Pocket Family

Pocket Family is a child-friendly version of the popular match-3 style games.  Essentially, in these games, players need to match like tiles on a grid which then disappear.  Careful play, or just good luck, can result in various combinations of matches as one block disappearing lets another fall which makes another match and so on.  The popularity of this genre makes it clear how engaging this simple game mechanic can be.

In pocket family, the goal is to destroy a given number of blocks within a set number of moves.  The player is assisted in this by the ability to create and trigger special blocks which have extra effects.  There are quite a few types and each has a distinctly different role.  Learning how to use these special blocks well is taught in the first few levels of the app as it guides the player through the best moves to meet the completion criteria.

Games in this genre are among the most highly polished of all games and Pocket Family is no exception. The playing grid is colourful and cartoon-like, blocks disappear in an explosion of colour, and special effects leave their trails over the screen.

Aside from the undeniably satisfying feeling of hitting a level's targets in a riot of colourful combination effects, there is another bonus to doing well in the form of the Pocket Family of the app's title.  Players earn the means by which to furnish and decorate the Pocket Family's large country home.  There is no gameplay challenge to this but choosing and placing decorative items is popular with players as they try to make a virtual space look just as they would choose and also to form a visual representation of their accomplishments in the main game.

As a game of its genre Pocket Family is very good but is it educational?  It cannot be denied that it is more entertainment than education but these games do promote concentration which is a weakness of some children.  Following the structure of a game and learning how its components work are also challenges for some students, so the introduction levels of this app will help them to see how they can follow instructions to learn independently.  

It could be rightly argued that many games would provide a similar set of learning benefits but at least with Pocket Family it is in a way that does not use violence or overstimulating action.  Playing this game is likely to be a soothing experience and so it would work as a reward or entertaining distraction between more academic exercises.

Pocket Family can be downloaded for free and then expanded using in-app purchases.  Removing advertisements is always a good thing as it improves the flow and also ensures a fair recompense to the developer.  Further payments can be voluntarily made to speed up the acquisition of the in-game currency which can be spent in numerous ways.  This is not essential, though, as it can also be earned through gameplay.

The educational value of this app compared to its entertainment value will depend on each child who uses it and what their own educational challenges are.  For those whom it is useful, it is likely that many games would meet their needs but the child-friendly nature of Pocket Family and its ease of access means it is definitely one you should check out.