Its Japanese release followed on Dec. 2 of the same year, while it didn't arrive on Australian or European shores until Feb. 24 and March 11 of 2005, respectively.
What can I say? Aside from its dual-screened design, I wasn't all that impressed with the system or its initial selection of games following its early-2004 reveal.
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| A stack of some of my favorite Japanese DS games. |
In fact, I waited until sometime in 2006, after the DS Lite had been on the market for a couple of months, to join the fray. (I believe I did so because I was about to travel and I wanted to play Animal Crossing: Wild World while I was on the road, but don't quote me on that.)
Once I experienced a handful of the DS' most noteworthy games, though, I fell head over heels in love with it--and those feelings have only grown stronger in subsequent years. (In fact, I'm just about to splurge on a rather large assortment of Japanese DS games.)
Do any of you also consider yourselves to be DS fanpersons? If so, please share some of your most cherished memories of this unique system in the comments section below.
(Note: this isn't the extent of my "decade of DS" coverage. Look for another post related to the system's anniversary on Monday--and for additional posts to follow early next year.)
39 comments:
I bought the DS at its North American launch, along with copies of Sprung and Mario 64 DS. I failed to complete either game, but I really liked the system and its ability to play my GBA library.
It's thanks to that GBA slot that I'll be able to import Pokemon I caught about ten years ago in the original Ruby/Sapphire into my shiny new copy of Pokemon Omega Sapphire for 3DS.
That's great, Terry :) Which color of "phat" DS did you buy? Or was there only one color available back then? I can't remember :|
I got my DS for Christmas, I believe. Robb's good like that. He even bought the white one, like I wanted. I played the shit out of that thing. Strangely, I never played Animal Crossing for the DS. I loved the original, and I've played every other iteration, but...that one...I just...I don't know...skipped. I think it came out during a time in my life that I was pretty poor.
So, this was the original "phat" DS that you got, right, Justin? Or was your first DS system the DS Lite (as in my case)?
BTW, don't feel bad about not playing Wild World. Although I bought it alongside my DS Lite, I've barely played it. It just didn't do it for me, to be honest--the graphics were really degraded, the frame rate was terrible, etc.
So, I mostly played Super Princess Peach at that point, although I quickly picked up additional games, too.
Oh gosh, I think the DS was perfect. I'm a huge fan of the 3DS right now, and might even consider that my favorite system, but the DS is really want launched me into a broader interest in genres and gaming in general. It had soo many unique titles that really encouraged me to stretch out into different areas. Phoenix Wright and other visual novels were opened up for me, the best Mario Kart came out for it (it was also rad that I had the Mario Kart Hot Rod Red DS), and a slew of really great JRPGs (I really really really loved FF3 and Contact).
It was also basically a machine that played Pokemon Pearl version for several years on end (with wayyyyy too many hours logged on it), and for that it was totally worth it. ;)
Ah, I thought as much! I really, REALLY wish I'd jumped aboard the DS train back then--especially when the "candy pink" DS phat hit Japan :|
Hey, you and me both!
Lovely story, Zach. Thanks for sharing it :)
The DS had a similar impact on me, BTW. I had (mostly) been away from gaming for quite some time before I picked up my DS Lite. The system and its lovely catalog of unique games really helped reignite my passion for video games.
BTW, I'm jealous that you had (still have?) the Mario Kart Hot Rod Red DS! I nearly bought one of those via eBay a couple of years ago XD
Finally, you've reminded me that I *really* need to start playing through Contact soon...
Oh yeah! I have it here at work with me, I've been playing Pokemon Emerald on it to prep for ORAS (I've never actually played any of the 3rd gen gem games, only Leaf Green). It has a couple scratches from the years, but it's been the sturdiest system I've ever owned, that's for sure! I almost picked up the seagreen Nintendogs limited edition way back when, but the prospect of having Mario Kart included was just too good to pass up.
And yeah, I think the portability and wide selection are part of what revitalized my interest in games (and probably yours as well!). You should really give Contact a go again! It's by no means perfect, but I'm a sucker for Ueda's pixel-perfect backgrounds and the soothing music. Very quirky! And it's what eventually steered me towards EarthBound, so that in and of itself is great.
