A closer look
Your absolute favorite pandemic-era anxiety relief simulator actually started as a clunky, low-polygon debt-trap in the early 2000s. Known as Dobutsu no Mori, it was released at the very end of the N64's lifecycle and required a special cartridge with an internal battery just to track the real-time clock. It was so surprisingly addictive that they quickly ported it to the GameCube for western audiences, cursing millions to forever owe money to a raccoon.






