| Nintendogs | |
|---|---|
 The European version of Nintendogs, Dalmatian and Friends. |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo EAD |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Producer(s) | Hideki Konno |
| Designer(s) | Kiyoshi Mizuki |
| Composer(s) | Hajime Wakai |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo DS |
| Release date(s) | JP
April 21, 2005 NA August 22, 2005 PAL October 7, 2005 Best Friends version NA October 24, 2005 Dalmatian & Friends version PAL June 16, 2006 NA October 16, 2006 |
| Genre(s) | Pet-raising simulation |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer via Bark Mode |
| Rating(s) | CERO:
A ESRB: E OFLC: G PEGI: 3+ |
| Media | Nintendo DS Game Card |
| Input methods | Face buttons, touchscreen, built-in microphone |
Nintendogs (ニンテンドッグス) is a real-time pet simulation video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld video game console. It was first released in Japan, and was later released in North America, Australia, Europe, and other regions. It was originally released in three different versions: Dachshund & Friends, Lab & Friends, and Chihuahua & Friends. It has been re-released twice since then, first as a bundled release with a special edition Nintendo DS with a new version called Nintendogs: Best Friends, and then later as Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends.
Nintendogs utilizes the DS's touchscreen and built-in microphone. The touch screen allows the player to pet a dog, as well as to use various items that can be found or purchased. These range from balls and frisbees, to toys, to grooming supplies to keep the dogs happy. The microphone is used to call to the player's dog by speaking the name given to the dog in the beginning of the game as well as to teach the dog commands such as "sit" or "roll over". Players can bring their dogs on walks and to the park if they so choose. They may interact with other players in multi-player by using the DS's wireless linkup. It also uses the DS's internal clock and calendar to allow the dog to grow hungrier or dirtier based on the elapsed time.
Nintendogs received mostly positive critical reception. It has an aggregate score of 85% at Game Rankings,[1] and has won many awards, including the 2006 Innovation Award from PC World and Best Handheld Game from the Associated Press. As of March 31, 2009, all versions of Nintendogs combined have sold 22.27 million copies worldwide,[2] making it the second best-selling standalone game. Because of Nintendogs's success, Nintendo has made several related products, including Nintendogs toys[3] and a series of Nintendogs trading cards.
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Using the touchscreen, the owner can play with, train, pet, walk, brush, and wash a virtual dog.[4] With the microphone that is built into the DS, the player can create voice commands which the puppy will understand and, if properly trained, follow.[5] Dogs can be walked to the park where they can practice their disc catching skills, and to the gymnasium to practice dog agility.[6] The game features two brands of currency: money and "trainer points". Money is used to purchase items, whiles trainer points grow or shrink depending on the actions of the player. As points accumulate, more dogs become available for the player to adopt, and more background can be purchased to decorate the player's in-game house. By walking their dog, players earn trainer points; the amount of points varies depending on the length of the walk, and activities participated in on the way, such as contest training. While walking, question mark icons on the map point out areas that may contain neighborhood dogs or presents, though presents can be found unmarked as well. The player's dog will usually bark once when encountering a "?" mark icon that is a present, and usually bark twice if it is a neighborhood dog. When encountering another dog and one's trainer, the player's dog may fight or play with the other.
