From what I can find, the Nintendo DS should be a revolution to the console gaming industry. I just saw a video for Super Mario 64 DS, and it was incredible. N64 Graphics on a handheld. I think they'll have a bit of trouble finding un-recycled games for it but their is more to it. Down the track I am hoping to get a second one and take it apart. From what I can find in its features list it includes:
Dual Screen's
Touch Screen Technology
Wireless Communication
Voice Recognition
Chat
Style Pen
Basic Operating System
I hope to be able to tinker around with it (hopefully try not to f*ck up the LCD) and see if I can add anything else onto it, but as it seems, it’s got everything!
From what I can tell, it's simply a topped up PDA with dual screens and a CPU that can run games. Why Sony or Microsoft hasn’t thought of this before is incredible. With-in the New Year people will be picking these up left and right. Hell I know I will be, to get Mario 64 DS and the hope that they release Zelda: Ocarina of Time and OoT: Master Quest (Damn that was a hard game).
Nintendo would find themselves in a better position to compete with the PSP if they had included analog control and a wider selection of launch titles. Bear in mind that the PSP also has support for a wide variety of multimedia via the removable memory cards and has better graphics and Nintendo's playing a dangerous game thinking they'll succeed solely because they've been top of the handhelds for 15 years now.
The PSP is selling in Japan for about $185 US. Usually their products sell for a cheaper price in the US. Does this mean the PSP will sell for $150 to counter the DS? I'd like to see that!
Neither system is worth buying until a larger library is available. I can wait.
meh, i really like the ds, but to be honest, hand held has never inspired me... i have bad eyesight (due to only having vision in one eye and ok vision in the other) so its diffficult to see the screen, and i have other more exciting things to do than playing hand held games... like roaming this forum in the desperate hope someone would make a new post after ive exhausted all the other threads...
Its a new game game altogther. Same graphics, it has a few of the stages, but you can control Mario, Luigi, Wario and Yoshi. Plus from the demo's I've seen it seems to be bigger then the 64 version.
From what I can tell this isn't the only launch game ... I've found Metriod as well somewhere, as long with Atari releasing 'Classic Games'. Damn it, I want Zelda!
Originally posted by Tempest Its a new game game altogther. Same graphics, it has a few of the stages, but you can control Mario, Luigi, Wario and Yoshi. Plus from the demo's I've seen it seems to be bigger then the 64 version.
From what I can tell this isn't the only launch game ... I've found Metriod as well somewhere, as long with Atari releasing 'Classic Games'. Damn it, I want Zelda!
Mario 64 DS is pretty much the same game, with the new characters and a couple of new levels. In the original, there were 120 stars to collect. In this one, there's 150. I would have been happier if they just made a whole new game based off this platform altogether. Oh well, it's still worth picking up.
If you want Zelda, have no fear! They're releasing The Minish Cap for Game Boy Advance in January, and as I recall you should be able to play that game on your DS. I've been waiting a long time for a sequel based off the 16 bit platform of A Link to the Past. That game's gonna rock!
I quite like the DS so far. The versatility offered by the touch pad is great... it provides analolg control in Mario DS (which works surprisingly well) and the stylus makes the minigames a lot more fun than they would be by eliminating the chore of moving cursors with a control pad or analog stick.
It's true, Mario 64 DS is basically the same game over again... then again, I'm fewer than 10 stars into it and I've already played a few cool levels that weren't in the original, and using Yoshi is a fun change. The camera is a little more diffcult to work due to the lack of physical buttons (on DS the controls appear on the touchpad) but it gets easier with time. Overal the feel of the game is not too alien to the original.
The Metroid Prime: Hunters demo was included as well... from it I can't say much about how the actual game will be, as the demo is pretty much walk-and-blast, but I can say that the touchpad allows much easier aiming than any analog stick. I suppose it cold be just me, but I wouldn't do so hot in Metroid Prime if it weren't for the lock-on feature, but it's not really a problem on DS.
For sliding on the touchpad, like in Mario 64 or Hunters, they included a carrying strap that you can cinch on your thumb, and which has a little plastic pad you can use for sliding, which essentially eliminates any thumb irritation or sweat, and makes the motion more precise. For more precise operations, you can use the stylus, which stores itself in the unit (and a spare one is included with the DS).
