I actually bought the original DS because of Nintendogs. Not so I could play the game but the touch screen interactivity and voice recognition sold me on the feature set of what is now known as the DS fat. This latest 3D version of a much loved game will incontestably be a reason why a large portion of the DS gamer upgrade to a 3DS. The advanced graphics make the puppies even more adorable and added power of the 3DS mean that animations are incrementally smoother, controlled by a greater AI. The top screen displayed my puppy (sadly cats weren’t available in the demo) whose shadow appeared on the touch screen below. Using the stylus I could stroke or tickle the pup by moving over the shadow. A new feature is facial recognition that makes the dog track your face. After a while of holding the 3DS at a normal distance from my face, bringing it closer to about six inches caused my canine to jump up at the screen. When I moved my head from left to right, the dog copied me, occasionally lapping the air as if licking my face. Very cute. Toys like frisbees and boomerangs could be thrown for retrieval around the beautiful 3D living space in the game. Nintendogs + Cats looked like it had the best and most realised graphics of all the games and demos on offer and a one that will be a powerful system seller when the 3DS is finally released.