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A DS In Every Pot
At last year's GDC Nintendo President Iwata made the claim that the company was reaching out to everyone, in an attempt to expand the gaming market. They were planning to appeal to hardcore gamers, folks who used to play games, and folks who have never played a game in their lives. At the time, it sounded like a tag line. Today, I have impressions from three titles which suggest they've got what it takes to make us all into gamers. Hardcore players can sink their teeth into Metroid Prime Hunters, and have one of the most intuitive FPS experiences ever to come to a console. Folks looking for some nostalgia can enjoy Tetris DS, blockstacking like it's 1985. Even your grandmother can try Brain Age, proving to her bridge club that even though her license says she's 80 she's got the brain of a 20 year old. Read on for my impressions of three titles that give powerful evidence to support Iwata's grand claim.
What results from this fusion of simple control and Metroid trappings is nothing less than a grown-up shooter on a very small console. Single-player mode has sort of 'mini-Metroids' scattered around a small part of the galaxy. You head into an area, explore, fight a boss, and move on. It's not much compared to some of Samus' other epic adventures, but it is a good way to learn the controls. Despite the size of the single-player missions, they also manage to fit in some nice puzzling.
If you're wifi connected, you can get your ass handed to you by the thousands of people waiting to personally destroy you online. Just like with Mario Kart, the system just works, resulting in a lightning fast asshanding that will leave you wondering why you opened the DS's lid in the first place. There are numerous maps to play on, and many other bounty hunter personas available to change things up from the normal Metroid experience. Online play is wicked fast, with smooth framerates aiding in the sense of speed and danger.
Folks who dislike FPSes will not like this game, and even folks who enjoy the Metroid Prime titles on the GameCube may be turned off by the game's unrelenting speed. Quake 3 really is the best PC comparison I can draw, and being fragged moments after you've spawned is not out of the question. PC gamers who have avoided console shooters may actually be the real winners here, as you're going to find a lot to love in the 'touchpad look' system they've come up with.
I see this title as not only a great game in the here and now, but a preview of what's going to be possible in the DS's future. The control scheme and graphics (which simply should not be possible on a Nintendo handheld) speak of far-off games that will keep the hardcore coming back again and again to Nintendo's twoscreened juggernaut.
The vivid displays on the DS play gracious host to the new game. Your first impressions of Tetris DS will be of crisp imagery and bright sound. The game manages not only to be a small shrine to the blockstacker itself, but almost every classic Nintendo title. The Mario theme accompanies the Standard mode, while a Metroid background scrolls past in Catch mode. The only drawback to this is that, if classic Nintendo isn't your cup of tea, the music is going to get grating sooner rather than later.
The sheer number of modes can be intimidating at first. Besides the original game (playable both by yourself or vs. other people wirelessly), there is Catch (a strange mode that has you creating four-squares while flying through a Metroid level), Push (a competitive classic Tetris mode), Mission (which has you completing specific objectives), Puzzle (which has you complete a screen with specific pieces), and Touch. Touch is the only mode that takes advantage of the touch-screen, and requires you to move block around in a tower of Tetris pieces. You break down the foundation of the tower, eventually freeing the trapped balloons at the top of the heap. Touch and Push are very fresh experiences, requiring you to use Tetris thinking in lateral ways. Catch is kinda funky, and I didn't get as much out of it.
Even if you're playing the classic game on your cell phone every day, this game is well worth experiencing on the DS. Like all Wifi-enabled DS games, it's seamless to fall into an online match, and the polish level displayed here is going to please every puzzler you know. Nintendo hit it right on the money with this one: Not too much newness, just enough to keep you interested. The only real complaint I have is the title's price. Thirty dollars for the cart is enough to ensure that not everyone that gets a DS will end up with this in their library. Which is a shame; The ubiquitous presence of Tetris for the original GameBoy was one of the pivotal moments in classic gaming. (Or so says my mom.)
All of these simple games are intended to be completed on a daily basis. You do one or two each day to 'Train Your Brain', and after finishing up the game assigns you a 'brain age'. The younger the better, with 20 being as low as you can go. The amusement factor of the game doesn't sound very high, but the presentation sells it with gusto. The floating head of Dr. Kawashima (the man whose research the game is based on) is a very personable character, turning the DS sideways makes for a different feel to the game, and the cheerful attitude of the interface is hard to ignore.
I have some minor complaints with the title, but they don't detract at all from the enjoyment of the title. Specifically, the handwriting recognition can get a little confused at times. Even a few extra seconds writing out a '9' will seem like forever when you're on the clock. Similarly, I found the voice recognition would occasionally spaz out. I particularly had trouble getting the game to understand me when I said the word 'blue'. Be sure to enunciate your words so that the game understands you.