You don't have to worry about batteries, because it includes a built-in rechargeable battery, and all you do is plug it in, which I guess could be a disadvantage if it dies on an airplane or something, but all in all I like the change.
If anyone's wondering about backward compatibility, it can play Game Boy Advance games, but not earlier Game Boy or Game Boy Color games. It has a second slot for GBA carts (the DS games are very small and thin) which the manual says can also be used for "DS accessories" which have yet to appear.
Multiplayer is quite easy for DS titles: you just have to be in range of the other units, and some games allow play with one cart by allowing the other players to download the necessary data.
Each DS has a built-in Pictochat application, which lets you enter one of a half-dozen or so chat rooms that each can hold up to 16 people nearby with DSs, and you can then chat with either the onscreen stylus-operated keyboard or by writing or drawing a message. I can't see myself ever using it, honestly, even if anyone I know does buy a DS, but I imagine it would catch on more in Japan than here.
My biggest problem so far is that I don't really enjoy playing things on small screens that much (my Game Boy Player gets way more use than the GBA does) but this was just too cool of an idea to pass up. So far it seems to be selling very well (well beyond Nintendo's projections) which is good news for them, and good news for us if it lets them make some really great games for it.
Either of these games will sell the DS for me:
Star Craft- Using the stylus as a mouse would work great. Wireless multiplayer battles!
Doom II- 16 player deathmatch!!
I got a chance to play on Super Mario 64 DS on one and that being a 3D game requires precision which the D pad doesn't offer, what I'm saying is this console is definitely a filler, it's ill concieved, the touch screen isn't that great.
The PSP is better, because it can be used as a DVD player. But all such technology sucks unless you have somewhere to go on a long trip. Or a meaningless job where you do nothing, meh.
Actually PSP plays UMDs for some dumb reason Sony went with stupid small discs that cost too much who in their right mind would buy their favourite movies again for a handheld that may not last? Your better off getting a portable DVD player. Like Nintendo they too need to rethink their strategy, make fresh and original PSP games that aren't PS2 ports.
Originally posted by Lambda prime Actually PSP plays UMDs for some dumb reason Sony went with stupid small discs that cost too much who in their right mind would buy their favourite movies again for a handheld that may not last? Your better off getting a portable DVD player.
It's not about buying your favorite movies over again. Besides how can I watch a small disc at home anyways? The market in Japan would be perfect for the PSP. I'm not saying that it's dumb, but if you have a free copy of Spiderman 2 then why not use? Besides how often would you use a hand held DVD, player and for how many hours? I don't think every movie has been released under the new format anyway, so you would only have a handful of selected titles to choose from anyway, which is perfect for a road trip or commercial flight. Why would you need a whole library of movies just for a couple of hours?
A couple of hours is about right - the PSP's battery won't last beyond that anyhow....
As much as I love my DS, I'll be the first to admit that there is a stunning lack of titles at the moment - crappy dating games, puzzle games which should be budget titles, half-baked driving games & so on.. It's a shame that one the two best games thus far (I haven't played Rayman) is updated remake of an N64 game and the other game is an addictive, yet insanely short affair (Warioware). I know it's early days, but the DS is likely to suffer horribly if some decent first & 3rd party titles fail to show up in the coming months.. Advance Wars DS will be worth the wait, as will Mario Kart.... but will they turn up, then leave us to wait even longer for the next batch of titles to turn up?
That said - who's heard the rumour about Starcraft coming to the DS?
Oh - forgot about CV DS - complete with touchscreen spell casting & so on... I'm still in favour of Molyneux porting Black & White or a version of Black & White 2 to the DS - the touchscreen just screams "RTS ME!"
Originally posted by Ultimate Weapon The PSP is better, because it can be used as a DVD player. But all such technology sucks unless you have somewhere to go on a long trip. Or a meaningless job where you do nothing, meh.
Its got a host of problems. It randomly ejects discs, its easily scratched, they've had problems with the "square" button not working and don't have any way to fix it, the battery is almost totally useless, it uses a risky new technology for movies, its hella expensive, etc.
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