An Amusement Park in Your Very Own Home!
Written: Feb 09 '03 (Updated Jun 05 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Adorable amusement park for Little People characters.
Cons: Ferris Wheel falls off. Stickers (grrr).
The Bottom Line: It isn't without faults, but it is simply tons of fun for my little guy!
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| mizgnomer's Full Review: Fisher Price Little People Fun Park |
I first saw the Fisher Price Little People Fun Park when my son was just a month old (on the Pamper's Points redemption site) and fell in love with it. Although we ultimately redeemed our points on something else, I kept my eyes open for the toy on sale. Eventually our local Toys R Us had a blowout sale on the older Little People toy sets (trying to get back some shelf space to use for the newer sets), and I purchased the Fun Park for a mere $15 (marked down from its usual $25). Since my son was still far too young for it, we decided to hide it away in the closet until Christmas (when he would be 1½).
During the many months that the toy sat in the closet, I stumbled across some other reviews of the Little People Fun Park. Some very unflattering reviews. I started to get worried as I read stories of how the toy fell apart and didn't work properly. Some called this toy "THE" dud in the usually fabulous Little People line.
Then Christmas finally came, and my son got to see his Little People Fun Park for the first time. But first things first...
Product Description:
The Little People Fun Park is a cute amusement park complete with a roller coaster, Ferris wheel, and plane ride. Also included are 3 figures -- a clown, a blond boy (Eddie) holding a frog, and a dark-haired girl (Sonya Lee) holding a cat. All of the rides can be attached to the large gray base, but the Ferris wheel and airplane ride can also be removed and played with separately.
The rides:
The most striking ride is the roller coaster. You hook the car onto a little catch on the track at the top of a large hill, then press the red button at the top to release the car. It then rolls down the hill, under an arch, around a 360° loop-the-loop, around a turn, back under the ramp, then comes out a clown-face-shaped door. Two roller-coaster cars are included, a red one and a blue one. The red release button and ramp are at an excellent height for a standing toddler. The arch also serves as a handle for carrying the playset (although my son would rather carry it by the loop-the-loop part of the track, which we try to discourage).
The purple Ferris wheel can seat 3 passengers, and can be turned via a crank. The Ferris wheel attaches to the base next to the roller-coaster ramp. With the Ferris wheel removed there is a little slide that goes under the roller-coaster, adding to the playability of the set.
A cute airplane ride sits in the curve of the roller-coaster's track. Two airplanes swing down from the ride's roof, which can be turned via a handle on top. Convenient storage space is revealed when the airplane ride is removed from the base.
Other Details:
There is quite a bit of assembly required. There are stickers to be applied and colorful cardboard insets to be placed. The ramp and loop-the-loop must be assembled. A Phillips screwdriver is required. It didn't take long to put together, but if giving this to your child as a gift I would recommend assembling it first.
There are no batteries required. The Fun Park is recommended for children ages 18 months and up.
Our Experiences:
After reading all of those negative things about the Little People Fun Park, I must admit I was very pleasantly surprised. My boy took to it immediately, and was particularly amused by the roller-coaster. The cars went down the track beautifully, and we did not have any trouble with the track falling apart.
It wasn't until a few weeks later that I started to see what other people were complaining about. If my boy punched or slapped at the release button with too much gusto, the car would fall down and off the track. It only works well if you press the button normally or gently. I think because my boy enjoyed the toy so much he would get all excited and slap the large red release button with all his might! It took some time and effort, but now he knows how to work it like a pro, and the cars go perfectly down the track about 98% of the time.
My biggest complaint about the toy is the Ferris wheel. My boy likes it and wants to spin it, but it does not stay attached to the base well. After just a few jostles (and what toddler doesn't jostle things?) it comes free from the playset base and falls over. You can play with it separately from the base, but it is very top-heavy and my boy doesn't yet grasp the concept of steadying the Ferris wheel's base with one hand and turning the crank with the other.