Only three dogs may be kept at the player's in-game dwelling at one time, and five dogs may be stored at the "Dog Hotel". The dogs may also be swapped, dropped off, and picked up at any time. The player may not have any more than eight dogs at a time, but dogs may be donated to make space for more pets. The dog can be cared for by being fed with different types of food and groomed with varying items. As time passes without the dog being cared for, its condition will slowly deteriorate, as it becomes more hungry and dirty. The condition of the player's puppies can be found by clicking the dogs' name. Hunger is listed as Full, Normal, Hungry, and Famished. Thirst is listed as Quenched, Normal, Thirsty, and Parched. The condition of the dog's coat is listed as Beautiful, Clean, Normal, Dirty, and Filthy. If its condition is neglected for long enough then the dog may run away, eventually to return, sometimes with a present. Dogs do not age, meaning they remain as puppies.[7]
Nintendogs features a variety of contests, which are the player's main method of earning money and trainer points. There are three contests: Disc Competition, Agility Trial, and Obedience Trial. In each of them, there are 5 classes: Beginner, Open, Expert, Master, and Championship. Each contest is commented on by two men, named Ted Rumsworth and Archie Hubbs. (It was said that Archie sometimes eats dog treats.) If the player's dog places 3rd or higher in whatever class who is in, the dog will proceed to the next class, where the contest increases in difficulty level. Prize money earned differs depending on which contest has been entered, what place is finished, and the class the dog is in. If the player does not place at least 3rd, they will be dropped to the previous difficulty level, unless they were in the Beginner class, at which point they will remain there. Dogs that are especially dirty or hungry are not able to participate in contests.
Nintendogs supports a link-up method through the Nintendo DS's built-in wireless networking capabilities. A player can link one's system with that of another person who owns a copy of Nintendogs to let the players' puppies play together. This is called Bark Mode.[8] If connected with a player who has a dog not in the current player's kennel, that dog will become available. Also, players can use an item called the "White Record" to record a message. This can be used to say something to the other player. Dogs may also carry a present to give away for good to the other player.
Nintendogs began as a technical demo on the Nintendo GameCube long before it was considered for the DS. It made its way to the handheld when the DS was still in development. Shigeru Miyamoto originally came up with the idea for the game when he and his family bought a dog, which inspired him to create the project.[9] The game's producer, Hideki Konno, looking for a game to take full advantage of all of the Nintendo DS's features, decided on a dog simulation game. Nintendogs, first called Puppy Times, was originally designed to have 15 different versions, one for each breed of dog. Satoru Iwata suggested this to convey the feel that the player was choosing a dog from a kennel. However, the debugging process for each version would have been too time consuming to be feasible. After going back and forth between numbers of versions, they eventually settled for three, with six dogs each and the rest available after completing in-game goals.[10]
Originally, three different versions of Nintendogs existed. In Japan, their subtitles were Chihuahua & Friends, Dachshund & Friends, and Shiba & Friends. In North America, Singapore, and Europe, the game's subtitles are maintained, but the Shiba & Friends title was changed to Lab & Friends, a more recognizable breed in those countries, though the Shiba Inu is still present in the game. Another version of Nintendogs, titled Nintendogs: Best Friends, has been bundled with teal and pink Nintendo DS models. (In the US, the pink version was only available at Target and Toys "R" Us.) Europe had slightly different bundles: a pink DS bundle with the Dachshund version of the game, and a blue DS bundle with the Lab version. Another version called Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends was released in Europe,[11] and then later in North America and Singapore. This version includes the most popular breeds from the other versions, as well as the Dalmatian available for purchase from the beginning of the game, without the player needing to locate a special item
All the regions' versions contain all the breeds and are all identical, except that four breeds are not available in the Japanese versions. The difference between versions is the selection of the six (or five in the Japanese versions) breeds which the player starts with, but the other breeds can be unlocked as the player progresses through the game. Unlocking occurs when the player achieves certain goals, for example gaining a certain number of trainer points or finding a particular object. The other difference is that each version has different exclusive items one can obtain whiles going out for a walk.
The game has been well received by critics, with an average score of 85% at Game Rankings.[1] In the May 2005 edition of the Famitsu, a popular Japanese gaming magazine, Nintendogs received a perfect 40/40 score. Only four other games had attained this score at the time.[12] It also received an 8.5 out of 10 in Nintendo Power. Game Informer gave Nintendogs an 8 out of 10, reflecting on the game's lack of an ending.[13] Game Oracle gave it 85% and a recommendation saying that unlike most sims, it has a lot of depth.
In addition to recognitions from publications such as Entertainment Weekly, BusinessWeek, and the Chicago Sun Times, Nintendogs also won a wide variety of awards.
