DS System Review

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BanjoPickles1
Posts: 1321
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby BanjoPickles1 » April 24th, 2011, 5:25 am

Here it is folks, the best system that Nintendo has ever done:

Am I crazy? You bet! How can a system that launched with a port of an eight year old game as its killer app and a touch screen mini game collection(Feel the Magic) possibly be considered, by anyone, the best thing that Nintendo has ever done? Well......

Yes, the system started off on every wrong foot possible. Easily in the top five worst designs for a handheld(play your DS-I and then go back to the Phat)! A pathetic launch lineup with sub par tech underneath its hood! Competition looming over the horizon.....with console-quality graphics?! Wait, hasn't Sony crushed Nintendo over the past nine years, in terms of hardware sales? Oh man, Nintendo is screwed!

Only, they weren't.

Things started looking Nintendo's way upon the release of Kirby: Canvas Curse, which was followed by Meteos, followed by Animal Crossing, Mario Kart, New Super Mario Bros, Mario and Luigi Partners In Time, and the list goes on....and on....and on!

I have spent a considerable amount of time with the DS, over the past six years and three models, and am somewhat sad that the era is over! For me, it was the first handheld that I treated like a console! Sure, it is always lumped into the pick-up-and-play category, but that is doing it quite the disservice. Here is a list of my top five "this is more than a pick-up-and-play system" games:

1). Dragon Quest IV: Sure, it is a remake of a two-decade old game, but it took me back to a simpler time in my life when the quests were linear, the characters were easy to follow, and there was always a cute slime to slaughter! I played much of this game grinning, and that is because this is the first 2D'ish rpg that I have loved since Suikoden 1! What does it remind me of? What I oftentimes wish Final Fantasy still was and that, my friends, is completely awesome! This remake ignited my love for the series, twenty-two years after playing the original! Now, I am plowing through the remake of V, which is turning out to be a superior game, so I can start on my copy of VI! Overall Grade: A

2). Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow: Sure, breaking blocks with a stylus makes about as much sense, and is about as fun, as drawing symbols around defeated bosses to put the finishing touches on them, but this game was still a winner. In my opinion, this was the game that the already-terrific GBA Castlevania titles could have been, if they had the added muscle of the DS! To me, this, along with the wonderful Aria of Sorrow, are the true follow ups to Symphony of the Night! Overall Grade: A-

3). Contra 4: After Hard Corps on the Genesis, in 1994, it was easy to disregard this series! Failed attempts at bringing this franchise into the 3rd dimension! Even when Konami tried going back to their roots, they failed miserably with titles such as Shattered Soldier! This, however, was the true follow up to the games that so many of us loved during the 8/16-bit eras! A sweat-soaked, balls-to-the-wall sequel that did everything Contra-perfect! The hand-drawn graphics were spot on, the challenge was through the roof, and it never felt like a tired retread! Contra was back! Throw in a robust list of challenges, along with a short history of the series, an interview with one of the creators, and both Contra and Super C as added bonuses, and you have the perfect Contra game! Overall Grade A+

4). The World Ends With You: This is a love-it-or-hate-it game. The characters are annoying, yes, but the gameplay is stellar! You play as a dead kid, Neku, who must navigate the shopping district of Shibuya in Tokya. I won't spoil the story, since it is engrossing. The mechanics are what truly stand out. When fighting an enemy, you have various methods of attacks in the form of pins. If you choose to attack with lighting, you simply tap the lighting pin and tap an enemy! If you choose to drop a boulder on that same enemy, tap the corresponding pin and draw a circle around it! If you just want to slash the hell out of it, tap the sword pin and make slashing motions through the enemy! Once you have a few custom pins, it becomes an all-consuming game and one of the best for the system! Overall Grade A

5). Trauma Center: This could almost be classified as a pick-up-and-play, but it's very engrossing! As a young doctor, you are tasked with performing surgery on patients, against both a time limit and the patient's ever-dropping vitals! It's strange how much of an arcade feel this title has! I have to dock it points, though, for the insanely hard Guilt acts when you have to eliminate a disease that multiplies by both pulling pins out of triangles and cutting out, all while keeping the patient's vitals up! Very fun, but very frustrating in spots! Overall Grade B+

