Living Books
Carmen Sandiego developers Broderbund started the Living Books series in 1992 as an attempt to put animation and voice to story books. While this perhaps took away a bit of the imagination inherent to reading, it was undeniably fun, allowing kids everywhere to live out their personal Pagemaster fantasies through the power of the ROM. The series, later co-owned by publisher Random House, saw a few familiar faces over its decade long run, particularly Marc Brown's Arthur, and Dr. Seuss's cast of characters.
Kid Pix
Kid Pix was kind of like Mario Paint for the serious artist; it was more appealing to children than other computer art programs at the time due to its accessibility, being very simple to use. It also experimented with synaesthesia techniques, resulting in mesmerized kids everywhere. Like Carmen Sandiego, the first versions were simplistic, but the series later made the switch to CD-ROM, with the likes of the Kid Pix Deluxe series adding characters such as the immortal Undo Guy.
Encarta 95
Before the rise of wikis, Encarta was the go-to for computer based encyclopedias, and it was Encarta 95 that really perfected the formula. The low-res video clips accompanying certain entries, more often than not cut to tinny muzak, came off as something of a revolution at a time when most kids' familiarity with encyclopedias involved tree-devouring tomes that could sink a man to a watery grave.
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?
Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? may not have been the first game in this stalwart series, but it's probably the most memorable, particularly for budding millennials. Inspiring an equally nostalgic FOX cartoon series entitled Where on Earth is Carmen Sandiego?, the character of Carmen, visually reminiscent of a female Dick Tracy, was a high-end globe-trotting thief and time traveler designed as a novel way to teach kids history and geography.
Myst
Possibly the most famous non-gamer game ever made, and one of the biggest sellers of the '90s, Myst is a cryptic puzzle adventure game played from a first-person perspective, with the player attempting to unravel the mysteries of the titular island through exploration. The game's pre-rendered 3D environments were impressive on release, though it didn't offer true freedom of movement; instead the player had to click at the sides of the screen to move or turn. Myst was something of a sleepy title, with its deliberate pace and unusual ambient soundtrack, but its popularity led to a boom for the concept of CD-ROM games, which were still in their infancy in 1993. For gamers looking for a more up-to-date experience, Braid designer Jon Blow's upcoming title The Witness may well suffice.
RollerCoaster Tycoon
Something of a spiritual successor to Bullfrog's Theme Park, which used a more generalized, comedic bent on amusement park management, RollerCoaster Tycoon took a more detailed approach to the concept, with players able to design the most vertiginous, regulation-baiting eye bleeders in all history. A good game for introducing youngsters to real-time strategy skills without having to slay knights or Nazis (albeit with a similarly casual insouciance to human well being), RollerCoaster Tycoon replicates the simple pleasures of toy building sets and elevates it with the requisite level of '90s extremity.
The Last Express
Prince of Persia designer Jordan Mechner's masterpiece, the criminally undersold The Last Express was a triumph of mature storytelling within the gaming medium that has rarely been matched since. An Agatha Christie-style murder mystery set on a steam train bound for Constantinople in the early 20th century, the story involved a wanted American doctor trying to solve the murder of his friend. Shipping on three CD-ROMS, the game featured a full cast of actors speaking in several different languages, and an attempt to simulate real time traversal—for example, each passenger kept to their own schedule throughout the day, so the player could miss certain clues depending on where they were at any given moment, making no two play-throughs the same.
Star Wars: Rebel Assault
Back in the early '90s, when Star Wars was still the best thing in the world and yet to be sullied by the encroaching green-screen nightmare of the upcoming decade, LucasArts was building a rep for the best franchises on PC, such as Monkey Island and Sam and Max. Rebel Assault was not a particularly great spaceship game when compared to the company's later efforts, such as the X-Wing and TIE Fighter series, but it was a visual showstopper for its time, and deserves a place as LucasArts' first experiment with the CD-ROM format.
You Don't Know Jack!
You Don't Know Jack is a quiz series that begun life on the humble CD-ROM, and is now available on Steam, Facebook. and various mobile devices. As is the case with most quizzes, the game is better played with friends in a team, but YDKJ stands out from the crowd on release due to the burnout wit of its narrators, and its bizarre and often oddly-phrased questions, such as “What magic mushroom would make Mario just think he could grow to giant size?" and, “If Elizabeth Taylor wanted to be buried next to her husbands, how many pieces would she have to be cut up into?" That's entertainment.
Math Blaster
It could be argued the Blaster series peaked with this alien-themed entry. Follow-ups such as Reading Blaster and Science Blaster never received the same amount of attention, perhaps due to failing to live up to competition from the likes of the Living Books series. However, Math Blaster was about the best game out at the time for trying to make sums exciting, and for this they deserve applause. A newer version of Math Blaster can now be played online.