''Jenny's Journeys'' is an educational video game published in 1984 by MECC for the

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 ...

. From a first-person view, players use a compass and a map to navigate a car containing the

protagonist A protagonist () is the main character of a story. The protagonist makes key decisions that affect the plot, primarily influencing the story and propelling it forward, and is often the character who faces the most significant obstacles. If a st ...

, ''Jenny'', through a pixelated town. The player, acting as Jenny, provides directions at each intersection while the car's owner, 'Aunt Jenny', rides along. The objective of the game is to successfully travel from point to point while using the map. There are three levels of difficulty.

Production

The Minnesota Educational Computing Consortium ( MECC) entered the software market in the mid-1980s with a variety of titles, including ''Jenny's Journeys'' in 1984. MECC developed ''Jenny's Journeys'' to provide a real-world and practical platform. This platform is for children aged 10 and above, and it teaches them how to use and apply map reading skills. MECC ended operations in 1999.

Plot

''Jenny's Journeys'' takes place in the fictional town of Lake City. Players control Jenny, the protagonist of the game, while being accompanied by 'Aunt Jenny'. Players can access Aunt Jenny's car to drive around Lake City, transport non-player characters ( NPCs), and input street intersections to receive directions while referencing the map. Players are challenged to identify their location on a map based on their surroundings, identify a destination from an address, and plot a route across town while managing their gas. On the hardest difficulty, there are multiple stops and occasional detours.

Educational purpose and critical reception

''Jenny's Journeys'' was used in schools to teach children about maps. ''Curriculum Review'' wrote that the game has a "sound educational purpose and an efficient method of operation." ''

Creative Computing ''Creative Computing'' was one of the earliest magazines covering the microcomputer revolution. Published from October 1974 until December 1985, the magazine covered the spectrum of hobbyist/home/personal computing in a more accessible format th ...

'' noted that the game "reinforced map reading and cognitive skills." ''Educational resources for Microcomputers'' stated that the game makes good use of the

computer A computer is a machine that can be programmed to Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (computation) automatically. Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic sets of operations known as C ...

's ability to create simulations. However, in the January 1989 edition of ''Computers, Thinking, and Social Studies'', the education writer, Gene Edward Rooze, asserted that the game was inappropriate for social studies classes.

References

{{reflist

External links

''Jenny's Journeys''
at Moby Games
What's the call on CALL? - St. Andrew's University

Electronic Learning, Volume 4
1984 video games Educational video games Apple II-only games Apple II games MECC games