Clubhouse Games

	Developer: Nintendo	Publisher: Nintendo
	Release Date: October 10, 2006	Also On: None

The Nintendo DS aimed to reach a new type of gamer. With Clubhouse Games, Nintendo is actually able to reach an entirely new type of gamer altogether, at least to them: card players. The casual set of games that have made the Nintendo DS such a popular system come to a head in this compilation of some of the greatest card and parlor games of all time. From childhood favorites like Memory and Old Maid, to adult gambling such as Five Card Draw, Texas Hold Em and Blackjack, Clubhouse Games has something for everyone.

The single-player game allows for three different modes to choose from: Free Play, Stamp Mode and Mission Mode. Free Play allows you to choose among the games that are unlocked. You can change the difficulty of the CPU and the rules of the various games. Stamp Mode is I guess what you would call a story mode in other games, except there's no story. In Stamp Mode you plays games in a certain order, receiving stamps based on how well you perform. First place earns you three stamps, second two and third or lower earns you one. You need three to move on to the next game. Unlock games to play in Free Play by beating games in Stamp Mode.

In total, there are forty-two games to choose from. These are divided into different groups: Basic, Intermediate and Advanced Card games; Basic and Advanced Board Games; Variety Games, Action Games and Single-Player Games. Among the games that I haven't mentioned are Connect 5, Chinese Checkers, Chess, a Battleship clone, Dominoes, Darts, Takeover, Bowling and Solitaire. Each have a varying degree of entertainment value, difficulty and rules that may buck tradition.

There are some things that I dislike about the game. The checkers game included in Clubhouse Games requires you to take a piece when one is available. For strategic reasons, this can be bad and leave you more vulnerable. The card games, including Texas Hold Em and Five Card Draw, only have you play five hands. The person with the most chips at the end of the five hands wins. Obviously it would be more fun to play until your chips ran out. Finally, a few of the games just should not have been included. While I got a good laugh at their shake the bottle game, it was stupid. The billiards game 9 ball is included, but there really aren't ball physics and amazingly there are only four pockets.

I have to say that while you are sure to be fully entertained with the single-player offering, Clubhouse Games really shines in its multi-player design. Nintendo went all-out for this. Not only is there local area single cart download play, there is also online play through Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Granted, not all of the games are available, but the most popular are. Nintendo took advantage of Picto-Chat as a built-in chat features is included in the game. You can even view a leaderboard with all of the scores for each game.

Nintendo hit this game right on the money. It is highly entertaining both online and offline. You should be satisfied whether you play alone, with a friend or a stranger online. The casual market is the biggest growing trend within the games industry. With games like chess, poker, and solitaire, Nintendo could not have picked a better assortment of games that the majority of people like to play. Afterall, it is these games that are found on most computers and played by most people around the world.

Graphics:	7
Sound:	6
Gameplay:	9
Creativity:	8
Replay Value/Game Length:	9.5
Final:	8.3
Written by Kyle	Review Guide

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