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Then the Woman picked up a roasted mutton-bone and threw it to Wild Dog, and said, “Wild Thing out of Wild Woods, taste and try.” Wild Dog gnawed the bone, and it was more delicious than anything he had ever tasted, and he said, “O my Enemy and Wife of my Enemy, give me another.”
The Woman said, “Wild Thing out of the Wild Woods, help my Man to hunt through the day and guard this Cave at night, and I will give you as many roast bones as you need….”
Wild Dog crawled into the Cave and laid his head on the Woman’s lap, and said, “O my Friend and Wife of my Friend, I will help your Man to hunt through the day, and at night I will guard your Cave.”
–Rudyard Kipling, Just So Stories (1912)
It was the members of the genus Canis that were gray wolves, red wolves, and the coyote, that brought us our dogs (Canis familiaris). When living with humans, like yipping, tail wagging weeds that thrived in environments that were disturbed by people, dogs became domesticated.
Puppies are the earliest and best example of an animal whose fun loving nature was ready for domestication. It is thought that the was the gray wolf was first. It’s the most social of all canids. Wolves have a society. They have a form of strict hierarchy, hunting cooperation and complex communication skills. People bred for the puppy-like behavior in wolf pups. Playful adult wolves might be expelled from a wolf pack, but in human society a playful wolf might get adopted. Wolves have a great need to be part of a group and some scholars have suggested that the maternal instinct of women coupled with the universally appeal of orphaned puppies was the evolutionary path how animals dogs human life style.1
Women seem to have an almost mystical bond with animals. Can science truly account for the affinity that women have with dogs, horses and cats? If the game industry can appeal to a woman’s innate sensibilities then she might be more willing to adopt their robotic babies. It is true women like things that are small and cute. We can’t help that it is hard wired. Cute does apply to technology too don’t forget. We’ll go for more than just fancy, well made make - up compacts. Crafty cell phones, ipods and hand held game consoles can be made to be desirably adoptable.
What is it that draws girls and women to pet sims? The Nintendo DS sales are reported by many sources to have skyrocketed due to Nintendogs. Nearly half the buyers of the game were women. Several magazines and websites are talking about the Nintendogs phenomenon. “The Gaming Industry has Gone to the Dogs” fills the top ten or more slots on a Google search. Why is this game particularly appealing to women? When the holy grail buzz in the industry is to reach an elusive market among women gamers, how is it that Nintendo has done what so few of its competitors can?
I call it ‘The Snoopy Factor’ Nintendo did it in 1998 with Pikachu. Pokémon Gold and Silver and the Game Boy Color. They invented “Gotta Catch ‘em All” and it worked phenomenally. Someone there knows what they are doing. They make friendly little pals. They are addictive because the creatures demand attention. It doesn’t hurt Nintendo that the formula works on little kids, girls, boys and women. It isn’t trying to be everything in one game while at the same time it fulfills a niche in human nature.
Women are used to keyboarding and clicking. One of the main complaints that women have had in the past with console gaming was the controllers. Nintendo makes their latest attempt to achieve the holy grail with the new “nun chuck” controller for the next gen Revolution console. It seems like they listen to their audience and “eureka!” provide what they ask for.
Nintendo has had the small controls on the Game Boys for years. Again it works for a particular segment of the population. When they needed to expand to teen boys and men they made the GBA and finally the DS. Now there is the Micro. The Game Boy Micro isn’t being marketed for its’ game play but as an accessory. For a complete outfit you now need baggy pants with pockets or a kilt containing a gaming device, a music device and an internet and voice communicator.
Nintendogs is the type of game that seems to be designed to provide stress relief. You can just sit around and scratch your puppy all day. It starts off in a virtual kennel and where you pick out your dog from several breeds. Nintendogs repeats what they did with Pokémon. There are three versions, each with six different breeds. Chihuahua and Friends has a German shepherd, a boxer, a King Charles spaniel, a Yorkie and a Sheltie. There are other dogs that are unlockable too.
The Nintendo DS’ has a built-in microphone and a voice recognition program. You can actually speak to your dog and tell it to come. Your puppy will learns to sit on voice command and other tasks. The touch feature of the screen is used to play with your dog.
