Whether you’ve got a regular old computer or your family fights over the Wii or Nintendo DS, you’re bound to want to add these to your game collection stat.
Littlest Pet Shop (DS/Wii) - “I found this to be a good, wholesome game with multi-age and gender appeal. It’s one that I’ll be keeping in the house for various visitors. (And I might break it out myself as well!)” Stop, Drop, and Blog
Boogie SuperStar (Wii) - “Wii Boogie Superstar is one of those that the entire family can enjoy. That is, if you are from a family of hams who like to sing and pretend to dance. That would be us.” The Silent I Speaks
Remember when we were kids and the Atari 2600 came out and we all thought it was the coolest thing ever to move a little triangular “rocket” around a 13″ black and white TV screen and shoot oddly shaped rocks, all in 2-D of course?
Now our kids can choose and name and dress up vibrantly colored virtual pets on a 46″ plasma TV screen - or, even more amazing, do the same thing on a pocket-sized player while sitting in their ergonomically designed booster seat. And they think nothing of it.
In fact, it’s second nature to them. As this mother admitted: “My three year old can kick my butt on the DS which makes me both proud and scared. She figures out these things way faster than me and that blows my mind.”
As bloggers, we’re some of the earliest adopters among mothers. We know what’s out there, both the good and the bad. But we still prefer to introduce our kids, especially the younger ones, to games that include more fun and less fracas, and Littlest Pet Shop fits the bill perfectly.
The mother whose three year old outscores her on the DS explained: “What appealed to me was the games aren’t all time-dependent (which can be frustrating for a child) and the ones that are, allow for very generous time allotments on the easy setting. By far, her favourite games are the colouring challenge where she uses the stylus and a palette to try and match a picture of one of the pets and the digging game, where she searches for hidden treasure before the clock runs out. Each time she completed a task, she either received a ribbon and/or coins to spend on her pets.”
This mother marveled at how well her kids got along while playing: “Although it is a single player game, the kids really enjoyed working together and helping each other select fashion accessories and create names.” Another blogger agreed: “It’s a thing of beauty, because, miraculously, no one fights - they just watch and root for each other.” It would also make a great playdate game: “I’m thinking this is an excellent game to pull out the next time he has a playdate who IS into Littlest Pet Shop. (Sometimes another kid’s enthusiasm rubs off on the boy.)”
Not only did the kids like Littlest Pet Shop, the bloggers did too. This mother enthused: “What did I like about this game? There was no violence. No hitting, no pushing, no banging or punching…” Another agreed: “I still find virtual pet games preferable to many of the other kinds of computer and video games out there. That’s because the player’s goal is a prosocial one: to care for an inherently weak and vulnerable creature.”
Littlest Pet Shop is just a fantastically cute game, no bones about it: “I think it’s been really fun to see their furry little friends come to life and explore their happy little virtual homes.” Another blogger concluded: “I found this to be a good, wholesome game with multi-age and gender appeal. It’s one that I’ll be keeping in the house for various visitors. (And I might break it out myself as well!)”
But don’t just take it from the parents - hear what the kiddos have to say themselves. Two little girls each wrote their mother an email:
“My 10 year old daughter is convinced I will review this incorrectly since I haven’t really played it much so she emailed me her own review:
“I liked that your pet shop keeps growing and you can unlock new games and pets. My favorite game is Furry Feast. It is so much fun! The only thing I would change is that I wish that after you adopt all the pets you still have more goals.”
And when she did that, her 8 year old sister wanted to be sure I got all the pertinent details too, so she emailed me her own little review of it:
“I love it. You start with 3 anamils and you name them and you can play games and you can unloc games”
So there you have it. A game so good it made both my daughters volunteer to write about it so I wouldn’t forget anything or not tell exactly how much they loved the game.”
That ought to settle it right there. If you’ve got kids who love pets, and you’ve got a Wii or DS, there really should be a Littlest Pet Shop game under your tree this year.
At first glance, Littlest Pet Shop would appear to be geared toward little girls exclusively. With the pastel colors and doe-eyed animals and gentle nature of the game, it’s a far cry from the knock-’em-down, shoot-’em-up games that little boys often gravitate toward. It also doesn’t seem much like the sort of game that would appeal to teens.