In the first week of its release in Japan (April 18, 2005 to April 24, 2005), the three versions, Shiba & Friends, Miniature Dachshund & Friends, and Chihuahua & Friends, sold 75,000, 49,000, and 44,000 respectively, totalling 168,000 units. This title game also boosted the Nintendo DS system sales by over 4.2 times the previous week to 95,000 units, up from 22,000.[20] It was the 91st best-selling game in Japan in 2008, selling 142,591 copies combined, with lifetime sales of 1,850,984 combined.[21] Nintendogs also had very successful launches in North America and Europe, with first week sales of over 250,000[22] and 160,000[23] respectively.
On March 23, 2006 at GDC 2006, Nintendo's president Satoru Iwata announced that international sales of Nintendogs sales had reached 6 million.[24] By March 31, 2008, the game was the best-selling Nintendo DS game published by Nintendo.[25] As of January 30, 2009, all versions of Nintendogs combined have sold 21.67 million copies worldwide, and it has retained its status as Nintendo's top first-party title for the DS.[26]
In late 2005, Nintendo of America released the first series of Nintendogs "6-Card Fun Paks". Three different pack designs (each based on the US-released designs of the DS game) contains an assortment of "Collectible cards, stickers & more!". Each pack randomly contains two of 18 different Breed cards, one of nine different Dog in Training tip cards, one of six different Miscellaneous cards, one of 18 different Pop-Up Cards, one of six sundry sheets of stickers, one of four temporary tattoos, and one Sweepstakes card.
Another series of these cards were released in early 2007 by Enterplay, LLC.[27] These cards, officially licensed by Nintendo, were created by the same individuals who worked on the first series. As such, the cards greatly resemble the first series. Keeping the "6-Card Fun Pak" name, each package contains two of 20 different At the Kennel cards (which feature all eighteen breeds from the games,[28] including the Dalmatian and Jack Russel Terrier), one of nine Dog in Training tip cards, one of four Miscellaneous cards, one of 20 Pop-Up Cards, one of six sheets of stickers, one of four temporary tattoos and one Sweepstakes card. The next series also features three sundry packages, this time with a Dalmatian, Beagle, and Pug on the front of the package.
A line of Nintendogs plush toys were released in Japan, featuring the most popular breeds in each game.[3] They are also available at the Nintendo World Store. Various Nintendogs T-shirts were also made available at the Nintendo World Store as well. In Europe and Australia, a series of plush toys with an electronic sensor were released, and when the owner shook the bone, the dog would walk and bark. Nintendo has also released a set of plushes through Earthwood Toys.
There's a minigame in WarioWare: Smooth Moves, in which the player must make the dog give the paw. There are the icons "Home" and "Supplies" on the screen, but the player's hand is visible, and that's something that doesn't exist in the game. A Nintendog also appears in Super Smash Bros. Brawl as an assist trophy. Also, there are multiple Nintendogs DLC available in the game Animal Crossing: City Folk.
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Nintendogs | Table of Contents | Walkthrough
| Nintendogs | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo EAD |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Designer(s) | Kiyoshi Mizuki |
| Release date(s) | |
| Genre(s) | Virtual pet |
| System(s) | Nintendo DS |
| Mode(s) | Single player, multiplayer via Bark Mode |
| Rating(s) |
CERO:
 All agesESRB:
 EveryonePEGI:
 Ages 3+ |
Nintendogs is a Nintendo DS game based around looking after a puppy (or puppies) and entering them into competitions, earning money to buy them things, etc. The dogs will not 'die', but if they are not fed for a long period of time they will be disobedient until they are. Nintendogs was originally released in three versions (Dachshund & Friends, Dalmatian & Friends and Lab & Friends). These were followed by two more versions, Chihuahua & Friends and Best Friends.
Like the multi-version releases in the Pokémon series, the different versions of Nintendogs are mostly identical. All include the same breeds, although each only provides access to a limited selection at the beginning of the game; other breeds can be unlocked by collecting owner points. Version-exclusive items can be unlocked by using Bark Mode with a different version.
