I've been singing Sago Mini's praises for some time (see my reviews of Ocean Swimmer, Road Trip, Friends, and Fairy Tales, as well as Shoshana's review of Monsters), and now I have musical accompaniment! Sago Mini Music Box (2014; iOS and Android) invites users to join cheerful animal characters to play three familiar tunes.

First things first: choose a character and thus the song you'll be performing. Select the orange cat to drift over a meadow, through mountains, and into space in a hot air balloon, to the strains of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." Hop in a sled with the blue bunny to dash through the snow as you play "Jingle Bells." Or "Row, Row, Row Your Boat" through a tropical paradise with the brown dog.



Regardless of which character/song combination you choose, tap your device to both play the appropriate musical notes and accelerate your vehicle — you set the tempo of your song and the speed of travel.

Tapping different items or locations on your screen produces different instrumentation and a wide range of humorous visual surprises. For instance, in "Twinkle, Twinkle," tapping the meadow as the kitty floats over in the balloon plays a low guitar note (and might produce a tree, flower, or mountain goat), while tapping the night sky plays a higher keyboard tone (as a star, comet, or rocket appears). When you drift past the moon, alien groundhogs pop out to greet you. Tap the same item twice in a row, and you might get a brief animation. If you're lucky, you may spot paper airplanes soaring through the sky, or even a UFO beaming up one of the goats. Throughout, the kitty oohs and ahhs at the sights. Both the music and the landscapes are seamlessly looped, allowing for unhurried exploration.



The visual surprises and various instrument sounds add considerable variety to the otherwise similar tunes. Bright colors; simple, rounded shapes; and a sense of joyful wonder enhance the experience. A locked parents' section offers some usage tips.

Available for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch (requires iOS 5.1.1 or later; free) and Android devices (requires Android 4.0.3 and up; $2.99). Recommended for preschool users.