• 1440x900 WXGA+ Res. • 5ms Response Time • 1000:1 Static Contrast Ratio • 8000:1 Dynamic CR • DVI Digital Input •3 Year Limited Warranty
See More, Do More! More Information ITEM # S203-1968
• Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0GHz •4GB DDR2, 250GB HDD • DL DVDRW, 14.1" WXGA • Integrated Webcam • Windows Vista Home Prem. • Refurbished
Compare at: $999.99 More Information ITEM # S445-T6836
• 8.0 Megapixels • 3x Optical Zoom • 4x Digital Zoom • 12x Total Zoom • 2.5" LCD • 1 Year Limited Warranty
Office Depot...$199.99 More Information ITEM # C930-1374
• 3.5" Touchscreen Display • Text-to-Speech •Bluetooth Technology • Voice Activate • US And Canada Maps • Refurbished
Stocking Stuffer Deal More Information ITEM # M775-0070 RB
• 1366 x 768 Resolution • 12,000:1 Dynamic Contrast Ratio • 720p HD Resolution • 2x HDMI™ V.1.3 • LG SimpLink™ Connectivity • 1 Year Limited Warranty
Was: $849.99 $549.99 MORE INFO ITEM #
L49-3220
At long last, the good people at GameRanger have answered the cries of millions and have made it so Mac gamers and PC gamers can finally play games together over the internet. Of course, since Apple’s Bootcamp was launched not too long ago, Intel Mac users have been able to do this more or less, but GameRanger closes the gap for all Mac users.
GameRanger is a free download which allows players the ability to play 500 games and demos with anyone in the world. It has some useful and fun features, like profiles, online chats, in game voice chats, and gaming ranks.
I am very much looking forward to fragging some PC users who play some of the Star Wars games. How about you?
To see a list of cross-platform games or to download the program, please goto www.GameRanger.com.
My foray into the world of Animal Crossing began with Wide World on the DS. I later picked up a copy of the GameCube version of the game but it never caught on with me. When I heard a new version of the game would be coming out on Wii I was excited to say the least. Would this new game follow in the tradition of the DS version or would it go if in some new direction?
I'm happy to say that Animal Crossing City Folk is more of the same. Nothing groundbreaking has been added and none of what made the game great has been removed. Some people might consider that to be a bad thing but I see it as a positive.
The city area is a nice bonus and a few of the characters you used to have wait on now have their own shops right from the beginning of the game. Not all characters have the same job they once did (poor Lyle, the insurance business has not been kind to him) and some of the characters that only appeared once in a while now have permanent shops in the city. There is also a kindly old man who will give you free stuff when you visit the city.
Where the GameCube had a train and the DS had a taxi the Wii gets a bus. You will find a familiar face driving the bus as well as a passenger that you will remember from your earlier experiences with the title.
Before getting off the bus in your new town you have a few options. For one thing you have the ability to bring your character over from your DS or make yourself an entirely new character. When bringing a character over from the DS no items or Bells make the journey but your catalog from Tom Nook's store does. This allows you to quickly purchase some of the items you used to own. If you choose to make a new character you are asked a series of questions before getting off the bus.
Once off the bus you are free to walk around town and explore. Unlike in the DS there are four houses for you to choose from in your new town. While the GameCube also had four houses the houses in the Wii version are spread all over the town. After exploring a house you will find Tom Nook outside wanting to know if you want to buy the house. After working out the details he will give you a part-time job at his store.
Long-time Animal Crossing fans may find this bit boring as the jobs are exactly the same as they were in the earlier games. It may just be that these few jobs are the best way to learn about the game and that is why they have re-used them yet again. After you do the jobs for Tom Nook you will be able to begin paying off your mortgage and buying and selling items in Tom Nook's store.
Most of your time will be spent walking around town. Depending on the month of the year different bugs and fish will be available for catching as well as a few seasonal holidays. For example, during the month of November the forest will be full of little mushrooms. Some of these 'shrooms can be sold for big bells to Tom Nook while others are part of the special mushroom furniture set.
Fishing works the same as in previous versions of the game but now there is also a silver fishing rod that you can get. In fact each of the special items now has a silver version. Most of these silver items can be purchased from Tom Nooks after his store has been upgraded. The gold versions are acquired in the same manner as before.
As in previous games you can donate fossils, bugs, paintings and fish to Blathers in the museum.
Connectivity
Animal Crossing just would not be the same if you couldn't have your friend visit your town. City Folk has taken the co-op fun of Wide World and made it better. With the Wii-Speak mic plugged in (or any USB microphone) you can now talk to your friends while you cruise around town together. As before you have to give your friends a special code so that they can come to your city but otherwise it works much the same as on the DS (except for speech). There is also a suitcase option where you can store your character on a DS Wide world cartridge and visit a friend's town that way.
You also have the option to open up your game to WiiConnect24 which will allow things to enter your game from people outside of your own approved friends.
Controls
I am happy to say that the controls for this game are awesome! City Folk uses the nunchuk for movement and the two buttons on it can be used to perform most actions. In fact you can do almost everything in game just using the nunchuk. You do still need the Wiimote when working with your inventory.
The developers also made one great improvement in that you can push the control pad down to store your currently active item (shovel, net, etc.) and you can press right and left to cycle through those items. Smacking rocks for bugs is now super easy!
Thoughts
If you like Animal Crossing you will like this. There is nothing majorly new in the game but what is there has been polished and made better.
I have long been a fan of fighting games such as Soul Caliber and Smash Bros. I have also long been a fan of the Castlevania series of games. The latest game in the Castlevania line takes up the characters from the series and puts them into a fighting game.
The Wii game can also be linked to the new DS game Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia to unlock bonus content in both games.
The game supports two-player matches over Nintendo WFC as well as the GameCube controller option. Fans of Smash Bros. know how important it is to be able to drop the waggle-system in favor of an old faithful GC controller.
If you look at the widget I posted at the top of the article you can see screenshots and videos from both games. I expect a review copy to arrive shortly and after I play it for a while I will share my complete thoughts on the game with all of you.