Speaking of quirky RPG DS games, this reminds me I still haven't really played through Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland...
Ah, I too have a copy of Tingle's Rosy Rupeeland that I've barely played, Zach. I'll be getting to that and Contact and many other DS games early next year, though, I can assure you!
[does the Tingle "Koo-Loo-Limpah" dance]
Video or it didn't happen ;)
I think I bought the DS just before things started to get interesting. As I recall Mario Kart and Animal Crossing were the games that tipped the scale towards all my friends eventually getting one. So I felt like I got some hipster points for getting a DS before it was cool, and I still like the shape and hand-feel of the original over the lite (and 3DS).
But I pretty much just bought it on a whim (also replacing my original GBA--never got an SP) along with Yoshi Touch & Go, because I was just curious to see what the system was actually like and none of my friends were biting yet. And I've commented about Touch & Go before so you know that ended up really growing on me. My favorite DS moments though all don't involve the games, though. Here's some favorite:
When I first got it, my mom thought I was scribbling furiously on a PDA of some sort, when actually I was throwing eggs at piranha plants. I think that was a common experience for early DS adopters.
Everyone in my social group ended up buying one, and even people who came in late (ie, incoming girlfriends) were so sucked in by all the Mario Kart and Pictochat parties that they had to get them too. Some of my friends worked at the local Fred Meyer Electronics department and despite being in a small town, between them they had sold a disproportionately large number of DSes relative to other stores nationwide and their store received some sort of award for it from Nintendo.
Also, those Pictochat parties! Every event ended up the same way--after dinner or whatever we'd pull out the DSes to play Mario Kart or Tetris or Pacman VS or something, and then it turned into Pictochat, and we'd just sit around for hours quietly drawing crude (often tasteless) drawings to one another. I've tried to keep this tradition going to some extent on Miiverse but it isn't the same. Everyone owns a 3DS but when we get together now, we do our street pass stuff and then put it away. The moment has passed!
Haha, I think it was Animal Crossing that pushed me over the edge too. Certainly, Castlevania and the titles from Atlus were a huge selling point for me though. Combined with titles like Phoenix Wright, Theresia and 999, The DS showed how you can do mature in fun and stylish ways and got Nintendo out of that kiddie image rut.
Yeah, I don't think it's really so much that one is better as it is that the DS just happened to be the right thing at the right time. Kinda like I think the WiiU is a far better console than the Wii and I like it a lot more, but it sure isn't having the "moment" that the Wii did!
I'm surprised Animal Crossing didn't take! I don't know if my mom ever would have gone for it, but when she got into Farmville (and she got in deep there) I kept thinking she might like Animal Crossing or Harvest Moon but it seemed like a risky gift (it may have been a one-time interest).
Glad you were able to pick up Yoshi! I hope you get a kick out of it when you try it out. :)
Yeah, I'm also kind of surprised Animal Crossing didn't take. That said, my mom's really more of a puzzle game kind of gal. I mean, she plays mahjong (Shanghai) on her computer like it's going out of style, and solitaire, too. In that light, it's not so surprising that the only "video game" that's ever really stuck with her is Tetris.
As for Yoshi, I'm pretty sure I'll like it, although you know I'll talk about it here regardless! :)
Hey there, Jade! I was so obsessed with Animal Crossing on the GC back in the day that it doesn't surprise me that Wild World was what pushed me over the edge. (Also, I was really curious about Super Princess Peach--and Mario Kart DS, too, of course.)
Oh, I see you've played Theresia! How is that? Is that something you'd recommend to others? I've long been curious about it...
Theresia is, delightfully strange and provocative, but it comes in a package of tedious, often frustrating gameplay.Some would argue this adds to the game, like the clock tower series and I agree, but even then it starts to wear thin towards the end of the main story.
Definitely one I'd suggest previewing in a video to ken to the interface and see if you could get into it.
