Nintendo - DS Console Review

The Nintendo Dual Screen (or DS) was the all the rage in busy 2004 holiday season. This new age device not only looks pretty sleek and well designed here but what really makes the DS a cool step forward in portable gaming is its unique second screen, its wireless multi-player support, Nintendo64-like 3D graphics engine (better then the older Gameboy Advance anyway), and who could forget the innovative touch screen features too? Nintendo already has a lot of third party support behind the unit so see why the sky is the limit for this tiny machine.

The Nintendo DS is about the same size as a Game Boy Advance but only cut in half so you can also open and close like the Game Boy SP in order to protect the 7 buttons (four action, three option), and stuff like that. Like the SP unit it also has a built in light so you can see the 2 LCD screens even in the dark and don't worry the battery life on the unit last 7 to 10 hours when fully charged with its packaged AC adapter.

That brings me to the unusual double screens here. Although it sounds like a pretty weird gimmick, the bottom screen isn't just for there for show. Nintendo utilized the bottom screen to have interactive options so players can either touch, draw, talk into, or even blow on it to play certain titles. Games like Yoshi's Touch & Go and Feel the Magic are excellent examples of how you can use the bottom screen to play various odd but unique mini games. You certainly couldn't do that on the old Gameboy's, eh?

The DS games themselves have to be some of the smallest games I have ever seen. The games are just slightly larger then a quarter believe it or not! They maybe small in size here but the games can still handle several polygons for 3D effects you could not find in older portable games from Nintendo. Games like Metroid Prime Hunters and Ride Racer DS are just some of the 3D games that help to show the power of the system. Sadly, these graphics may be an huge improvement from the Gameboy Advance games but compared to the games on the Playstation Portable the DS games look light years behind.

Can't find the right DS game yet? The system will also let you play all those 32-bit Gameboy Advance cartridges too. Although these games are not as powerful as the DS games of course, there are still several great can't miss games like Castlevania Aria of Sorrow, and Super Mario Bros. 3 just to name a few. To break it down you can find at least 300 GBA games alone to go with the DS library. Sadly, for some odd reason the DS doesn't recognize those hundreds of 8-bit Black and White or Color Gameboy games even though the Gameboy SP could.

The DS is a definitely a great system thanks in part to its decent price, interactive screens, and fair selection of Nintendo and third party titles so far with many more on the way. However, Nintendo should really design the games better so the controls are more user friendly. Using a tiny little cross pad for a 3Dgame just isn't right! The DS is still a very good buy for gamers who like their stuff portable.

Nintendo DS overall rating: 83/100

-StarSoldier1 2007
(Ryan Genno)