Mixed-Up Mother Goose Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids Mixed-Up Mother Goose
1987 version cover art
Developer(s)	Sierra On-Line Coktel Vision
Publisher(s)	Sierra On-Line
Designer(s)	Roberta Williams
Engine	AGI (1987) SCI (1990/91/95)
Platform(s)	MS-DOS, Amiga, Apple II, Apple IIGS, Atari ST, Windows, Macintosh, FM Towns
Release date(s)	1987
Genre(s)	Educational, Adventure
Mode(s)	Single player

Roberta Williams' Mixed-Up Mother Goose is a fun computer game that first came out in 1987. It was made by Sierra On-Line. This game is a mix of an educational game and an adventure game, made especially for younger players. In 1991, it became the first multimedia game released on a CD-ROM. A second game in the series, Mixed-Up Fairy Tales, was released in 1991.

The game has a simple story, which is great for kids. One night, a child (that's you, the player!) gets sent into the dream world of Mother Goose. She really needs your help! All the nursery rhymes are mixed up. The characters don't have the right items for their rhymes to work. You'll help Humpty Dumpty find a ladder for his wall. You'll also bring the little lamb back to Mary. And you'll find a pail for Jack and Jill, among other tasks.

How to Play the Game
- Finding Items and Helping Characters
- Rhymes, Hints, and Saving
Different Versions of the Game
List of Nursery Rhymes and Items
Fun Facts
See also

How to Play the Game

Playing Mixed-Up Mother Goose is quite easy. The 1987 version uses a system called AGI. This system was also used in other Sierra games like King's Quest. You mostly control your character using the arrow keys on your keyboard.

Finding Items and Helping Characters

When you see something important, it's usually very clear. This makes it easy for younger players to find things. Walking close to an item picks it up. You can only carry one item at a time in your inventory. You'll find items in houses or on the ground. Living things, like animals or people, are found outdoors.

When you find a living character, they will follow you. This lets you lead them back to where they need to be. For example, you might lead Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater's wife back to him. Some characters, like Old King Cole, need several items. All but one of these items are placed randomly around the land.

Rhymes, Hints, and Saving

There are 18 nursery rhymes to fix in the game. You'll need to find 20 different items. You get a point for each rhyme you put back together. If you're stuck, you can talk to the characters who need help. They will show you what item they need in a "thought bubble" above their head.

At the start of the game, you can pick your character from 8 choices. You can also save your game at any time. This lets you stop playing and come back later without losing your progress.

Different Versions of the Game

Mixed-Up Mother Goose was updated three times. This means there are four different versions in total. Each new version brought improvements to the game.

1990 Enhanced Version

In 1990, the game was remade as Mixed-Up Mother Goose Enhanced. This version used the SCI0 system. This meant the graphics looked much better than before.

1991 VGA/Multimedia CD Version

The 1991 remake, called Mixed-Up Mother Goose VGA/Multimedia CD, had bigger changes.

Better Graphics: The graphics were greatly improved. This was because Sierra started using VGA for their games.
Sung Rhymes: The rhymes, which only had music before, now had voices. Each rhyme was sung, and the characters moved along with the music.
Easier Controls: The way you played the game was updated. It became much simpler and faster to move around.
Game Map: Players also got a map of the land. This helped if you ever felt lost in the nursery rhyme world.

This 1991 version came out on CD with full spoken words. There was also a floppy disk version where only the rhymes were sung.

1995 Deluxe Version

The final remake was released in 1995. It was called Mixed-Up Mother Goose Deluxe. This version had even better SVGA graphics. It also came with a bonus audio CD. The music in the game also had different melodies and styles.

List of Nursery Rhymes and Items

Here are the nursery rhymes you'll find in the game, along with the items you need to find for them:

There Was a Crooked Man (Crooked Sixpence)
Hey Diddle Diddle (Fiddle)
Hickory Dickory Dock (Mouse)
Humpty Dumpty (Ladder)
Jack and Jill (Pail)
Jack Be Nimble (Candlestick)
Jack Sprat (Ham)
Little Bo Peep (Two Sheep)
Little Jack Horner (Pie)
Little Miss Muffet (Miss Muffet; she must be led to the tuffet)
Little Tommy Tucker (Bread Knife)
Mary Had a Little Lamb (Lamb)
Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary (Watering Can)
Old King Cole (Pipe, Bowl, Fiddlers Three)
Peter Peter Pumpkin Eater (Peter's Wife)
Ride a cock horse to Banbury Cross (Hobby Horse)
There was an Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe (Bowl of Broth)
Where, O Where Has My Little Dog Gone? (Little Dog)

Fun Facts

Two versions of Mixed-Up Mother Goose are part of The Roberta Williams' Anthology. This is a collection of games made by Roberta Williams. The collection includes the original 1987 game and the 1991 CD remake.
The picture of Mother Goose on the first game box is actually Roberta Williams herself! She is shown with two children and characters from the rhymes.
The 1991 version of the game was Sierra's first game released on CD-ROM. It was also one of the first computer games to be sold only on CD.

Mixed-Up Mother Goose facts for kids

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