Those minor quibbles aside, the package is a great, simple, time-waster. For folks not used to playing games this is the perfect setup. Brain Age offers a series of discrete, approachable tasks that only have to be completed once or twice to feel that you've accomplished something. If you play daily, you only have to invest about 10 minutes to get your stamp from the Doctor. If you want to play more, for American audiences a Sudoku game was added. I don't play myself, but I'm told by accomplished players that it's a challenging set of puzzles. They're also convenient, allowing you to write down your guesses on the side of a box before committing yourself to an answer.
While Tetris and Metroid are great games, I'm most impressed by the reaction I've seen from non-gamers sitting down to Brain Age for the first time. There's a smile they get, and a light in their eye. When I talk to them about it, there's an understanding there about games and gaming that wasn't there before. That's the reason President Iwata gave away the title at his GDC Keynote; It's a subversive recruitment tool. You may not get your grandmother playing Unreal Tournament, but Brain Age can be a starter experience for an entire new multi-generational crop of gamers.
- Title: Metroid Prime Hunters
- Developer/Publisher: Nintendo
- System:DS
What results from this fusion of simple control and Metroid trappings is nothing less than a grown-up shooter on a very small console. Single-player mode has sort of 'mini-Metroids' scattered around a small part of the galaxy. You head into an area, explore, fight a boss, and move on. It's not much compared to some of Samus' other epic adventures, but it is a good way to learn the controls. Despite the size of the single-player missions, they also manage to fit in some nice puzzling.
If you're wifi connected, you can get your ass handed to you by the thousands of people waiting to personally destroy you online. Just like with Mario Kart, the system just works, resulting in a lightning fast asshanding that will leave you wondering why you opened the DS's lid in the first place. There are numerous maps to play on, and many other bounty hunter personas available to change things up from the normal Metroid experience. Online play is wicked fast, with smooth framerates aiding in the sense of speed and danger.
Folks who dislike FPSes will not like this game, and even folks who enjoy the Metroid Prime titles on the GameCube may be turned off by the game's unrelenting speed. Quake 3 really is the best PC comparison I can draw, and being fragged moments after you've spawned is not out of the question. PC gamers who have avoided console shooters may actually be the real winners here, as you're going to find a lot to love in the 'touchpad look' system they've come up with.
I see this title as not only a great game in the here and now, but a preview of what's going to be possible in the DS's future. The control scheme and graphics (which simply should not be possible on a Nintendo handheld) speak of far-off games that will keep the hardcore coming back again and again to Nintendo's twoscreened juggernaut.
- Title: Tetris DS
- Developer/Publisher: Nintendo
- System:DS
The vivid displays on the DS play gracious host to the new game. Your first impressions of Tetris DS will be of crisp imagery and bright sound. The game manages not only to be a small shrine to the blockstacker itself, but almost every classic Nintendo title. The Mario theme accompanies the Standard mode, while a Metroid background scrolls past in Catch mode. The only drawback to this is that, if classic Nintendo isn't your cup of tea, the music is going to get grating sooner rather than later.
The sheer number of modes can be intimidating at first. Besides the original game (playable both by yourself or vs. other people wirelessly), there is Catch (a strange mode that has you creating four-squares while flying through a Metroid level), Push (a competitive classic Tetris mode), Mission (which has you completing specific objectives), Puzzle (which has you complete a screen with specific pieces), and Touch. Touch is the only mode that takes advantage of the touch-screen, and requires you to move block around in a tower of Tetris pieces. You break down the foundation of the tower, eventually freeing the trapped balloons at the top of the heap. Touch and Push are very fresh experiences, requiring you to use Tetris thinking in lateral ways. Catch is kinda funky, and I didn't get as much out of it.
Even if you're playing the classic game on your cell phone every day, this game is well worth experiencing on the DS. Like all Wifi-enabled DS games, it's seamless to fall into an online match, and the polish level displayed here is going to please every puzzler you know. Nintendo hit it right on the money with this one: Not too much newness, just enough to keep you interested. The only real complaint I have is the title's price. Thirty dollars for the cart is enough to ensure that not everyone that gets a DS will end up with this in their library. Which is a shame; The ubiquitous presence of Tetris for the original GameBoy was one of the pivotal moments in classic gaming. (Or so says my mom.)
