Games About Reptiles

A snake is just one sort of reptile that appears in games.

Reptiles are a pretty diverse and fascinating species, and include everything from snakes to dragons. The reptile kingdom has provided inspiration for a fair number of game designers, who have come up with games to play in the classroom, at home and on a gaming console. Some reptile games educate players about the lives and habitats of these creatures; others aim to simply entertain.

Commercial Board Games

Reptiles are a pretty diverse and fascinating species, and include everything from snakes to dragons. The reptile kingdom has provided inspiration for a fair few games designers, who have come up with games to play in the classroom, at home and on a gaming console. Some reptile games will educate players about the lives and habitats of these creatures; others aim to simply entertain.

Classroom Games

These games are supervised by teachers, and can help educate kids about reptiles or be used to enhance the development of key skills. A teacher can set up a version of "Snakes and Ladders" and add questions to the game about a range of subjects. Players progress along the squares of the board by rolling a dice; when they hit a ladder, they must answer a question, set by the teacher, to go up. If a ladder is encountered, a correct answer saves the player from falling down and going back a few squares.

Card Games

These games are often collectible in their nature. A complex game, "Yu-Gi-Oh," centers on duels between players involving monsters and magical spells, and features a number of reptile-based cards. These illustrated cards, which include snakes as well as fictional monstrous reptiles, can be included in players' decks with the goal of assisting the duelist during a card battle. The objective of "Dominant Species: the Card Game" is to acquire victory points to survive the end of Earth's ice age. Players pick an animal at the game's beginning from a selection including reptiles, as well as birds and insects, and play action cards to influence the game. These cards depict events and the animals themselves.

Console Games

Reptile-themed games have appeared on numerous gaming systems over the years. Wise-cracking Gex stars in "Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko" for the Nintendo 64. This 3D platformer features 27 levels, with jokes provided by comedian Dana Gould. "Turbo Turtle Adventure" is a puzzle title for Nintendo's Game Boy Advance. Players attempt to help a turtle leave an island by rolling him around 50 different levels. Along the way, items scattered around the place, such as fans, can influence the action and challenge players.

References

• Board Game Geek: Board Game: Leaping Lizards
• Board Game Geek: Board Game: Reptile Island
• Teaching English; Activities; Snakes and ladders; TE editor; 2003
• Kidzworld; Yu-Gi-Oh! Card Game: Tactical Evolution Set Review; KidzWorld; 2007
• Board Game Geek: Board Game: Dominant Species: The Card Game
• IGN U.K.; Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko Review; Matt Casamassina; 1999

Resources

• IGN U.K.; Turbo Turtle Adventure; Craig Harris; 2002