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Computer Times
Editors' Choice DS Game Treasure World Reviewed by Angie Kibiloski
Treasure World (Retail $29.99), from Aspyr, is a great new, uniquely exciting game for the Nintendo DS that brings the in-game treasure hunt into the real world. Team up with the Star Sweep, and his pal the Wish Finder, to search the cosmos for thousands of stars to clean. As you clean each star, you are rewarded with either stardust or treasures for your trouble. Collect over 2,500 unique treasures to enjoy and play with. Here is what makes this game truly different: you must actually physically explore the outside world in order to find stars. A star is found each time the Nintendo DS detects a unique Wi-Fi signal, either private or public. Once a specific signal is identified, like the one you use at home to connect to the Internet, the star is cleaned, and will not produce stardust or treasures again. So, to uncover all of the treasures available, you must travel around to find more and more unique Wi-Fi signals. You can also trade the stardust you find with the Star Sweep for treasures from his own collection. He will also reward you with treasures if you satisfy challenges he sets, like trading enough stardust with him to fuel his starship, or cleaning a set number of stars. As you complete sets of treasures, they will unlock other treasures that you cannot find or buy.
Once you gather your treasures, which include clothes to outfit the Wish Finder, and objects like trees, flowers, statues, and more, you get to play with them inside the game world. Each treasure has a unique sound associated with it. You can place your treasures into your game world in patterns to create “songscapes,” which are small musical numbers based on the layout of your objects. You can collect songscapes from stars as well, and play them in your world, as long as you have acquired the matching treasures to play each note. Also, change the outfit on the Wish Finder as many times as you want, to disguise him when he goes out star searching. If this wasn’t enough fun for one game, you can do even more online at http://www.clubtreasureworld.com! Join Club Treasure World for free, and share your songscapes with the whole worldwide community of treasure hunters just like you. You can even trade treasures with other people. Not only that, you can earn awards on the Web site for successfully completing songscape challenges. Some of the treasures you will find are called Treasure Keys, and these can be claimed online for real world digital prizes, like coloring sheets and dot-to-dot puzzles to print out.
The best way to find stars and collect as many treasures as possible is to take your DS everywhere with you. A cool feature is that the game will still search for Wi-Fi signals if you safely close the DS. So, set the Wish Finder to hunt for stars, stick the DS in your pocket, purse, or backpack, and drive or walk all around your world. The best places I have found for star finding are the shopping mall and my own neighborhood. What other video game encourages players to venture out of their homes and get some fresh air? You get to enjoy the sights of your neighborhood while collecting neat digital prizes. How cool is that? Where will you find the most stars? Can you collect all the treasures that can be found? What will become your favorite disguise for the Wish Finder? How will your most creative songscape compare to those from the other Club Treasure World members? Find out the answer to all these exciting questions with your very own copy of Treasure World.
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