Which is sad, considering that I haven't even played the game for a full year yet. Haven't seen all the bugs and fish. But like I've said repeatedly, Nintendo did a lousy job of keeping the game relevant over time, resulting in a game far less compelling than the GameCube original (which, admittedly, generated more traction out of the sheer novelty of it all). Crappy holidays, meager WiFi capabilities, soul-crushing randomness, slow-to-no online community building.

So why do I still anticipate the Wii edition with the heat of a thousand suns, given no outstanding proof that Nintendo has learned anything from the experience? That's the fanboy in me.

The Toys R Us event did spark some return attention to Wild World, however. Although the Mario furniture giveaway arrived with little fanfare and almost no support, when it did get here, it was done well.

Get this: my sister grabbed some rare TRU items but was disappointed because she did not receive a monkey in the bargain... but a monkey did indeed arrive almost a week later, as soon as one of her existing villagers packed up for greener pastures. I take a small measure pride in knowing that Nintendo did not simply screw her over with monkey-lack; they just inserted a simian into the queue and set him to waiting.

Meanwhile, my second Nintendo monkey has already moved out.

There's a fireworks show every Saturday night in August. (To celebrate, Nintendo sent out lawn chairs over WiFi, a sad and fruitless goodwill gesture in the face of the awesome TRU giveaway.) Tortimer will be handing out sparklers and roman candles, and your top screen will glow with happy firework explosions. Feel free to invite someone to your town to watch... watch Tortimer and K.K. scurry back under the circuit board since all the animals disappear when guests show up. I'm considering moving that absurdity to the top of my Animal Crossing Demands list.

Anyway, I'm thinking of opening up my town way early this week and keeping it up way late. I won't personally be around, but the doors will be open for guests. If you're on my friend list, stop on by, help yourself to the free gifts littering the floor, leave a message on the town bulletin board, and check out my sweet Mario furniture pad.

I'll also have my webcam pointed at it, so you can see a blurry discolored live feed of the town gate. This may evolve into the regular way I run Open Gate Night... longer hours but more idling.