American Girls Premiere

Any girl who is 7-12 years old will be able to tell you who the American Girls dolls are, exactly how much they cost and which of their friends own which doll...and unfortunately the order they would like to have the dolls themselves! These wildly popular dolls have of course spawned a new computer program. This program has been anxiously anticipated at houses across the country. The Learning Company has finally released American Girls Premiere to a bunch of very anxious girls!

While I can not say I love everything about this program, it is a good program and one that any self-respecting American Girls fan will want to own. Pleasant Company (the maker of the dolls) has always encouraged the girls to create plays about their favorite characters. This has been a big part of the company as they sell 'girl-sized' costumes, scenery and play books. Kids love to use their dolls to create stories, or act out stories themselves. This program allows girls (and boys of course, but it won't appeal to them as much obviously) to create plays with their favorite characters from the stories. Your children will write their own script, choose scenery and props and record or type their own dialogue.

The program includes each of the dolls with the exception of the newest doll, Josefina. I was somewhat disappointed that the girls could not be mixed and matched within a play. It would be nice to allow the girls the flexibility of seeing what happens when Felicity meets Molly, or Samantha meets Addy. Once a particular time period is chosen, your children can select each scene, but must stay within that charcter's storyline. The characters can be animated and moved around the stage. There are not limitless choices here, but enough to make it fun. It will take some practice to make a play which flows smoothly from scene to scene and the tutorials are highly recommended. The program allows your children to manipulate everything from the music and sound effects to the lighting. The stage is realistic looking and the final production will play with curtains rising and all the splendor of a real production. Although the program is for children age 7-12, many 7-9 year olds will need extra help and supervision from an older sibling or parent. My own nine year old daughter needed a lot of help and even started to think it was not worth all of the hassle to figure out. This program will work well for the American Girl fan who loves to create plays and scenarios for herself or her doll.

American Girls Premiere is a good first program for these dolls. Hopefully there will be more and some of the bugs in this first edition will be smoothed out. In the meantime, any American Girls fan will be thrilled with having another way to enjoy her favorite hobby. In that most American Girls fans would buy anything with the AG logo on it, let's hope they continue to maintain the high quality standards we have come to expect.

Grading for American Girls Premiere

Educational Value: 2 1/2
Entertainment Value: 3 1/2
Use of medium: 3 1/2
Dollar Value: 4
Age: 7-12

Buy The American Girls Premiere from Amazon!

Or try American Girls Premiere 2nd Edition!