Nintendogs: Adorable Juggernauts
Article by Adrian DeHerrera

According to an unscientific poll of people sitting around me at work, the three cutest things on planet earth are: kittens, babies and puppies. Although Nintendo didnt go the extra mile to make a sim based on babies with kitten and puppy stickers on their faces, it has managed to blow away expectations by releasing Nintendogs, which was originally planned as a GameCube game called Puppy Times, but switched over to a DS creation early in its production. Now its not really a surprise that Nintendo might choose such a family-friendly theme for a video game, but what is surprising is the reception Nintendogs has garnered in Japan since its release in April.

As of the publication of this article, the Nintendogs will have sold nearly 500,000 units in Japan and helped quintuple DS sales, making it a sudden software force to be reckoned with at the top of the charts; a place usually reserved for PlayStation 2 games. Not only have sales blown the roof off the doghouse, but revered Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu, renowned for its harsh scoring system, has awarded the game with a perfect 40 score (four judges allotting the game perfect tens). What contributed to the success of a game whose concept seems, at first, to be more kiddy gaming from the big N?

The sentiments you hear from Shigeru Miyamoto are sentiments repeated by most Nintendo representatives when speaking about the core values of the company: Nintendo is here to make games that are fun, games that are innovative, and, of course, games that anyone can play. It seems that these approaches to gaming are also being echoed by the Entertainment Software Associations (ESA) president Douglas Lowenstein who gave a presentation at the pre-E3 media briefing on the day the show floor opened to the public. Two of Lowensteins main points regarding the proliferation and success of the modern gaming industry are to first make games easier to play and secondly, broaden the market to entice gamers who may not have ever even wanted to pick up a video game.

As is evident with Nintendogs, the only thing that is really needed to play is the ability to read the instruction boxes and the intestinal fortitude to play with impossibly adorable puppies all day. Although the game itself opens up into a wider world of wireless LAN connectivity and tough training needed to win contests for prizes and money, it also offers gameplay that almost anybody can pick up and enjoy. It offers basic themes that not only appeal to mainstream players searching for a fun game to play while on the bus, but also to more hardcore gamers who might gladly trade their girlfriends in for a few more hours spent trying to get their dog to sneeze on cue and score a perfect 10 from the Japanese Dog Show judges.

Also evident is the effort Nintendo is taking to get players who have never played games before to pick up the title and perhaps invest more money into a DS, thus expanding the life of the system and bringing whole new individuals and demographics into the fold. Cross-generational, cross-gender appeal is an obvious trait of Nintendogs. What I feel is most interesting is the way Nintendo seems to be marketing toward both its already-loyal fans and those who had previously been neglected or condescended by developers and publishers: female and 40+ gamers. Looking at Nintendos Japanese Nintendogs site and viewing recent commercials, females are playing a crucial part in the marketing of the game, and for good reason: women gamers are too often snubbed, stooped down to or berated in gaming communities, on or offline. Similarly, its rare that gamers over forty years old are probably even glanced at when it comes to a viable source of income, but that is the beauty and part of the success Nintendogs has had in Japan; its ability to appeal to anybody, young or old, male or female, hardcore or casual, and Nintendo hopes to continue that success when the title is carried over to North America on August 22, 2005. Perhaps a better question than why the game has had such success in Japan is how much further can Nintendo take this title here in the United States?

Nintendogs in a Nutshell

First off, no matter which Japanese version of the game you get, each one will contain all 15 dogs (the breeds listed below are those that are available right from the get go), and for the North American version, Nintendo promises to have even more puppies (at least 18), specifically larger breeds that cater to American preferences. The list below contains every breed available in the Japanese versions.

Dachshund and Friends:
- Miniature Dachshund
- Miniature Schnauzer
- Yorkshire Terrier
- German Shepard
- Pug

Chihuahua and Friends:
- Chihuahua
- King Charles Spaniel
- Shih Tzu
- Labrador Retriever
- Beagle

Shiba and Friends:
- Shiba
- Shetland Sheepdog
- Miniature Pinscher
- Welsh Corgi Puppy
- Toy Poodle

And below are the tentative North American breeds.