- Title: Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day
- Developer/Publisher: Nintendo
- System:DS
All of these simple games are intended to be completed on a daily basis. You do one or two each day to 'Train Your Brain', and after finishing up the game assigns you a 'brain age'. The younger the better, with 20 being as low as you can go. The amusement factor of the game doesn't sound very high, but the presentation sells it with gusto. The floating head of Dr. Kawashima (the man whose research the game is based on) is a very personable character, turning the DS sideways makes for a different feel to the game, and the cheerful attitude of the interface is hard to ignore.
I have some minor complaints with the title, but they don't detract at all from the enjoyment of the title. Specifically, the handwriting recognition can get a little confused at times. Even a few extra seconds writing out a '9' will seem like forever when you're on the clock. Similarly, I found the voice recognition would occasionally spaz out. I particularly had trouble getting the game to understand me when I said the word 'blue'. Be sure to enunciate your words so that the game understands you.
Those minor quibbles aside, the package is a great, simple, time-waster. For folks not used to playing games this is the perfect setup. Brain Age offers a series of discrete, approachable tasks that only have to be completed once or twice to feel that you've accomplished something. If you play daily, you only have to invest about 10 minutes to get your stamp from the Doctor. If you want to play more, for American audiences a Sudoku game was added. I don't play myself, but I'm told by accomplished players that it's a challenging set of puzzles. They're also convenient, allowing you to write down your guesses on the side of a box before committing yourself to an answer.
While Tetris and Metroid are great games, I'm most impressed by the reaction I've seen from non-gamers sitting down to Brain Age for the first time. There's a smile they get, and a light in their eye. When I talk to them about it, there's an understanding there about games and gaming that wasn't there before. That's the reason President Iwata gave away the title at his GDC Keynote; It's a subversive recruitment tool. You may not get your grandmother playing Unreal Tournament, but Brain Age can be a starter experience for an entire new multi-generational crop of gamers.
Not that I'd be against Nintendo, actually far from it (and still waiting to FINALLY get my DS...), but is there some content besides advertising in this?
I don't gain any insight from it, it's not entertaining, it's not informative, it's a push for Nintendo. Or am I missing something vital?
We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
Yawn. The other consoles doesn't support Nintendo-made games. Pass.
They'd have a lot more takers if they included pot with every DS.
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
In all seriousness- Older people who live in retirement villages are ridiculously similar to college students. (My grandfather was in one)
You have people who have massive amounts of time, and excited about sitting on the couch and enjoy TV. (Of course not all older people or college students are like this)
My grandfather's place had a dorm feel to it. I could very easily picture the "oldsters" playing video games.
And All I Ask is a Tall Ship And a Star to Steer Her By
Super Mario Bros 37 and Mario Cart 56!!!
http://religiousfreaks.com/Grandma only thinks about sex and beer?
A DS tactical RPG, a la Final Fantasy Tactics.
Seriously, FFT:DS would be an incredibly good idea. A whole extra screen for data readouts? Touchscreen movement rather than awkward scrolling over terrain and through menus? All combined with the awesome portability of FFT:Advance? Sign me up!
I'm 21 and I play my DS every day.
Me. I'm 23, and I own one. It's as much a kid's toy as any other video game console.
Starmen.net
It might've helped if they lowered the price of a DS shortly before announcing that a better, cheaper version was going to come out soon. Anyone who got one for christmas got totally hosed.
Even your grandmother can try Brain Age, proving to her bridge club that even though her license says she's 80 she's got the brain of a 20 year old.
I have no idea what "Brain Age" is, but wouldn't the Bridge Club get a better idea of her mental faculties based on how she, you know, plays Bridge?
Everyone with access to tagging beta please put the following tag on it
"slashvertisement"
I'm personally sick and tired of zonk's crap submissions, and slashvertising
everyone get the slashvertisement tag going and let's get Cowboy to allow us to filter articles off our front pages by tag.
If you cannot keep politics out of your moderation remove yourself from the Mod Lottery.. NOW!
[Disclaimer: I'm a Nintendo whore]
:) )
However, recently i haven't been playing as many games as I used to. I actually own Metroid Prime Hunters, Tetris DS, and Brain Age comes out today and I'm going to go pick it up tonight.
The thing with the DS is variety. And by variety, I don't mean 10 different kinds of FPSes. These are truly DIFFERENT games. It's not just these titles, things like Nintedogs (as mentioned in the summary) and Kirby's Canvas Curse that has brought me back to my handheld. They keep managing to release games that are actually interesting. The last few months, I'd saying my gaming has been split like so: 95% DS, 5% PC (CS, FarCry)
(I cancelled my WoW subscription, not because I don't love it, quite the opposite. I love it too much
Maybe I'm just getting old? Oh well. As long as I keep getting my variety of games, I'll be happy. Probably why I'm most excited about the Revolution, just like a lot of others seem to be. I can't wait.
