Tomodachi Life Mii.

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Tomodachi Life 3DS Review

Tomodachi Life has, since its overseas announcement, been hailed as the successor to Animal Crossing. Quite a bold statement yet especially considering from the Nintendo Direct it was difficult to actually define what you actually do in Tomodachi Life. In reality its nothing like Animal Crossing at all. 

The game is still very difficult to describe, you rarely do anything in the game; events happen by chance and luck in some cases, unlike Animal Crossing which is solely based on player interaction. Tomodachi Life plays best in short bursts, checking your Mii's, buying out the shops while Animal Crossing can be played for longer finding plenty of things to do. 

The game actually takes very little from Animal Crossing except the shopping aspect which is similar. It surprisingly takes more after Wario-Ware than any other game. The islanders ask you to help them with tasks and play minigames with them. The minigames are a mixed bunch, most are quizzes and they tend to get repeated a lot with not much variation in answers; some also require you to have memorised EVERY ISLANDER TO THE BONE, which with lots of residents can become incredibly frustrating when you lose due to not knowing something.

The most important part of Tomodachi Life is who you choose to populate your island with. When I started I added around thirty of my real life friends' mii characters. However then I started scanning QR codes of various Nintendo, manga and celebrity characters, it fills up my building ok but to me it is much more satisfying to watch my friends try and hit off with each other than watching Rosalina play with my friend's cat. Thats the beauty of Tomodachi Life though, while I prefer watching my friends Ive seen people use Game Of Thrones theme islands or Adventure Time islands theres something that everyone can experience and enjoy. For instance: My homosexual flatmate attempted on multiple occasions to steal my girlfriend from me however he then asked for the ultimate punishment........ to be turned into a child again!!!

Miis have been drastically improved, upon importing or creating a Mii you'll be able to given them a personality and a voice. Both can be customised in-depth and bring life to your Mii characters. Its certainly better than the high pitch squeals that Mii's have said until this point and I hope it's incorporated in another game *cough* SSB4 *cough*.

The game is so quirky, there are so many random events that can happen and each one always brings a smile to my face when a new one happens. The clothing as well is suitably hilarious and integrates street-pass perfectly. For a completionist playing this game to collect all treasures, clothes, events and everything else will take a long time just be wary that Tomodachi Life is not a content heavy experience, in long bursts the game becomes quite stale but is perfect when checked throughout the day in short bursts. 

 Score: 

Looks: The game looks pretty decent. The clothing is by far the best aspect as they are suit the Mii characters perfectly. Real world photo's are also used to humorous effects. However there is only so much you can do with a Mii, the designs are simple and lack deep customisation found in games like the Sims.  7/10

Sound: While the bgm has been stuck in my head, there are not many songs in this game and some sound really ropey and unpolished (Mii with a problem sounds gross). However the concert hall is hilarious and a really fun tool for songwriters or immature people, similarly the Mii's voices are actually very impressive, it finally gives the lifeless Mii's personality I wish it gave more options though especially in the accents. 7/10

Gameplay: There isn't actually much to talk about in this department since most are either micro-games or quizzes. But thats the point of Tomodachi Life, its not a game, its and experience and a really fun one at that. 7/10

Overall: This game is fun but it is not for a binge gamer, it's fine in small bursts but if you really want to sit down and play a game then this is probably not for you. If want a truly unique experience that'll make you laugh then go for it. Tomodachi Life is a very marmite game, it's enjoyable yet it suffers from a lack of depth and long term goals.

Why I bought it?

My parents sent me a nearly expired voucher so I purchased this. Im glad I did as it has made me smile but theres not much to it, the game play is shallow and repeats itself often which disappoints me, I still had fun with it though and do recommend it. 

Monsters University Review

Monster University Review

Pixar over the last few years have certainly had a contrast in the quality of their summer blockbuster sequels. 2010's Toy Story 3 was a truely fantastic experience while 2011's Car's 2 was average at best. Monsters University marks the fourth time a Pixar franchise has been reused and fortunatly follows suit of the Toy Story sequels than Cars. 

Monsters Inc was a truely brilliant film, brilliant characters, plenty of humor for both kids and adults and a great moral of misjudging apperences generated by the masses. I was the perfect age for Monster Inc. Heck I still think I have my action figures somewhere up the loft. 

Monsters University is the first prequel Pixar has done and as such are plenty of references to the previous instalment, which certainly kicked off my nostalgia sense. Monsters Inc was more based around Sully's struggle to accept difference, this film is almost certainly Mike's film. 

The story is centralised around Mikes hope to become a top scarer by attending the scaring course at Monster University. The plot overall is good although I felt with this film that the target was more towards the younger generation this can certainly be seen by some of the new characters bought in. On the whole the new main characters are solid inclusion, I like the Jocks and the different teams resembling stereotypes however I think the film could have done without Squishey. Adipo from Doctor Who anyone? Also the different teams are barely in the movie. Aside from the commentators I can't even recall the names of any of the supporting cast; whereas in other Pixar films such as ToyStory, Bug's Life and to a lesser extent Cars the supporting cast are fantastic and vibrant. 

In terms of enjoyment, I throughly enjoyed watching Monsters University! By expanding the back story without ruining the legacy Pixar have created in the original! There are constant references to the original film through the characters in the university resembling the monsters on the scare floor in the first! The jokes however sometimes fall slightly towards child friendly gags than dry humor Pixar is known for. Be ready for the car gag however that one is a stunner. 

Billy Crystal and John Goodman return to their roles flawlessly, it almost seems that Goodman is more comfortable in Sully's shoes as a freshman than as a role model in the first film! Helen Mirrin is the true star of the show as Dean Hardscramble the slightly terrifying former top scarer her character design is absolutly flawless! Steve Buscimi however feels a bit wasted as Randel, I really enjoyed the opening sections with Randel as Mikes room mate and I would have been interested to have seen a more Randel based story line as he becomes a side character very quickly and his ending feels a little bit of a rushed job. 

From what I've been saying Monsters University sounds a fantastic movie and thats true to an extent the movie is clearly based towards young children whereas the beauty of the other classic Pixar films is how relatable they are to both Adults and Children.

Monsters University is a great prequel it adds to the story in Monsters Inc without ruining its legacy. I wish it was more adult in its humor though. It could have done much much more with the university setting but its still a great film for the whole family.

Breakdown:

Pros: 

Beautifully Animated

Great Voice Work

Fun new main Characters

Lots of nods to the previous film

Cons:

Throwaway characters a plenty

Childish comedy