I recently adopted two rescue kittens who were badly abused – it's been an experience. I also live in an apartment. Though I don't have a rich uncle or run a pet spa four floors down, it would seem I have a lot in common with The Sims 2: Apartment Pets except for that niggling issue that I start all of these reviews with: I am not a Sims person. But, as I say in nearly every Sims DS title, this really isn't a Sims title.

Lucky me! I now live in a truly expansive apartment on what I can only guess is the Upper West Side (of a very affluent city) and all rent and utilities are paid. Uncle has an arrangement with the apartment manager. In return for his largesse I need only take care of his menagerie and spruce up the apartment a bit. Right now it's decorated with bargain basement fixtures.

A few floors down is a ritzy (or soon to be) pet spa. My luck continues for I am skilled in the ways of pampering pets! This spa is mine to grow. Through thoughtful care of the animals – and their owners – I will become the pet spa magnate, earning the Simoleons to upgrade the spa, redecorate uncle's apartment and maybe buy myself some new clothes.

Sims 2: Apartment Pets is at its heart, a collection of mini-games that allow you to care for and manage puppies and kittens. There are some other animals in your apartment you can interact with, but your spa treats only dogs and cats, and your neighbors have this rather persistent habit of bringing you strays or their own misbehaving animals to train. (Just what I want to do at the end of my work day!)

From your earnings in the mini-games, you are able to upgrade the spa, buy new décor for the spa or apartment, new clothing for your Sim, food and medicine for the animals, and the necessary toys and "accessories" to make the neighborhood animals happy. Unlike a traditional Sim title, there is no development of relationships, no social fabric to tie you to any one person or even animal over time. The goal is to better the spa as to earn more money from the clientele's owners and the collection of new and varied décor.

The tutorial can be a bit wordy – I made the mistake of paging through it my first time through. I do recommend reading the instruction booklet; it's short, succinct and well-organized. However neither will help if you've never played a Sims title as there is no movement tutorial. Neither does it explain how the interaction UI operates. [Ed. – For those who haven't played, if you tap an item and see a bar with the name of the item, you then tap the bar to interact. You can speed up/slow down movement with the arrow(s) in the bottom left corner; and tapping the hand/feet in the top right will stop you from performing an action or moving to a location.]

Caring for the pets in the spa requires that you first determine what the animal needs. Initially, the pets brought to the spa will have no more than three needs. As your spa becomes well-known and your skills increase, they will have six – the additional needs often come from wanting to dress to the nines. By poking, scratching and scraping at the animal while restricted by a timer (how long do you expect the poor animal to put up with this treatment?) you'll determine what exactly you need to do.

As pampering an impatient puppy or cranky kitty is no mean feat, you are limited to the number of tries and the time you have to complete the transformation. Less finicky owners will give you more time to clean Fido – you'll have more action points than needs, e.g. four tries to determine what the three needs are. When Fifi comes in for her grooming and primping there is no margin for error. This is a spa not a veterinary hospital so no worries if you're the squeamish type. You'll be showering, removing fleas, brushing and perfuming the little darlings. Most are pretty simple after some practice but brushing forever tried my patience.

Using your earnings you can change the décor or upgrade your spa. Doing so will increase your income dramatically and allow you to continue upgrades and earn more money so you can start making changes to your apartment. The variety of items is fairly substantial allowing for an eclectic mix if that is your preference or a theme be it futuristic, retro, or goth among others. Changes to your apartment or your Sim's appearance don't appear to have any effect on the money you earn at the spa, but it can be fun to switch around the apartment; you will be spending a bit of time there.

Much of the time you'll have a puppy and/or kitten to train in your home. This is different from the work you do in the spa. While either may need an initial clean up, what they are in specific need of is training, love and attention. This is accomplished by petting them (using the stylus), feeding them the proper foods and medicines, playing with them (there is a wide array of toys), and going treasure hunting.

Treasure hunting is best described as metal prospecting on the beach using your animal as the metal detector. You guide the animal using the stylus and when it comes upon an area it believes has "treasure" below, it will become excited. Tap your pet and it will dig. If you're lucky, you'll find Simoleons; unlucky and you'll find an old boot. You can't prospect indefinitely – poor Woofy gets tired. But, if you decide you want to let your associates run the Spa for the day while you stay home and you'd still like to earn some cash, this is one of the ways to do it.

Other mini-games available come with your pet parrot and snake. (You also have a pet gerbil and rabbit but they are there simply to be loved.) The parrot has a fun dance game that requires you help him keep rhythm to the music. I never did master the snake "charming" game, but my son did with ease so I think it was just me. These tend to break up the constant puppy/kitten/puppy/kitten tedium.

As an adult, tedious is much how I'd describe The Sims 2: Apartment Pets. I played it a long time hoping that once I began earning insane amounts of cash I'd see new pets in the spa. Alas, I was doomed to repeating care for the common household pet. The variety in my apartment had given me hope; towards the end of my play time I found myself spending most of my time in my apartment.

However, I fully acknowledge this is not a game meant for me. This is a great game for a person aged 8-15. The animations are wonderful, the pets have distinct personalities, there are plenty of collectibles to work towards and the monotony has much to do with looking for a depth that was simply not intended. Perhaps if I hadn't been playing to review but simply in much smaller sessions I would have enjoyed it more. I do know it will remain in my home as both of my kids and their friends enjoy the title.

If you're looking for that quintessential Sims experience, you won't find it here. If you want a pet simulator, keep looking. But if you want to spend a little time managing a shop, a little time caring for pets, a little time collecting items, and a little time playing mini-games then this is a very high quality title that will meet those requirements with ease.