Bologna New Media Prize Goes to Zoombini Island Odyssey

Zoombinis Island Odyssey, the most recent addition to the immensely popular Zoombinis series of games, was awarded the prestigious 2003 Bologna New Media Prize at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in Italy on April 2. The prize, awarded each year to outstanding interactive media for children, honored three products out of 500 submissions from 12 countries. Zoombinis Island Odyssey, designed by TERCworks and published by Riverdeep/The Learning Company was the only English-language product among the winners.

In announcing the award, the international panel of judges praised the way Island Odyssey combines entertainment with serious learning, saying "Original, funny characters combine with compelling logic puzzles to make this program both educational and addictive. Children guide little creatures to safety by using scientific methodology, including observation, data collection and deduction. The introduction of ecological concepts is effortless and witty, and the graphics are wonderful."

Accepting the New Media Prize at the Bologna Children's Book Fair are Zoombinis designer Scot Osterweil (l.) of TERCworks, and Eric Stone, Vice President of Riverdeep/The Learning Company.

Zoombinis Island Odyssey was released late in 2002. Like the first two games in the series, Zoombinis Logical Journey and Zoombinis Mountain Rescue, Island Odyssey is designed for players ages 8 and up. The previous games were released in 1997 and 2001 and have been translated into five languages. To date, the series has sold over 1.6 million copies in the US and abroad.

Said Zoombinis designer Scot Osterweil, "The reception the Zoombinis have received here and abroad has been very gratifying. It is particularly exciting to be honored in this way by our peers worldwide. Computer games at their best can be art, entertainment and education. We hope our efforts help advance the promise of this media."

The Bologna New Media Prize was established in 1997 to encourage excellence and innovation in interactive electronic products for children on an international level. The prize is open to all commercially available software (including Internet sites) for children ages 2 to 15 except video games or shareware.