We all know “a dog ate my homework,” but who amongst us has ever heard “my virtual dog refused to follow directions”? The crowd of SGDQ is now familiar with the idea, as an early morning Nintendogs speedrun went south due to sudden virtual disobedience.
Runner ZooKetra was doing well in his “All Beginner Contest Golds” run – which, as the name implies, is about getting 1st in the entry-level contests as quickly as possible – with his chosen lab Korone (named for popular Japanese Vtuber Inugami Korone), shaving seconds off with tricks like yanking the leash to make the dog go faster on walks or repeating names and commands with as monotone and similar a voice as possible. But trouble came when it came time for the agility course, as while Korone was able to make his first jump just fine, he got stuck in the tunnel – which almost never happens – forcing a reset. And he did it a second time!
Some have criticized the poor pup harshly, such as this Kotaku piece that declares him “the worst Nintendog ever,” as if he hadn’t just been throttled by his neck on a walk and told to vie for a medal a mere ten minutes after being adopted by a new owner. Puppies need time, ok? And ZooKetra ended up with a time of 16:56, which is quite good and far below the estimation of 25 minutes, so why the hate? Besides, that’s what we get for naming the dog after a notably capricious and wild personality. The little black virtual Korone is likely deleted now, preserved only in VOD form. Let us venerate his parting with an apt quote from his namesake:
Written by Amelia Fruzzetti
A writer and Nintendo fan based in Seattle, Washington. When not working for NinWire, she can be found eating pasta, writing stories, and wondering about when Mother 3 is finally going to get an official localization.