The gaming industry might be in decline, but Nintendo is showing that it's more resilient than the gaming industry as a whole. (Past AND present!)
AirSpeak - http://itunes.com/apps/AirSpeak
UMD load times are terrible. I will pass on Sony PSP.
My 82 year-old grandmother was intrigued by the usability of the Revolution's wand controller, or at least my description of its usability. She never gave video games a thought before that.
Bill Clinton: Pimp we can believe in. - The Shirt!!!
Seriously, who over the age of twenty is going to buy a DS?
:)
Many more people than you think.
These are kids' toys we're talking about.
It's whatever you convince yourself it is. Those of us that aren't worried about being "mature" or scared of some bright colors and cuteness are quite comfortable with Nintendo and their "kids' toys".
Marketing can only do so much,
You keep thinking that. Meanwhile, Nintendo's laughing all the way to the bank
When the hell are they gonna make a cheat device (like a gameshark or something of the sort) that hacks the crap out of the DS games available?
I'm 36 and waiting for the DS Lite to hit the market. I need the brighter LCD screen since I went blind on the pre-SP AGBs testing Atari Anniversary, Nicktoons Racing, Driver 2 Advance, Backyard Hockey and DBZ: Buu's Fury when I worked as a lead tester at Atari. Of course, if Nintendo brought out a DS adapter for the GameCube, that would be sweet!
I agree with you. Even though there are probably plenty of 30 year old uber-nerds here on slashdot playing a DS in their Mom's basement right now.
YES! When I'm old and decrepid they better have a WiFi connection so I can play Counter-Strike on my shuttle!
Females everywhere would be interested if the Revolution wand had a built in rumble-pack...
Funny thing is, I got almost the exact opposite multiplayer impression from my time spent reviewing Metroid Prime: Hunters on the DS. It's really nothing like Quake 3 or Unreal at all. The difference? amount of health. It takes a lot of whittling to bring down a fully charged bounty hunter in this game. Also, the weapon affinities and alternate forms add layer upon layer to the strategy of your typical deathmatch. Check out my multiplayer play rating at The Game Chair for the full story.
only one everything
I've been thinking about getting a new portable game system, and with more games like this (and Mario Kart DS), I am getting more impatient. I really don't want the old style DS system though. When do we get the new DS Lite over here in the States? C'mon big N hurry it up already!
And with my luck, I'll still live right across the hall from the guy with the huge stereo and no taste in music.
I hope not. My brain was foolish when it was 20. At 80, I hope it's *much* wiser.
Frammin' on the jim-jam, frippin' at the krotz!
I love all the references to mothers playing Tetris. I often forget how much of a gamer my mom is.
She used to spend hours playing Bubble Bobble on the C64, and then when that died/became inconvenient, she played Tetris on GB non-stop.
Right now, she plays bookworm, freecell, spider solitaire, sudoku (on websudoku.com), and many more.
Plus, when there's any possility that I have time, she pesters me to play any number of card games - mainly Cribbage, and Skip-Bo.
She plays more video/computer games than me!
I just bought a DS this past weekend along with Castlevania and Advance Wars. I also wandered into a Best Buy and played a bunch of the free demos from their download center and have tried a few of my friend's games. I must say that so far, this is shaping up to be the best console purchase I've made, especially for the $200 total I spent on it with two games and a couple accessories :)
Seriously, who over the age of twenty is going to buy a DS?
I'm 28, my wife is 28 and we BOTH own one. My wife isn't a gamer, but the DS has titles that we both can play (zookeeper, metriod pinball, etc) together AND has the addicting games that I can play by myself (Advance Wars DS, I'm looking at you).
Going on /. and trying to insult people for being uber-nerds is like going onto MySpace and insulting people for being drunken emos.
We already know who goes where; please move along.
uhh... neither? You must be a PSP fan :P (just kidding :D Please dont hurt me, mods!)
Seriously, this is more a game review than an ad. Zonk played the games and wrote a review for each saying why certain people would like each game. It's not an ad.
Viable Slashdot alternatives: https://pipedot.org/ and http://soylentnews.org/
Actually there is a group working on a distro of Linux for the DS. It even allows the use of the touch screen. Check it out.
One is pleasurable and the other makes you blind.
"Seriously, who over the age of twenty is going to buy a DS?"
e se-video-gamers-anyway.html
Seriously, you're showing your age. Seriously.
Here're some facts from this century:
Average age of a gamer is 30. 19% of gamers are over the age of 50.
