Animal Crossing

Animal Crossing Description

The premise for most videogames enables players to do things not normally possible in real life: firing shotguns into crowds willy-nilly, driving through residential areas at over 200 mph and so on. Animal Crossing, however, is a different creature altogether. This original Nintendo title embraces the mundane and banal, yet somehow manages to be a hugely appealing game. The Animal Crossing adventure kicks off as the player arrives at the local train station of a randomly generated village. After acquainting yourself with the new cottage that awaits, your new life as a funny looking rag doll-type thing begins in earnest. As you wander around your new village community, you'll bump into fellow residents (all animals, hence the title) who'll be keen to stop and chat. Whilst some will give you hints as to exciting village events taking place in the near future, others will ask favours of you. This is as close to a 'normal' video game as Animal Crossing ever gets, lending an almost mission-like structure to proceedings. However, when the favours involve helping an elderly hedgehog lady find a missing piece of furniture, you'll appreciate that even these elements are a far cry from the usual. So too are the rewards. Instead of opening up further missions, the player will receive a gift for helping out fellow villagers. A gift, for instance, such as a chest of drawers or a shirt. At its heart, that's what Animal Crossing is all about: collecting gifts. The idea is to get your cottage looking as nice as possible, and keep the community vibe in full swing. To do this, you will need a little cash at your disposal. This is best earned by hunting and collecting various examples of the local flora and fauna. You can pluck wild fruit from trees and sell the produce; or indeed re-plant it and build your own orchard. You can chase butterflies and rare beetles with a net; donate unusual exhibits to the local museum or simply sell them at the local shop. You can even go fishing or dig for fossils on a spare afternoon. It's this sedate pace that makes the Animal Crossing experience an enjoyable one. The player is at liberty to pootle around, doing as they please. But because the game engine is powered by a real-time 24 hour clock, the game is always progressing, even when you're busy trying to snag a particularly elusive breed of Cicada. If the village is looking picture-postcard perfect as time goes on, new villagers will arrive, offering the player further opportunity as a professional favour-doer. However, because the state of Animal Crossing is constantly evolving, even when you're asleep, keen players can develop on unhealthy obsession with the game. Indeed, it's not unknown for Animal Crossing players to structure their real lives around the village timetable. If a bear has promised to serenade you with an acoustic guitar and a cheery song, at precisely 7.00 pm that evening, you'd better make sure you're sitting comfortably in front of your Gamecube by that time, or it's a lost opportunity. Animal Crossing never really comes to a conclusion and could go on ad infinitum. Even after you've collected enough bugs, etc. to afford the maximum extensions to your cottage, it takes a while to fill it with bits of furniture and various pets. Even after that, there's the option to customise clothing and wallpaper to your personal tastes. But best of all is the delicious Nintendo touch that lets players collect classic NES games to play in their cottage (or download to their GBA). Working hard to save up for a virtual copy of Excitebike or Dr Mario is a surprisingly rewarding experience. Although the PAL version is two years late, it will still entice the more open-minded and young-at-heart gamer; and indeed, get European Nintendo fans familiar with the franchise in time for a Gamecube sequel, and perhaps most interestingly, an outing on the Nintendo DS.

Visit the village often throughout the day, because different activities happen at different times; plus, special things sometimes happen on holidays.

Interact with others-up to four other players can move into the village and take turns playing in a shared village, cooperating and competing on one game pak.

Swap Memory Cards with friends who have the game and travel to their villages to interact with different characters there. In other villages, players find different assortments of items and build new relationships with different groups of villagers.

Pay off and improve your house by returning daily, adding floors and new furnishings; and watch how other human characters improve their houses, which adds a competitive element.

Experience the game's unique and engrossing sense of community as you join villagers in actual time.

Relive many classic NES games included in Animal Crossing, which players will discover, earn or get passwords for the games through Animal Crossing-e cards.

Check back regularly or the virtual residence will become overrun by weeds and cockroaches. And don't dare try to reset the game!

Connect to a Game Boy Advance using a NINTENDO GAMECUBE Game Boy Advance cable. Once connected, players can travel from the village to a remote island, and find exotic items.

Hook up the new e-Reader through your Game Boy Advance and swipe Animal Crossing-e cards to acquire game tips, special or rare items or even special messages from the characters living at Animal Crossing.

Experience the all-new N-Port feature. Download a classic NES game to your Game Boy Advance. Then disconnect and take the game with you!