Kodu is a new "game" for the Xbox 360 that is actually a relatively rich game creator, but one that uses only an Xbox controller for programming input.


A demo is free, and a full version of the software costs 400 points. Maybe an Xbox user knows what that means?

According to the Kodu website, the software offers:

• High-level language incorporates real-world primitives: collision, color, vision


• Uses Xbox 360 Game Controller for input - no keyboard required


• Runs on XBox 360 and PC


• Interactive terrain editor


• Bridge and path builder


• Terrain editor - create worlds of arbitrary shape and size


• 20 different characters with different abilities

Chris Wilson has a great early review up on Slate. Here's an excerpt:

Kodu offers enough different commands and characters that can be used to make games within the game. UFOs can be programmed to shoot missiles and dodge enemy combatants at the press of a button, accumulating points toward a "win condition" that ends the game when you reach a certain total. If you want to make a side-scrolling game like Super Mario Bros., you can alter the camera perspective. Equally satisfying, I found, was to build peaceful worlds that change and evolve according to my rules—a digital terrarium in which trees launch glowing fruit and little creatures mingle peacefully and multiply. As you build your world, it becomes increasingly likely you will get strange and unexpected results when all of your rules interact. In my first game, I unwittingly created a never-ending cascade of exploding apples as two of my trees perpetually provoked one another—a fantastic demonstration of the dangers of coding an infinite loop.

I remember coding in Basic on my Texas Instruments Home Computer back in the early '80s, and there was nothing more thrilling than designing insulting Q&As for my little sister to gamely plod through. It's nice to see how far things have come. On the other hand, we've seen a lot of educational toys, board games, and the like all try to help teach the basics of programming, and know that with children of any age (and, increasingly, adults) learning experiences delay gratification at their peril. The question is, how complex is Kodu, and how easily can a child get some reward that will motivate them to really dig deep into this software? If you or your child has played with this, let us know. We'd love to hear your impressions. - Jeremiah

We've been receiving LeapFrog's "deal of the day" emails for the past couple of weeks, and have been watching them get better and better. The ones you see over the next few days are likely to be the deepest discounts they offer for a while.

Today only you can get a Tag Reading System with five books for $83 and free shipping. These five are no slouches: Chicka Chicka Boom Boom (one of the best books to adapt for a pen that will talk about almost anything on the page it's pointed at) plus Fancy Nancy at the Museum, The Little Engine that Could, Click, Clack Moo: Cows That Type, and the immortal Walter the Farting Dog Goes on a Cruise. The set also comes with Ozzie and Mack, the so-so storybook the Tag comes packaged with. At $83 with free shipping, it's a great deal if you've been thinking about getting a Tag.

LeapFrog has over a dozen additional product bundles on sale here. All offers are good for today only, but you can return to that link each day for different deals. - Jeremiah