Animal husbandry sims are ten-a-penny these days. What with the world of Nintendogs, all manner of horse and pony games, not to mention recent forays by certain publishers into the world of livestock--it's a crowded field.
Attempting to stand out from the rest in the near future will be Namco-Bandai's attempt to leap on the animal care bandwagon, which is being released in the USA this November thanks to a partnership with esteemed journal National Geographic. Unlike many of its competitors in the current field, National Geographic: Panda focuses on but one species, and GameSpot won't insult your intelligence by telling you which.
WorthPlaying writes: "Every day, more and more animals are decreasing in numbers and being added to the ever-growing endangered species list. Among these animals are the blue whale, the Siberian tiger, the bald eagle, and the giant panda. I have a friend who is so obsessed with pandas that he's gone as far as making his password "pandadefender." I learned more than I ever hoped about pandas, thanks to National Geographic Panda for the Nintendo DS."
It's worth noting that National Geographic Panda for Nintendo DS comes with Secrets of the Wild Panda, a 53-minute DVD. Of course, National Geographic Panda isn't actually intended as an educational videogame. After all, the game does involve buying funny hats and cute clothes for panda cubs that never grow up. But since the bonus DVD is included with the game, Namco Bandai's title makes for an interesting proposition. It's a light but undeniably cute virtual pet game, and it's also a little bit of an educational opportunity. Oh, and there are pandas.
GamerDad writes: "A couple of years ago when visiting family in Georgia, we went to the Atlanta Zoo. The most memorable thing about that trip to the zoo is we got to see a couple of pandas real up close. They were just behind a glass wall, just inches from us. The male panda had his butt facing us the entire time, he was more interested in the long stalks of bamboo the zoo keepers kept shoving through a little window. But the female panda was more affectionate. She came right up to us and leaned on the glass while we made petting motions on the other side. As she sat down she looked up at us like how a dog looks at you when you pet it. Enough to melt your heart right there. Now you can interact with virtual pandas on your DS with National Geographic: Panda."
