LeapFrog Leapster Learning Game Pet Pals

With the digital pet craze for the past several years (and still growing) it was just a matter of time for LeapFrog to develop something to tap into it. I just purchased the Pet Pals game for my 3.5 year old son, who has had a Leapster since his 3rd birthday. The game begins by having the player choose one of three dogs and then naming the dog they chose instead of entering the player's name like in other Leapster games. Pet Pals then takes you to a virtual home with an entry area, a living area and a kitchen. Each room has things to click on (leash, wall picture, couch pillow, etc.) to play games. There are numerous amounts of games to choose from, some of which offer different levels. You earn "love" points for playing the games and you also earn coins that are stored in a piggy bank which you can spend at a store to buy food, shampoo, treats and clothing. My son's current favorite games are the letter-writing practice (which is similar to the Mr. Pencil's letter-writing game, but is slightly less sensitive and less frustrating), the dog-walking (which has levels and depending on the level, for example, asks the player to walk the dog down streets collecting all the capital letters), and the tricks game (which has the player follow a series of instructions three times in order to teach their dog a particular trick). There are many more games to choose from such as dog washing, toss-and-catch, dress your dog and others. Playing all of these games ultimately leads to the player choosing the "dog show" game, where most of the other games are done collectively in order for the player's dog to win the dog show. Now, with all of this going on, there is still the "virtual pet" part of the game where the player needs to care for their pet. The dog needs to be fed, watered, scratched, taken for walks (leads to dog-walking game), etc. The player needs to respond to his dog's needs in order to gain more love points. I read in the instructions that the player can loose love points for not taking care of their pet, but I have not paid attention to see how this happens. This is probably my favorite Leapster game so far (out of all the Pre-K games) and seems to hold my son's interest much longer than any of the others ever have, even when they were brand-new. It has so many different game choices that will keep a player's attention for long periods and the idea of taking care of their own virtual pet (even though we have two real live ones) is it's own attraction to the game. I HAVE ONE HUGE COMPLAINT! At the beginning, the player earns their dog an adoption certificate by following just a few care instructions for their pet. Pet Pals tells the player to go to [...] to enter the secret code to print out their dog's adoption certificate. The problem is that LeapFrog has not yet (as of July '07) updated their LeapsterWorld website with the Pet Pals game. When you go into the Secret Codes section on the website, Pet Pals is not yet available to choose from for code entering. I have sent LeapFrog an email a few days ago and have not received a response. I would think that an educational toy company such as LeapFrog would have updated their website appropriately to correspond with the release of a game. My son is very dissapointed that he cannot print out his dog's adoption certificate. I guess I'll have to design my own for him until LeapFrog takes care of this, which I have no doubt they will.

This was the first game I got my daughter for her Leapster 2. She plays it all the time and has learned how to count to 20 from it (she was 3 at the time). The only problem is, once you choose a dog from the list, that's the dog you're stuck with through the rest of the game, unless you make a new user on the Leapster. She always wants to use a different dog, and we can't figure out if there's a way to change it with the same user.

I checked yes on all or gave a 5 star rating, i ordered run size game and can not use it on our leapster’s game console. Still have it and one day I might get the other console. Everything else I have ordered for my grandchildren for our Leapster consoles have worked very very good

100% Fun and Entertainment. The learning I haven't seen too much although it does teach responsibility for your pet caring. I have also seen her writing Letters. It's a little like Dogs from DS but I find this super cute and more entertaining than the DS for Pets. Just like that game you get to put water for your dog, wash your pup, name him and all the basics of caring for your pet. She is 6yrs old and can't get enough so I imagine this would work for a child 3 to 8 years old. The song is catchy and she can't stop singing it. I had to give it 5 stars because she is sitting next to me screaming mom 5 stars!! I love it!! Ok so i guess nuff said. Very well worth the money. Thank you to everyone who placed reviews prior to X-mas because you guys were right!

Probably a great game but wrong cartridge was ordered to much to return

I love this game because it will grow with your child. My daughter is three and knows how to use the Leapster system well. It was introduced to her by an older friend who taught her how to use it when she was 2 1/2. The games that require the pen are great for younger children and as she gets older the games that require use of the arrows are a bit more complex and help with small motor skills. The great thing about these games are that there are many activities to choose from and she never gets bored playing with it. Her favorite activities at this age are: shopping, dress up and practicing tracing her numbers. Highly recommended game cartridge for this learning system!

This game is great for the beginning Leapster enthusiast but the faster your child learns the more rapidly this game is left on the shelf.

We gave this game to our 6-yr-old for the holidays, and she LOVES it! She wants to play it constantly, enjoying the fact that she can name her "pets" and take care of them herself. I don't think the game is much for a reading/math-type educational value, but from an independence/responsibility perspective, it seems to have made a real impression on her. We're very happy she is having fun with this game.

Kid love it

i bought my daughter this for xmas to go with the console that i got her. she is 4 years old and really enjoys this game. you chose and then look after your dog. you also learn letters etc. my daughter loves looking after her dog