Happy Geese

Appy Chat & Giveaway

Developer: Appically

Mentions:

Featured by Apple in 31 countries and #1 Board game in 18 countries

Review:

(by Monica Z)

We love to play board games, when we have spare time, Happy Geese is much more interesting and fun for my little one, because we play it on the iPad and it can be adjusted for his age.  I like that you can tap the crown on one of the players (my child in this case) and prevent him getting upset at the end of the game.  Also I loved that it is educational, the child learns letters, numbers, shapes and colors. With 2 games to choose from The game of The Goose or the Classic game Snakes & Ladders each has 5 boards to choose, 2-4 players (which you can personalise), a variety of dice from colours, shapes, letters, numbers and a normal dice to choose from, cells with or without geese or ladders, with or with our bridges or snakes, multiple final cell win and with or without visual highlighted cell this game makes it fun for the whole family whatever the age.

Appy Chat:

When did you decide to develop this app?

The founders of the company, Francesc Sistach and David Deprez, has been cataloguing and analyzing apps for children with autism and other special needs for more than 3 years. This has given us a deep knowledge of the apps that exist, but also of the areas where no good apps exist yet. The two founders were also involved in the development of iSequences, another app for children with autism.

During the spring of 2012, the decision was made to start Appically, a company specialized in the development of apps for children with special needs. Seed capital was raised during the summer and by November 2012, the company was ready to start developing Happy Geese, its first app.

When did you first release this app?

Happy Geese was launched on April 2nd, 2013, to coincide with the World Autism Awareness Day. We thought it was important to launch the app on this day as we expected that the media and people in general would be more open to hear and talk about a new app for children with autism.

How long did it take you to develop this app?

Designing the app took several months as the idea matured and whilst the company was being set up. Once we were ready to start development, it took us three months to complete it.

What is your favourite feature?

Happy Geese includes two classic board games: Snakes and Ladders and the Game of the Goose. These have been specially adapted to children with special needs, but they are also suitable for young children. We thought of a game because there are already a wide range of apps for autism in the market, but not many of them focus on these people’s entertainment. The fact that it brings children with special needs together with their families and friend to play together around their iPad is our favorite feature.

What is your favourite page in the app?

We love the boards when they are configured to play with colors: the boards look fantastic and gameplay is great fun. At the same time, because of the different options you can choose from, there are 560 possible board configurations within Happy Geese! This means that everyone can create their own favorite board.

What skills were you hoping to help the end user to develop?

Happy Geese helps in practicing of turn taking and in learning vowels, numbers, colors and shapes. It favors concentration through its clean, customizable and clutter-free boards. By being able to choose between boards of various levels of difficulty and adding those options that are most suited, parents can adapt it to every child’s abilities.

What age range would this app most suit?

This depends on the abilities of each child, but the game is generally suited to children aged 3 to 8 years.

Are any new updates coming soon?

Yes! We are currently working on version 1.1 of Happy Geese, which will include a number of improvements that we have identified based on user feedback. It will also include two brand new features which will extend the appeal of the game. We are very excited about this new release and hope to make it available by the end of May.

Description:

Happy Geese helps young children and children with special needs to learn to play Snakes and Ladders and the Game of the Goose, one step at a time. Easily configure our beautiful boards with those features most suited to your children.

In Happy Geese we have taken two of the most popular classic board games and we have created a simplified version of each. We have then added an intuitive way for you, the parent or educator, to gradually introduce each feature of the game when your child is ready for it.

Our games are designed to be enjoyed by everyone. Young children, children with special needs, their parents, family and friends: Happy Geese will bring everyone together and will be the source of hours of fun.

***** WHAT FAMILIES ARE SAYING ABOUT HAPPY GEESE *****
“At last a game for our iPad that I can play with my son. He is 6 years old and loves it because the whole family can play together.” Richard C.

“My daughter would get angry with traditional board games because when the die showed a 5, the chip had to go to a cell with a different number. Happy Geese’s cells without numbers have resolved this.” Ascen G.

“With our child we had tried to play board games. We had tried everything, even creating our own paper boards, but it didn’t work. With Happy Geese we have found a game that he loves.” Margalida M.

“I had tried for the last 4 years to play board games with my son, but it didn’t work. This amazing app removes all the fine motor and concentration challenges and focuses on what should be the essence of any game: having fun together!” S. Planas

***** FEATURES *****
• Highly customizable boards allow you to adapt the games to the abilities of every child.
• In each game, select between 2 boards with different levels of difficulty. Additional boards are available through in-app purchase.
• 7 different dice with colors, shapes, letters and numbers.
• 24 game chips with cute figures of people or animals.
• Create custom chips with your own pictures.
• Enable or disable snakes, ladders, geese and bridges in each round.
• Enable help with turns to help your child see what to do next.
• “King of the Game” mode allows you to choose in advance who will win the round (and helps you avoid disappointments at sensitive times 🙂
• Up to 4 players per round.
• No Ads

***** EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS *****
• Help children develop the ability to wait for their turn
• Learning of 24 basic concepts with different dice and boards: 6 colors, 6 shapes, 6 numbers and 6 vowels
• Abstraction skills with 3 different types of chips
• Learning to stay concentrated and focused with our clutter-free design

***** WHO SHOULD DOWNLOAD HAPPY GEESE *****
Parents of young children and children with special needs who want a game that can be enjoyed by the whole family.

Educators, schools and centres for people with:
• Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• Down Syndrome
• Developmental Delay
• Learning Difficulties

You Tube:

Specifications:

Category: Games
Updated: April 2, 2013
Version: 1.0.1
Language: English, Catalan, French, Spanish
Requirements:  Compatible with iPad. Requires iOS 5.1 or later.

Links:

Website: Happy Geese
Facebook Page: Appically – Happy Geese
Twitter: @appically
You Tube: Appically
App: Happy Geese
Cost: Free with IAP

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Giveaway until May 30, 2013:

Enter ‘HERE’