Those are five of my favorite games for the system, and they are relatively well known. It's hard picking five, with titles like Retro Game Challenge, Final Fantasy IV remake, the Phoenix Wright series, GTA: Chinatown Wars, Brain Age/Big Brain Academy, Wario Ware: Touched, Radiant Historia, Ghost Trick, Metroid Prime Hunters, Metroid Prime Pinball, Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword, Metal Slug 7, Hotel Dusk, Elite Beat Agents, Big Bang Mini, Yoshi Touch and Go, Kirby Superstar Ultra, Tetris DS, LoZ: Phantom Hourglass/Spirit Tracks, etc.

So, why would I rate the DS above every other piece of hardware that Nintendo has ever done? To me, it's the first time where different approaches to input met toe-to-toe. With the nes, you had a zapper that was barely used. With the snes, you had an under-utilized mouse, an even less-utilized light gun(super scope 6), and it all began and ended with the controller itself. With the DS, some of the best games relied heavily on the stylus, and some relied heavily on a more traditional approach. Both offered their share of brilliant gaming moments, and that's what truly matters.

The DS is where today's Nintendo began. Their modern-day successes can be attributed to the hideous-looking handheld that not only could, but did!


Alienblue

DS System Review

Postby Alienblue » April 24th, 2011, 12:11 pm

I agree completely,well almost.

The DS is my favorite "mordern" system, post 16 bit that is.

Some of my all time favorite games are DS including

ZOOKEEPER, TETRIS DS, NEW SUPER MARIO, ATARI HITS one and two, GEOMETRY WARS, PLANET PUZZLE LEAUGE, METROID PINBALL........... plus it plays GBA games in sweet high res, I keep ACTIVISION ANTHOLOGY in it all the time.

What makes it so important to me is my illness keeps me from enjoying home console games as much anymore, so the DS is my main system. Right now I play MAJOR HAVOC and ASTEROIDS DELUXE every day on it. The Ds era will also be important to me. I never got a Wii,Ps3 or Xbox 360, so 'this" era was strictly DS all the way.


Oltobaz1
Posts: 1605
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby Oltobaz1 » April 24th, 2011, 2:42 pm

Very good review.

N64Dude1
Posts: 1242
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby N64Dude1 » April 24th, 2011, 7:29 pm

Nah it' s all about Super Mario 64,Yoshi's Island DS,Super Scribblenauts,Pokemon HeartGold,and Advance Warsays of Ruin.

Definitely the best of the generation thanks to games like these.

BanjoPickles1
Posts: 1321
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby BanjoPickles1 » April 24th, 2011, 7:37 pm

That's exactly it, though! The games you mentioned are terrific, and extraordinarily varied! Actually, there are many games that I left out, by mistake:

-999
-Nostalgia
-Nintendogs
-Dragon Quest Monsters series
-Mario and Luigi(PiT, Bowser's Inside Story)
-Starfox Command
-The Advance Wars series
-Fire Emblem
-Super Princess Peach
-Warioware Touched/DIY
-Devil Summoner
-Geometry Wars Galaxies
-Mario and Luigi
-Donkey Kong: King of Swing
 
To me, the system became great once developers stopped treating it like a portable N64(no offense, N64) and more like a purist gaming device!

ActRaiser1
Posts: 2726
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby ActRaiser1 » May 16th, 2011, 2:15 pm

I'd nominate this (or portions of it) if it makes it easier. 

Good review. Nice job.


Josh

DS System Review

Postby Josh » May 16th, 2011, 3:41 pm

Yeah, these were really good. The DS is my favorite too. The only problem I have had is broken hinges. But I have to chalk that up to my son who drops it all the time. I'm going to have to get one for myself me thinks.



feilong801
Posts: 2173
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby feilong801 » May 17th, 2011, 3:04 pm

also would nominate.

Leo1
Posts: 2325
Joined: December 31st, 1969, 7:00 pm

DS System Review

Postby Leo1 » May 17th, 2011, 5:54 pm

I thought the Game Boy Advance ran circles around the DS. That is by far my favorite Nintendo handheld and is second only to the Super Nintendo for my favorite Nintendo system.



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