Follow TV Tropes

Following

Context VideoGame / TheClueFinders

Go To

1[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/bd126ec54688ce80b8b512ae54331484.jpg]]
2[[caption-width-right:350:[- L-R: Leslie, Santiago, Owen, [=LapTrap=], and Joni -] ]]
3''The [=ClueFinders=]'' is a series of {{Edutainment Game}}s from Creator/TheLearningCompany. The eponymous {{Kid Detective}}s consist of adventurous tomboy Joni Savage, brilliant mechanic Santiago Rivera, cool dude Owen Lam, and bibliophilic expositor Leslie Clark. They are accompanied by [=LapTrap=], a hovering yellow robot who provides the game options for the player.
4
5The series is aimed at kids aged eight to twelve, having been a follow-up to ''VideoGame/ReaderRabbit'', which is aimed at kids aged up to seven or so. Generally, each ''[=ClueFinders=]'' game features the kids having to solve a thrilling mystery, often in some type of exotic locale like a tropical rainforest, Egypt, or (one time) an alien planet. The kids are nearly always split into two separate coed teams, but you're able to contact the other team for help using the red videophone. The actual gameplay tends to be heavy on AlphabetSoupCans and {{Fetch Quest}}s. ​Most entries in the series have some kind of third-act twist, in which the answer to the mystery is revealed. Usually, there are enough clues to at least guess at the answer to the mystery ahead of time.
6
7The series consists of:
8[[index]]
9* ''VideoGame/TheClueFinders3rdGradeAdventuresTheMysteryOfMathra'' (1998)
10* ''VideoGame/TheClueFinders4thGradeAdventuresThePuzzleOfThePyramid'' (1998)
11* ''VideoGame/TheClueFinders5thGradeAdventuresTheSecretOfTheLivingVolcano'' (1999)
12* ''VideoGame/TheClueFinders6thGradeAdventuresTheEmpireOfThePlantPeople'' (1999)
13* ''VideoGame/TheClueFindersMathAdventuresAges912MysteryInTheHimalayas'' (1998)
14* ''VideoGame/TheClueFindersReadingAdventuresAges912MysteryOfTheMissingAmulet'' (1999)
15* [[/index]]''The [=ClueFinders=] Search and Solve Adventures: The Phantom Amusement Park'' (2000) - The [=ClueFinders=] have spotted an S.O.S. signal coming from the local AmusementParkOfDoom. It turns out that Jacques Ramone, the curator of the art museum, is trapped on a ride, and that's not the only weird thing going on inside this supposedly abandoned park.
16* ''The [=ClueFinders=] Real World Adventure Kit'' (2000) - A bonus disc that features various applications and printouts for your own adventures in RealLife. If you ever wanted a diary or money tracker with a ''[=ClueFinders=]'' theme, this is the title for you.
17* ''The [=ClueFinders=]: The Incredible Toy Store Adventure!'' (2001) - While checking out an amazing new toy store in UsefulNotes/SanFrancisco, Joni and Owen are hit by a ShrinkRay. This is the last entry in the series proper, and the only one not to feature the original voice actors.
18* ''The [=ClueFinders=]: Mystery Mansion Arcade'' (2002) - A non-educational bonus disc in which the [=ClueFinders=] must deal with a VillainTeamUp. This game uses the same voice actors as ''Incredible Toy Store Adventure''.
19
20In addition to the computer games, the [=ClueFinders=] also appeared in two print books, ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'' and ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', both written by Ellen Weiss and published in 2004.
21----
22!!Call the [=TropeFinders=]!
23* AdultsAreUseless: Nobody can solve the mysteries except for a gang of children.
24* AliensSpeakingEnglish: Several times over, both with aliens proper and with other things. Partially averted in ''5th Grade''--[[spoiler:the aliens use BlackSpeech, the written form of which is a CipherLanguage, but their computer speaks and understands English perfectly well.]]
25* AllMythsAreTrue: [[ScoobyDooHoax Subverted]] twice, applied once, and [[RealAfterAll double subverted]] in the same two games.