More stats from the Entertainment Software Association via The Pixelantes: http://pixelantes.blogspot.com/2005/11/who-are-th
In Soviet Russia, I ruled you
It used to be a tag line! "Grownups, kids, and even your older sister." was an NoJ slogan for some time.
I'm 44 and I love my DS.
The obscure we see eventually. The completely obvious, it seems, takes longer. - Edward R. Murrow
Metroid's wacky stick-based controls hurt my hands. A lot. I can't see how anyone can deal with the default settings for more than 20 minutes. Then I realized I'm playing a FPS on a handheld when I bought the handheld to get away from the typical Sony/Xbox grind. If anything, Metriod Hunters is a seriously wrong move for this device. Its another 'me too' title with a control gimmick. Its like the developers were sitting around scratching their heads on how to use the touch screen and picked the worst control scheme imaginable. Is there some law that requires all DS games to use the touchscreen? Just because its there doesn't mean you have to use it, especially if you don't have good reason to. Imagine steering Mario Kart with the stick because Nintendo had to promote the touchscreen. Yeah its that bad.
I can't wait to sell it and buy something unique like Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney. When I want FPS I've got BF2 on the PC. Thanks but no thanks Nintendo.
When I first got Tetris DS, I bought it on somewhat of a whim... I knew there wasn't really anything too special about it, it was still the original tetris... just made a little prettier.
But once I played it, first I was amazed by the controls. The speed of playing just couldn't happen the same way on the original game boy... the feel of the d-pad and buttons just feels right.
And once online gameplay was put into the equation, I was blown away. I've totally fallen in love with Tetris again, and I hadn't played it at all in probably 15 years. I forgot how simple, yet addictive, a game it is. I never realized how great multiplayer Tetris could be.
600 wins online later, I realize it's the best 34.99 I've spent in years...
----
Nintendo plays with YOUR MIND
`Brain Age' is for gamers who aren't all thumbs
Playing "Brain Age" is like taking the SAT all day long. If that sounds like your kind of fun, you'll love this new game for the Nintendo DS.
You'll solve more than 100 logic and memorization problems. Writing your answers on the DS' touch screen and speaking into the game system's microphone, you'll memorize words on a screen and try to recall as many of them as you can. You'll quickly count to 120. You'll solve match questions. And ultimately, the game will calculate how old your brain is, based on research by the Japanese professor whose book, "Brain Age," is a sensation in Japan and spurred Nintendo to create this video game in only 90 days. Nintendo plans to release another brain game, "Big Brain Academy," next month.
Uniquely, you play the game by turning the DS sideways and holding it like a book. "Brain Age" is meant to be played small chunks over a long period, up to one year. The more challenges you solve, the more challenges you unlock and the younger your brain age becomes. Age 20 is the goal. While I don't feel smarter than I did three weeks ago when I began playing the game, my brain age has become younger. That's because, according to research behind the book and the game, working on the problems stimulates blood flow to my prefrontal cortex.
My brain's age? I'm not telling; my brain is young enough to know better.
----------
egwinn@tribune.com
-Rob
Biblical fiscal responsibility
Agreed on all accounts. I own a ds. Plan to buy a lite when its out, give mine to my lady, if i like it. I own a handful of DS games (which is alot, since they are small and I have big hands). I play all the latest FPSes, etc. But my DS gets the most play time of any console I own (and I own 9 from 4 different makers). Nintendo has done a good job at selling me games and hardware. And i'm 23. Almost everyone I know has a DS now. And we're all 20somethings. Its good clean fun, like in the 80s :)
"Something's wrong with you...and I hope we never do meet again." - Deftones When Girls Telephone Boys
No doubt, but that trip to the bank is mostly because Mom bought the kid a DS, not because 20 and 30 somethings are fighting their way to the counter to buy them. There will always be some people who insist on childish games like Mario Karts instead of a more realistic racing experience and Smash Brothers instead of a more quality fighting experience, but those people will always be in the minority. You may think it's a "hip" minority, but a minority nonetheless. That's fine in itself, but the minority is not content with that. Any thread dealing with consoles invariably gets invaded by Ninetendo fanatics out to prove their system is the bomb and all other suck. They think they're doing Nintendo a favor, but they're not. They're just annoying people.
The screens are too small for her aged eyes to stay focused on. I have a DS and enjoy it very much, but Nintendos business ethics are really aggrivating their core gamers with features like wi-fi and the ability to communicate, but only in the lobbies and only to friends. They say they do this so new gamers don't have to be discouraged by all the smack talk that goes on during game play. In all honesty I doubt those players will be using the online play as much as the hardcore players will. Nintendo needs to stop thinking that I'm still 8 years old. I grew up, so grow with me and build games or build your games to meet my needs not the needs of someone who will buy a DS and then maybe a game or two.
