Uncle Albert's Fabulous Voyage – a retro memory. Best games for kids – have fun and learn!

Genre: puzzle

Target audience: any young player who doesn't want to learn, but wants to play – and accidentally learn some interesting things in the process

Our list simply had to include this very rare item. The series from 2002 and 2003, the production of the French studio Emme, is an educational masterpiece – it's actually a trilogy: Uncle Albert's Magical Album, Fabulous Voyage, and Mysterious Island.

All the installments were based on the same principle: they took place on the pages of the personal photo album of the titular globetrotter, and boiled down to solving logical puzzles and collecting photos taken by the player throughout the game. Completing tasks unlocks the next pages of the album, which you have to explore really well to find the tiniest hints that might aid your struggle against subsequent challenges.

Man it takes me back...

In addition to logic puzzles the game also brings a number of educational elements – for example, information from areas such as history, geography, and biology. All that is served in a form that's appealing to kids, and manages to educate and entertain at the same time. Truly, this is probably my favorite childhood gaming adventure, one that was really informative, and allowed me to play more than I was usually allowed to, because I wasn't merely playing Uncle Albert – I was STUDYING. At the time, I thought I was outsmarting my mom, but looking back, I can see that I was the one outsmarted, unsurprisingly.

Anyhow, every 8-years-old kid should cope with this game, however, kids aged 12 and more will probably be able to get the most fun out of it. One more thing – it's pretty hard to find these games today, but if you ever see it, don't hesitate! It's really rare. And it's a great educational game.