But based on the feedback from our reviewers, Littlest Pet Shop - by Electronic Arts for both the Nintendo DS and Wii - is a hit with everyone. From the boys who used to fight over Mario Kart to the mom who sneaks into her daughters’ room to play with their DS, we’ve found that Littlest Pet Shop has universal appeal.
Of course, it’s a clear favorite among little girls: “[It's] full of fun, girly things to delight my eight year old who seems to be the perfect age for this game since there is reading involved.” And mothers appreciate its wholesomeness as well: “I love this DS game because it bridges her two worlds. She often plays the game on the DS and then goes to play with her physical Littlest Pet Shop animals.” This same mother, who has a seven year old daughter, went on to comment: “Games like Littlest Pet Shop are perfect for my purposes - rather than pushing boy craziness and music - they remind her of how fun play is, and let her continue to develop her imagination with free play.”
This blogger was completely blown away that both her tween and teen girls enjoyed Littlest Pet Shop: “[It's] a game my tween daughter loved right out of the box. But the reason I give this game a double thumbs up is because my teen daughter plays it too!” She went on to say that “it’s nice to see my girls playing a game that doesn’t involve violence or aliens…I love the fact Littlest Pet Shop is about little animals, collecting your own little pets and caring for your pets. It’s nice to see girls playing a game that is about taking care of living things, instead of shooting aliens.”
In fact, several mothers extrapolated these game-based lessons to real-life pet ownership. One noted that: “Another favorite thing about this game? [My son] is much kinder to our dog because he understands that pets need love and care.” Another agreed: “If your kids like the idea of a pet, but might not be ready for the real-life responsibility of taking care of one, Littlest Pet Shop might be a good option.”
The kids learn about pet ownership via Littlest Pet Shop because that’s what the game is all about - owning and caring for pets: “The game starts out with three pets and as my daughter fed, dressed, and played with each one she earned a ticket to take the train to adopt another pet.” Of course it’s fun to choose names and outfits for the animals, but the games are really cool too: “Color Craze is [my son'] favorite. He loves to color pictures of his pets using the stylus. He also liked playing Toss N Pop because he could throw darts at a wall of balloons. I liked the Hide N Seek game. It’s fun to watch the pets hide behind bushes and then try to find them.” The mother who plays with her daughters’ DS commented: “The graphics are so cute, I can’t resist the opportunity to dress these little critters up!”
And Littlest Pet Shop really does seem to be a game that spans age ranges and genders. This mother summed up its appeal quite well: “I honestly think this is a game that could be great for the whole family. Small children could easily understand it and older children and even adults can have fun exploring the worlds and playing the games.”
More reviews of Littlest Pet Shop coming up! And don’t forget about the Blog Blast on December 5 - if you haven’t yet signed up for our subscriber list (so that you can be notified of upcoming Blog Blasts, of course), now’s the perfect time since you could also win a $25 gift certificate to Posh Peacock!
Want the fun of a pet without the hassle of feeding, brushing, and scooping poop? The Littlest Pet Shop is the place to be! That is, if you’ve got a Nintendo Wii or DS.
These doe-eyed pets are so darned cute that even we adults can’t resist them. Name them, dress them up, and play all sorts of games with your stable of pets that don’t shed or require vet appointments.
Fifteen of our parent bloggers who have either a Wii or DS at home received a copy of the Littlest Pet Shop to play with their kids, and now they’ll let us know just how much they enjoyed it. We mean, how much their kids enjoyed it. Right?
Plus, we’ve got a Boogie SuperStar and Littlest Pet Shop Blog Blast coming up on Friday, 12/5! Details soon!
Our bloggers are directed to write frank and honest reviews assessing their personal experience with a product or service. Their reviews may include both positive and negative feedback.
For more information, please refer to our Disclaimer.
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Remember when we were kids and the Atari 2600 came out and we all thought it was the coolest thing ever to move a little triangular “rocket” around a 13″ black and white TV screen and shoot oddly shaped rocks, all in 2-D of course?
This mother marveled at how well her kids got along while playing: “Although it is a single player game, the kids really enjoyed 
