One To Watch: Tomodachi Life [3DS]

Nintendo has today revealed an exciting new  Life Simulation game, Tomadachi Life (Tomodachi is the Japanese word for 'friend'), which will be released for the Nintendo 3DS on the 6th June 2014. The game allows players to create Miis of almost anyone they can think of and bring them to life in their own virtual world.

The game takes place on Chin island,  a special place inhabited by various Miis, which the player can import from their 3DS Mii Maker or via the 3DS QR code reader. Miis can also be created by using the 3DS camera or the in-game creation tools.

 Once created, these little avatars can be given their own voice and then players can set about creating a unique personality based on some slider inputs. The game is open-ended and almost anything can happen as new Miis interact together to form their own virtual communities.

Miis can perform various actions, such as eating, trying on different outfits and doing many leisurely activities such as going to the beach or dining at a restaurant, etc. As more Miis are introduced into the game, different interactions will become available and new events will occur. Miis can develop new skills and experience social developments such as friendship, romance, and rivalry, as well as take part in some bizarre musical numbers.

If you are curious about how all these elements work together, then the latest Nintendo Direct broadcast seeks to answer your questions:

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Tomodachi Life  cleverly blends together many core elements from other Life Simulation games. If you have enjoyed games such as The Sims 3, Enchanted Folk or Animal Crossing, then this may be the perfect addition to your collection. Mini Gamers looks forward to bringing you further news about the game as it develops.

PS Vita Pets Gets June 2014 Release Date...

PS Vita Pets,  the first true pet simulation to emerge on Sony's handheld system, has today been given a proposed release date of the 4th of June 2014. The game, which merges together elements of the virtual pet simulation genre with some action-adventure elements thrown in as well, has a very family-orientated feel to it.

There has been some dispute among the gaming community of late as to whether the game's title of 'pets' is misleading, as it tends to suggest that there will be various domesticated animals on offer when in fact the game actually only features dogs.

 However, Kevin Oxland, Creative Director for Spiral House,  today explained that the high quality realistic animations and the task of making these dogs actually talk to the player has meant that the overall concept of 'pets' had to be kept simple, which is why only dogs have been included in this game. He said: "We could only include dogs. The fidelity of the dogs, the quality in the animation, the adventure and all the dialogue, which we translated and recorded in many different languages, require a lot of resources and time to get right and the team worked hard to bring you a quality experience..." [sourced from: http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2014/04/02/playstation-vita-pets-release-date-new-gameplay-details/]

Of course Spiral House are no stranger to pet simulation games as they were also responsible for bringing the PS3's loveable EyePet to Sony's original portable handheld, the PSP. However, it will be some time before we can see whether Playstation Vita Pets can equal Eyepet's success in the casual gaming market.

 Some new screenshots for the game have also been released, along with the main box art image (shown above). The screenshots appear to show some of the adventure parts of the game. More information has also been provided about the virtual dogs' ability to talk in human speech with the players. According to Kevin Oxland, the game will feature "a huge script of dialogue for each of the dogs. In total we have around 10,000 lines of spoken dialogue in the game."  [sourced from: http://blog.eu.playstation.com/2014/04/02/playstation-vita-pets-release-date-new-gameplay-details/] 

More detailed descriptions of exactly how the dogs will be essential in helping the player to unlock the secrets of the island's buried treasure, has also been revealed. It seems that the player's chosen puppy will help  by sniffing out clues, digging in unexpected places and crawling through areas of the game map that players could not otherwise be expected to access.  

Some gamers have already criticised the game, accusing Sony of  trying to copy Nintendo's success with the Nintendogs series. Nevertheless, PlayStation Pets has tried very hard to separate itself from other virtual pet games on the current market, and whilst cute pet simulation games will not appeal to everybody,  this game is very innovative  and helps to widen the appeal of the PS Vita by offering casual gamers and younger gamers an adventure title with a difference. This is definitely one to watch!