Animal Crossing Wii - 8/10

Introduction
I played Animal Crossing on the GameCube in three separate stints. I played it for about 3-4 months before losing interest then found myself coming back to it about a year later and starting over (trust me, if a year expires you dont want to go back to your town ). Then repeated it about 6 months after that. So I had pretty much seen it all.

I never got to play the DS version so there are a lot of features in the Wii version that are new to me. However my friend did play the DS version and there was little that seemed new to him.

This is what you have to understand when reading this review. If you havent played the game it will all be new to you. If you just played the gamecube game then half of it will be new to you. If you have played the DS game then only a handful of features will be new to you.

From the start
What is Animal Crossing?

You move into a village where Animals live. What you do is up to you. Some people describe it as The Sims and maybe this isnt such a bad starting point. But there are a few differences:

1/ The game is real time. If its night time then your game will be night time.
2/ You dont have stats to build up. You dont have to eat, sleep or shower.
3/ You cant customise as much as the sims.
4/ You cant build relationships. If you whack an animal with your net, they will get upset but the next day its like it never happened.

The real time is what makes this game very different from The Sims, and in fact most games you would have played.

You have to wait until 10:00am before the shop opens. Once you buy the items you have to wait until the next day before more is stocked. Some fish only come out at night, or the month of December. Some items can only be collected during certain holidays. If you send a letter you have to wait until Pete delivers it. Plant a tree and it takes three days to grow.

However there isnt as much to do as The Sims so unfortunately there will be lengthy periods where you have nothing to do. Think of it as a game you will be paying 30mins to an hour, two or three times a day, instead of 4 or 5 hours on end like other time sapping simulation games.

You can fish, catch bugs, dig up fossils and find paintings - all of which can be donated.
You can chop down and plant trees and flowers.
You can design shirts which the animals will wear.
You can design a town tune and flag.
You can upgrade your house and collect furniture (you cant really use it though apart from sit on a toilet for a quick laugh).
You can talk to the animals, trade items with them and write them letters.
You can participate in holidays.
You can eat fruit and drink coffee but this has no baring on the game.
You can also sell almost anything for money which you can use to buy stuff, pay off your house or improve your town.

This game also includes the mii.





The Animals
You have random animals (from a set collection) that move in. Unfortunately they are duller than the gamecube version and seem to offer little in the way of communication. Plus they dont show off letters as keenly which means all the time you put into writing them may be for nothing.

Some animals move in, some move out, and the cycle continues.

You can get attached to them but unlike The Sims they can not get attached to you and most, if not all, interaction with them ultimately seems wasted. They are still good fun and as a bonus you can customise some of their speech. This is where the true values, and laughs, lay.





Who can play it
You and three people can move into the Town. You have your own house but you share the same town. What does this mean? Well the museum only accepts one of each species. The first to donate it gets their name listed next to it. If you dont get to Nooks quick enough you might find all items gone. There are five items to dig up each day. Again, first in, best dressed.

As you play there is always evidence they have been playing which makes it both competitive and fun. You can also write each other letters, laugh at what they have taught the animals to say, or read letters the animals may show off.

Its best to stay in communication with each other to make sure you are working towards a common goal.





Online Play
Animal Crossing can also be played online. You can open your gates to invite others, or visit somebody else's town. They must be online with their gates open before you can visit. Up to four people can play similtaneously in one town.

You play other towns much like you play your own town. You can't donate items or change their town tune or flag but you can do pretty much everything else - such as buy items, dig up items, pick fruit, replace designs int he tailor, plant trees, and chop them down.

You need to be careful that you dont get any friends that play destructively. Let them know what is and isn't acceptable.

My only rules are no chopping down or planting trees. They take 3 days to grow and an axe isnt always available to remove trees you dont want.

You can communicate to your friends with open speech (you can type anything you want) either by typing it or using the microphone. The microphone works well and saves a lot of time typing. But use whatever you are comfortable with. Just be cautious not to say anything that may identify who you are and delete trouble users immediately.

Just like offline, there is evidence of your friends when you play alone. The animals refer to them from time to time as they speak. If they put an item up for auction in the city you can buy it. One of their town's animals houses may also be chosen as a model house in the HRA.

You can also send and receive letters to them without having to go online.

The City
The main addition to the other Animal Crossing titles is the City. There is not much here to keep you amused for more than a 5-10 minute visit each week but its still a nice addition. There are new places to visit such as the Auction House or a theatre for learning emotions. I won't spoil the other places.





And the rest
There is a lot that I havent covered. Special guests visit, you can upgrade your town with new features, play hide and seek with the animals - there is a lot to this little game. Its hard to believe this game will feel shallow at times or give you that feeling of not knowing what to do. But there are times where you will play for extended hours as you have too much to do.

What's missing?
A few things from the gamecube are missing for better or for worse:
No more NES games. If you want to play them you have to pay for them via the virtual console.
The animals dont readily show off letters and seem to stick with one theme when you talk to them.
No more acres which makes finding things a lot tougher.
The animal speak has gone from identifiable to garbage. If you listened closely you could make out what they were saying, now its sped up and doesnt sound like anything.

A few more things but I wont go into them all.

How does it rate?
The graphics are cutesy and basic but it suits the game perfectly.
The music can be tedious at times but not enough to turn it off.
The sound effects are what you would expect. Nothing to write home about but isnt bad either.

This is a great game. Its different enough to warrant playing and interesting enough to keep you playing. If you dont cheat (by changing the clock) you can play for at a long time, but it wont be always, usually 30 minutes a day.

It can feel shallow at times but you will always find a reason to play it at least once a day, if only to see if Nook has stocked an item you havent ticked off in your item's collected list.


If you have played/own the DS game then it will feel very much the same. However if you ever wanted to start again with a few extras then you should buy it. Think of it as an expansion pack. (7/10)

If you have played just the gamecube game then there will be plenty of new features to warrant doing it all over. (8.5/10)

If you haven't played either then you should buy this. (9/10)

greenbob 29/12/2008

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