Lost. The Monster. Reward: Cuteness.
Do you like cuteness? Do you like monsters? Do you like puzzles?
If you said yes to all three, then do we have the multiplayer game for you! As we reportedearlier, Mind Candy, the crazy developers behind the super-huge alternate reality game Perplex City, have been working on something for the children. Their result is Moshi Monsters, a cross between a Tamagotchi, Brain Age, and sheer attitude.
The picture to the right is Smigglesnuff. Smigglesnuff likes two things: the word "miasma" and choptastic moves. Oh, sure, she enjoys the tickles I give her, but don't mess with her unless you want your face re-arranged. Go visit her if you want to find out for yourself.
Moshi Monsters is sporting a very sophisticated flash engine, and has a wide, wide variety of animations for the monsters you can adopt. They react, they develop personality, and above all, they're funny. To help raise them and earn rox, you have to complete puzzles as fast as you can for 60 seconds, much like your standard brain training game. If you sign up and think it's easy, think again, as the program adjusts its difficulty to match yours.
Moshi Monsters has just entered beta, and it's free to play. Go over, pick up a monster, and enjoy the game. More features will be implemented later, such as clothing for the monsters and more games, but it's already looking very solid and smooth. Perhaps something will finally rival Webkinz and Neopets and be educational to boot?