If you ever need a stellar example of edutainment (educational entertainment), look no further than the wonder that is the Carmen Sandiego franchise. Though originally classified as a mystery exploration game, once it became super popular in classrooms, it was rebranded under the edutainment umbrella. Honestly, if you were given free time to play on the computer in elementary school, it was a real toss-up whether you’d play Carmen Sandiego, Oregon Trail, or SimCity (click on those game titles to check out our articles on those games). Which game you’d pick may have just come down to the computer you were able to get, and which game was available on it.
The original game that inspired the whole franchise, Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, was released in 1985 and set up the formula for how all the games to follow would go. After a theft, you would go investigate the culprit, tracking them all over the globe, collecting clues about their identity and where they went to next, until you eventually caught up to the thief. If you had filled out your arrest warrant correctly, wham bam, you solved the case and your ranking within the ACME Detective Agency would rise up and up until eventually you were able to actually track down the notorious Carmen Sandiego herself.
Another hallmark of the game was an extensive use of puns, both in the thieves’ names as well as in the clues you received about where to go next. Some sample names included Hardley Worthit, Rob M. Blind, Ruth Less, Joy Ryder, and M.T. Pockets, among others. And a sample clue you might receive? “I pumped her for information, but her unrefined answer only suggested a crude plan to visit oil wells near Ahvaz.” Even though the clues were often obvious, sometimes they were a bit tougher — I remember going on a wild goose chase to the wrong destination every now and then.
But Carmen Sandiego wasn’t just a computer game. Oh no. There have been books, comics, and two animated television series’. But the two most memorable franchise expansions were the board games and the game show. Throughout the ‘90s, University Games published a number of different Carmen Sandiego board games, from the traditional Where in the World variety, to Where in the USA, to Where in Space, and even Where in Time. The games would typically have two parts. First, players collected clues to work out which of Carmen’s henchmen stole a particular landmark, and then all players would race to see who could catch the crook first. Sort of like Clue, but with the Carmen Sandiego theme.
And, of course, the game show! Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? aired on PBS stations from 1991 to 1995, with a total of 295 episodes recorded. Each episode featured three contestants around 10-14 years old answering geography-related trivia questions in order to track down Carmen’s cronies, and eventually Carmen herself. The most memorable parts of the show, however, were the amazing Chief (Lynne Thigpen) continually calling you “gumshoe” whilst delivering puns and fancy wordplay, and the a capella group Rockapella performing as the house band and providing some goofy antics throughout. Can we all agree that their theme music is iconic? Yes? Yes. Check out Rockapella performing the theme song in the video above!
But what was your favorite iteration of Carmen Sandiego? The original video game? The show? The books? Let us know in the comments!
- The character of Carmen Sandiego was developed by David Siefkin, who combined the character’s first and last names from the Brazilian singer and actress Carmen Miranda and the city of San Diego, California.
- Broderbund, who originally released the game, also released Myst, Prince of Persia, and Reader Rabbit, among many other video games.
- The Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? game show won seven Daytime Emmys and a 1992 Peabody Award.
- Netflix released a four-season television series that ran from 2019-2021 and featured Carmen Sandiego as the main character, painting her in a new light as a secret Robin Hood-style thief who’s really trying to do good with her heists.
- Kids (and adults) today can play a Carmen Sandiego video game via Google Earth. Get to it, gumshoe!
- The character of Carmen Sandiego was developed by David Siefkin, who combined the character’s first and last names from the Brazilian singer and actress Carmen Miranda and the city of San Diego, California.
- Broderbund, who originally released the game, also released Myst, Prince of Persia, and Reader Rabbit, among many other video games.
- The Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego? game show won seven Daytime Emmys and a 1992 Peabody Award.
- Netflix released a four-season television series that ran from 2019-2021 and featured Carmen Sandiego as the main character, painting her in a new light as a secret Robin Hood-style thief who’s really trying to do good with her heists.
- Kids (and adults) today can play a Carmen Sandiego video game via Google Earth. Get to it, gumshoe!
