There are times when everybody wants to sit down and relax and take time for yourself – and that doesn’t matter what age you are! I love to read but sometimes I am just not in the mood for reading, but do love sitting there with a good brainteaser that I can solve in my own time. SmartGames have an excellent range of single player logic games for children and adults; they are hands-on logic challenges with different skill levels, making them fun for everyone. They are lots of fun and encourage problem-solving and cognitive skills. I have played a few of their game before (and still do), games such as IQ Fit, and really enjoy them. This time I was trying another game from their single player range, Smart Farmer.
SmartGames Smart Farmer is a single player problem-solving logic game with 60 different challenges. It is a one player game suitable for age 4 to adult. A challenging game where the player takes on the role of a farmer and must keep the farm animals apart. But hold your horses, it’s not as easy as you would think! A puzzling challenge game that you will be playing until the cows come home and it’s time to hit the hay! (I would like to say I’m sorry for the farm puns but I’m really not).
In the box:
- Game Board with 4 Fixed Fences
- Horses (x2)
- Cows (x2)
- Sheep (x2)
- Pigs (x2)
- Water Troughs (x3)
- Fences (x3)
- Booklet with 60 Challenges and Solutions
There is trouble down on the farm! The animals are making a big mess, roaming free and mixing together. As they farmer, you can’t have that, the animals need to be separated … they each need to get their own space and their own water to drink. But the farmer has only 3 simple fences to divide his field into separate meadows. But you’re a smart farmer and need to put your mind to work to solve the conundrum on how to solve the problem.
Smart Farmer is a challenging puzzle game. It comes with 60 different challenges to solve over four difficulty levels: Starter, Junior, Expert and Master. The challenges are suitable for children from 4 years old as well as adult players. The aim of each challenge is to help the farmer place his 3 fences so that the horses, cows, sheep and pigs are separated and each get their own spaces with their own water trough to drink from. It is an educational game and one that stimulates cognitive skills: concentration, flexible thinking, forethought and planning, problem solving and spatial insight.
As with the other SmartGames I have played, play is centred around the challenge book. The book is split into four difficulty levels: starter, junior, expert and master. I would always suggest starting with the starter level as, even if it’s far too easy, it does an excellent job of demonstrating the concept of the game and easing you into the game.
So let’s get down to the farm and smart farming. Select a challenge from the book, depending on your skill level and ability. Set the animal pieces on the board as shown in the diagram. All the animals fit into the diamond shaped holes on the board, so it’s just a case of getting them in the right place on the board.
The challenge is to now use the fence pieces, not necessarily all of them, to separate the animals so that they are segregated according to type. For example, all the horses must be separate from the pigs, and the pigs must be separate from the sheep, and the sheep separate from the cows. The fence pieces fit into the cross shaped holes in the board, so can only be situated according to the grid system. It sounds quite easy, but as you move on through the challenge levels, it really isn’t! And as the challenges get more difficult you start to add in water troughs so that all the animals can have their own water.
Overall, Smart Farmer is a lovely game, it has been designed with a theme that is appealing to children whilst being challenging enough for adults as well. The farm theme really helps children to engage with the game and want to play. It is a perfect game to help with children’s development and to stimulate their cognitive skills whilst having some fun (and not a screen in sight). And it isn’t just for children, the challenges ramp up in difficulty so adults can put their skills to the test too!
The quality of the board and pieces are top quality. They are very sturdy and a nice size for children and adults to hold and be able to place on the board easily. The animals have a rubberised finish which helps small hands to grip and handle them easily.
The game has a very simple concept on the surface, but the critical and logical thinking skills required to be able to think your way through solving the challenges means that the kids have to really concentrate and think their way through to the answer. The look on their faces when they complete a challenge is brilliant and they feel very proud and accomplished when they do.
I think Smart Farmer is an excellent challenging game for encouraging children to develop problem solving and cognitive skills. It also works for adults to test, develop and hone those same skills, especially once you hit the Master level. We have enjoyed playing this game. It is a colourful vibrant game with an engaging child-friendly theme. You are never too young or too old to give your brain a mental workout.
Happy farming!
Rating: 5/5
RRP: £19.99
For more information or to buy direct, visit www.smartgames.eu. Available to buy from Amazon here.
