Animal Crossing
| |
| Animal Crossing | |
| Developer | Nintendo EAD |
| Publisher | Nintendo |
| System | Nintendo 64. Gamecube |
| Release Date | Nintendo 64 JP April 14, 2001 Gamecube JP December 14, 2001 US September 15, 2002 JP June 27, 2003 (e+) AU October 17, 2003 EU September 24, 2004 |
| Rating | ESRB: E |
Animal Crossing (known in Japan as Doubutsu no Mori which translated to Animal Forest) is a "communication" game designed by Shigeru Miyamoto which was released in several versions in Japan, although only one was released internationally. It was originally released for the Nintendo 64 in Japan, and it was only released internationally when it was remade for the Nintendo Gamecube just months later (the Japanese name for this version being Doubutsu no Mori+, which was followed by another version called Doubutsu no Mori e+).
Story
The player controls an avatar who has just moved away from home to a new town. The player can make friends, obtain cool objects for their home, and pay off a debt.
Gameplay
Animal Crossing is an open-ended game without predefined objectives or goals to follow. The player can freely choose their own actions, with some options being to catch every type of fish, design clothes, or buy furniture for their house. The player can constantly expand their house to make it larger, and at the same time debts on the house must be paid to Tom Nook.The village is also populated by a colorful cast of animal characters whom the player can interact and deal with.
It is possible for multiple players to build houses in the same town, but only one player can actually play at a time. It is also possible to use codes to trade items between games. Using another memory card could also allow the player to visit another player's village through usage of travel data. The Gamecube version takes advantage of the system's inbuilt clock to keep track of the time and date. There are various events which occur on certain days and at certain times, and holidays are also observed within the game.
NES Games
One popular feature of Animal Crossing is the implementation of classic NES games. Designed to look like the NES with a game on top, these items let the player play the games. Here are the games and the method for getting them.
Common Games
These eight can obtained in a variety of ways during normal gameplay without any special circumstances. These games were also the only NES games to appear in the Nintendo 64 game.
Island Games
These games can only be found on the island, which can only be accessed by linking the Gamecube game to the Game Boy Advance.
Uncommon Games
These four games were available through a free give away at Animal-Crossing.com. Punch-Out!! was offered by the European Animal Crossing site. They can still be obtained either by trading or through a universal code.
e-Reader Games
Both of these games are available through e-Reader cards.
Rare Games
These games are buried in the code of the game and have not been made available through any legitimate means. The only way to get these games is to Action Replay or the Ultimate Codes Disc for Animal Crossing.
Japan Only
These two were only available in the Japanese version of the game.
Versions
This original version was Doubutsu no Mori (Animal Forest) for the Nintendo 64. It was remade for the Gamecube as 'Doubutsu no Mori+ just eight months later. This was the game that was localized as the American Animal Crossing.
While porting the game to America, several features were added. For instance, Western holidays and items to go with them were implemented. The English versions also added e-Reader connectivity. The results impressed Nintendo enough that this version was released in Japan as Dōbutsu no Mori e+.
Legacy
Animal Crossing is the first of the Animal Crossing series to be brought to America. It brought a different type of gameplay to the market and acted as Nintendo's primary simulation game.
Sequels
A direct sequel was planned for the Gamecube, but it was ultimately canceled. In 2005, Animal Crossing: Wild World was released. It expanded on the original game with features such as Wi-Fi internet, sharing a house, and hats.