Can I bum a sig?
Some games I'd love to play in DS:
A Quake Port
We had Doom and Doom II for GBA, it's time to bring Quake or even Quake II to the DS.
After the success of Metroid Hunters can you imagine Quake on the go? that would kick ass!
A Blizzard RTS port
Warcraft II or, if possible, Starcraft would be awesome to make full use of the systems integrated Touchscreen and Wifi
Ever been to play-asia? lik-sang?
---GEC
I'm but the humble pupil, seeking to snatch the scratchbuilt pebble from the master's fully articulated hand
...it does.
I'm seriously considering buying one of these, but I tried out metroid at the local targét last night, and found it kind of awkward due to my being left handed. Has any one else found this to be an issue. Holding the stylus with my right hand and manipulating the dpad just seemed odd...
1. DS Lite. Not gonna buy the current DS, the screen is bad.
2. Adventures and RPGs. Many of them.
3. Personal organizer software.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
I'm 25 and I love my DS as does my wife. Haven't broke down and picked one up for her yet...might after the Lite comes out...sort of a hand me down ya know ;)
If i'm playing the game in public somewhere i don't want to have a voice recognition task pop up in the middle of a sequence. Playing video games on my DS in public is fine, but i don't want to be like those guys on the blue tooth cellphone headsets wandering down the street talking loudly to themselves.
This Space Intentionally Left Blank
I don't know where you got the whole winner/loser ideal in terms of Nintendo and Microsoft, but from a business standpoint Microsoft is much bigger and more diversified. Microsoft might lose money in Xbox, but their incredible market share in software as a whole pegs them a lot higher than the "video game company" that Nintendo might get labeled as. Microsoft has more media exposure throughout business and Wall Street would never take a look solely at their Xbox operations and call it a loss, especially since now every 10 year old knows Microsoft's name, which might not have been true 10 or 15 years ago, while Nintendo has always had exposure to that market. While the two companies may compete head to head, Microsoft is a whole playing field above Nintendo when it comes to overall product lines.
Maybe .doc as well. That way it could capture a slice of the ebook market.
"Consensus" in science is _always_ a political construct.
So how is the DS the minority and the PSP not?
"This is considered plagiarism."
Here are a few things we have to offer:
- WiFi Cards to quickly share your info
- Metroid Prime Hunters Stat tracking/comparisions
- Animal Crossing Turnip Watch
- Tournaments for multiple games
- Full Message Boards
- IRC Chat
- Custom sigs for other forums to show your "stuff"
- It is free, free, free
So, I hope this plug wasn't too shameless, but it seemed relevent to the topic at hand.Unstable Apps: Our Android Apps Don't Suck
You're welcome.
Don't listen to these haters, I think the reviews were spot-on. I've been trying to tell everyone that Hunters is basically Quake 3 on a handheld, and as a long-time Quaker I really love what Hunters has to offer. Finally, with the power of /. people can appreciate this game for what it is.
Sony has been doing everything in their power to nerf the ability to web surf on the PSP.
Then we learn that the DS will be able to browse the web via its wi-fi link using a version of Opera designed for it.
I think Sony needs to change their strategy fast or loose ground to Nintendo fast.
Michael "TheZorch" Haney
thezorch@gmail.com
http://thezorch.googlepages.com/home
Yes, you can. I just picked Brain Age up for myself last night, and before you start an activity that can use your voice, the game will ask you if you're able to speak or not. I was very relieved to have such an option available in the event that I would be out in public.
We have many DSes in the house ... my kid has one, I have one (36) and my wife has one (34) - and we have one for guests to play (believe me - everyone plays).
... LOTS over 20 there too ...
I have 3 friends at work - all over 30 - all have DSes (some migrated from the PSP - which is now gathering DUST; one dude was an Xbox fiend - now he plays DS instead).
10 million (and growing) people can't be wrong. Look at the lines of Japanese people in line to buy a DS
I just ordered the M3 perfect for mine so I don't need that crap. With this I can back up all of my DS games to a 4 gig CF card. I can also play videos, mp3s, images, etc. It also has built in emulators for NES and the supernin. I guess I'm not as 1337 as someone using a gamesave hack to run emulators and paying 200 bones for a harddrive. I also get to play Nintendo's in house games. Why is the PSP so much better again?
now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb.
Microsoft has more media exposure throughout business and Wall Street would never take a look solely at their Xbox operations and call it a loss
Wall Street also doesn't love conglomerates, especially conglomerates with divisions that are bleeding cash. Unless a conglomerate is exploiting obvious synergies, you will hear at some point the major investors chanting "Spin-OFF! Spin-OFF! Spin-OFF!" as they push the company to concentrate on one or a few core competencies that turn a profit.
