Nintendogs Review

When it comes to the environments you will have your pup in, they aren’t exceedingly diverse, but they do their job. The only real disappointing factor that comes into play is that there seem to be “invisible walls” in whatever area of the game you can play with your dog. This will sort of restrict how you can toss various toys around, but it doesn’t really do anything to ruin the entertainment you will have with your pup. It’s just sort of strange sometimes to see a tennis ball bouncing off walls that appear to look like “white haze.”

But other than that slight shortcoming, the places your pup can be in are very enjoyable. When you’re in your house, you can see the hallway, your bed, some plants and anything else a house may have. Your dog will then just roam about the floor doing whatever he or she pleases until you call it to yourself. Sometimes it can be really funny to just set down your DS and watch what your pup does as he or she does what it feels like, it can pull off some adorably comical things!

When it comes to other places you can go, outside for a walk, the park and the puppy gym are probably the ones you’ll frequent the most. When you decide to take your dog out for a walk, you will trace your path with the stylus and off you go! During this time you will hold onto a virtual dog leash while he or she treks along the sidewalk, going past various neighborhood type buildings. He or she will also “take care of business” like normal dogs do, and it’s oddly realistic how they do that too! On your walk you can also encounter other pups that are being walked by their masters, and interactions can either be not-so-nice, or very friendly. When it comes to the park, you have a huge plot of grass to allow your dog to roam in and play, which also gives you the opportunity to do a little disc throw practice. When you go to the gym, you can take your pup through a preset obstacle course that will allow him or her to practice for agility competitions.

So all in all, Nintendogs is just one impressive looking game. Whether you’re interacting with your pup at home (playing, feeding, etc) or allowing it to experience the various accessible environments throughout the game, you are bound to have a smile on your face when you look at just what may be the most realistic pet simulation application ever created.

Nintendogs is a DS game that truly shines when it comes to the sound effects and music. The music isn’t quite so focused on when it comes to various themes that you will hear, but that seems to have been done on purpose.

Of course the musical themes you will hear are always cheerful and upbeat so that you’re always in the mood to have a smile on when taking care and training your pup. Dogs tend to be very cute, and the musical atmosphere was made to very much reflect that. Who would want a pet simulation game that featured dreary and dull music anyway? There are default themes for just about every area of the game, so at least you don’t have to hear the same thing all the time if you allow your dog to experience the life that Nintendogs intends for you to have with it.

But the sound effects department is the area in which this game will truly amaze you. Pretty much any kind of sound you can think of that you might hear from a dog in real life, be prepared to hear exact replications of them in Nintendogs. The barking is obviously there, and very much realistic. How your pup actually utilizes it as well is also very realistic. It’s not just some random spasming, your pup will bark at you when it’s excited or wants attention. It will bark at things it hears outside. It will bark at other dogs to “communicate” with them. So for those of you who can’t stand hearing the barking of a dog in real life, stay away from this, because it’s absolutely no different.

Even eating and drinking water are sounds that are ingeniously generated through Nintendogs. When your pup drinks from its little bowl, you will hear the “tongue lapping” and “gulping” that normal dogs do when quenching their thirst. When feeding it dry food, you will hear the “crunching” of the kibble inbetween your dog’s teeth. If you happen to give it canned food, his eating won’t nearly be as noisy since that kind of food obviously isn’t crunchy.

Your dog also has emotions too, and it won’t be afraid to show them. But that will really only happen if you give it a reason too, by that meaning MISTREATING it! If you do anything of any sort that might be considered “rough” to a puppy, your dog will let you know he or she doesn’t like it. It will yelp, it will whine and it will growl if it isn’t pleased with something you did with it. Now that doesn’t go to say you might not do anything on accident to make your pup do that, but normally they are quick to forgive you and warm right back up to your attention.

So to put it simply, the music is there to keep the atmosphere happy and cheerful. Who wouldn’t want that in a dog simulation game? Also, just treat your puppy with love and kindness, and you will never really have to worry about it sniping back, disobeying or making your life as miserable as his or hers. Like stated before, if you don’t know how to take care of a puppy, or any kind of dog for that matter, Nintendogs is a great alternative to risking the improper treatment (intended or not) of a real dog!

Nintendogs is without a doubt one of the most innovative and interactive pieces of software to have ever come from Nintendo. Miyamoto is to be praised forever for not only coming up with an out-of-this-world concept, but also capitalizing on it by having it utilize the features of the beloved DS in the most impressive manner to date.

Let’s start with the stylus. This has several functions and all of them are incredibly intuitive and fun to use. To start off, the stylus is used to navigate through the game’s many menus. But like stated before, they are extremely well-marked and organized so going through them should never be a problem. The D-Pad actually never has to be used in this game, so having the stylus come into play that much is just awesome.

You will also use the stylus to interact with your dog on all the varying levels. Petting your pup is an absolute must in this game, as it will keep it happy and make it easier on you to teach it varying tricks at your command. Pretty much anything you want your puppy to do will be executed through the use of your stylus. This will include petting its head, lifting its paws, rubbing its belly, grabbing its tail and so on and so forth. The stylus acts like your human hands, and virtually anything you could do in real life with your puppy, you can do it with the stylus in Nintendogs.