My Baby Girl (Nintendo DS)

The game's depiction of infant care is surprisingly accurate. Players must learn specific ways of performing various tasks and pay close attention their virtual child's behavior in order to discern what she wants. When feeding, for example, you'll need to learn the correct angle at which to hold the bottle to ensure she is getting just the right amount of formula. Hold it too high and she'll take too much and spit up on her bib; hold it too low and she'll begin crying because she's not getting enough. You'll also have to figure out the proper way to change a diaper, including how to hold up the baby's legs, attach diaper tabs, and the proper direction in which to wipe to clean the mess (tip: don't go up). Indeed, kids wanting to practice babysitting and expectant parents can learn a thing or two about child care, not only from the game's challenges but also its virtual pediatrician and nurse, who provide guidance and information on baby development milestones.

In fact, the only real problem with My Baby Girl is figuring out who might want to play it. Outwardly, it looks like a game for young girls, but its unexpected complexity and lengthy text instructions will make many kids lose patience. And children old enough to fully understand the challenges and goals might be too old to have any interest in playing with what, in the end, is essentially a highly interactive virtual doll. In the end, it might be best appreciated by babysitters-in-training or parents-to-be; a decidedly niche group of DS owners. It's a good little game that, unfortunately, may never find much of an audience.