Where in Space is Carmen Sandiego? is an educational, yet very fun, video game. It’s quite different from the other games in the Carmen series, as gameplay doesn’t take place on Earth. I fell in love with this series with the first game that was released in 1985. “Space” was released in 1993 by Broderbund Software—a software company known for its excellent educational games.
You begin as a rookie detective. The Chief gives you a case to solve. All the info you have to go on is what crime has been committed (usually outrageous in nature) and if the suspect is male or female…or an “it”.
Where in Space is Carmen Sandiego? is an educational, yet very fun, video game. It’s quite different from the other games in the Carmen series, as gameplay doesn’t take place on Earth. I fell in love with this series with the first game that was released in 1985. “Space” was released in 1993 by Broderbund Software—a software company known for its excellent educational games.
You begin as a rookie detective. The Chief gives you a case to solve. All the info you have to go on is what crime has been committed (usually outrageous in nature) and if the suspect is male or female…or an “it”. Since this game takes place in Space, aliens can be your suspects. Be careful how you spend your time, as you have
a deadline, and when that deadline is up, the suspect goes free. Repeating actions or going to wrong locations will waste valuable time.
You use an outer space surveillance craft to travel through space. The VAL 9000 computer provides you with information about the history, science, and mythology of space. You will use that information to determine where the suspect is going next (there are 32 possible locations).
You start the case in the location where the crime was committed. You must question beings from across the universe as to what the suspect looked like (height, hair color), what he/she/it was wearing, or if they had any idea as to what location in space the suspect was going to go next.
Physical information on the thief has to be entered into the warrant file. If you feel you have enough information on the suspect, you need to issue a warrant. You need to have that warrant in hand so when you spot the suspect you can make an arrest. If you didn’t get a warrant in time, then the suspect goes free.
If you think you know where the suspect is headed, you choose from a list of places that you can travel to. Luckily you will soon know if the place you traveled to isn’t where the suspect is, as when you question locals, they won’t have any information for you. If you were able to select the correct location, then you will see a criminal or two dashing about on your screen.
You will achieve a promotion each time you solve a few cases. As your rank goes up, so will the level of difficulty of the cases. When you have apprehended all of Carmen’s henchmen/women/its, then it’s time to go after Carmen. After you arrest her, you won the game and your name is entered into the Hall of Fame.
If you are anywhere near as much of a geography, history, and crime buff as I am, you will get much enjoyment from this game. But don’t just download “Space,” as there are many other Carmen games on this website. They will provide you with hours of hunting down criminals; and at the same time you just might learn something.