26* AlphabetSoupCans: A vast majority of the activities, if not all of them, come off as this trope.
27* AntiFrustrationFeatures: In the UpdatedRerelease of "Math Adventures", you are able to get up to three guesses when you make an accusation. In the original version, you had to start the investigation all over again if you messed up - even if you just got one of the three areas wrong.
28* BigEater: Owen.
29* BrokenBridge: All the time on a small scale. See also ClosedCircle.
30** Lampshaded in ''5th Grade'':
31---> '''Owen''': "Why is it that wherever we go, we always find large pits to cross?"
32* BusmansHoliday: Whether they're going into a vacation or already on one, the [=ClueFinders=] ''will'' eventually find a mystery.
33* CatchPhrase: Joni has a couple: "I dunno, but we're ''gonna'' find out!" and "Let's go, Santiago."
34* {{Chickification}}: Subverted with Joni, who merely stops [[FearlessFool propelling herself carelessly into dangerous situations]] and she identifies things as "Cute".
35* ChekhovsGun:
36** It's a good thing that [=LapTrap=] yells at Owen for using him as a mirror in ''Reading''!
37** Also don't forget the whole ring in ''4th Grade''.
38* ClosedCircle: ''5th Grade'', ''6th Grade'', ''The Incredible Toy Store Adventure'' and ''Reading'' have game-wide examples. ''5th Grade'' deserves special notice in that everyone on the island is trapped, having tried and failed to get off for generations--they say [[GeniusLoci it doesn't want them to leave]].
39* {{Crossover}}: In ''Mystery Mansion Arcade'', the mysterious villain who gathered the previous bad guys is revealed at the end of the game to be none other than [[spoiler:''Franchise/CarmenSandiego'']].
40* DarkerAndEdgier: Around 5th grade, the games got darker. While there is always a happy ending (with the exception of 5th grade's [[KarmaHoudini aliens getting away]]), 5th, 6th, and Reading are ''easily'' the darkest Edutainment games ever this side of ''[[VideoGame/JumpStartAdventures4thGradeHauntedIsland JumpStart 4th Grade]]''.
41* DesignatedVictim: Leslie or Santiago at first and then both of them in the later games, culminating with them ending up in trouble after showing up to save Owen and Joni in "The Amazing Toy Store Adventure".
42* DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything:
43** In ''Search & Solve Adventures'', a villain forces RidiculouslyHumanRobots to work as her slaves, keeping them in line by [[Literature/OliverTwist denying them new batteries]].
44** [=LapTrap=] is a shiny yellow piece of technology whose trademark characteristic is constant worry. [[Franchise/StarWars C-3PO]], anyone?
45** The whole franchise seems to be inspired by [[Franchise/ScoobyDoo a certain Hanna-Barbera Cartoon]]. ''Especially'' 3rd grade and Math 9-12.
46* TheDragAlong: [=LapTrap=]. He initially joins the Cluefinders in ''3rd Grade Adventures'' to help them find Joni’s uncle. However, Horace decides to give [=LapTrap=] to the kids much to his dismay over the possible dangers he will encounter with them.
47* DubNameChange: In the U.K. versions, Joni becomes Josie, Santiago becomes Sebastian, and Leslie becomes Lucy. Owen, however, retains his American name.
48** This is not the case in some other dubs however, with him going by Kim in the French dub, Carlos in the Portuguese, Marcel in the German and Oscar in the Swedish.
49** Joni also has Lea (French), Susi (German), Kim (Dutch) and Júlia (Portuguese) and in the Swedish dub, has both her first and last name changed, becoming Fanny Vildberg.
50** In addition to the UK's Lucy, Leslie has Lola (French), Janet (Dutch), Sophia (Portuguese) and Pia (German).
51** Santiago appears to have the fewest dub names as the only one besides the above mentioned Sebastian is the Dutch dub calling him Marco.
52* DullSurprise: Leslie. She gets better, especially in ''6th'' grade.
53* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness:
54** ''3rd grade'' featured three "worlds" where items are collected and used for the final challenge. Later games would have three "worlds", but the final world would always be a linear path with one or two challenges repeated.
55** ''3rd'' and ''4th'' grade feature multiple "One-time" challenges, even though ''3rd'' grade allowed you to backtrack and repeat them. The "one-time" challenges returned in ''Toy Store Adventure''.
56** ''4th grade'' also features multiple "empty screens" (screens where there was no [=NPC=] to talk to or anything to interact with), simulating the characters walking around a part of Cairo and a Nile kingdom. Similarly, the "one-time" challenges could not be repeated, and every world featured a PointOfNoReturn.
57** ''Math 9-12'' prior to its UpdatedRerelease. It was much ''much'' more supernatural in nature.
58** The RunningGag of Leslie talking in SesquipedalianLoquaciousness basically started in ''5th Grade''. It's not really present in any games earlier than that. Also, her age was originally given as eleven, but later {{Retcon}}ned to ten (possibly to account for her having skipped a grade).
59* TheEeyore: Flo in ''The Incredible Toy Store Adventure!''
60-->''"Don't break anything. They'll probably blame it on me."''
61* FearlessFool: Joni in the earlier games, played as a RunningGag. Typically, this involved her rushing headlong into potentially lethal situations, often with Santiago having to intervene before she kills herself. Also, whenever you complete a bridge in ''3rd Grade'', Santiago walks across it very carefully, which is then followed by Joni running across it as though it were nothing. In later games, the gag seems to have been dropped.
62* FetchQuest: Most of the games feature the characters having to gather some sort of item to proceed; they obtain said item by doing various tasks for the locals.
63* FiveTokenBand: Joni is white, Santiago is Hispanic, Leslie is black and Owen is East Asian.
64* {{Foreshadowing}}: While every game in the series has this, it's most obvious with ''Search and Solve''. Joni & Owen encounter multiple area(s) that serve primarily to foreshadow what the mystery is - while Leslie & Santiago call with the stuff they found.
65* FunWithAcronyms: [=LapTrap=]'s model designation of T.U.R.T.L.E. (Turbo-charged Ultra Rugged Terrain Laptop Equipment) and his EvilTwin S.N.A.I.L.L. (Superior Numerical Artificial Intelligence Logic Laptop).
66* GiveMeYourInventoryItem: Frequently, collected items must be turned over to a gateway guard and/or used in some sort of activity that serves as a puzzle lock.
67* HyperspaceArsenal: You can carry anything in "the backpack" -- including bridge planks in ''6th Grade Adventures''.
68* IdleAnimation: In a number of games, Joni's is playing with one of her hair braids. In ''4th Grade'', Owen's involves pulling a hoagie out of {{Hammerspace}} and taking several bites from it.
69* IncredibleShrinkingMan: The premise of ''The Incredible Toy Store Adventure!'' is Joni and Owen getting shrunk and locked in a toy store.
70* InterfaceSpoiler: The Mastermind's true identity in ''Mystery Mansion Arcade'' is spoiled by having [[spoiler:Carmen]] listed in the game's credits, something you could see before even completing the game.
71* LampshadeHanging:
72** They Lampshaded the use of {{Fetch Quest}}s in ''Search and Solve Adventures''.
73** In ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'', lampshades are hung on the fact that Leslie brought bubble gum to the jungle and how weird it is that the [=ClueFinders=] and [=LapTrap=] [[spoiler:really his EvilTwin S.N.A.I.L.L.]] have switched personalities.
74* LateArrivalSpoiler: This applies to three out of four of the returning villains in ''Mystery Mansion Arcade'', [[OddballInTheSeries the exception being Loveless]]. The other three were, in their original game, only exposed as the villain as part of TheReveal. It's especially egregious when you consider that this game was included as a bonus disc with all the ''[=ClueFinders=]'' products, and it's absurd to expect that a third-grader who got it with ''3rd Grade Adventures'' would have already completed ''6th Grade Adventures''.