Thanks for the update, Jade! I'll definitely check out some videos of it tonight/this weekend, as its premise sounds pretty interesting to me :)
Funny thing... I thought the PSP was going to plow through the Nintendo DS thanks to its superior hardware and Sony's strong industry presence (to say nothing of lackluster DS launch titles like Sprung). However, I discovered a few things about the PSP after I bought it during the system's launch window. The first was that I wasn't super fond of the kinds of games Sony was bringing to the system. How many Grand Theft Auto titles were on this thing, anyway? Three, at least. I don't think Sony ever understood the fundamental difference between home and handheld games, insisting on releasing watered down versions of console titles.
The second thing is that load times on the PSP kind of blow. I distinctly recall sitting in a car with my friend, with a PSP in my hands and a DS in his. While he was having a ball with Wario Ware: Touched, I was waiting an eternity for some Tony Hawk game to load on mine. Load times varied from game to game (the wrestling games were hands down the worst), but they were always, always longer than on equivalent DS titles. I don't think the UMD format did the PSP any favors. I'd say I can understand why Sony switched to solid state media for the Vita... but the access times are pretty awful there, too. :P
By the time the first wave of really good DS games arrived (granted, this took at least eight months after the launch), I changed my handheld allegiance in a hurry. I don't think you could have torn the DS out of my hands for most of my (belated) time in college, although I did spend some quality time with the PSP whenever something cool was released for that system.
I can't say I was as impressed with the DS as I was its predecessor, the Game Boy Advance. Believe me, I practically *salivated* over that one, and it had fantastic games right out of the starting gate. But yes, I would say the DS had a profound impact, both on gaming history and my own personal experiences with the hobby.
Oh, I don't think you were alone in thinking the PSP would blow the DS out of the water, Jess. In fact, I think most folks expected just that, especially at the beginning. Hell, I remember reading about the DS shortly after its reveal and I literally groaning--because I thought Nintendo had fumbled badly.
I agree with most of the rest you said here, too--although I'd like to add that I think another area in which Sony botched the PSP was in the design of its d-pad and analog nub. I love the PSP system as a whole and a good number of its games, but even then I've got to say that, in general, I hate playing games on the system thanks to those two components. The d-pad is stiff and unresponsive, which basically makes it unusable, while the analog nub is placed so low on the system that using *it* is awkward, too.
This is one of the many reasons I've held off on buying a Vita until now, by the way. Despite assurances from various folks, I can't help but worry that the Vita will be nearly as uncomfortable to use as the PSP has been for me.
I'm kind of surprised to hear you loved the GBA more than the DS, by the way. Granted, you're looking at someone who came into the GBA era *very* late in the game (even later than I came into DS era), and that may have had a negative impact on my enjoyment of the system. Even if that's the case, though, I think one reason I'm a bit "meh" on the GBA and its catalog (although I do like both!) is that I find its games a bit too similar to what appeared on the SuFami/SNES.
That being said, I love a good many GBA games and I'm still discovering new ones all the time, so don't take my negativity toward the GBA--or PSP, for that matter--as an indication that I dislike either platform!
Oh, man, that kind of frightens me, Sam! I mean, do you have any idea how old I was when the DS came out? Ha!
I was on holiday in Tokyo in March 2005 and bought a black DS with Zoo Keeper, Sawaru Made in Wario and Pac-Pix.
Since than it became my favorite portable gaming system and even though I own several GBAs, a PSP, a PS Vita, a 3DS and a 2DS the classic DS is still my favorite handheld console.
The hardware is still great with it's classic 2D-sprites, the SNES-like controller set-up and the touchscreen which was used much more than the one on the 3DS.
And the games are a great mixture of touch based stuff like Zoo Keeper, Pac-Pix, Meteos, Prof. Layton, Scribblenauts, classic 2D-plattformers like Mario, Kirby & Co. and JRPGs like Etrian Odyssey, Chrono Trigger, Contact and Dragon Quest.
Me loves the DS :-)
18 :-p
Initially the software was terrible and my ds was stolen from me. I jumped back in when the DS Lite launched. Mario Kart races in between University courses were the best. I built a ridiculous amount of DS backlog. :D I've got over 200 pieces of software for DS. I've only played roughly 75 titles of that. That generation of handhelds really was special to me.
I was 18 at the time but, I was taking a guess at your age at the time.
