1up has published an interview with two members of the Animal Crossing: City Folk localization team, Rich Amtower and Reiko Ninomiya. One big question was regarding the fact that many Animal Crossing veterans don’t necessarily feel like there’s enough new content in City Folk to justify a purchase. Well, Rich is having none of that. When asked what he would say to a “fan who isn’t sure that there’s enough new stuff to jump into City Folk“, he responded with this:

Um…that there is? I mean, seriously, there’s all manner of new interactions with the NPCs, or have you not played hide-and-seek yet? And the multiplayer is much more robust than in previous Animal Crossing games. Have you noticed that the villagers don’t all run and hide indoors when strangers are around? I’m so proud that they got over their stranger fear.

To which Reiko had this to add:

Because there are so many small elements that come together to make Animal Crossing what it is, it’s easy to think that this is the same game. But once people pick up the controller and experience life, they’ll see how different it is.

The aspect of communication or interaction was really enhanced in this version — not only when it comes to visiting friends over Nintendo WFC but also interacting with friends over WiiConnect24 by sending letters and photos and participating in the auction in the city.

Well? Are you sold?

1up

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Remember when we reported that Animal Crossing: Let’s Go To The City wasn’t letting Australians go to the City from their DS games at all? I’ll be Australians are really wishing the Wii had a hard drive suitable for patching right about now. Nintendo’s solution is to replace everyone’s Let’s Go To The City discs with new ones that are compatible with Wild World. You’ll have to take the first step, though. Shoot Nintendo an email to set up a return. It’s like Guitar Hero III all over again.

Hey, at least Australia gets koala bears. That’s pretty awesome.

Nintendo
via Vooks

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Animal crossing? Living in a city? Sounds like Frogger.

Instead, Nintendo’s Animal Crossing: City Folk hits store shelves this week, starting with the launch event at New York’s Gallery Bar, shown above. Those who love themselves some Animal Crossing can pick the game up at the usual price, or get the WiiSpeak Bundle for $69.99.

You can read the full press release after the break, but I have a feeling that if you’re going to be picking the game up this week, you’ve already set aside some funds in your budget.

NINTENDO CREATES A PLACE WHERE EVERYONE FEELS AT HOME

Animal Crossing: City Folk is All about Customization, Characters and Community

REDMOND, Wash., Nov. 12, 2008 – The new Animal Crossing™: City Folk game for the Wii™ console launches Nov. 16, allowing players to move into fun communities, customize their surroundings and interact with hundreds of animal characters. The world is filled with possibilities, and players never run out of things to do. They can collect more than 2,400 items like shells, fossils and bugs, or design new clothing patterns that they can share with their friends.

The new “city” area of the game provides access to the latest fashions and offers players the ability to give their character a Mii™ makeover at the hair salon, which transforms the character’s features to look like the player’s Mii. Players can also put items up for auction in the city and bid on items others want to sell.

“Animal Crossing: City Folk is all about building communities, customizing your world and staying in touch with friends and other characters,” said Cammie Dunaway, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of Sales & Marketing. “There’s no ending, so people can keep playing for months and even years. It’s an experience that everyone in the household can share together.”

Up to four people can create characters and move into the same town. And using the Wii Speak™ accessory, players can voice chat with friends and family members around the world. The microphone sits atop the TV set and captures the voice of everyone in the room, providing for a more communal experience. People can now get together to chat with their distant loved ones, which is especially meaningful when they can’t be together for the holidays. The microphone can also be used with the upcoming Wii Speak Channel, which launches in December.

The Animal Crossing: City Folk calendar passes in real time, so climates along with bugs and fish change with the seasons. Players can catch fireflies in the summer or celebrate Harvest Festival in the fall. If players use Nintendo® Wi-Fi Connection to meet up with friends in other countries, they will experience the holidays native to the friends’ cultures.

Animal Crossing: City Folk is a great value for the holidays because it can be enjoyed by everyone. The game never ends, which gives players months – or even years – of exploring and interacting with their virtual community.

Animal Crossing: City Folk retails at an MSRP of $49.99 and the Wii Speak accessory is sold separately at an MSRP of $29.99. Bundles of the game and accessory are also available at an MSRP of $69.99.

Animal Crossing remains one of Nintendo’s most popular franchises. The original Animal Crossing for Nintendo GameCube™ sold more than 1.55 million copies in the United States alone, while the Nintendo DS™ version, Animal Crossing™: Wild World, sold more than 1.75 million in the United States.

Remember that Wii features parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other Wii features, visit Wii.com. For more information about Animal Crossing: City Folk, visit Animal-Crossing.com.

About Nintendo: The worldwide pioneer in the creation of interactive entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets hardware and software for its Wii™ and Nintendo DS™ systems. Since 1983, when it launched the Nintendo Entertainment System™, Nintendo has sold nearly 2.8 billion video games and more than 480 million hardware units globally, including the current-generation Wii and Nintendo DS, as well as the Game Boy™, Game Boy Advance, Super NES™, Nintendo 64™ and Nintendo GameCube™. It has also created industry icons that have become well-known, household names such as Mario™, Donkey Kong™, Metroid™, Zelda™ and Pokémon™. A wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash., serves as headquarters for Nintendo’s operations in the Western Hemisphere. For more information about Nintendo, visit the company’s Web site at www.nintendo.com.

