First Impressions:
As soon as the game starts, you immediatly notice the similarities between the DS Animal Corssing: Wide World and this version. The sameness that you feel as you go through the same part time job at Nooks can become annoying. Even the dialouge seems recycled. But as the game progresses, you notice the little details that make this game well worth the money. There are slight new cute animations that acn force anyone to smile, some new furniture, a new interface for your items and even a new section: the City. This new City is supposed to be the main attraction of the game (hence the sub-title) but the area of the City feels rushed in. There are few places you can actually go to in the City and all of it could have been incorporated into the village easily. This may seem insignificant but traveeling to the City actually takes a while (you must enter a bus and talk to the driver, and then the game loads for a while, and the same thing for the trip back to the village).
Gameplay:
The gameplay itself is just like the old games, collect bells (money) via selling items that you acquire (fruits from trees, items from the ground, fish, insects, old items you no longer want) Selling them gives you bells which in turns allows you to buy new items and pay debts. This may seem tedious, but as anyone who's played Animal Corssing before may know, it is actually very fun. But while the game itself is fun, the interface is not. It's hard to type with the Wii-Mote from a distance, and countless times I found myself making constant typos. Also, simple things like clicking on an item in your bag requires you to point at it with the Wii-Mote which may be annoying if you're using a small T.V.
Presentation:
The game itself has pretty mediocre graphics that a DS could pull off. Neverless, the graphics are cute and nice to look at. But some areas just seem lazily drawn (the ground outside especially) Also, the polygons are crudely sharp (the faces look more like a many sided die then a roundface). Also, the music is mildly entertaining; some favorite songs return from the older games and a few new ones are good as well. Overall, the game looks bad at a first glance, but you may grow to adore the simple polygons.
Replay-Value:
It is here that the game truly shines. Going on Wi-Fi and chatting with friends while trading items is a blast, believe it or not. I lack the Wii-Voice machine, so I can't incorporate that into this review, but typing with the Wii-Mote is fine. I've already spent a few hours on Wi-Fi with Animal Crossing and it seems like I'll spend many more. Besides the Wi-Fi aspect, there is also tons of other things that can keep you playing. These include the hundreds of items, furniture, clothes, and toys to buy. There is so much to do, I doubt anyone will ever complete Animal Crossing (unless with a cheating device.....and even then.....) But all of this is in the nature of Animal Crossing as a series.
The Finishing Touch:
Overall a fun game, but it seems like a cheap sequel to the other Animal Crossing games, and it seems as if the developers could have done so much more with this, the game should have been postponed until mid-2009 and made flawless, but it was released in times for the Holidays (coincidence?). Regardless of it's flaws, this game is fun, and if you have never played an Animal Crossing game, get this game (with a Wi-Fi USB if you lack one), it will create many memorable moments for you. If you bought the last Animal Crossing game, then you may reconsider, but I still slightly reccomend you buy it (especially if you haven't played Animal Crossing in a while).