The Voice of Mom

What if you could learn about other cultures and the environment while playing a card game? You can with Xeko Mission: China.

Xeko launched on Earth Day in 2006 with Xeko Mission: Madagascar. It’s received numerous awards from iParenting Media, Creative Child Magazine and more. There are also games that highlight Costa Rica and Indonesia, and China is the latest addition to the series. A line of plush characters was also recently launched.

The game is intended for players age 8 and up. The mission of the game is to teach about animals and the principals of biodiversity in a fun way. Players build a Xeko-system with the trading cards and use them to play against each other, in a similar way to how games like Yu-Gi-Oh are played.

The GOOD: Xeko is a fun and easy to learn game. Just about anyone who can read can pick this up and start playing. And as an added bonus, players learn about the creatures found in China while having fun. The game materials are made from recycled and/or sustainable materials, which fits in nicely with the environmentally-aware nature of the game.

The BAD: The game can get a little repetitive. You do the same thing each turn. But my testers still really enjoyed it.

MONEY MATTERS: Xeko: Mission China retails for about $25 and can be purchased at retailers such as Borders and online at sites including Amazon, where you can also see a full line-up of the Xeko games.

The MOM VERDICT

Sarah says: The Yu-Gi-Oh trading cards were so popular a few years ago. Before that, there was Magic: The Gathering and others. So games that are based on using cards to enter a different world have a serious interest factor with folks young and old. For this particular game, I handed over my set to a 12-year-old tester. He played this late into the night the first night. Then I collected it and got some opinion on it. He loved it. His only drawback, after some thinking, was that the game does repeat itself (as most games do). After checking it out for myself, I gave it back to him to keep. The reaction? His eyes lit up. I think that speaks for itself. This would be a great present for the 8-14 crowd, I think. And it could be a good parent/child activity. My favorite part of it? It takes learning undercover.