I've heard lots of people say it's harder to get in vet school than medical school! But, despite this, there's always lots of people who's dream it is to work with and help animals in need. Pet Pals: New Leash on Life is finally here, and if you're an aspiring vet or just an animal lover, it's definitely worth the wait. You get to see the pets in your treatment center go from ill and abandoned, to trained and loved in new adoptive homes, so there's even a happy ending.
To start, you can choose from three different difficulty levels. I found it best to start on easy, since this mode lets you use unlimited hints and explains all the different tools as you play. Hard mode is definitely tougher, which is great when you've played multiple times and want a challenge.
What really excited me about Pet Pals: new Leash on Life was the realism. Real (and experienced) veterinarians designed the cases, and this is definitely communicated in the game play, so it's not sugar coated. Just like is sadly true in real life, you'll see many animals come into the rescue center which have been neglected and left homeless. Many are very sick, and contagious too. You need to keep new animals away from healthy ones so that the illnesses don't spread, so the first order of business is to send new entries to the quarantine area.
Once admitted, you need to treat animals, like in all the Pet Pals games. This is where it gets exciting for anyone who has ever considered becoming a veterinarian. The Q&A section comes first, where you ask the vet technician questions about the animals history. It's important to ask the questions that will yield the relevant medical information for diagnosis.You can use a variety of tools to help examine and monitor your patient, and make sure you have the right diagnosis before you start to treat them.
After you've gotten some background information and have a firm diagnosis, you actually start to treat the condition with the Maintain, Operate and Medicate commands. Then the head vet will give you a good or bad review, depending on how well it all went.
Once an animal is completely cured, s/he moves into the community rooms (separated by animal type), where you can use the Socialization, Training and Maintenance commands socialize, train and care for them to prepare them for the outside world. This part of the game is probably the one that sets this version of Pet Pals apart from the rest.
During this “enrichment” phase of the game, you are able to interact with the animals in real time 3D.
Once these three areas are completely filled, the patient has been enriched enough, he/she is the animal is ready for adoption into a loving home. I have to confess, I love that they added this, since it's pretty satisfying to see a formerly sick and homeless animal getting a happy ending.
It's very cool to have the opportunity to work with animals beyond cats and dogs, like iguanas and chinchillas. The graphics are really beautiful, and lifelike. The environments are really immersive too, so it's very easy to get addicted. It's very hard to put the game down once you've started treating a new patient, since you want to see them get better and trained and adopted.
There is a learning curve, so it's not the sort of game you should expect to master straight away. Part of the fun is developing your skills and learning how to become a better vet. If you planned on getting it for a young child or children, you will probably need to sit with them and assist while they play. It's fine for older kids and young teens though, and of course adults too.
As far as pet simulations go, this is by far one of my favorites. None of the other veterinarian games I've played (like Pet Vet) have the same depth as the Pet Pals series, and you walk away really feeling like you've learned something.
-Lisa
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