No doubt, but that trip to the bank is mostly because Mom bought the kid a DS, not because 20 and 30 somethings are fighting their way to the counter to buy them.
Have you seen the lines in Akihabara or Denden Town? People are lining up all night to get DS Lites. Until recently, shady looking people were selling tickets that gave you the right to buy a DS Lite for crazy amounts of money.
It's not that different in the West either. The Mario Kart DS bundles were pretty much sold out at Christmas. I had to drive three hours just to get one, and I was far from the only adult trying to buy one for myself.
Yes, it asks you "Are you in a place you can speak freely?" I always press 'No' because we disagree on how I pronounce the world 'blue'.
The game was made for analog controls, so there are places where not using the touchscreen is a major handicap. But using the touchscreen is awkward because of the way they set it up - the "center" position of the control is not stable, but rather follows your stylus around the screen.
If you keep your thumb at (not past) the outer edge of the control circle on the touch screen, the control circle will not slide.
I bet you are a teenage kid who thinks that you are "so kool" because you play GTA all day.
When you grow up, you will realize that fun transcends all age barriers.
What's with all the software ideas here. If you want a PDA, buy one.
DS is supposed to be a gaming console, not an all-round whore. What it needs is more 1rst & 2nd party games plus lots of GOOD third party support.
I don't know if I'll buy one in the near future, but if I do, it will be the DS-lite. It's design is just what we need: Clean and Efficient.
Nintendo has got it right this time, and I so wish they get it right with Revolution too!
http://www.soundclick.com/g1mike
They've got two more days to market this idea for 4-20.
Prove it.
But once I played [Tetris DS], first I was amazed by the controls. The speed of playing just couldn't happen the same way on the original game boy... the feel of the d-pad and buttons just feels right.
In Tetris or a clone thereof, speed of play has nothing to do with the console and everything to do with how autorepeat is set up. The autorepeat in the official NES, Game Boy, Super NES, and GBA versions of Tetris and Dr. Mario (excluding Tetris Blast for the original Game Boy) was just way too slow for advanced players. A faster autorepeat could have been done even on less powerful systems, as has been demonstrated in homebrew games such as Tetramino (NES) or Tetanus On Drugs (GBA) or Luminesweeper (GBA), all of which model their control feel on Tetris Blast for Game Boy.
Of course, if you really want "speed of play" in your Tetris, you'll have to head for the arcade.
Hmm... I'm a 21-year-old woman, and I own a DS. Oddly enough, in my travels to and from work, I don't think I've ever seen anyone UNDER 20 carrying one, and plenty of guys that I've played Mario Kart with on the bus have got to be at least 30. Admittedly, I live in an area dominated by game companies (especially EA, which has a studio near my usual bus route that specializes in PSP/DS ports), so there are a lot of adult professionals around who are interested in games, but even so. For games that are supposedly "childish", there are a hell of a lot of adults playing them. Isn't it possible that some adults don't require excessive blood, gore and sex to enjoy a game? I mean, I know I can legally look at that kind of stuff, but that doesn't mean I want to all the time. It gets boring after a while, and when you can just walk into any adult video store and rent a porno flick, even the most elaborately-textured pixel boobs just aren't enough to hide the embarrassingly bad gameplay that so often goes with them.
Also... the whole games-are-for-kids thing doesn't hold true everywhere in the world. The DS in particular has made significant headway in the Japanese middle-aged woman market (thanks to games like Nintendogs), and really, Japan is where Nintendo makes a lot of its money. I've read about thousands and thousands of people from all walks of life lining up for at least a day to get a blue DS lite... and this was the week after the regular white DS lite launched. Sure, a few thousand people in Japan is still the minority, but that still beats the hell out of the XBox 360 launch.
Personally, I play Nintendo games because I find them fun. If I want something realistic, I play on my PC, but for a handheld I want something that's bright, colourful and entertaining. Realism doesn't work very well on any kind of handheld these days (yes, I know the PSP has better graphics, but they're not that good), so Nintendo's cutesy cartoony style works well. Realistic racing or fighting games don't work very well either -- you're too limited by the controls, and the game has to be severely simplified to fit in such a small amount of space. Nintendo just fills a different niche than the other platforms, and it does a damn good job of it.
Of course, in the retirement home, there's the additional concern that this person will be mostly deaf, too.
I couldn't tell if you were experimenting with poor-man's cryogenics or looking for the orange sherbet.
You speek about RPG's, well I would say Secret of Mana would be the best one.
