100 Classic Book Collection

100 Classic Book Collection
Developer(s) Genius Sonority
Publisher(s) Nintendo
HarperCollins
Platform(s) Nintendo DS
Release date(s)
Genre(s) Educational

100 Classic Book Collection, known in North America as 100 Classic Books, is a computer program published by Nintendo and developed by Genius Sonority, which was released exclusively for the Nintendo DS. First released in Europe on December 26, 2008,[1] it was later released in Australia on January 22, 2009[2] and in North America on June 14, 2010. The program includes one hundred public domain works of literature.

Genius Sonority had previously released a similar collection of books in Japan under the title DS Bungaku Zenshuu (ＤＳ文学全集) on October 17, 2007.[4][5] A smaller version of the collection consisting of 20 books under the title Chotto DS Bungaku Zenshu: Sekai no Bungaku 20 (ちょっとDS文学全集 世界の文学20) was released in Japan as a downloadable DSiWare application on February 25, 2009.[6][7]

Features

100 Classic Book Collection features one hundred books stored into the DS cartridge. Several of the works included are Othello by William Shakespeare, Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens, and The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. Additional free books were available to download via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection until the discontinuation of the service on May 20, 2014.[8][9]

The player is required to hold the DS like a book and is able to adjust the text size and change background music to listen to while reading.[8] A bookmark feature allows the player to mark their place in the book, as well as resume from that point on restart of the game. The game offers a search feature for books in a number of different ways, including genre, author, and length. Also, players can access introductions for the books, and read about the authors themselves.[8] An in-game quiz features asks players personality-related questions and recommends certain novels depending on the answers given. Players can also send "trial versions" of the game to other DS users via the local Wi-Fi.[8]

List of books included

100 Classic Book Collection - UK Version

100 Classic Books - USA Version

List of additional downloadable books

100 Classic Book Collection - Europe Version

100 Classic Book Collection - US Version

100 Livres Classiques - French Version

Reception

100 Classic Book Collection debuted on UK sales charts at number 17 during its week of release, and moved up to number 8 the following week.[1][10]

The content was well received but critics felt the DS was not a suitable platform. Prior to the advent of Kindle, The Guardian newspaper reviewed the game as part of the "minority fad" of e-readers, declaring it bland and impersonal but good value for money.[11] Eurogamer magazine criticised Nintendo for only using texts that were out of copyright and for not spending the extra for modern classics. It also found the text difficult to read due to the size of the screen, with unhelpful hyphenations, a low word number per page and distracting animations.[12] The Telegraph newspaper agreed that the game offered good value for money but also criticised the size of the screen.[13]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Jenkins, David (January 6, 2009). "UK Charts: Wii Play Is 2009's First Chart Topper". Gamasutra.co. Retrieved 2009-08-08.
  2. 1 2 Kozanecki, James (January 19, 2009). "AU Shippin' Out January 19–23: Skate 2". GameSpot.com. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  3. ↑ Cabral, Matt (February 24, 2010). "DSi XL Hits North America Next Month For $190". Kotaku.com. Retrieved 2010-02-24.
  4. ↑ Spencer (October 27, 2007). "Siliconera " Books on your DS? Hands on DS Bungaku Zenshuu". Siliconera.com. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  5. ↑ ＤＳ文学全集. Nintendo.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  6. ↑ Spencer (February 20, 2009). "Here Is Your Nintendo DSiWare Line Up For February". Siliconera.com. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  7. ↑ "ちょっとDS文学全集 世界の文学20". Nintendo.co.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  8. 1 2 3 4 Riley, Adam (December 28, 2008). "100 Classic Book Collection (DS Novel) at C3 Reviews". Cubed3.com. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  9. ↑ "Titles with additional downloadable content". Nintendo. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
  10. ↑ Jenkins, David (January 13, 2009). "UK Charts: Wii Fit Sprints Back To Number One". Gamasutra.com. Retrieved 2009-08-09.
  11. ↑ Anderiesz, Mike (January 6, 2009). "Guardian review". The Guardian (London).
  12. ↑ Gibson, Ellie (February 9, 2009). "Eurogamer review".
  13. ↑ Hoggins, Tom (January 6, 2009). "Telegraph review". The Daily Telegraph (London).

External links

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