DSi in review

Well I took the plunge and got a DSi with my ill-gotten gift cards. So far I am really enjoying it. As of now I'm playing through Zelda: The Phantom Hourglass and Advance Wars: Dual Strike. I really like how Zelda takes advantage of what the hardware can do with features like the boomerang (Whoever said this feature alone made the game worth its price was right) and blowing out candles by using the mic.

I thought about getting the Dark Spire, but I think I want to play some more DSi-centric games that take full advantage of the platform before I go old-school. My next purchase will likely be GTA: Chinatown Wars.

-Will

ubarose wrote:

Any one know if there is any "drawing" app for the DSlite. The Spawn discovered the photo editing on my DSi and is now hogging it. I know she just likes that she can use it to draw. If I can find a drawing app for her DSLite, I think I maybe able to reclaim my DSi.

I just stick the kids in PICTOCHAT. They draw, hit "send" and it goes up top. Keeps 'em occupied.

If they're older than my kids and need more game, maybe track down DRAWN TO LIFE ?

If the boomerang impressed you, definitely get KIRBY'S CANVAS CURSE. I think RHYTHM HEAVEN shows off the touch screen pretty well, and in some pretty innovative ways.

The microphone is a neat gimmick...THE WORLD ENDS WITH YOU has you blowing and yelling into it to active attacks. You've got to holler "taxi" in CHINATOWN WARS to catch a cab. It'll be interesting to see what developers use those cameras for.

THE DARK SPIRE definitely doesn't leverage the touch screen, microphones, etc. but I still think it's a uniquely DS experience. Since it's so compact and the style is so well done, it doesn't come across like WIZARDRY or any other PC/console based RPG. Since it's slow-paced anyway, playing it in small bites is pretty easy to do. i think you'll find that RPGs are _much_ more fun on the system- last night I needed to level up in FFIV (fucking Dark Elf) so I set my folks up with some commands and let them autobattle. So for about an hour, I watched TOP GUN while moving around and hitting random battles. EvEvery now and then, I had to stop and administer

You know what's another good one we haven't mentioned? SPACE INVADERS EXTREME. If you like high score attack style games, buy now. It's cheap. It adds a couple of simple mechanics to the classic SPACE INVADERS game that make it astonishingly deep and tactical.

KNIGHTS IN THE NIGHTMARE looks _awesome_, BTW...kind of a hybrid shmup/SRPG.

The microphone is a neat gimmick...THE WORLD ENDS WITH YOU has you blowing and yelling into it to active attacks. You've got to holler "taxi" in CHINATOWN WARS to catch a cab. It'll be interesting to see what developers use those cameras for.

Funny you should mention that. One of the Wario games I was looking at used pictures as part of the game. Something about the camera tracks your movements so you can ride some rollercoasters. I don't know if its any good but it might be a sign of how developers will use the cameras in future games.

-Will

Reviews are saying that it (SNAPPED) doesn't work very well. Supposedly it's a good concept, it's probably just reaching a little too far at this early stage in the console's development curve.

I only downloaded one of the DSiWare games (AQUIA). The others look terrible. DR. MARIO might be alright, but dang, I haven't played that since the NES days.

MIGHTY FLIP CHAMPS looks like it's going to be the first must-have DSiWare game.

Michael Barnes wrote:

You know what's another good one we haven't mentioned? SPACE INVADERS EXTREME. If you like high score attack style games, buy now. It's cheap. It adds a couple of simple mechanics to the classic SPACE INVADERS game that make it astonishingly deep and tactical.

KNIGHTS IN THE NIGHTMARE looks _awesome_, BTW...kind of a hybrid shmup/SRPG.

Someone mentioned SPACE INVADERS: MOUNTAIN DEW EDITION up there somewhere. I have METEOS, so this is kind of crazy-space-graphics overkill for me. My co-worker and total video game otaku friend Todd really likes SI:EXTREME though.

KNIGHTS INT HE NIGHTMARE is probably my next purchase for the DS, or I'll end up getting that HENRY HATSWORTH game because I am a whore.

jeb wrote:

Michael Barnes wrote:

You know what's another good one we haven't mentioned? SPACE INVADERS EXTREME. If you like high score attack style games, buy now. It's cheap. It adds a couple of simple mechanics to the classic SPACE INVADERS game that make it astonishingly deep and tactical.

