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In this article, Rylie revercomb talks about a fan favorite game that's making an unexpected comeback next year.
tomodachi Life
tomodachi Life
By Rylie Revercomb
By Rylie Revercomb
Imagine it’s 2013, deep in a good era for the Nintendo franchise. The release of the Nintendo DS in 2005 had taken the world by storm, and it was followed by the release of its updated consoles-- The 2DS, 3DS, and 3DSXL. They were small and compactible, perfect for road trips or bringing to school. Not only that, but they also featured touchscreen mechanics, and played just as well as modern game consoles at the time. Nintendo had struck a gold mine with this console, and its influence stretches into the present time. This isn’t just because of the easily portable and well-loved console but also because of the games it offered– games that aren’t accessible on any other Nintendo console. Tomodachi Life is one of those games, and it has been a fan favorite for years. Every year, when Nintendo announces new consoles or games, fans eagerly wait to hear about the announcement of a possible Tomodachi Life 2. Finally, after twelve years of waiting, Nintendo has made dreams come true. But… why is Tomodachi Life so popular? What made the game a fan favorite? Why is Nintendo only JUST NOW revisiting this game? Buckle up, partner, and soon you will see why people still get excited over this game a decade later.
Nintendo is a company known worldwide, mainly for its recognizable brand character– Mario– the red plumber everyone knows and loves. While Nintendo may have started off as a trading card company, they now produce a variety of video games that are known and loved around the world. One of these games is Tomodachi Life. While many of Nintendo’s games include boss fights, battles, dangerous obstacles, and storylines, Tomodachi Life is different for everyone who plays it. In this game, players create their own Miis, let them live life, and watch over them. While players can help their Miis with problems or subtly influence their choices, the game ultimately randomly chooses what happens next. Players could put the exact same characters on their island and their friend’s island, and have relationships and friendships turn out differently. That is one of the reasons why Tomodachi Life is so popular— each play-through is different. Cozy Shiro, a retro game review blog, (yikes, retro hurts,) says that Tomodachi Life is so popular because, “Compared to The Sims, Animal Crossing, and even Harvest Moon… Tomodachi Life takes on a more laid-back, humorous and surreal approach to everyday life, as it spices up the mundane and hits you with rather strange situations. It thrives on spontaneity and randomness.” Having gameplay be completely random is what makes this game so memorable, because it is more relatable to real life.
However, while Tomodachi Life might look all cute and normal— what with the customizable Miis, adoptable pets, clothing designs, silly News reports, and songs— it also has some more goofy moments. When characters have fights, they toss objects at each other and burst into flames. When characters confess their love for each other, they pop out of closets and say weird things. There are also moments where one Mii will say they got a mysterious letter asking to meet them at the rooftop. When they get up there, there’s a guy in a terrible disguise, who has the most bland and weirdest comment. Miis also have strange dreams that the players get to see and even interact with. These odd moments are what makes the game so enjoyable— while Tomodachi Life is relatable at times, it is still a creative Nintendo game that players can just tell the developers and game designers actually had fun making.
Speaking of gameplay mechanics, what can the player do in-game? Just watch all these funny moments play out? Nope. While the Miis prompt you with questions, wants, and needs, it is the player who decides what they get. And the Miis do not get any say in it. The Mii based off of your brother wants a baseball uniform? Sucks to suck. He’s getting a princess dress. After Miis level up, the player can choose to give them a gift— give your Uncle Mii some makeup. Blush would really bring out his features. Uh oh, are your Mom and Dad divorced in real life? Just get ‘em back together in Tomodachi Life! But all jokes aside, the game does have cool features. One of these features that was revolutionary for both the 3DS and the game is the inclusion of Streetpass. The official Tomodachi Life handbook on Nintendo explains what Streetpass is and how to use it: “Mii characters, nicknames, and messages you send to other islands via travelers over Streetpass can be seen by other players. You can also connect with other players using Streetpass.” This is one of the first times that Nintendo implemented a system that allowed players to share items with friends, play with them on separate devices, and even send characters back and forth. It is one of the reasons Tomodachi Life was so loved, and the DS consoles were so successful.
This brings this article back to the original question… If Tomodachi Life was, and still is, so loved— why haven’t we gotten a sequel until just now? Well, Nintendo has not given any official announcement on WHY the release date for the second game was pushed back by a decade. However, it is likely because they were too focused on other projects and original ideas, not wanting to just rip off old characters and projects, (COUGH, COUGH— DISNEY—), and instead continue to make creative and original ideas. While the release of Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream in 2026 is definitely a bit late, it is sometimes nice to have such a longer period of wait time. It makes the reward all that sweeter. So, keep an eye out for the sequel to Nintendo’s fan-favorite game and, in the meantime, have some fun with the Miis you have long forgotten about. Until 2026!
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