When you take your puppy for a walk there are a few environments where different interactions become accessible. There is a park with flying disk, a store with dog toys, and a gym for dog obedience school. With the reward money you buy food, and toys. The game allows you to have up to three puppies at a time.
Real-world time accounts for how many days have passed. You have to care for your puppy every day, making sure it gets food, water and playtime. An online game called Neopets has had outstanding success with these same features and has subscribers including adult women in the millions.
Several games have dogs either as main characters or in supporting roles. Another recently released game called Haunting Ground has a leading female character who is guided by a white shepherd. Haunting Ground is a sleeper title with a girl and a dog who she befriends. I predict it is going to have many fans among women gamers who enjoy spook - tastic games.
The story of Fiona Belli is an eighteen year-old blonde English woman that knows almost nothing about her ancestors. She wakes up after the car accident inside a locked dog cage wearing only dirty sheets. They do a great job of making the plot intriguing. You discover that she is the heiress to this castle and have to figure out the rest. Fiona’s has a weird collection of items such as explosive alchemical herbals.
It’s cerebral and plays with the mind like Silent Hill and Fatal Frame and Crimson Butterfly. It has gotten good reviews and it has been compared to Resident Evil 4. The game has a dark style of its own and it is about time for a new horror franchise. The game-play mechanics have a panic system that reminds me of the Thing. It is a realistic touch that psychologically reproduces the unpredictability of fear and reaction people have in occult situations.
The dog Hewie is also useful for finding items operating switches and crawling through tight spots. Hewie has an AI like a real dog who scratches himself and his attention wanders. You have to train him and the realism makes him a more endearing character.
A wonderful new game that I am looking forward to is Okami. Women do love innovation and art. This looks like it is going to be a a different adventure game for the PS2. The art-style is 16th century Sumi - e painting. The Philosophy of Sumi-e watercolor painting is contrast and harmony, to express simple beauty and elegance.
Sumi-e employs these principles of nature’s vitality in its design and balance. Integration of forces and the eternal interaction between Yin Yang are the ultimate goal of Sumi-e art. Because Sumi-e in mythology can capture the Chi or “life spirit” of the subject, a great white wolf Goddess brings forth light into the darkness in this game’s world.
The game mixes Japanese folklore and a stunning traditional Japanese art style, Okami will tell the story of a mythical sun Goddess who sets out to restore the world’s beauty and glory. You play the role of a wolf, who is really the sun Goddess Amaterasu. The beautiful 3D levels have the texture of rice paper scrolls and calligraphy.
Game-play takes place in the third person. The wolf interacts with people and then answers prayers and grants wishes. The fighting system has biting and head-butting strikes. There are also special attacks using the bronze mirror of Yata and many other magickal attacks that increase with experience.
An older game that is fun and has effective game-play is called A Dog’s Life. for PS2. It offers hours of completely stress free entertainment. Bone is it a a dog or a non- dog. A neodog. A nog? The comic books come to life in this adorable, cheap download. There is even old school Dogs Playing Poker for PC from 2002. game with dogs and poker.
Bone is a comic that is now an inexpensive downloadable game. In Bone for PC the story unfolds much like the comic does. It teaches lessons about greed and selfishness and generosity. It is published by Scholastic and this year the comic is going to be re released in color. The game is an easy point and click adventure that is fine for kids. It doesn’t really involve violence and killing so people who are fond of cute characters and non violence will enjoy playing with this little, um, non dog.
A Dog’s Life is a soothing game to play when you just want to wander around in a non threatening virtual world. The smell a vision is pretty colors. The dogs are cute and do funny doggy things like make bad smells and play with bones. Drama, stress and conflict are less attractive in gaming when you have had enough of that all day long. If you have a life of mad multi tasking then you may want to unwind with mindless monotonous games. Alpha brain waves are stimulating and relaxing games can have an effect like new age music. Playing with a real dog is actually good for your blood pressure.
Dogs Playing Poker Play poker against four animated dogs that like to bluff. is a very funny retro game from 2002 for PC. Gambling and poker games have always been very popular. I was very surprised to see that this iconic imagery became a game. If you have a machine that can run it or emulate it, it would probably be fun.
Sources : 1. (A History of Dogs in the Early Americas By MARION SCHWARTZ
(C) 1997 Yale University All rights reserved. ISBN: 0-300-06964-2)
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