Barnyard

It is open-ended, has humor, and looks visually pleasing. Before you buy it though, make sure you watch the movie.

There could have been a lot more in the Barnyard to keep my entertained, sometimes I get tired of helping people.

It would be an all right buy for younger kids if they really, really like Barnyard or 3D adventure games that aren't too complicated.

Anatomically incorrectness notwithstanding, Barnyard is a perfectly fine family-friendly film tie-in that you won't absolutely love, but has plenty to like anyway.

It's mostly for the kids, but Barnyard knows how to raise a little hay.

Barnyard marks one of those rare occasions where the game totally outclasses the film upon which it is based. Despite heavy repetition, you have to believe that children are going to get a kick out of the game.

With a ton of mini-games (half of which are available out of the box. Nice), a huge free-roaming environment, tons of mini-quests and open-ended gameplay, Barnyard manages to pull off its design quite nicely. Having said that, the game still suffers from the normal symptoms of licensed products, lacking a little polish here, and a gameplay tweak there.

An easy, mildly entertaining grab bag of minigames and missions. Kids will undoubtedly enjoy the game and their parents will find themselves sucked into numerous minigames as well.

Though most of Barnyard's aspects are handled competently (the notable exceptions being the tack-on story and the frame rate), the only part I'd call fun is the unique take on golf; everything else--no matter whether I was launching chickens, racing in the farmer's truck, or blasting cow-tippers with tomatoes--felt bland and lacked challenge. [Sep 2006, p.84]

It's just about good enough to entertain kids who must see more of the characters from the movie, but everyone else should stay well clear.