75* LaterInstallmentWeirdness:
76** ''6th Grade'' and ''Search and Solve'' only feature two "worlds".
77** ''Incredible Toy Store Adventure'' also features a much different voice cast. Additionally, ''both'' teams gathered resources, and a "One time" challenge (That could be repeated, in the case of the decoding alligators) appeared.
78** In the grade-based titles and ''Math Adventures'', the sign-in screen is presented as a kind of contract in which you are putting your name down to help the [=ClueFinders=] on their adventure despite all the danger it will undoubtedly entail. This concept is dropped from ''Reading Adventures'' onwards, and ''Incredible Toy Store Adventure'' redesigns the sign-in screen entirely.
79* LetsSplitUpGang: Every main game except ''4th Grade''. Granted, depending on the game, this may or may not be an active choice; cases in point: in ''3rd Grade'', Owen and Leslie volunteer to stay behind while Joni and Santiago complete the mission but in ''6th Grade'', Leslie and Owen end up having to rescue Joni and Santiago when the older pair end up captured by the plant people.
80* LighterAndSofter: ''Search and Solve'' compared to 5th, 6th, and Reading.
81* LimitedWardrobe: Characters dress the same in every main game except ''4th Grade'' and ''Math''.
82* MeaningfulName: Joni's last name, befitting her wild personality.
83* MrFixit: Santiago.
84* MythologyGag: In ''The Incredible Toy Store Adventure'', plushes of Mathra and Socrates can be seen on the toy store's second floor.
85* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: [=LapTrap's=] voice sounds an awful lot like Creator/BillyCrystal.
86* NotSoAboveItAll: Leslie and Santiago are usually incredibly mature for their ages. But they do have a handful of moments where they act their age; the major ones are Santiago telling Joni, quote, "I guess this (taking a ring from the Egyptian tomb they visited) makes you an international jewel thief" in ''4th Grade Adventures'' and both he and Leslie participating in the pizza topping argument at the beginning of ''The Mystery of Microsneezia''.
87* OhNoNotAgain: In ''The Incredible Toy Store Adventure!''
88-->'''Leslie:''' We can't wait 'til tomorrow. Our friends have been shrunk, and they're stuck on the sixth floor.\
89'''Eldon:''' ''[exasperated sigh]'' How many times have I heard ''that'' excuse?
90* OnlySaneMan: Generally switches between Leslie and Santiago but in the book ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'', Joni plays this role. After getting her friends to stop bickering about which kind of pizza to order and pay attention to her, she declares her plan: order a large pizza with four different toppings since none of them like the same thing.
91* ParrotExposition: Once in a while.
92* PointOfNoReturn: Once you've cleared an area and moved on to the next one, you'll be unable to return to previous areas. However, there's still a Practice Mode where you can play all the games.
93* TheReveal: Every main game except ''4th Grade''. [[OddballInTheSeries Noticing a trend]]?
94* RobotBuddy: [=LapTrap=].
95* SameLanguageDub: The U.K. release of the series redubs the characters with British voices, as well as [[DubNameChange changing some of their names]]. Oddly, characters who had British accents in the original American release, such as the quartet of talking flowers parodying Music/TheBeatles, were also redubbed. Perhaps their accents were judged to not be very good?
96* ScienceFantasy: It's never entirely certain what the series is, though it generally leans more towards ScienceFiction (with ''4th Grade'' as a noticeable exception). Interestingly, all the games with proven SpeculativeFiction elements also use PlausibleDeniability.
97* SeriesContinuityError:
98** In ''Mystery Mansion Arcade'', when [[spoiler: Miss Rose]] is revealed to be one of the villains that have captured the team, Joni makes a comment about how "the pollution must have made you evil again". All well and good and a perfectly reasonable explanation. Problem? Joni is the only [=ClueFinder=] who doesn't remember the events of ''6th Grade Adventures'', where the character was introduced along with the pollution issues. Though this could be justified by [[SecretKeeper Joni being the only person the other three told]].
