STRATEGY SOFTWARE AHEAD OF THE GAME\CD-ROM not just child's play.

Byline: Mike Langberg San Jose Mercury News 

Parents looking to give their children an alternative to mindless, thumb-twitching video games should seriously consider Strategy Games of the World.

The new CD-ROM, designed for ages 8 to 14, offers three time-tested favorites called Go-Moku, Mancala and Nine Men's Morris. Each game is easy to learn but deceptively difficult to master - even adults will be challenged to win at the highest level of difficulty.

Strategy Games of the World comes from Edmark Corp., one of the best developers of children's educational software. Previously, most of Edmark's products have been aimed at younger children - most notably the Early Learning House series that includes Bailey's Book House, Millie's Math House, Sammy's Science House and Trudy's Time and Place House.

Many software developers focus on ages 5 to 8, figuring older children will be too fixated on Nintendo and Sega video games to spend much time at the computer doing anything other than blasting mutants or hopping over magic toadstools.

That's why Strategy Games of the World is such a welcome relief. The CD-ROM is a complete package, offering instruction for children on how to play the games and tips for parents on how to maximize the learning experience. And Edmark hasn't forgotten to make the games fun to play.

Go-Moku is a Japanese version of the popular Chinese board game Go, which at first glance looks something like checkers. Two players compete against each other to place five stones in a row on the board, while trying to block their opponent from doing the same.

Mancala comes from central Africa and vaguely resembles backgammon, with two players moving beans around a board with the goal of capturing the greatest number.

Nine Men's Morris originated in ancient Egypt and was all the rage in Shakespearean England. The object is the same as tic-tac-toe - putting three shells in a row - but the oddly shaped game board opens up numerous possibilities for complex maneuvering.

Each game is presented with full-color, carefully detailed graphics, so you can see the wood grain in the Mancala board or the ridges on the shells in Nine Men's Morris. Animated characters surrounding the boards describe how the game is played and offer hints on strategy. There are sound effects to help sustain the illusion, such as the occasional tinkling of a bamboo chime as you play Go-Moku or the buzzing of a fly during a round of Mancala.

The level of difficulty can be adjusted in several ways for all three games, such as changing the size of the Go-Moku board or adding more beans to Mancala. Two children can play each other, or one child can play against the computer. The computer opponent, too, can be adjusted to present an increasing challenge as players get more familiar with the games.

Best of all, most of the animation and dialogue can be turned off when children want to play without distraction. And the "undo" button makes it easy to take back a stupid move.

While the three games will lure children into hours and hours of mind-building play, the CD-ROM is saddled with a few flaws. When playing against the computer, you often face an annoying wait of several seconds before your electronic opponent makes a move. And the computer-generated hints are occasionally too bland to be useful, such as: "Before you make a move, visualize it in your mind."

Also, the CD-ROM offers a dull feature called "Real-World Strategies." At seemingly random moments during the game, a "Real-World Strategies" sign appears. If you click the sign, you see a short video clip of people describing how they solve problems - a truck driver, for instance, saying how he might have to change his route to avoid traffic, or a baker telling how he asks customers for their opinion of new recipes. I recommend just ignoring these distractions; they're not very interesting, and they don't contribute anything to the game.

A section called "Dear Parents," offering video clips of Edmark Vice President Donna Stanger giving advice, is somewhat better. Stanger explains the educational theory behind Strategy Games of the World and how games help children learn.

Finally, Edmark is using Strategy Games of the World to run a kind of two-for-one sale. Buyers who purchase the CD-ROM before March 31 get a coupon entitling them to order any other Edmark title for just a $5 shipping fee.

Strategy Games of the World.

3 stars (out of 4).

Developer: Edmark Corp.; [phone].

Format: Windows, Macintosh.

Street Price: $39.

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Photo Strategy Games of the World from Edmark Corp. offers classic challenges that are entertaining for children and adults. Knight-Ridder Tribune News Service Box Strategy Games of the World (see text)