Issue 32 - Playing with Strangers

[The Escapist Staff]

Pat MillerThere's no direct competition, you don't kill anything, and you have no set goals. But it can get almost anyone, gamer or not, to sit down and play with others, to trade stories, and to show off their work. Pat Miller looks at the social wonder that is Animal Crossing.

 

[The Escapist Staff]

Original Comment by: Jeff Staple

Ah, I didonce love Animal Crossing on my Cube. I still own my copy and its memory card has not once left its comfortable home in the second slot. But I doubt I've played it in nearly two years. As you said, after a while, it just becomes busy work. The game was made to be portable, and now it is. It almost seems tailor made for the DS platform. My girlfriend owns a DS and desperately wants a copy of Wild World. I'd like to have it as well, except I lack DS and the funds to buy one (though I'm quite happy with my GBA micro instead). As you said, I could really get behind an AC on the DS.

This is an excellent article that really touches the fascinating nature of Animal Crossing. If you get AC, you really get it. Everyone else is left scratching their heads.

 

[The Escapist Staff]

Original Comment by: Ptarmigandalf

I made the mistake of naming my Gamecube AC village "City 17". After that, I could never really get over the extreme cognitive dissonance every little piece of dialogue would generate... "Hello, welcome to City 17!" - Talk about spoiling a game for yourself.

 

[The Escapist Staff]

Original Comment by: CheapyD
http://www.cheapassgamer.com
Great article!
I've never played an Animal Crossing game, but now I can understand the allure.
Maybe I need to give this a shot on the DS...

 

[The Escapist Staff]

Original Comment by: Tree
http://manofredearth.blogspot.com
I'm a 27 yr old guy who works with middle school and high school students, and I'm the one who hooked them onto AC:WW. For a game that has no end, it's pretty addictive. All the goals are your own, or you could have no goal at all. My most recent goal was to grow my shack into a 5 room mansion, and now it's all paid off. The addiction started to slide after that, but there are still rooms to decorate (we're not just talking curtains and carpets, here; my main room is a space station and the back room is undecided between a medieval throne room and a mad scientist's lab). There's always something to do, even if it's "nothing".

That being said, Totakeke, the guiter-playing dog, arrives to play in the museum cafe on Saturdays, not Fridays.