99** In ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', during the climax, the Clue Finders must chase the villain up a pyramid set piece which is very large. After Santiago is given his directions, he complains that he "hates heights". This is ''never'' a problem in any of the games, most of which involve at least one climbing stunt and in ''5th Grade Adventures'', he and Joni scale a cliff face with no assistance whatsoever. Though this could be an example of Santiago revealing his fear to the continuity. Also, he could have swallowed his fear all times except them.
100* SesquipedalianLoquaciousness: Nearly all of Leslie's dialogue. Owen often translates her lines into LaymansTerms:
101-->'''Leslie:''' From all appearances, Owen and I are sequestered in some sort of subterranean chamber with no apparent means of egress.\
102'''[=LapTrap:=]''' ''[eye roll]''\
103'''Owen:''' She means we're stuck underground somewhere.\
104'''Leslie:''' That's what I said!
105* SmartBall: Owen gets it in ''The Amazing Toy Store Adventure'' where he's inspired to use the shrunken Unshrinker device on the shrink ray the villain is using to make it too big to hold.
106* StrongGirlSmartGuy: Whenever they're teamed up, Joni and Santiago fall into this dynamic.
107-->'''Joni:''' I'm not afraid of monsters!\
108'''Santiago:''' I don't believe in monsters!
109* TakeYourTime: A form of GameplayAndStorySegregation here; obviously you wouldn't want to get put under a time limit when you're trying to do long division!
110* TalkingAnimal: Several.
111* TeamMom: Mild case with Joni. She tends to make sure her friends are okay (which includes such things as making back up food supplies for picnics and knocking sense into Owen) and ''really'' doesn't like it when they're put in danger.
112* TotallyRadical: Nearly all of Owen's dialogue.
113* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: Joni and Leslie respectively. Highlighted by their outfits since Joni's never seen in a skirt and Leslie's only seen in pants during ''Math Adventures'' due to a skirt being impractical in the cold weather. This is actually reversed with their superpowered forms in ''4th Grade Adventures'', with Joni in a skirt and Leslie in pants.
114* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Leslie is given one in ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'': bubble gum. [[spoiler:It's even a plot point later.]] Owen's is pizza.
115* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: The trailer for the games reveals some twists in the game for new players.
116** One of the scenes for 5th Grade Adventures shows [[spoiler:the aliens.]]
117** A segment for 6th Grade Adventures shows [[spoiler:Miss Rose transforming into her plant form.]]
118* TrialAndErrorGameplay:
119** The vending machine in ''Search and Solve'' and the Gates in ''Reading''. This is actually the entire point; it's to test out your hypothesis. This doesn't stop it from being frustrating for people of ''any'' age.
120** Those who had played games like Mastermind or ''Series/{{Lingo}}'' would be will familiar with the gates challenge in reading...however, you have to ''GUESS'' what letters are in the correct or incorrect places, since like Mastermind, you're told how many letters are correct and are in the right/wrong spaces, but you aren't told which ones.
121* UnwinnableByDesign: The mentioned TrialAndErrorGameplay mini-games can be made unwinnable. If the jams in the vending machine puzzle are clustered to one area and your guesses are all on the other side, you run out of guesses and can't win that game. In the gates challenge, you can easily run out of guesses considering you know ''how'' many letters are in the right or wrong places, but you don't know ''which ones they are''.
122* WeirdnessMagnet: These kids can't even go out into their backyards without finding trouble. Literally; ''6th Grade'' starts in one of their backyards and goes from there.
123* WhamShot: At the end of ''Mystery Mansion Arcade'', the kids confront the Mastermind leading the other villains, and surprise-surprise: [[spoiler: it's Franchise/CarmenSandiego.]]
124* WouldHurtAChild: The majority of the villains.
125* XanatosSpeedChess: The BigBad of ''Mystery Mansion Arcade'' also has this, where [[spoiler: the mysterious villain, none other than ''Franchise/CarmenSandiego'' who has organized it all traps the villains after they fail, and the kids even ask, "Wait, did she want to catch us, or ''them''?"]]