Labrador Retriever and Friends:
- Labrador Retriever
- Miniature Schnauzer
- Toy Poodle
- Pembroke Welsh Corgi
- Miniature Pinscher
- Shiba Inu

Chihuahua and Friends:
- Chihuahua
- German Shepard
- Boxer
- Cavalier King Charles Spaniel
- Yorkshire Terrier
- Shetland Sheepdog

Miniature Dachshund and Friends:
- Miniature Dachshund
- Golden Retriever
- Beagle
- Pug
- Siberian Husky
- Shih Tzu

Other highlights from the game include:

  • Teaching your dog dozens of tricks ranging from sitting to performing advanced tricks for friends and judges at contests
  • Gaining money from winning contests to buy items as well as new digs for you and your high-maintenance puppies
  • Taking your puppies for long walks in a virtual neighborhood to get them some exercise to make them happier and help them learn tricks faster
  • Meeting and greeting wirelessly with friends using the DSs wireless connection to get and give gifts to other owners and their pups
  • Using voice commands to interact with your dogs and record messages that other people can hear when you connect to them

Hands-On With the Dogs

Now, regarding the demo at E3, if youve seen the pictures at the event you know that the line for the Nintendogs demo was huge with around eight DSs being played at once and each DS having a line with more than ten people long who were given five minutes to play and interact with one of three dogs: Daisy, Lucky or Maxwell. The dog that Jessica (N-Sider Superbabe) and I got to play with was Maxwell, a frisky Chihuahua who began yipping at us right away and looking up at the screen for us to play with him. The dog had already been given its name, thus trained to remember the voice command for Maxwell and it apparently had been taken care of and so the main goal of the booth was to give players a chance to experience a very small part of a very ambitious game.

I must admit right away I liked the little guy. Sure, I despise Chihuahuas in reality, but somehow Max began tugging at my heartstrings. What was refreshing about the experience is that although a player may wonder how to win at Nintendos game -- as with most other games on the floor, surely there must be an objective or a mission to conquer, right? What may come as a shock to many players is that Nintendogs is not a competitive experience. Although there are competitive aspects to the game, such as the dog shows you will be able to enter and compete in, the game is, at its core, a simulation of what its like to have a pet and the enjoyment one receives in having an animal companion. In an arena so focused on winning or on completion of a level or a high score, Nintendogs brings a crisp approach to video games.

Most of the interactivity with your puppy will be done using the stylus -- menus are selected and navigated with a simple touch. During the demo you could use the touch screen to rummage through the puppys toy chest and select an object to play with; so we chose the classic rubber ball. In order to toss the ball, place the stylus on the touch-screen and make an upward motion, removing the stylus at the top of the screen to throw the ball forward so your dog can run after it. Eventually, assuming he actually listens to you (unlike my real dog), he will return it. Another fun, but physically implausible game is jumping rope -- by grabbing the rope with the stylus, the player is able to swing the rope around using circular motions while another pup holds the other side of the rope and a second or third begins jumping. After trying to play this game with my own dog, Duke, he simply growled and tugged at the rope and tried to bite me - tally another point for Nintendogs and another point toward Dukethe dog going back to the dog pound.

Going back to the demo...calling out to your dog using the internal microphone will cause him to drop what hes doing to see what you want. Ive heard from people who have already played the game that the microphone is extremely sensitive and no yelling or raising of your voice is necessary for your pets to hear what youre saying, but unfortunately the noise level at the booth was insanely loud and Jessica couldnt always get our dogs attention -- it went on playing with its toys oblivious to our existence. Still, since different dogs have different temperaments, it could simply have been that we had a stubborn dog to deal with.

In another cuter-than-cute scenario, youre also allowed to give your dog a bath, which is actually way more fun than it should be. Apply some shampoo that youve bought (hopefully its the right kind different shampoos for different dog types) and use the stylus to brush your animal into a sudsy ball of joy. Maxwell seemed to enjoy the scrubbing and eventually was sparkling - literally. Washing your dog is important as it keeps it happy and will also give it a competitive edge in any contests you enter it in.