I'm playing through some of it right now. TBH I've got games going all the way back to NES that need playing. Great thing is most are sealed and make great gifts :-D Honestly, I got a majority of them from a collector that passed away. His mom was selling them at rock bottom prices.
I also don't have the need to complete all the games I do play. I can stop about 1/2 way through and feel okay about it. Vampires The Masquerade: Bloodlines cemented that in me.
I guess the only way to convince you that the Vita is better ergonomically is for you to spend some time with it. It's lighter than the PSP, the analog thumbsticks are better than the PSP's cycloid pad, and the D-pad is worlds better, without half of it buried under hard plastic like Sony's other controllers. The newer model seems even better, with round option buttons instead of the original Vita's stupidly small oval ones, but of course, you sacrifice the OLED screen to get them, and that's a tough trade-off.
As for the GBA vs. the DS, I'll just say that the GBA seemed more, well, advanced than what had come before it. Going from a blurry monochrome screen to a TFT with 256 glorious colors was a huge step up. The Game Boy was hobbled in every possible way to make it portable in 1989, and the Game Boy Color was only marginally improved, but the Game Boy Advance was a quantum leap forward for handhelds. Sure, there had been 16-bit quality handhelds before, but they were typically rehashes of existing consoles (Genesis, TG16), and they frankly kind of stunk. Have you ever played a Nomad before? Do yourself a favor and don't.
As for its similarities to the Super NES, that was a plus for me! I was a Genesis guy and didn't familiarize myself with the Super NES library until 1997, so a lot of those games were new territory for me. They looked great on a pocket-sized system, and what's more, the GBA was capable of more than the Super NES when pushed. Double Dragon Advance is way better than Super Double Dragon, and Street Fighter Alpha 3 (compromised as it was) stood head and shoulders above the previous game on the Super NES.
By contrast, the DS was only an incremental improvement over the GBA. The larger screen meant that characters were no longer squished down to fit it, but then you had the 3D games, which looked primitive compared to the PSP. I mean, the system was still fun, and the touch screen changed gaming in a major way, but it still felt like Nintendo was going back to its old habits of leaning on withered technology while competitors were striving for better. Let's just say that I was relieved when the 3DS was released in 2011... the old DS was looking really ragged by that point.
Well, yes, hopefully I'll find out myself, in person, how much better the Vita is than the PSP ... and soon! BTW, although I've heard that the old OLED screen is amazing, I'll probably get one of the newer Vitas when I finally buy one.
You probably could add about a decade to that, Chief!
Well, that's good--that you're playing through your backlog, I mean!
Oh, I'm with you on that, Chief. My main thing is that I want to at least play *some* of all of the games I buy. There's no way I'm going to finish all of them--especially the bad ones.
Kinda mind blowing to think it's been 10 years!
I remember how I got my first DS. I ordered from Lik Sang, an online store that shut down a few years after (they had problems with Sony due to them selling PSPs out of region). I think I may have been one of the first few in Australia to get it early? haha I don't know. I got it with Mario 64 as well. It also came with instructions on how to set the language to English, since it defaulted to Japanese.
Such a pity Nintendo don't do region free anymore :(
I have to say over the years especially when PSP came out, I still preferred the DS. I got a PSP but I think I only played maybe around half a dozen games or something? The PSP just didn't interest me that much. But the DS, I've played heaps of games.
I did get each iteration as it came out too hehe though I can't remember if I got the DSi XL or not.
Hey there, Igor! Oh, I remember Lik Sang--although I can't remember if I actually ever bought anything from that store before it closed.
Anyway, yes, it's a tremendous shame that Nintendo no longer believes in region-free hardware. Here's hoping they change that sometime soon.
I also agree with you in preferring the DS to the PSP. Don't get me wrong, I like the PSP a great deal, but the DS still beats it in pretty much every area, IMO.
Yea for me it just felt there more interesting games on DS compared to PSP (even though PSP was meant to be technically superior)
Yep, that's the only thing the PSP *has* on the DS--its hardware is more capable from a technical standpoint. Not that something like that's ever really mattered to me :)
Oh yeah. I give them the ol' college try. I don't ever have the compulsion to finish every game I start though.
I feel compelled to finish games that I actually enjoy playing. Others, though? I'm OK with quitting them :)
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