 Nintendogs: Dalmatian & Friends |
 Nintendogs: Lab & Friends |
 Nintendogs: Chihuahua & Friends |
 Nintendogs: Best Friends |
| Portal: Simulations |  |
Nintendogs at Nintendopedia |
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| Nintendogs | |
 |
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| Developer(s) | Nintendo |
| Publisher(s) | Nintendo |
| Release date | August 22, 2005 (NA) |
| Genre | Virtual pet |
| Mode(s) | Single player/Multi-player |
| Age rating(s) | ESRB: E PEGI: 3+ |
| Platform(s) | Nintendo DS |
| Media | Cartridge |
| Credits | Soundtrack | Codes | Walkthrough | |
Nintendogs (which was originally titled "Puppy Times") is a virtual pet simulation game by Nintendo. It gained a lot of buzz and coverage when it became one of the few games to receive a perfect score from Famitsu. In Nintendogs, you raise puppies, teach them tricks with voice commands, play with them, enter them in contests, win items, and take care of them. The touch screen and microphone are used to pet the dog, call them, throw items, scrub them, teach them tricks and more.
There are 6 versions of the game, each game with several different breeds of dog, and exclusive items:
The Labrador and Shiba versions are essentially the same set of dogs, only with a different dog on the cover. This was done because Shibas are popular in Japan, but the casual non-Japanese consumer doesn't know what the hell a Shiba Inu is, but everyone loves Labs.
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The most unique aspect of Nintendogs is the ability to teach your dogs tricks in a way that very accurately resembles real life. Just like in real life, if you want to teach your dog a trick, you gently guide your dog into the position (for shake, grab his paw, for roll-over, gently push his belly while he's lying down, for sit, rub downwards on his head) and then tell him the name of the command, then reward him for doing it. Repeat this over and over and he'll eventually learn the trick.
There are a lot of tricks, only a handful of them are mentioned in-game, and the rest must be figured out on your own. There are 14 'common' tricks, that you can teach your dog just by observing him play, and then there are even more hidden tricks, that are much more complex to pull off. Rumors suggest that you can even teach your dog to do backflips. Yes, the rumors are true... you CAN teach your dog to do a backflip but you have to work it out yourself...!
There are no preset names to tricks. Meaning you can call your trick whatever you want, for each individual dog. You 'roll over' for your Shiba Inu may be 'roll over', but for your Toy Poodle you could train it so that when you yell 'DIE!!!' it falls on its back and sticks it's feet in the air.
If you have taught your dog all 'known' tricks, try telling your dog to do one trick, then another. These combinations are slightly harder for your dog, but none of the other dogs will know them! Try 'TurnAround'. Tell your dog to 'beg' then 'spin' and it will hopefully turn around whilst in beg.
There are three contests in the game, which you can enter your dog in to earn money. They are:
You can set your system to 'Bark Mode', where your dog (and an item, should you choose to give him or her one) will walk around 'barking' for other dogs. When you put the game in 'Bark Mode', the DS wirelessly searches for other dogs in Bark Mode. If it finds one, your dog will bark to alert you (even if the DS is closed, in sleep mode.) Both dogs will play together in a common field, and the trainers will receive each other's items, and hear what's been recorded on each other's White Record. The White Record is an item that lets you record up to 10 seconds of audio to play back whenever you like, and to send to other people you meet in Bark Mode.
Much like Animal Crossing, Nintendogs is set in a persistent world. Meaning if you don't play it all day, your dog will be hungry next time you turn it on. The game follows the DS's internal clock, and adjusts night and day accordingly. Your dog will sleep at night, and be more energetic in the day. Your dog requires at least 30 minutes of rest between walks, and can only enter 3 competitions a day. There's also a limit on how many times you can walk your dog or teach them new tricks before they get tired of it.
When you first get a dog, you can only teach it 2 tricks a day, soon it can do 3 and after a little while, it can do 4.
All dogs can be unlocked from any version (including 2 hidden dogs) but each version starts with its own set of six dogs to choose from.
