Bioscopia is a game that is set in a futuristic laboratory in a remote, mountainous location. Scientists who preceded your arrival created intelligent robots to help them with their work. As is often the case, evil reared it's ugly head and instead of cheap labor, the robots turned rogue and began to overpower their creators. In order to stop them, the power source of the facility and of course, the power source of the robots was interrupted by the lone surviving scientist with his last bit of energy. Years later, a young, curious female scientist searches for and finds Bioscopia. Unaware of the dangers that lurk there, she revives the robots and is held captive there. Facing certain doom, your job is to go get her, save her and discover Bioscopia's intriguing secrets. Along the way, you have to gather items and answer questions about a variety of biology related subjects (See Figure 1) in order to gain access to the areas and items you will need to help you achieve your quest and reach your goal of saving the scientist/damsel in distress. 

The program requirements are for a Windows 95, 98, NT, Me, 2000 or XP operating system running on a Pentium II-233 MHz CPU or better system with 64 MB of RAM, 120 MB of hard drive space, an SVGA 32-bit graphics card, a sound card and an 8X speed CD-ROM drive. In addition, you will need to have Quicktime 4.0 installed on your system and if you do not have it, it comes ready to be installed from the Bioscopia installation CD. If you can't figure things out in this game, there is a help file installed on the first (installation) Bioscopia CD. This is a two CD set with the first CD being used during installation and the second CD being required for the actual playing of the game. 

What I liked about this game was the relative simplicity in the actual playing of the game. Perhaps this would be a drawback to extremely advanced gamers who crave unrelenting action. The game is challenging in that you have to use your knowledge of a variety of biological topics to earn the materials you will need to advance in the game. Some are puzzles, some are multiple choice questions and at various points in the game, you have to answer a certain number of these in order to charge your key card which allows you entry into locked doors and gates inside the facility. In short, it falls in the category of edutainment, but it really does have a learning atmosphere ingrained into the game player's progression through the game scenario. This would be an ideal game for a student or even a classroom interested in developing and increasing their understanding of biological concepts. It seemed to me that the questions were written well and relevant to the late elementary, middle or high school biology student. This game not only fits into the edutainment category but fits into the adventure game category, as well. 

I enjoyed the graphics, which I thought captured the ambience of a long-abandoned futuristic research facility. The sounds included in the game were also very good. Although I don't play games extensively, I do enjoy them now and then. One thing that irritates me is the constant music that gets so boring and bothersome in some games. The same tune over and over and over, yuck! This game does not subject you to that. In fact, at your pleasure, you can even turn off the voice of the narrator. There is a volume slider bar built into the game control panel which lets you adjust the volume to your liking within the game. 

The game itself has many different rooms, departments or areas that you need to explore and investigate in order to proceed through to your final destination. After you have avoided the dangers, completed your exploration and visited the vast array of Bioscopia's environs, there is a final puzzle which . . . well, I refuse to give away the ending, but suffice it to say, it is a satisfying experience. 

Bioscopia is rated E for everyone by the ESRB content rating on the box, so it is safe for children. This game/adventure receives my highest educational and fun recommendation. It is a real winner in the adventure and edutainment categories. Bioscopia is available online at tivola.com and the price is $19.99. I also saw it advertised for $16.99 at Amazon. Although I was unable to find it in local retail stores, you may want to check for yourself.