Palladium partners with Highlights for Children to release new Hidden Pictures Workshop CD-ROM   LARKSPUR, CA- After half a century of delighting youngsters at home, in school and at doctors' offices around the nation, Highlights for Children is bringing its most popular activities into the multimedia age through a partnership with Palladium Interactive, a cutting edge multimedia publisher based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Today Palladium announced Hidden Pictures Workshop, the company's first CD-ROM title produced in conjunction with Highlights, the publisher of the nation's largest children's magazine, with a circulation of 2.5 million. `We are proud to be working with such a prestigious, family-trusted partner as Highlights,` said Ed Bernstein, president and CEO of Palladium Interactive. `Hidden Pictures Workshop is the first in a series of Highlights products from Palladium. This gives us the opportunity to combine our multimedia expertise with Highlights' extensive repertoire of quality content for children.` Hidden Pictures Workshop brings Hidden Pictures, one of the beloved magazine's most popular activities, to life on the computer screen. Designed for children ages 5 and up, the CD-ROM provides hours of fun while enhancing children's visual discrimination skills and creativity. Available in April for a suggested retail price of $29.95, the hybrid (Windows/Macintosh) CD-ROM features 40 animated Hidden Pictures puzzles, three levels of play, and a full-featured Art Studio full of colors, drawing tools and engaging sound effects. Hidden Pictures Puzzles Hidden Pictures Workshop is designed for children of all ages. One of Highlights magazine's most popular activities, Hidden Pictures challenges children to find unexpected objects that are hidden in an illustration. Each Hidden Pictures puzzle allows players to choose from three interactive levels, ranging in difficulty from the pre-reader to grade schoolers and up. Level one is designed specifically for pre-readers, where children are provided with pictures and words to describe items hidden in a line drawing. A young reader can look for a `dog,` for example, while a pre-reader can search for the same hidden object by examining a drawing of a dog. At level two, children are given only a written clue, such as `umbrella` (without a drawing), while at level three, players will enjoy the challenge of investigating scenes on their own, without words or pictures to guide them. A hint option is available at any time, and at all levels, to outline the general area where Hidden Pictures may be found. Children's visual discrimination skills are tested and rewarded by completing searches at any level. The Hidden Pictures puzzles include features such as: -- Helpful hints that are a `click` away -- Animations that reward children for Hidden Pictures discovery -- Fun sound effects to enhance multimedia experience -- Print option to enjoy Hidden Pictures away from the computer Art Studio In the Art Studio, children find all the tools they need to unleash their imaginations and produce vibrant works of art. They can start with Hidden Pictures or begin with a blank screen and create their own design from scratch. The assortment of tools include crayons, air brush, paint bucket, rubber stamps, background patterns and more to provide unlimited fun. Stamps and shapes can be moved, flipped, sized and rotated. Additional Art Studio features include: -- Artist tools to tap kids' creative talents -- Unlimited color mixing options from a 36 color palette -- Selection of over 300 rubber stamps, patterns and shapes -- Print option to produce finished creations or black and white pages for coloring Hidden Pictures scenes Format, System Requirements Format: Hybrid CD-ROM: Windows 3.1/ Windows 95 or Macintosh/Power Macintosh System Requirements: Windows 3.1/Windows95: 486DX/33MHz or greater, 8MB RAM, 8 MB free hard disk space available, SVGA monitor (256 colors), double speed CD-ROM drive, and a SoundBlaster compatible sound card. Macintosh/PowerMacintosh: System 7.1 or above, 68040/25MHz or faster processor or Power PC, 8MB RAM, 8 MB free hard disk space available, SVGA monitor (256 colors), and a double speed CD-ROM drive. Palladium Interactive, headquartered in Larkspur, Calif., was founded in 1994 by former executives of Broderbund, Mindscape, Activision and other technology companies to explore new opportunities in the development and distribution of interactive multimedia. Palladium Interactive was the first company to publish all its original titles as `CD-ROMs with the Internet inside,` combining the best aspects of CD-ROM with the growing influence of the World Wide Web. For more information on Palladium Interactive and its products, just access the Company's website. Highlights for Children was founded in 1946 by Dr. Gary Cleveland Myers and Caroline Clark Myers. The company is in the third generation of family ownership. The editorial headquarters are in Honesdale, PA, with the business office in Columbus, OH. With over 2.5 million subscribers, Highlights for Children is the nation's largest circulation children's magazine.