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Criticism for Nintendogs ranges from "They're not enough like real puppies!" to "They're too much like real puppies!" but almost always translates to "I'm an idiot." Despite near-perfect reviews across the board, gamers still like to call it a kiddy game or find other inane reasons to make themselves not like it. This tends to happen a lot with games that are both 'cutesy' and open ended, such as Animal Crossing. These types of games are, ironically, often enjoyed by older more mature gamers, whereas younger teenage gamers tend to call them 'kiddy'. As some think this, others love the game, young or old because of the 'real factor' of the dogs.
The following is a list of the most frequently used arguments against Nintendogs, by people who have never played Nintendogs:
The game is, however, not perfect.
Nintendogs is a video game for the Nintendo DS. In Nintendogs, the player has dogs. They give the dogs food and drinks if a dog is good one might get to feed them a dog biscuit or a jerky treat but be careful, do not feed them too many of these wonder treats because then the dog would not want to walk anymore. The dogs can be washed, taken for a walk, taught to do tricks and put into contests. The contests are: agility trial, disc competition and obedience trial. One can find out how to compete in these contests by looking at their care books, under Supplies. At the start of the game one can choose a type of dog and give it a name. One can pat another player's dog to get trainer points, if a player gets 4,000 trainer points he might get a present.
There are four versions of the game each with different breeds. They are: dalmatian and friends, chihuahua and friends, Labrador and friends and dashund and friends. All breeds are unlockable in every version and a player can unlock dogs by increasing his trainer points. However, he can only have three dogs at home. To get more the player must drop off one at the Dog Hotel. Every player can only drop off five dogs at a time.
If the player does not play the game for a long period of time, the dog may run away. So players need to play with their dogs daily.
   | DS Sales Skyrocket in Japan - IGN: DS Sales Skyrocket in Japan |
| | Official ''Nintendogs'' site (English, US) - Nintendogs for Nintendo DS |
| | Official ''Nintendogs'' site (English, UK) - Nintendogs Official Microsite - more bark for your byte |
| | Nintendo Claims European Sales Boost For DS - Gamasutra - News - Nintendo Claims European Sales Boost For DS |
| | Nintendo Reveals Impressive U.S. Nintendogs Figures - Gamasutra - News - Nintendo Reveals Impressive U.S. Nintendogs Figures |
| | Official site (English) for the ''Nintendogs'' Trading Cards - Nintendogs Card and Sweepstakes |
| | GDC: The Nintendo keynote blow by blow (Updated) - GDC: The Nintendo keynote blow by blow (Updated) |
| | Yellow Pencil Awards - Gamasutra - News - Yellow Pencils Award Resident Evil 4, Nintendogs |
| | 2006 Winners - PETA UK: 2006 PETA Proggy Awards > Winners |
| | IGN Editors' Choice Games - IGN DS: Games, Cheats, News, Reviews, and Previews |
| | - 1up.com; accessed 16-01-2007 - FF XII Scores Perfect In Famitsu: News from 1UP.com |
| | Official ''Nintendogs'' site (Australia) - Nintendogs for Nintendo DS |
| | Official site for Enterplay, LLC - Makers of the Second Series of ''Nintendogs'' Trading Cards - Welcome to EnterPLAY! |
| | Nintendo Kennel Club - Nintendo NSider Forums |
| | Flash Video Demo of ''Nintendogs'' - Nintendogs (Nintendo Dogs) | Flash Videos |
| | Some Screenshots of ''Nintendogs'' - Nintendogs Screenshots & Images /// Eurogamer - Games Reviews, News and More |
| | ''Nintendogs'' - Nintendogs for Nintendo DS |
| | Nintendo DS Sales Strong Over Holidays - Gamasutra - News - Nintendo DS Sales Strong Over Holidays |
| | Official ''Nintendogs'' site (iQue/China) - Welcome to iQue Ltd! |
| | Nintendo Sales Update - IGN: Nintendo Sales Update |
| | Nintendo Full Year Results Show Rapid Gain - Gamasutra - News - Nintendo Full Year Results Show Rapid Gain |
| | More Information and Screenshots of Puppy Times - n-wired.com |
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