After buying my son a Nintendo DS Lite a couple of week's ago(see my previous reviews) he very quickly became bored with the game's which he got with it so I popped out to see what other game's were out there for the DS and after searching about 5 computer games shops the general opinion was that one of the best game's for the DS was Animal Crossing.
I paid my £29.99 in Game I brought it home to him and he stuck it straight into his DS and started playing and I heard nothing for a couple of day's as he was glued to the screen. When he eventually let me have a go he showed me how to play the game and I as well was hooked.
THE GAME
Right from the word go the game is brilliantly turning up in a cab to your new town which is where you will spend most of the game, making friend's with other villagers and increasing the size of your town day by day be warned it's a game for the long stay as a day in the real world is a day in Animal Crossing.
Once you arrive in your new Town and have named it you can get on with making friend's completing job's earning bells these are the equivalent of cash and buying new thing's for your house. You also have a mortgage to pay which once cleared will allow you to buy a bigger and better house with more space to decorate and place all the brilliant item's you can collect.
Amongst many tool's you can buy are Insect Net, Spade, Axe, Fishing Rod these are great addition's to the game as you can go fishing and build up your book of best catches or just add the fish to the aquarium in your local museum, you also can just sell them to the local shop to help pay off that mortgage. The spade allows you to dig up fossil's and all sort's of weird and wonderful artifacts which can also be placed in your museum to make it one of the best or be sold in the shop. The axe is for clearing tree's that may be in the way of expanding your town but be warned don't cut down to many as they take age's to grow from saplings. The fruit that grows on tree's can be shaken off and collected for either eating or selling. The Net is brilliant you have to keep your eye's peeled but when you spot a creepy crawly or a butterfly just equip your net and sneak up quietly before pouncing and claiming a prized insect for your museum or just to show off to your friends.
GAMEPLAY
The game play is very simply once you have had the first go just drag you stylus across the touch screen to move yourself around or if you prefer you can use the diagonal button. Full of great fun and no end of places to go see and find thing's you can keep very busy and be interested in the game for age's to come. Upon touching your command screen you can stop walking around and start to write letter's to other resident's of your town, feed yourself or equip yourself with new equipment and even change the design of your clothes. There is a lot more to this game that will be talked about below that just really open's the game right up.
GRAPHICS
Very good but cartoon graphic's take out the serious gamers' but for those looking for longetivity in a game Animal Crossing is great. Town's folk are not normal though lol you have bird's bears and all kind's of funny creatures. You however are a human and as you stroll around the town you will be in awe of how great cartoon graphic's can be.
WIRELESS
You can play Animal Crossing through the Wireless function with friend's nearby visiting each other's town's as every town is different and seeing if they have anything that is not included in your town especially in the shop's. If you want to be very sneaky whilst in someone else's town you can even start to dig up relics they have not yet found and search for place's they may have hidden stuff they don't want found.
WI FI
Wi Fi play is absolutely brilliant you can connect with players all over the world my son has made friend's in the USA and Australia whom he play's with and visit's on a regular basis. You also have the ability to chat and build up a roster of friends so when they come on line and open their gate's to their town you can pop along and visit. The best way to check out new players and add friend's is through the chat area's on the internet. Be warned still be very careful about giving out any personal information although a game it would not surprise me if there are people out there taking advantage of such game's and chat rooms. Once you have added a new friend and they have added you you can nip to each other's town's and even talk over the DS using the type message box in your menu screen.
Many people need some major chores doing in their town's so go along and help and they may just pay you but be warned you may find yourself working pulling weed's and chopping tree's only for someone to not pay you lol.
SUITABILITY
I would say that anyone from the age of 5 to 105 could enjoy this game but as a parent buying it for a child you may want to closely monitor any communication of the Wi Fi service and internet chat room's although this is a great way for kid's to meet and learn about people from different countries it is also open to abuse from a certain undesirable section of society.
PRICE
As I have said I paid £29.99 in the offline shop of Game mainly because I wanted to get him one while I was out instead of waiting all over the weekend although I am sure you could get it for under £20 on EBay. Value for money it is probably one of the best game's I have purchased for last ability since I have been playing computer game's and that's a good few years lol.
SUMMARY
A great game which will have you playing for age's and something that even when you put down intending to leave it down you just can't help but pick it up again 10 minutes later. The graphic's and game play are brilliant and there is no end of task's to complete and town's to visit once you start building up a roster of friends. I can't get off it and neither can my son and we are making damn sure nobody else in the house get's hooked as we can't get enough of it between us never mind having to share with more lol.
Barry
More details
Originality
Excellent - very original
Sound
Excellent - makes full use of my speakers
Longevity/Expected Longevity
ongoing
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just live life, extend a home, interact with their neighbors and explore the village. Much of the cast of the original Animal Crossingâ„¢ returns, including animal...
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