With an initial choice of six breeds to own and a further 14 to be unlocked, Nintendogs Dalmatian & Friends Edition sees the previously hard-to-unlock Dalmatian amongst the initial choices, along with the most popular dogs from the previous versions – Dachshund & Friends, Labrador & Friends and Chihuahua & Friends. If you’ve missed out on the handheld phenomenon of the year so far or have just been as yet unable to unlock your very own spotted puppy, Nintendogs Dalmatian & Friends is the companion for you. Just as cute as ever, Nintendogs Dalmatian & Friends also features all the fantastic ‘touch’ and ‘talk’ elements of the original series. Players get to purchase their favourite puppy, making sure it is fed, walked, cleaned, played with and taught various tricks and commands. Once players have trained their puppy, they can enroll their dog into competitions to show off their new talents and earn prize money. Three different types of competition are available: an obedience trial, a frisbee-catching contest and an obstacle course. With the competition earnings, players can purchase food, toys and accessories for their puppy. Interacting with another puppy automatically unlocks that breed in another players version of Nintendogs, giving players the chance to share this rare new puppy with friends. In ‘Bark Mode’, owners search for other Nintendo DS’s running in the same mode using the console’s built in wireless connection. If another console is discovered, the DS will emit a ‘barking’ noise, alerting owners that a playmate has been found. Both players then exchange contact cards, allowing them to interact with each others puppies and give exciting gifts if they wish to.