As with the Wii version of Sim Animals, the DS game puts you in charge of managing a woodland ecosystem. Plants need to be tended, and a range of animals will move in, take a look around, maybe eat some of your plants (or each other) and then either settle down or move out. Keeping these animals happy – by making sure they’ve got food and shelter and aren’t being bothered by predators – will bump up a ‘smile-ometer’ thingy. Fill it and you’ll move to the next level.

It’s terribly sedate and not that challenging, or particularly logical at times, but it’s well-presented (far better than on Wii) and very charming, even if you’re not normally won over by ickle bunnies. Even after you’ve ambled through the objectives you may well come back to zone out to the ‘forest noises’ soundtrack.

Feb 26, 2009