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Dog's Life ps2 Game Reviews
Dog's Life
Critic Score
Metascore: 64 Metascore out of 100
User Score  
9.6 out of 10
based on 19 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
based on 37 votes
Read user comments
Rate this game

Meet Jake, the loveable mutt on a mission: to rescue his dog-napped pal Daisy! The plucky pup embarks on an epic adventure which sees him journeying across the US, taking in the Mid-West countryside, scenic ski resorts, and even busy cities on his travels. Playing as the heroic hound, you'll get to do pretty much anything a real-life dog can do - including sniffing out food, playing fetch, chasing chickens, and marking your territory (yep, that's right, Jake can fart, pee and poo). As you explore the huge environments, you can choose whether to interact with other animals and humans, go on missions for treats, and even play as other dogs utilise their individual canine talents. [SCEE]

PUBLISHER: Sony Computer Entertainment Europe / Hip Games
DEVELOPER: Frontier Developments
GENRE(S): Action, Adventure, Simulation
PLAYERS: 1
ESRB RATING: E (Everyone)
RELEASE DATE: August 24, 2004

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

90
GameZone
We as gamers crave unique experiences and perspectives in our games and this one delivers. About the only people I can imagine not enjoying this game are die-hard cat people (Dog’s rule, by the way). Give this game a chance, you won’t regret it.
Read Full Review
85
Gamer's Hell
The most innovative game I have played in a while.
Read Full Review
85
Gamer.tv
Invest any time in Dog’s Life and you’ll soon notice you’ve invested more than you originally intended.
Read Full Review
75
GameBiz
The graphics are very crisp and look great and the soothing music suits the game perfectly. It’s evident that research has been put into the game to capture the movements of dogs correctly, and it really shows in the end.
Read Full Review
70
GameSpot
The game is simply designed and has a few annoying quirks, but it's got a genuine charm that helps to balance it out.
Read Full Review
70
Game Informer
There are few games I would sooner recommend to parents for their kids, and if those parents happen to be gamers, they might very well be sneaking down after bedtime to get their own fix. [Sept 2004, p.107]
Read Full Review
70
PSM Magazine
It's also eye-rollingly funny in a fart-pee kind of way. [Oct 2004, p.32]
70
Yahoo! Games
Though it suffers from control issues and won't be to everyone's taste, Dog's Life delivers on its promised subject matter.
Read Full Review
70
Gamestyle
As an experience, as well as a smartly-written and smartly-presented game, A Dog's Life is a great example of off-beat European software. Gamestyle greatly enjoyed being Jake for a while, and hopes that more imaginative titles will come around.
Read Full Review
70
The New York Times
Fun but forgettable. I was expecting something more: the feeling of complete and utter admironishment.
Read Full Review
70
IGN
This game keeps it clean and keeps it fun and is something that we can recommend for kids and not feel all weird about it. So go out and be a dog.
Read Full Review
65
eToychest
It won’t win any awards for the way it looks, plays or sounds. But, the devil really is in the details this time. A lot of work went into crafting a game that is considerably different in style than anything else on the market, even if the gameplay itself is stale.
Read Full Review
60
Cheat Code Central
There's always something to do in this game. The pace may not be frenetic and the challenges are relatively easy but they are well balanced making the gameplay appear random in a realistic way.
60
EuroGamer
The structure of each area is pleasingly freeform, allowing you to wander around and tackle the various tasks in the order of your choosing, and the standard of the visuals is well above par for what we expect from kids games.
Read Full Review
60
GameSpy
And if you've ever owned a dog, you're sure to get at least a laugh or two from the game's interpretation of how our four-legged friends view the world we live in.
Read Full Review
50
Edge Magazine
There are a lot of interesting ideas in here. Roaming in smellovision mode is the game's greatest tool for making you feel like you're piloting an animal. It makes exploring a dull path feel way more exciting than it should be. [Jan 2004, p.102]
44
Warcry
Whatever fun is had romping around as a carefree pooch is lost when the tedium sets in.
Read Full Review
42
Play Magazine
Though the doggie animation is realistic, the graphics are sub-first-gen quality, the first-person "Smellovision" view is misguided and the platforming always stays pretty basic. [Oct 2004, p.76]
40
Official U.S. Playstation Magazine
Soon enough, though, the novelty wears off, and you start to realize the incredible tedium involved because the entire game is a fetch quest - with the ultimate goal being to free some bitch (literally) that got picked up by the dogcatchers. [Sept 2004, p.89]

What Our Users Said

Vote Now! The average user rating for this game is 9.6 (out of 10) based on 37 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

hunni girl gave it a10:
I love this game! I especially love the guy sitting on the side of the rivers music!

Sophia F. gave it a10:
I think the game is fun and loads of children will engjoy this game because it is easy fun a the graphics are realy good! and I LUV THE GAME!

Pamela G. gave it a10:
It is really good at it feels like im in the game.

Stefan P. gave it a10:
Good game. i have buy it for 32 euro cool game bye bye stefan.

Loza furn gave it a10:
very adictive! love every moment of it and it keeps you busy.TOP MARKS!!!!

Angel G. gave it a10:
Cool game to realize how dogs feel.

Kevin V. gave it a10:
It has good graphics.

Read more user comments...

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