12 tips for Nintendogs

Here’s a quick run-down of things I’ve learned about Nintendogs over the past few months.

1. Puppies can only learn up to 14 voice commands so choose ’em wisely
2. Make sure your puppy is happy before he goes for a walk – he’ll find more good items
3. Double-tapping on the screen will call all your puppies. Essential for commuter Nintendogging!
4. The hunger-measurement thing pauses when they’re on a walk, so leaving it in sleep mode during a walk can save your butt if you won’t have time to feed your puppy for a day or two. Keep your DS charged though! (I haven’t tried this with multiple puppies. Let me know if it still works!)
5. Long voice commands are more easily recognised than short ones
6. Puppies won’t learn a command over time. I told my puppy to jump once a day for a week and got nothing. 5 times in one day and he got it.
7. Check both shops whenever you go on a long walk. Sometimes they get in cool stuff like a keyboard or balloons or doggie treats when you have happy puppies!
8. Puppies and balloons do not last long together. They’re pretty funny though.
9. On long walks, yank your puppy’s leash to the right edge of the screen and hold it there. He’ll run along at a speedy pace to his next interesting point (or choke and whine, but just keep doing it and give him some lovin’ afterwards). Yank it to the top-right corner and he’ll jump like he’s hurdling! Pointless but cute.
10. If you want to win at championship level, you better practice every day.
• Disc competitions: Use the same disc every time, throw it far and throw it straight ahead. That’s all you need to know.
• Agility trials: Just practice and be ruthless if your puppy does his little heartbreaking unhappy tail-down thing. Tough love works best and that little bugger knows exactly how cute he is.
• Obedience trials: I don’t know, sorry. I suck at these.
11. Lots of puppies means lots of food. 2 puppies will eat 2 bowls of food at a time.
12. Lots of puppies also means lots of lovin’. You better have a lot of spare time if you want three championship puppies!

BTW, where are all the Nintendogs?? I’ve been walking all over London in Bark Mode, haven’t met another Nintendo DS in bark mode! No sausage-dog or rat-dog for me… Oh well, no great loss.

Also, what is up with the dictionary box? What’s that supposed to be? “Clicka-clicka-clicka-clicka-CLONK!” Huh?

Other Nintendogs posts.

Updated 20th Jan 06: Added a few extra tips.