Having a dog, though, also had its pluses. First of all, they're pretty darn cute. Some of the smaller breeds, in particular, could easily elicit an "awwww" from even the toughest of macho guys. The bigger ones were just cool looking. Having a dog to play with and a companion there that seemed to share in your pain on those bad days was definitely nice.

So, when I saw that Nintendo was making a puppy simulator, I snapped up a copy of the game for me. I also bought one for my girlfriend. About a month later, I had to find her the third version that was released - she wanted some of those puppies, too. In just a couple of months with the game, I've found that owning a virtual dog definitely has some of the benefits of a real dog - though you do still have to clean up virtual poop.

First of all, I want to make sure to mention that Nintendogs is not a video game in the traditional sense - there aren't any levels or main goals that, once you attain them, allow you to beat the game. Nintendogs is literally nothing more than eight puppies in your pocket. There are three different versions of the game, all with different puppies. Eventually, you'll unlock all the puppies available in the other versions along with two hidden breeds (The Jack Russell Terrier and the Dalmatian) simply by playing the game.

So, if there aren't traditional goals, why play this game? Well, there are a ton of reasons. First of all, the 20 breeds you can unlock in the game are all incredibly cute. I loved the boxer I got - and the German Shepherd and the Chihuahua, too. There are a plenty of others I still want to get. To get them, you have to have them unlocked, and you have to have the money for them.

Earning money is pretty easy. You can go out on walks (to build up your dog's stamina and get items to sell) or you can compete in tournaments where prizes will get progressively larger. At first, you won't win much. But eventually you'll be making a ton of money each day as you run your dogs through competitions.

Outside of making money to unlock new dogs, there is also the ability to just play with your dogs. As you go on walks, you'll find all sorts of fun toys. The longer you play and the more trainer points you earn (you get these for doing most anything in the game, and they measure progress and unlock things), the better stuff you'll find on walks. At first you won't find much outside of sticks and tennis balls, but as time goes on you'll find things like helicopters and aliens. Many of the toys you can play with react differently to being tossed around and picked up by dogs, too. My personal favorite, though, are the records - a series of them makes your dogs all behave in a certain way, including dancing around (keep an eye out for the Flower Waltz record).

That, though, doesn't even scratch the surface of what you and your dog can do for fun. Yes, most everything you do with the dog is fun - even the stuff like walking it, guiding it along as it plays with other puppies and giving it a bath. Sure, you have to clean up poop on the walks, but it is a simple tap on the screen to pick it up, as opposed to carrying along a pooper scooper, picking it up and throwing it in the nearest trash can.

There are so many items to collect in the game. That alone can keep you occupied for months. As I mentioned earlier, you collect better items as the game goes on. Some of the items are traditional doggie toys, while others are ones you wouldn't let a dog near - who in their right mind would let a dog play with an expensive vase? You'll also find accessories on the walks - collars, hats and sunglasses are in this group. Some of these are incredibly cute. My particular favorite is probably the rainbow clown-like wig.

Yet another thing you can spend time doing is teaching your dog new tricks. This was probably the only part of the game that managed to annoy me - the voice recognition isn't the greatest, and when the dog learns a trick, it doesn't always learn it right. I found myself often trying different distances from the DS, different tones of voice and different volume levels. The game is incredibly particular about how you teach the dog a trick, though. So, when teaching, make sure you're in a quiet room and say the word the exact same way each time. Otherwise, the dog will act too much like a real dog and just ignore you.

Nintendogs is a very fun game. Even if you have a real dog, picking up Nintendogs is definitely a good idea. Nintendo even makes this easier, now, with two special color DSes bundled with Nintendogs. This is the type of game that you can sit down and play for half an hour, and feel as if you accomplished something. You can play it even longer and just have fun playing with your dogs and their toys. You can play it only for the competitions or only to find those rare items.

No matter how you decide to play the game, though, you'll still get the benefit of not having to clean up real dog poop. That right there makes the game worth the $29.99 price tag.