Date: 2008-11-02 11:52:02 Created: null
For Nintendo DS
Animal Crossing in a mobile and networked format seemed like a great idea from the first day I played the Gamecube version. So after I got my DS it was just a matter of time before I got this game too.
The fact that it hasn't actually been released just yet around here is a slight complication. The few DS owners I know don't have the game yet, and the likelihood of running into some random person in possession should be ... well, lower. Arr, want exotic new fruit types (Pears! Get your pears here!)! Strange visitors from faraway places! A Nook's where I can buy medicine for ill animals when the local one is closed for remodeling!
Deep breaths ...
Speaking of correct breathing and relaxing, I've already run into Mr. Resetti three or four times. All of them by accident too (you can believe what you want, it was all accidents!). The battery's run out on me a couple of times, and I've hit the power button instead of select at least once. No idea why, I've never turned off by accident in any other game, but in any case it feels much easier to reset unintentionally on a portable system. I need to learn, I'm not taking another lecture from that ... that thing ...
Animal Crossing for Gamecube was far from a graphical powerhouse. Wild World feels like a step up, if nothing else then because the system and screens are smaller. Sound-wise things are the same as always too. Animals still speak to you in animalese, even if it sounds even less comprehensible to me this time around. Might have something to do with the hardware power available for generating speech. Matters a great deal it does not, in any case.
Finding people to visit wasn't that hard once you put some effort into it. Since it isn't exactly possible to find new friends in-game, various people have created various ways to make it easier to find people to play with online. Friendcodes.com happened to be the site/community I stumbled on first (by a Google ad, no less!) and it worked out fine. They have a nice auto-refreshing page where you can sign up as wanting to travel or willing to recieve guests, and within 30 minutes I had registered, visited my first town and brought home a lot of new fruit.
Plus medicine for poor Aurora.
Connecting with people/WFC took a little while, but everything worked without a hitch after I found someone to visit and we'd both added friend codes. I didn't notice any lag or anything like that.
But then it can't be easy to spot lag in a game like this.
Visiting a new town of someone who has obviously played a while clearly indicated I have a lot to discover and buy. That was one large house ... And the guy dressed up as Mario was cool too ... But I liked the cylinder hat better!