ClueFinders is an educational software series aimed at children aged 8–12 that features a group of mystery-solving teenagers. The series was created by The Learning Company (formerly SoftKey) as a counterpart to their Reader Rabbit series for older, elementary-aged students. The series has received praise for its balance of education and entertainment, resulting in numerous awards.
History
The Learning Company (1997–2001) ClueFinders was conceived as a spiritual successor to the Reader Rabbit series. The first ClueFinders title, The ClueFinders 3rd Grade Adventures: The Mystery of Mathra, was released in 1998, and The ClueFinders 4th Grade Adventures was released in 2000. The Learning Company used their new game as the prototype for Internet Applet technology, which allowed users to download supplementary activities from the ClueFinders website. The ClueFinders 4th Grade Adventures was also the first game to include the A.D.A.P.T. technology, which allowed teachers and parents to monitor the player's progress and included auto-adjustable levels based on the player's abilities.
In 1998, The Learning Company was acquired by Mattel for $3.7 billion. The following year, Mattel sold off their "The Learning Company" assets to Gores Technology Group. In 2000, Mattel Interactive hired professional writers Jill Gorey and Barbara Herndon to design a concept for a TV series, but the franchise never made its way to television. The ClueFinders Reading Adventures was discontinued in 2000. ClueFinders held a writing competition in 2001. Sponsored by The Learning Company, the competition was open to 3rd-6th grade classrooms in the United States. The winning essay, a new adventure for the ClueFinders crew, won its writer an iMac.
Riverdeep/HMH (2001–present) In 2001, Riverdeep acquired many of The Learning Company's properties from Gores Technology Group by selling $40 million in stock. Carmen Sandiego, ClueFinders, and Reader Rabbit were then licensed to the KidsEdge Website in 2002, where they were available to play among 170 games and activities. In 2003, The ClueFinders' Reading Adventures was reconfigured to run on Windows XP. The 2004 RCN InterACTION service allowed parents to stream over 35 games in series such as Carmen Sandiego, Clifford the Big Red Dog and ClueFinders over a broadband connection. Compilations of multiple previously released titles were added, such as ClueFinders Adventure Pack and ClueFinders Triple Pack. These bundle often include a single ClueFinders title (often "The ClueFinders Reading Adventures") along with other games (but mostly The Learning Company games), such as "Adventure Workshop" or "After School Clubhouse." In addition, the 3rd–6th grade titles were re-released on the iOS platform on December 19, 2010. As of 2017, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (the successor of Riverdeep) is offering the ClueFinders brand as a licensing opportunity on its website.
Design
Plot
Development of the games' backstory took 16 months. The ClueFinders adventures take place in the real contemporary world, incorporating some elements of fantasy and science fiction.
The main cast of characters include: Joni Savage (Josie Savage in UK version): ClueFinders founder Santiago Rivera (Sebastian Robertson in UK version): The Spanish-American mechanically-minded member Owen Lam: The Asian-American skater dude member Leslie Clark (Lucy Clark in UK version): The African-American literary-minded member LapTrap, The Turbo T.U.R.T.L.E.: The floating artificially intelligent laptop Socrates: The intelligent dog and mascot They were chosen to be around the same age as their player base after the art director ran various character designs by a group of kids. Some of the unsuccessful designs included animals, rock stars, and FBI agents, which the kids perceived as babysitters instead of teammates. Each character was designed with a distinct personality and identifiable faults to increase their relatability. The developers used a character grid to aid their writing, which contained information such as: "their flaws, their fears, how they met, where they grew up, and their likely reactions to certain situations."