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We already know it’s coming, but Nintendo has sent out a press release reminding us that the Wii Speak accessory will be available starting November 16 – less than a week from now. You can buy it separately for $29.99, or save a Hamilton and get the Animal Crossing bundle for $69.99. Either way, you’ll be able to download the Wii Speak Channel and be able to voice chat with anyone you’re friends with.

You know, for the longest time here, we’ve been trying to find a convenient way to do a conference chat/call so that we can do podcasts even while the entire The Tanooki staff is spread out across North America. AIM? Live? Skype? Didn’t work so well. Cross your fingers for this one!

NINTENDO PREPS FOR ROOM-TO-ROOM VOICE CHATTING

Nov. 7, 2008

The new in-game voice chat function for Animal Crossing™: City Folk will be ready to go as soon as the game launches on Nov. 16, using the Wii Speak™ accessory. A separate Wii Speak™ Channel that people can use to chat independent of Animal Crossing: City Folk will be available in December.

The new voice chat function makes use of the new Wii Speak accessory, a microphone that sits on top of the television and allows entire rooms of people to communicate with one another. Only users who have traded Friend Codes can connect with one another using Wii Speak. The accessory is sold separately at an MSRP of $29.99 and will also be available as a bundle with Animal Crossing: City Folk at select retailers at an MSRP of $69.99. The Wii Speak accessory comes with a code that lets users download the Wii Speak Channel from the Wii Shop Channel at no charge.

The Wii Speak Channel will allow friends and family members to chat with one another, whether they live across town or across the globe. When users are chatting with the Wii Speak Channel, they can see each other’s Mii™ characters representing them on the television screen.

Remember that Wii features parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other Wii features, visit Wii.com. For more information about Nintendo, please visit www.Nintendo.com.

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WiiSpeak Channel is launching in Europe on December 5th, which just so happens to be the release date of Animal Crossing: Let’s Go to the City. The WiiSpeak Channel will allow users to make use of the WiiSpeak microphone for online voice chat (among other things) with up to four people simultaneously. Think free, four-way phone calls with Miis. And picture transfers. And text messages, for some reason.

Eurogamer

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Well, in terms of shock value, the announcement of Animal Crossing: City Folk didn’t really even register, seeing as how it was predicted and hinted at prior to E3. What is shocking however, is the fact that the game looks like it was ported directly from the Gamecube.

Don’t get me wrong, there should be a lot of fun stuff to do in the city, and no doubt all sorts of new conversations have been written for the neighbors, but what else? Is that it? I would buy it if it was a direct port of Animal Crossing: Wide World, but I was hoping for something a little bit more substantial. Besides the 4-player gaming at the end of course.

DailyMotion

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Nintendo has been kind enough to release some images of the anticipated title. Click over to see several screens of the game in action, as well as some characters. I’m just glad to see that Saturday nights will most likely be populated by the famous K.K. Slider once again. Nintendo’s official word about the game along with the screens when you click over.

KEY INFORMATION
If life were an endless vacation, what would you do? Go fishing, collect shells or watch fireworks with friends? Build a snowman, exchange presents with family or decorate your house for the holidays? Take a trip to the city, go on a shopping spree or visit friends from all over the globe? In Animal Crossing: City Folk, life moves at a relaxed pace, but the world brims with endless possibilities.

• There’s always something new to do. In the living, breathing world of Animal Crossing: City Folk, days and seasons pass in real time, so there’s always something to discover. Catch fireflies in the summer, go trick-or-treating on Halloween or hunt for eggs on Bunny Day. If you’re in the mood for something a little faster paced, take a bus to a new urban city area that’s unique to Animal Crossing: City Folk. There you can catch a show at the theater or check out the sales at Gracie’s boutique. But if you don’t show your face back home for too long, your neighbors will miss you.
• Up to four people from your household can live and work together to build the perfect town. Design clothes and patterns, write letters and post messages on the bulletin board for each other, or invite up to three friends to visit your town using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. With the new WiiSpeak microphone, it’s like you’re all in the same room. The microphone sits atop the sensor bar and picks up the conversation of everyone in the room to encourage a more inclusive experience.
• Get to know your neighbors. The heart of Animal Crossing: City Folk is building relationships with the animals in your town as well as with other players. Befriend your animal neighbors by exchanging letters, gifts and favors. Animals can also move from town to town, bringing their memories and stories from their old towns with them. And since animals are notoriously loose-lipped, they spill all the juicy details.
• Express your personal style. Customize your town, your house and yourself by collecting bugs, fish, fossils, art, furniture, clothes and accessories. You can also go to the salon in the city to change your hairstyle and get a Mii? makeover. Plus, if you design clothes in the tailor’s shop, animals will wear them and maybe even bring them to other towns.

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