126
127!!Tropes exclusive to the spin-off books:
128
129* ABirthdayNotABreak: Mild example but in ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'', Joni discovers her uncle has disappeared. This message is received in the middle of her birthday party.
130* AgelessBirthdayEpisode: The book ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'' opens on Joni's birthday. No, we aren't told how old she's turning.
131* BizarreTasteInFood: In the book ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'', Leslie expresses a desire for bubblegum-topped pizza, much to the disgust of Santiago and Owen.
132* BlindWithoutEm: Joni is revealed to be this trope in ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', due to having had her glasses off while swimming.
133* BluffTheImpostor: In ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'', [=LapTrap=] gains an EvilTwin in the form of S.N.A.I.L.L. Late in the story, the [=ClueFinders=] find themselves having to [[SpotTheImpostor figure out which "LapTrap" is the real one]]. Joni and Leslie do this by deliberately getting the location of a Mongolian restaurant the team frequents wrong and giving the wrong kind of beast of burden as their transport to the titular island.
134* ChronicHeroSyndrome: The [=ClueFinders=]. Case in point, in ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', after the titular banshee shows up, the studio's equipment malfunctions, causing a fire. Joni leads Santiago and Leslie (Owen was otherwise occupied) ''towards'' the fire and the three of them work to put out all the fires.
135* EvilTwin: S.N.A.I.L.L. is one for [=LapTrap=] in ''The Mystery of Microsneezia''. [[spoiler:He's cured by the end of the story though.]]
136* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:S.N.A.I.L.L. in ''The Mystery of Microsneezia''.]]
137* LeastCommonPizzaTopping: Santiago and Owen treat Leslie's choice of broccoli pizza this way in ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'', which is odd since they live in or near San Francisco, where broccoli pizza is a regional favorite.
138* NiceGuy: The [=ClueFinders=] are this trope. In ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', Owen performs a diving save to catch a stuntman thrown off by the appearance of the titular banshee and his three friends all rush to help put out the fires caused by the fallout, saving innumerable papers and pieces of equipment.
139* NoodleIncident: Shortly before the events of ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', the [=ClueFinders=] had solved a mystery involving the keys to the locks on the Panama Canal going missing.
140* OOCIsSeriousBusiness:
141** In ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', Leslie sits up abruptly in her chair, sending the books and newspapers in her lap tumbling to the ground. The dedicated bibliophile doesn't even notice because she's so excited about the article she's found.
142** ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'' features Laptrap forgetting various details of the crew's adventures, not caring about the kids' safety [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking and acting brave and enthusiastic about the current mission]]. [[spoiler: It's his EvilTwin.]]
143* SpotTheImposter:
144** In "The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee", Joni becomes suspicious of detective Perry Boston when she realizes that he's left-handed but claimed that he couldn't sign autographs with a broken ''right'' arm.
145** ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'' features this scenario with 2 [=LapTraps=]; Joni and Leslie end up pulling a BluffTheImpostor.
146* SurprisinglyRealisticOutcome: While it turns out Joni does need those glasses, [[BlindWithoutEm quite badly]], she doesn't freak out when they're removed. Rather, once she has them back on, she asks if everyone else is okay, as she couldn't clearly see what happened.
147* TechnoBabble: In ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'', Santiago and Joni both engage in this though Joni's is utter nonsense with no actual scientific terms at all. [[InvokedTrope She's doing it on purpose]] [[LaymansTerms to get Santiago to explain his new gadget in terms she can understand]]. Santiago isn't offended by this; in fact, he [[ActuallyPrettyFunny finds it hilarious]].
148* WomenAreWiser:
149** Minor case in ''The Mystery of Microsneezia'' where Owen and Santiago are thrown by the SpotTheImpostor situation with Laptrap and S.N.A.I.L. but Joni and Leslie quickly work out a plan without exchanging a word.
150** ''The Mystery of the Backlot Banshee'' also features this with Joni who doesn't immediately buy the story that a local director was using the titular banshee to drum up publicity.

Top