Animal Crossing - Life Among The Animals

Besides the conversations you can have with everyone in town, there are a few other fun activities you can take part in. There are things you can collect, like fish, fossils, or furniture. Then there are the jobs you can take on for your neighbors involving you delivering items from one end of town to the other. That's a usual quest-type thing for an RPG, but its no worse than any other RPG you may have played. The only downside to these tasks is that sometimes you end up going backwards and forwards across the town multiple times before finally finishing them up. But since the town isn't too large, its not too annoying. One of the most difficult tasks you can do is fishing. Difficulty of course is a relative term however, since there really aren't any aspects of this game that are particularly challenging. But fishing is probably the most difficult, since it involves correct timing.

If you have a Game Boy Advance and a link cable, some unique options become available. For one thing, the GBA unlocks an island you can visit outside the normal environs of the town. You can also get access to some old NES games through the use of the GBA. There is a pattern tool you use in the game for designing different clothing designs, and your GBA can become a portable tool for playing around with your patterns.

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The sounds of the game are also an indicator of when it was designed, since they music and sounds were not really designed to take advantage of all the Gamecube has to offer. The jazzy and fun tempo of the music is very warm and inviting, and none of this detracts from the gameplay or enjoyment. Just don't expect to be blown away.

All in all, this game is a welcome diversion from the usual. The gameplay is fun, the environment is very much an open sandbox to play in, and the storyline is interesting and unique. While the visuals or music won't leave you breathless, they're still good enough. The bottom line is that this is a fun game, for gamers of all ages.