Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise

Simulation Miscellaneous Virtual Life Virtual

In Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise, players inherit a neglected garden on Pinata Island and turn it into a pinata paradise by tending to all aspects of cleaning the garden, growing and maintaining vegetation, caring for and breeding pinatas, as well as attracting new pinata species. The game features seven all-new pinata species, each with new requirements, houses and unique cut scenes. Viva Pinata: Pocket Paradise also includes twelve full motion video clips that serve as tutorial levels within the game. The videos feature the stars of the Fox 4Kids Viva Pinata TV series, including Hudson Horstashio, Fergy Fudgehog and Paulie Pretztail. The brand-new Playground mode allows players to create a lush garden full of exciting and exotic pinatas in a very short amount of time. In addition, certain rare pinatas can only be acquired by using the Nintendo DS local wireless connection, where players can transfer items from their garden to a friend's garden. [THQ]

Zubo

Action Miscellaneous Rhythm Music

Zubo is a music-based rhythm-action game featuring a unique set of characters. Players enter the world of Zubalon to help the colorful and zany inhabitants, the Zubos, defeat an evil force which is bent on world domination. Players can befriend the Zubos they meet along the way, feed and nurture them, help them gain skills and strength, and assist them in their battles with the enemy, the dastardly Zombos. A key element to Zubo is music, which is intrinsic to Zubalon from its tuneful plant life through to its currency of musical notes. The player uses the music to drive the battles forward, synchronizing their stylus action and tapping in time with the musical beats to win. With 55 Zubos available to find and recruit to a player’s squad, plus a wealth of interactions and mini-games, and the world of Zubalon to explore, Zubo offers a rewarding Nintendo DS experience. [Electronic Arts]

Personal Trainer: Math

Miscellaneous Edutainment

The foundation of Dr Kageyama's Maths Training is 100 square calculations a method conceived by Kageyama Hidea, a Japanese elementary school principal. The DS is held side ways like a book and all answers are written using the stylus. The key principal of the software is repetition which according to Kageyama stimulates the brain. The main exercise 100 cells maths, consists of 100 hundred simple maths problems combined into a 10 by 10 grid using the numbers at the top and side of the grid. There are however many other exercises, ranging from simple one digit math problems to slightly more complex three digit challenges.

Nintendogs: Dachshund & Friends

Simulation Miscellaneous Virtual Life Virtual Pet

Players care for and train their puppy by petting it, walking it and buying it supplies to play with. As a puppy competes in obedience and agility trials, owners can win money to purchase other puppy breeds. The pups will vary in gender, coloration and personality. Players purchase one of several breeds available at the beginning, then start spending time with their pup. They throw flying discs and balls to improve the pup’s agility, bathe it when it gets dirty and use their own personal voice commands to train the dog to do tricks. If players train it well enough, they will excel in obedience and agility trials and disc competitions, which will earn money that they can use to buy other supplies and puppy breeds. When players earn enough cash, they can buy even more puppies to live with their original pup. Players can socialize their pups by walking them around the town, where they will meet neighborhood dogs, and maybe even find new toys. Trips to the park and gym offer valuable training time to prepare for agility trials and disc competitions. Over time, the pup's stamina will increase so players can explore farther and farther. Players also can interact wirelessly with their friends' Nintendogs – they can set their DS to bark whenever another puppy is within wireless range. [Nintendo]