Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader: Make the Grade (Xbox 360)

GameSpot editors' review

• CNET editors' rating: 3.5 stars Very good
  Detailed editors' rating
  Overall score: 7.5 (3.5 stars)

• Reviewed by:
  Mitch Dyer
• Reviewed on: 10/31/2008
• Released on: 10/29/2008
• Originally published on GameSpot: Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader: Make the Grade (Xbox 360) Review

With the addition of Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? to the Xbox 360's growing stack of quiz games, you have yet another solid collection of questions to dip into. Though you might scoff at the price of 1,200 Microsoft points, your 15 bucks goes a long way in this well-realized Xbox Live Arcade adaptation of the popular TV gameshow. The wide variety of subjects, the seemingly endless questions, and a stellar vibe that fully brings the elementary-school-themed television show to life make Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader? a worthy inclusion on your list of downloadable games, a few minor hindrances notwithstanding.

In an effort to win the million-dollar prize, you'll answer a series of 10 questions based on 21 different grade school subjects. From animal science and social studies to vocabulary and astronomy, the varied list gets mixed up every time you start a new match to keep things fresh. Because of the game's extensive catalog of questions spread out over five difficulties, ranging from "1st Grade" through "5th Grade," chances are slim that repeat multiple-choice and true-or-false questions will pop up. Before you pull the prize from the hands of the show's host, blue-collar comedian Jeff Foxworthy, you'll have to select one of the fifth grade "classmates" to help you out during each two-question round. Cheating by peeking at your classmate's paper for help, or flat-out copying an answer, is a viable option and a safer alternative to guessing, for example, what the Peruvian currency might be. If you manage to get something wrong, which is all it takes to get kicked off the podium for good, your classmate can keep you in the game by backing you up with the correct response.

The five fictional students each have two preferred subjects, but you can't always rely on the elementary assistants; even the titular fifth graders can be wrong. Draw on your cheats sparingly and appropriately, though, because you can use each of them only once. You might want to save them for some of the tougher questions or for when you're offered extra credit and a chance to win star stickers. These don't do much other than give you something to show off on your report card, but they do offer achievements if you're looking to fluff your gamerscore with brain power.

These hooks add to the enjoyment of answering 5th Grader's diverse questions, which range from brain-dead easy to mind-bogglingly difficult. Don't be surprised to find yourself staring at your screen wondering if Foxworth swapped a couple of quiz cards with Jeopardy's Alex Trebek. These anomalies hamper the simplistic fun of testing your knowledge against yourself, because some truly challenging questions can put you out of the game. Most people love a bit of difficulty in their questions, but considering how vague some of the questions are--does "big" mean landmass or population?--it's sometimes too hard to nail down a correct answer. That has always been the kicker of the gameshow. But you've got to wonder whether fifth graders are really being taught about Norse mythology or how to convert miles into kilometers from memory.

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