By the end of our time with the dog, we had played ball, given him a bath, and I think out of the 300+ other people that yelled at him and made him do all sorts of exhausting tricks, he liked us the best. To make sure we wouldnt forget our stay at the Nintendogs booth, the reps handed us a few mementos that are also available for sale on the Nintendogs Japanese official site. These fluffy mini-dogs are actually screen cleaners that not only keep your DS screens free of dust and gunk but also cause people from miles around to ask you where you got that adorable thing. If nothing else, at least Nintendogs and associated merchandise will have complete strangers coming up to you and asking you questions. In fact you might be surprised how many people stopped by my workstation to ask me questions on the demo videos and screenshots I was using to write this report. That alone bodes well for the games reception when it finally makes its way here to the United States.

Along with hands-on gameplay, we were also lucky enough to have an interview with Nintendo representative David Young, an enthusiastic guy who had a DS on-hand and took some time out to speak with us. David had only had his Nintendog for two days prior to E3 and so was also learning about the game, but was able to share with us some tidbits that we werent able to access on the show floor.

One aspect of the game that he really wanted to share with us was regarding the neighborhood created for the dogs to wander around in. While not tremendously detailed, the neighborhood in which you can walk your dog is bright with friendly cityscapes and surprises along the way in the form of gifts you must stop quickly to pick up and trash you should pull your puppy away from -- unless you want your dog to get sick.

While on your jaunt (which can only be taken every few hours or so), use your stylus to tug on the leash as you walk your dog to the right of the screen. Keep your eyes peeled for any goodies that might be strewn along the way as you cant go back to the left of your screen after moving forward to the right. In the demo, Davids dog kept stopping and at one point just sat down and wouldnt move; it took some pleading and a few tugs with the stylus to get him moving again. One interesting point to note is that if you choose to walk your dog at odd hours, say in the middle of the night, your dog will respond differently than it would have during midday. Because of the internal DS clock, your dog will recognize the time of day and have a different temperament than it would if you tried to walk him during daylight hours. Walking him at night may result in a much quirkier, restless pup who will probably get less from the trip than he would during the day.

Another great aspect to the game is bark mode, which will allow Nintendogs owners to meet up wirelessly. While leaving your machine on sleep mode, your DS will recognize when another person is in the vicinity and bark to alert you to their presence. Expect to hear a recorded voice message from the owner and pertinent information about him or her as well as a visit from their own animal, which will play and interact with yours. While this community aspect is fun in and of itself, it also serves a few other functions. First, gifts can be exchanged between new acquaintances. Lets say youre missing a certain rare item that you cant seem to find anywhere on your walks or purchase in the stores in town. If you find someone with a kind heart and a huge inventory, you may be surprised to see their dog walk up to you with this rare object and offer it to you as a sign of peace and friendship (or you may be hit on, so be wary). Secondly, when the puppies interact and your dog views another dog doing tricks, your own dog will learn them at a faster rate than they would have beforehand. This makes meeting up with other people beneficial to your inventory and a way to help your pup to become smarter and faster at a faster rate than normal.

After E3: Nintendogs Accomplished

Ill be honest, after hearing the news about Nintendo creating a dog simulation game called Puppy Times, I figured they really didnt want to play hardball and take the DS seriously as a system that deserves to compete with the PSP. In such a cutthroat market where public relations means everything and mind share is more important than gold, why debut a game like Nintendogs in an industry where Grand Theft Auto reigns supreme? Today, people who still think that way are eating their words as Nintendogs takes Japan by storm and points its muzzle toward North America where it will release on August 22nd.

By providing inclusive gameplay and advertising to new players as well as submitting a quality game that is getting accolades from the media and import players alike, Nintendo has created a title that, software sales-wise, is more than dominating the Japanese handheld software market, but even selling numbers reserved for its mainstay titles like Mario and Zelda.

After playing the game for myself, Im floored. Not only was I was floored by how much I enjoyed my brief time with the game and the information gleaned from David Young, but duly impressed at the reaction on the show floor. I feel that the worst reaction to a game is for a player to leave the game in the middle of a demo, either from boredom or confusion, something that I didnt see happening at the Nintendogs booth. People were smiling, people were laughing, players were wholly entranced by a game starring charismatic puppies and leaving the booth talking about the game and telling their friends all about it. Great word-of-mouth surrounds this title and I find this one of the most important factors for major success in the North American market. If Nintendo has any love for this game they will take the right steps to advertise aggressively and give it a chance to make a mark (hopefully cleaned up immediately). However, if Nintendos showing at E3 is any indication, success is a very good probability.