The Sims 2: Castaway for Nintendo DS - Review

The Sims 2 Castaway for the Nintendo DS system is a decent game when you first start playing, and has some nice highlights, yet significant shortcomings. If you are interested in a strictly goal-oriented game, you might find The Sims 2 Castaway for the DS enjoyable; if you like a more open-ended goal-oriented game or something with more longevity, you are likely better off getting The Sims 2 Castaway for other consoles such as the PS2, Wii, or PSP -or a different game altogether.

In the DS version of The Sims 2 Castaway, you are directed to create a Sim (character), and can customize their appearance to a limited extent. Unlike other console versions of The Sims 2 Castaway where you can create up to six playable Sims, the DS version limits you to creating one Sim. In a way, it is balanced out since the DS version has four non-playable characters (NPCs) your Sim can interact and trade with - in the other console versions, there are no other Sims on the island, aside from those you create at the beginning.

After creating your character, you are shown a cut-scene of how your Sim ends up stranded on the island. Once your Sim is on the island and begins their adventure, there are six motives you should pay attention to: Hunger, Energy, Social, Comfort, Hygiene, and Bladder. The most important motives are Hunger and Energy: your Sim will pass out when their energy drops completely, and will awake to seeing a monkey run off after stealing some of the items you have collected. At first, it might be somewhat difficult to keep your Sim's motives high, but they do not need to be filled completely for your Sim to complete necessary activities. It becomes easier to fill your Sim's motive bars later in the game when you've discovered more items, and unlocked the two other islands.

The Sims 2 Castaway for the DS makes good use of the touch-screen and stylus abilities, allowing you to point-and-click your Sim around the island. Navigation is also very easy: simply load the island map, tap a location, and your Sim will instantly appear at that location - no need to waste precious time by walking from one point of the island to another. The stylus is also used for menu control, selecting items, and playing mini-games. "Spear Fishing" is the probably the most challenging mini-game, since your Sim's reaction time to spearing the fish is quite slow: there is a delay of approximately one second from when you "spear" the fish with your stylus and when your Sim actually spears them. This can become quite frustrating when, for quests or trading, you need to spear particular types of fish that happen to swim in very erratic patterns.

There are times during game-play when the DS version of The Sims 2 Castaway is downright frustrating, since there are no clear indications of what you're supposed to do next, or where to find certain items. Furthermore, it appears that some items are not available to you until a certain percentage of the game has been completed or a certain number of days have passed. An important thing to keep in mind while helping out an NPC is that some of the items they need rely on your Sim completing other NPCs' tasks.

The disappointing drawback of The Sims 2 Castaway for the DS becomes painfully clear once you have completed the quests for all four NPCs and have collected all the map pieces needed to "escape" the island. You can choose to remain on the island in order to complete your collections, but once you have done so, there isn't anything left to do in the game aside from setting personal goals, for example, "I'm going to collect 200 of each fruit". You also can't build a custom home or further expand/upgrade your hut: there are a total of two upgrades you can make to your sleeping hut. Additionally, you are limited to placing decorative items only at decorative rock locations, and are restricted to only one decoration per rock: there is one decorative rock at each NPC location, and your "home" area has two.

One particular issue this author had with the game is certain discrepancies between the DS version of The Sims 2 Castaway and the other console versions. The game description for The Sims 2 Castaway for the Nintendo DS system tells players they can "Gather fish (and) trap animals", yet there are no other animals in the game besides fish, and the monkey who momentarily appears when your Sim passes out. New features such as earthquakes, boar-hunting, chicken-catching, and Sims' hair growing with time were proudly advertised in previews for The Sims 2 Castaway, but it was never quite clear that these features would be left out in the DS version of the game. If you were anticipating the aforementioned features in The Sims 2 Castaway for the DS, please beware that they are not in this particular game.

It is quite unfortunate that the DS version of The Sims 2 Castaway is not as open-ended or customisable as the other console versions, especially since the touch-screen and stylus allow for better control and a wider range of possibilities. The game-play and longevity are simply not as good as they could have been. This game will likely be fun for those who enjoy completing missions and collecting endless quantities of items. For those who want more, The Sims 2 Castaway for the Nintendo DS system might not be the game you're looking for.