I also have a couple other more minor complaints. Our Little People characters do not stay put in the airplane ride. My son will start spinning it and invariably a character will go flying just a few seconds later (which my son actually gets a kick out of sometimes, so maybe that isn't such a big con after all). A big con for me was all the blasted stickers I had to wrestle with during the toy's assembly. I never can get them on straight, and the one that went around the curve of the roller-coaster track ended up with a big wrinkle in it. I hate stickers on toys, especially when I'm the one who has to apply them.
In my opinion the instructions tell you to put a particular sticker on the wrong side of the Ferris wheel -- it ends up on the side that faces the roller-coaster ramp when the wheel is on the base, leaving the plain side exposed and putting the prettier side where no one can see it. If I had it to do over I would ignore the instructions and put the sticker on the side with the crank so that the Ferris wheel looks nice when on the base.
My son does have a total blast with his Little People Fun Park. I would guestimate that it is his 2nd-most favorite Little People toy (following closely behind his Big Top Train, which he simply adores). He has some funny quirks when he plays, such as not wanting to spin the Ferris wheel until there is a passenger in every one of the 3 seats. If there are just 2 Little People on board he will not touch it until he finds another person (or animal) to fill the empty seat. His father and I find it endlessly amusing to watch him assert himself and let us know that passenger-less cars are unacceptable. He also refuses to send an empty car down the roller coaster track (although the cars work equally well unoccupied). Another cute quirk -- he doesn't like it when we stand a character at the top of the ramp. The red release button has a notch so a Little People character can stand there. If my son sees a figure up there he will race across the room to knock it down (so of course his father makes it a point to always put a character up there).
My son has also found other ways to play with his Fun Park. He has one of the new-fangled Weebles that rolls as well as wobbles, and he has tried rolling it down the roller-coaster ramp. Unfortunately the Weeble is a bit too wide to roll down the ramp properly, but he can go down the slide that is revealed when the Ferris wheel is off the base. My son loves launching the Weeble down the slide and seeing how far it will roll.
Hooking the cars onto the release mechanism was a skill that took my son a few months to acquire as well. Now he's a pro at it, but Mommy or Daddy had to set the cars up for him for quite a while. He's really proud of himself now that he can do it without assistance, and made it a point to show his grandmother and grandfather his new skill the last time they visited (taking Grandma by the hand and leading her to the Fun Park).
The storage bin is a nice addition. It isn't huge or anything, but there is more than enough room for the 3 characters and two cars that come with the set, with space for a few more. If my boy still loves his Fun Park when he gets older, we've considered filling the storage bin with water so there can be a swimming pool in the middle of the park. There are quite a few possibilities for imaginative play with this toy.
Quickie Summary:
Pros:
+) Cute, colorful, and fun!
+) 3 fun rides, plus a slide for good measure
+) Compatible with Little People figures from other sets
+) Nice storage compartment
+) No batteries required -- all of the fun is kid-generated
Cons:
-) Ferris Wheel falls of the base too easily, and is too top-heavy to be fun off of the base
-) Successfully launching the roller-coaster cars can take some practice -- just don't smack the release button
-) Takes up a lot of floor space
-) Stickers
Final Thoughts:
Although this toys isn't without its faults, my son simply adores it. He loves running his Little People Fun Park, which he keeps chock full of visitors (including characters from his other Little People sets) at all times. I was really worried after reading some negative reviews, but the Little People Fun Park is definitely one of my little guy's favorites, and Mommy and Daddy like it too!
Update: 2/12/2002
After talking with some other mothers (thanks tritter72), we think that I probably have a "newer" version of the toy, which has some improvements over the older version. If you are looking to purchase this toy, make sure it has the red release button at the very top of the roller coaster ramp, including a notch on top of the button for a Little Person to stand upon. The release button was clearly visible in the photograph on the box our toy came in.
My other Little People reviews:
Little People Ramps Around Garage
Little People Lil' Kingdom Castle
Little People Christmas on Main Street
Little People Fun Sounds Playground
Little People RumblIn' Grumblin' Dump Truck
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 15.00
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Epinions.com ID:
mizgnomer
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Location: Tennessee
Reviews written: 306
Trusted by: 202 members
About Me:
Don't meddle in the affairs of dragons, for you're crunchy and taste good with ketchup
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