always follows the Muncher on the board.
Safety squares occasionally appear to help protect Muncher from the Troggles. These are temporary havens identified by four small white rectangles on the corner of the square. No Troggle may enter a safety square; if one appears on a square a Troggle currently occupies, that Troggle dies (but may be replaced afterwards). Safety squares may disappear as quickly and randomly as they appear; hence, one must take caution not to remain in one for long.
In addition, Troggles are quite cannibalistic; if one Troggle enters a square already occupied by another, or if two of them enter one square at the same time (even if they are of the same species), one Troggle will eat the other, although another Troggle may re-enter the board afterwards.
Levels
Players can choose from the five modes of play, or choose a "challenge" mode, which randomizes these modes. In the Multiples mode, Muncher must munch all numbers which are multiples of the number given; for example, if the designated number is 3 then Muncher must eat all 6's, 9's, and 12's and avoid numbers such as 7. In Factors the muncher seeks to ingest the factors of a given number, in Primes he craves prime numbers, and in the Equality and Inequality modes the muncher devours expressions such as 2+4 which are equivalent or not equivalent (respectively) to the designated number.
Game play begins with four Muncher lives (the one currently in play, plus three others in reserve). After scoring a certain number of points, the player gains an extra life. Players lose a life if they munch an incorrect answer. Additionally, five different types of enemy (or "Troggle") appear throughout the game. Players lose a life if they make contact with a Troggle.
Cutscenes
As in the other games in the series, a player is awarded with a cutscene (reminiscent of
Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner escapades) after every third level; in this game, these are dubbed as "Great Moments in Muncher History". While these scenes are numbered (Act 1, Act 2, etc.), the order they appear in varies from game to game. Once all six have been shown, they begin to repeat themselves (starting with the scene after Level 21). The six scenes are as follows:
* A Muncher is chased by a Reggie across the screen twice, then the Muncher gets in an old-timey automobile, outruns the Troggle, and the Troggle falls down and gives up.
* Two Munchers reenact the story of
William Tell
William Tell (german: Wilhelm Tell, ; french: Guillaume Tell; it, Guglielmo Tell; rm, Guglielm Tell) is a folk hero of Switzerland.
According to the legend, Tell was an expert mountain climber and marksman with a crossbow who assassinated Albr ...
.
* A Muncher races a Bashful up a mountain, plants his flag, and sings a song (Ding Dong! the Witch is Dead).
* A Muncher
prank-calls a Smartie and sings the
nyah-nyah taunting melody.
* A Muncher beats two Troggles in a beauty contest. Later releases of the game replaced this cut scene with one in which a Muncher stumbles through his house in the dark and then turns on the light, only to discover that he has broken all of his furniture.
* A Muncher carves his own image into
Mount Rushmore
Mount Rushmore National Memorial is a national memorial centered on a colossal sculpture carved into the granite face of Mount Rushmore (Lakota: ''Tȟuŋkášila Šákpe'', or Six Grandfathers) in the Black Hills near Keystone, South Dakota ...
.
Easter egg
As an
Easter egg
Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are decorated for the Christian feast of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are common during the season of Eastertide (Easter season). The oldest tr ...
, between December 1 and
25, the Muncher would wear a
Santa Claus
Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...
hat
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
. This only worked on a computer that had a built-in clock or that was never turned off, as the built-in clock was not common at the time the games were popular.
Educational goals
The game was designed for school and home use for grades four to eight with parental controlled options to set the difficulty level. It teaches multiples, factors, prime numbers, equalities and inequalities. It helped introduce math skills to younger students, while helping older students to reinforce their existing math skill. In addition teachers could have their own copy of the game networked to copies in class to monitor and control them.
It has proven to be attention catching with the ability to train students' hand/eye coordination as well as building up self-esteem and instilling confidence.
Reception
Reviewer Benj Edwards regarded the game as one of the "Top 10 Educational PC Games of the 80s" in ''
PC Magazine
''PC Magazine'' (shortened as ''PCMag'') is an American computer magazine published by Ziff Davis. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009. Publication of online editions started in late 1994 and have continued to the present d ...
'' and one of the "Best 17 Educational Games of the 70s, 80s and 90s" in ''
PC World
''PC World'' (stylized as PCWorld) is a global computer magazine published monthly by IDG. Since 2013, it has been an online only publication.
It offers advice on various aspects of PCs and related items, the Internet, and other personal tech ...
''. The number munching was commonly compared to a ''
Pac-Man
originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...
'' game. ''
GamesRadar+
''GamesRadar+'' (formerly ''GamesRadar'') is an entertainment website for video game-related news, previews, and reviews. It is owned by Future plc. In late 2014, Future Publishing-owned sites ''Total Film'', '' SFX'', ''Edge'' and '' Computer ...
'' praised the game for its cartoony graphics and a viable way to make math fun. It was considered both an award-winner and best-seller from ''Parents' Choice'', ''InCider Magazine'' and ''Media & Methods''.
References
External links
Official website* {{moby game, id=/number-munchers
1986 video games
Apple II games
Children's educational video games
DOS games
Classic Mac OS games
Mathematical education video games
Single-player video games
Video games about food and drink
Video games developed in the United States