KNIGHTS IN THE NIGHTMARE looks _awesome_, BTW...kind of a hybrid shmup/SRPG.

Someone mentioned SPACE INVADERS: MOUNTAIN DEW EDITION up there somewhere. I have METEOS, so this is kind of crazy-space-graphics overkill for me. My co-worker and total video game otaku friend Todd really likes SI:EXTREME though.

KNIGHTS INT HE NIGHTMARE is probably my next purchase for the DS, or I'll end up getting that HENRY HATSWORTH game because I am a whore.

Yeah, Knights in the Nightmare looks good. So does Devil Survivor.

Not a big platformer fan, and not a huge puzzle drop fan unless you can play head to head, but I thought Hatsworth was ok. The first few worlds are pretty pointless because they are so easy, but the challenge does ramp up towards the end. It's funny, but I think I would like it better if it was put out by some small-budget company, rather than being put out by EA and having the quirky offbeat theme. Feels a bit artificial.

Probably 75-80% of the way through the new Suikoden game, and I just can't recommend it. The story is alright, but the difficulty is so low you can pretty much just hit A to attack all the way through and never worry. Disappointing.

I felt EXACTLY the same way about HATSWORTH. It very much feels like a big gigantic megacorporation trying to "get hip" with the kids. It's like they really tried to go for an indie feel (I think they even say that in the ad copy) but it kind of feels like when Mr. Burns dressed up like Jimbo.

It's not a bad game...but my goodwill toward it kind of wore out pretty early on when I realized that the concept does not work. Platformers and puzzle games alike rely on a certain sense of flow and pace, and breaking up either one with something totaly different is jarring and awkward.

But it does have great music, funny characters, and a charming presentation and there is fun to be had with it.

Sadly, it went away in the DSi trade-up.

I just saw this game: Rittai Picross ( ). Basically it's 3D Picross, and it looks great. Right now it's only out in Japan, but it seems to be pretty straightforward, so importing shouldn't be an issue... I'm not sure whether this will make it out of Japan...

Picross is also known as Paint by Numbers and Nonograms.

Yeagh, don't show me that! I just got PICROSS against my better judgment. Gamestop was having a buy 2 used, get one free sale and I figured I'd give it a shot for free. Out of the three games (the others were LUNAR KNIGHTS and CONTRA 4), PICROSS is the winner. I thought I'd hate it. I also thought it was more a of sudoku, number puzzle kind of thing. It's not, it's more of a deduction/logic thing. It's genius, and I'm really enjoying it so far. The 3D one...may have to import that...

I'd like to , briefly, jack this thread in order to exend my heartfelt gratitude towards Micheal Barnes for clueing me into the existance of The Dark Spire.

I flipped open my DS Lite and it was 1983, Dungeons & Dragons had a cartoon on Saturday mornings, and my friend Kenny just intoduced me to text based RPG games on the computer.

The Dark Spire is awesome. None of this hand holding shit-- you learn the old fashioned way: BY DYING!

(GASP!)

Rememeber kids: save early, save often!

I could go on forever, but I'll cut it short. Thanks Mike.

Yeah, I've just messed around with it, haven't gone full-force into it yet (still grinding through FFIV). But what I've seen has been great, great stuff if you like the old style PC RPGs. They totally nailed that weird feeling of esotericism that a lot of those early games had because you weren't clued in on everything in the world via the internet. And it's damn hard. You're going to die a bunch, just like in the old days. I really like that it has a free-form element- there's no guidance at all other than "go in the dungeon". You can take whatever characters you want, go whereever you want, even learn dancing and sewing (not sure why yet).

The ETRIAN ODYSSEY games are definitely cut from the same cloth, but they're Japanese style- anime characters and whatnot.

Michael Barnes wrote:

Yeagh, don't show me that! I just got PICROSS against my better judgment. Gamestop was having a buy 2 used, get one free sale and I figured I'd give it a shot for free. Out of the three games (the others were LUNAR KNIGHTS and CONTRA 4), PICROSS is the winner. I thought I'd hate it. I also thought it was more a of sudoku, number puzzle kind of thing. It's not, it's more of a deduction/logic thing. It's genius, and I'm really enjoying it so far. The 3D one...may have to import that...

How're Lunar Knights and Contra 4? Those are two I always wanted to pick up and never got around to.

It seems to me like you are ignoring your own advice on video games with your "play what you have" rants.