Recently, Treasure World was released on the Nintendo DS. A most peculiar game, that I hesitate to even label as a "game".As such, instead of a normal review, I will detail everything I can about the game and give some thoughts. Hopefully by the end you will see why giving this game a review score doesn't really seem fair or even plausible.

Graphically the title is rock solid. It has a nice framerate and good use of colors. There is a very simple reason for this. There is only one area in the game and only two characters. Still they went out of their way to make sure it does look good, and the hundreds of items and clothing bits are easily distinguishable.

 

Musically the game is an interesting piece. As you collect items, you can align them out in your field, which doubles as a musical scale. The items become the notes on which compositions are played. Think of Toadofsky and tadpole pond from Super Mario RPG. Each item you place on the grid represents a different sound. This gives the game a unique music composition element. You can also unlock many classic songs and play those, as well as add your own items and sounds to these classic songs.

So how does the game work exactly? Well the story is that a galactic explorer has run out of fuel and crash landed on our planet with his robot pal. In order to return to space he needs you to gather star dust. How do you gather stardust? By having the DS search for Wi-Fi signals. Each signal will grant you with a small amount of stardust or a treasure. The treasure can be either for your sound garden, or clothing for your robot. You can also trade star dust for items as well. This basically constitutes the game. You need to find 1,000 pieces of star dust to get the spaceship back up and running, so you will have to look all around for Wi-Fi signals. Now, for me personally, finding Wi-Fi signals is not a problem at all. Working in the LA area, as well as traveling up and down the west coast a lot also helps. Thankfully the game will let you close the lid while searching for signals so you can pocket your DS and just go walking. This could be a problem for those living in rural areas, or kids whose mobility is limited as it might be physically impossible for them to complete the game. This also raises the question of actual gameplay, as it consists almost entirely of looking for Wi-Fi signals. This is a perfect game for people with OCD, or those who like dressing up a robot into all kinds of silly outfits. It also has a neat musical element as well. However, both the robot and sound garden seem to exist simply to give the player something to do. It is kind of a neat concept but also feels a little half done. The premise is interesting, but there isn't a whole lot of payoff. Both the dressing up the robot, and music creation sections are elements that have been done many times elsewhere, including free online flash games. To be brutally honset, the game feels more like an interesting app. for the DSi shop then a full retail game.

 

In an effort to add to the game, the developers included a pretty neat and robust online mode for the title. Aspyr has launched a dedicated website for the title which you can use to pin down hotspots on a map for other treasure hunters to see. You can send messages and trade and share items and soundscapes with friends through the Nintendo Wi-FI Connection. It is a cool concept for this kind of game and is definitely appreciated. Again though, if the basic concept of the game itself isn't appealing to you, then the awesome online setup will mean nothing.

Wrapping it all up, the user experience of the title is completely dependent on where they live, and how mobile they are. There really isn't any gameplay to speak of outside of the music composition. Which again, is not only something done with much more depth in other games, but also free with access to the internet. Your enjoyment out of getting in game knick knacks by scanning for Wi-Fi signals is something that is to specific and vague to be pinned down by a numerical score. If you are interested in this title, then hopefully this feature will give you a better idea on what your getting into.