Treasure World Hands-On

There aren't too many games, if any, that use Wi-Fi in the same manner as Treasure World. The game picks up all the Wi-Fi signals in the area, which immediately unlocks new items for you. I had an opportunity to check it out at GDC this year, but over the past couple of weeks, I've been keeping a...

There aren't too many games, if any, that use Wi-Fi in the same manner as Treasure World. The game picks up all the Wi-Fi signals in the area, which immediately unlocks new items for you. I had an opportunity to check it out at GDC this year, but over the past couple of weeks, I've been keeping a preview copy of Treasure World with me whenever I head out, to see what kinds of goodies I can pick up. You'd be amazed at the number of wireless signals in your area, especially if you live in a big city.

If you haven't read up on Treasure World yet, it's a unique game that uses you (yes, you the human) to help Starsweep refuel his ship with stardust. With the help of the robot Wishfinder, you're responsible for searching around the cosmos for stardust--aka wandering around the traffic-congested streets of San Francisco. It's like playing a game in two different worlds, the virtual one as well as the real one. By simply turning on the game and looking through Wishfinder's treasurecope, I immediately picked up 10 new signals while sitting at my desk. I found another 100 between my office and the train station. Since I have a lengthy commute, by the time I made it home, I had picked up well over 300 new signals. This meant that I already had a solid inventory of items to play with, new gear to dress Wishfinder in, and enough stardust to reach Starsweep's first goal. He'll gradually increase the amount of stardust you need to find in order to continue.

The ultimate goal of Treasure World is to help Starsweep get back on his feet so that he can go back to cleaning the stars, but for those who like to collect items and play with them on the DS, Treasure World lets you do that. You can play dress-up with your Wishfinder or plant a lovely garden in the space provided. Each item that you can place on the ground comes with a sound, so you can even create your own musical masterpiece, or find blueprints to use as a guide. It's like an empty music staff for you to play with, except you're using plants, furniture, and lawn ornaments as the notes. From the hundreds of items that we've already picked up, there's a wide variety of stuff, ranging from chocolate eggs to ninja outfits to different species of cacti. Check out the trailer to get a better idea of how it's all laid out.


If you're really into collecting and like to have goals to shoot for, there are constellations, clusters, and galaxies you can complete by gathering the required items. This will unlock even more fun items to play with. It will take some time to pick up everything, but you don't have to do it alone. You can also trade with friends locally or online to complete your collection.

Treasure World is geared toward a younger audience who could probably use this game as a distraction when out in public with their parents. It's easy to keep it in your pocket with the clamshell closed, and it can still pick up Wi-Fi signals as long as you leave the game on. From what we've played, it's a cute and charming DS game with an original concept that would be a good fit for kids or anyone who loves to collect.

19 Comments

  • melisa06

    Posted Sep 15, 2009 8:14 pm PT

    Very nice man cool
    sesli sohbet
    sesli chat

  • ausgamer529

    Posted May 29, 2009 11:11 am PT

    so its sorta like a ds little big planet?

  • natron557

    Posted May 28, 2009 7:39 am PT

    the first DS game i can recall using the whole leave your game in suspend mode trick and bump into others in suspend mode was magical starsign. a really good and under played rpg released by brownie brown. You went into a room into the space ship and initiated the mode, it cut to a shot of ur ship flying through space and you closed your ds and went about your day. If you were lucky some one else was playing and you bumped into them and got a rare item, which i believe were eggs. I never got to bump into anyone though, since no ones hardly even heard of the game. This game should make this system work though since you dont need to bump into another ds, just any WiFi signal at all.

  • pandastew

    Posted May 25, 2009 11:26 pm PT

    the idea is not new. the world ends with you had this idea for collecting stuff. turn it on and keep ur ds closed and when they encounter other ds, they will respond and u get random stuff. and this game has been dub as the ds version of little big planet. which aims for collecting items and customizing ur character.

  • paulovesatan

    Posted May 25, 2009 6:20 am PT

    the whole wifi signal idea is pretty neat... and i live and work in dowtown baltimore, so i guess if i get this game ill be finding all sorts of interesting things. im going to wait to see some actual gameplay and read some reviews first, though.

  • Chet_Won

    Posted May 20, 2009 8:26 pm PT

    That just looks like burrito turds from chevys

  • arline6

    Posted May 19, 2009 8:15 pm PT

    I might buy it. Just want to know how much

  • crusadeonacid

    Posted May 16, 2009 6:59 pm PT

    This looks beautiful, original, fin, and perfect for on-the-go gaming! I certainly hope this turns out well in the end.

  • penquinsrule1

    Posted May 12, 2009 3:48 pm PT

    Sounds pretty cool, I might buy.

  • SkySight

    Posted May 12, 2009 3:04 pm PT

    How awesome. This sounds like something that everyone with a DS would be crazy to *not* own. I go places. Why not get rewarded for it? Plus, this will definitely encourage me to go to even more places I've never been before. And I can also make my own music with it? Love.

  • thps48

    Posted May 11, 2009 9:59 pm PT

    Perfect, I leave my DS on anyway when I need to keep Action Replay data in the system (invitation for disgruntled gaming prudes to bash other peoples choice of peripherals). Considering the locale I, and plenty others live, I'm wondering how and/or if I'll be able to complete levels successfully, but I guess I'll save later levels for a big trip to Corrisant (sp?).

  • CricketSox

    Posted May 11, 2009 10:44 am PT

    Sounds really cool and gives me an excuse to take my DS everywhere.

  • dom1000

    Posted May 10, 2009 1:00 pm PT

    Great game if you live in a city but if you live in a state like texas or a province like ile du prince edouard youre screw.

  • foreversai

    Posted May 10, 2009 6:55 am PT

    Seems like the main concept of this game is based on the little feature on The World Ends with You.

  • dooncan

    Posted May 9, 2009 11:46 am PT

    It looks a lot like Animal Crossing from the picture there.

  • Neo-Skyte

    Posted May 8, 2009 8:42 pm PT

    Sounds like a very interesting game. I can't wait to see more about this game

  • sirbargearse

    Posted May 8, 2009 6:03 am PT

    Interesting idea but these guys were not the first to do this. There was a German experiment that I read about that basically was the same concept but maybe not so well presented. Still... there is some potential here!

  • nicktarist

    Posted May 7, 2009 6:53 pm PT

    An interesting concept to say the least. I think it will definately be on my list of games to check out.

  • ScionofEntropy

    Posted May 7, 2009 10:24 am PT

    This seems kind of interesting, actually. Might be worth a look. I do a lot of walking anyway, and this might end up a good "guilty pleasure."

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