Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Releases Line of Mobile Games for Preschoolers, Starting with Curious George Adventures for the iPhone and iPad

New mobile apps also include two fun and interactive games featuring beloved characters from the well-known Gossie and Friends book series

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Global education leader Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) today launched the first in a series of mobile games for children to play on the iPhone and iPad, featuring the timeless character Curious George as well as the cast of characters from the Gossie and Friends series, all in fun and challenging games that preschool-aged kids can enjoy at home or on the go. The games are now available on iTunes for both the iPhone and iPad at a cost of $2.99 for the iPhone and $3.99 for the iPad.

“The Learning Company is built around the clear and increasing desire of parents to be more actively engaged with their children’s education, development and growth”

The series of mobile games is being developed and released by The Learning Company, a division of HMH. The Learning Company is focused on reaching parents and students with fun and engaging products that build upon the skills and lessons being taught in the classroom and at home.

“The Learning Company is built around the clear and increasing desire of parents to be more actively engaged with their children’s education, development and growth,” said Tony Bordon, President of The Learning Company. “Our focus is on delivering innovative products to make education fun and accessible, while offering parents new ways to help their children learn with familiar content and characters on the platforms they know and enjoy.”

Four New Fun Apps for Pre-Schoolers

The four games released today include:

Go George Go!: Players take Curious George on an “a-maze-ing” adventure, beginning the game by dressing George in their favorite ensemble, and then helping navigate his vehicle through a series of fun mazes. The game is designed to be captivating yet intuitive for preschool-aged kids while also suitably engaging for their older siblings. The game senses how a child wants to play (tilting or dragging) and sets them off to avoid obstacles, unlock passages, and guide George out of the maze and on to his next journey.

George’s Curious Climb!: Curious George comes to life in a climbing game in which players tap on the buildings to help George climb up to the top and wash the dirty windows while trying to dodge obstacles such as kitties, flocks of birds and bouncing balls. The faster George climbs while washing windows, the higher the score.

Gossie’s Eggcellent Parade: Players help choose an outfit for Gossie by mixing and matching hundreds of clothing combinations to get her ready for a barnyard parade. Using the tilt or drag feature, kids lead Gossie around the maze, collecting all of her gosling friends and barnyard animals along the way to join the parade and complete the maze.

Ollie Ollie Oxen Free: This game puts players right in the center of a game of hide and seek. Gossie, Ollie, Peedee, BooBoo, and Gertie are hiding around the farm. By using the iPhone 4’s new gyroscope feature, players can rotate their body while holding the iPhone to see a 180-degree view of the barnyard, and follow audio clues and visual hints to find them (older iPhones and the iPad utilize the touch and swipe feature). With every game of hide and seek, players earn stickers and backgrounds to create and design their own art with the additional activity.

As a global education leader, HMH is committed to building innovative solutions to better engage parents and help them support the education of their children outside of the classroom. In addition to the Curious George and Gossie apps, HMH offers a variety of apps for the iPhone and iPad that feature other beloved characters like Tacky the Penguin to engage kids through e-books and games.

For more information, please visit The Learning Company’s App Store at www.thelearningcompany.com/appstore.

About Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt is a global education and learning company that is leading the way with innovative solutions and approaches to the challenges facing education today. The world’s largest provider of educational products and solutions for pre-K–12 learning, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt develops and delivers interactive, results-driven learning solutions that advance teacher effectiveness and student achievement. Through curricula excellence and technology innovation, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt collaborates with school districts, administrators, teachers, parents and students. Today, HMH education products and services are used by 57 million students throughout all 50 U.S. states and 120 countries. With origins dating back to 1832, the Company also publishes an extensive line of reference works and award-winning literature for adults and young readers. For more information, visit www.hmhco.com.