Rembember Secret of Mana I and II (Seiken Densetsu II and II in japan) for the 16-bit SuperNintendo?
It gives you the choice between classic RPG or a more straight forward action game style (you do not have to chase numbers if you do not want to), it is a pure Square-game of old, but most importantly, you can play up to three at a time.
To be able to play Secret of Mana with two friends on our own DS's would truly be a dream scenario.
I've learned all I know about politics from
The warranty on an imported electronic device is generally valid only in the country where it was first sold. Until the end of May, that would be Japan.
Watch out for the Girls Gone Wild videos coming out of the place, though.
The other consoles doesn't support Nintendo-made games.
Neither does any Nintendo system support Katamari Damacy or Amplitude or Lumines (except through homebrew for the last one).
Pass.
Me.
It's just kind of weird.
These games have been out for a while now. They're quite well known and reviews are everywhere. And the argument that they represent some big push on Nintendo's part is silly, because games in all three categories are available for the PSP and the GBA.
I'd rather have read about some less obvious titles appropriate for people who aren't generally interested in handheld gaming.
UMD load times are terrible.
It varies by title. In the time it takes WWE to go from 0 to gameplay, you can play several rounds of GripShift. Proof
*looks at ad for Luminesweeper*
*notices ad for PassMe*
*looks at poster's name*
*raises eyebrow*
Heh, everywhere I go, I see you posting. I go to PH, you're there, I go to GBAdev, you're there, I read Slashdot, you're there, I look at NESdev, you're there, and I just recently discovered that you're the creator of pineight.com (I never really noticed it before). You seem to be everywhere at once.
Are you sure you don't have about 50 trained monkeys posting stuff for you? How do you get it all done? =)
That rotation crap is now part of the official Tetris rulebook that all licensees have to follow.
Is that so? I guess that gives me an incentive to stick to playing homebrew clones, right? I would have at least put in a timer so that if a tetrimino has landed and hasn't moved downward by at least one net row over the past second, it locks into place as if the player had hard-dropped it by pressing Up on the +Control Pad. (Compare the rule in Chess with no pawn moves in 25 rounds ending the game, and compare the behavior of the Puyo games.) Either that or put a picture of an Elorg lawyer on the other screen once the player starts to abuse infinite rotation a given number of times.
NT
I'm 31 and I occasionally play my DS down at my bridge club.
Oh, so conflicted...
++ Say to Elrond "Hello.".
Elrond says "No.". Elrond gives you some lunch.
Well, me (age 29) and wife (age 29 and gasp!! a physician!) both have nintendo DSs... We must be immature for our ages.
My mother regularly plays Tetris (offline, no wifi at her house) and I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up getting one of the brain games.
Sometimes you just want to pick up the "toy" and play 5 minutes of Mario Kart DS and then put it down.
http://www.tomandemily.com
A DS tactical RPG, a la Final Fantasy Tactics.
Don't mention it or they might release another drekfest like FFTA! (Warning: Rabid FFT fanboy who hates Squarenix for releasing a sequel which lacked everything that made FFT great)
What I'd like to see would be an X-Com for the DS. The interface could very much take advantage of the two screens and, let's face it, there hasn't been an X-Com for too long. And no, I'm not talking about Interceptor or the hideous abortion that is Enforcer. Just a remake of the first game. Maybe with modernized graphics, although I'd also take the old ones.
But without the Groundhog Day Bug.
USE HOT GRITS WITH STATUE OF NATALIE PORTMAN (NAKED AND PETRIFIED)
You have a very interesting definition of minority.
Karma: Terrifying (mostly affected by atrocities you've committed)
screw that. Give me a Command and Conquer type of game wher eI can save at a moment's notice like Bomberman DS does.
The only big gripe I have about the most addictive game, Animal Crossings DS, is that it takes forever to save. I want to be ableto whip it out do something and then close the lid to put it in a sleep/pause mode for a hour or two without draining the thing.
Nintendo needs to put a suspend to flash in the thing to allow a 3 second stop playing so I can return where I was hours or even a days later.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
If anyone out there is even looking at the Atari Retro Remix DS cart please oh please do not buy it. Even if it was 100% free to you it is not worth having. Their ports of the games suck horribly and are incomplete at best. Finally their "remix" version of the games are simply badly done graphics by supposed great artists that ruin playability and make the already crappy remakes worse.
I just wish there was a rottentomatoes.com for console and handheld games that would warn people away from the utter crap out there lurking for the unsuspecting buyer.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
It must be extrmely interesting, considering I never shared it, nor did I call either platform the minority. The GP accused that people who prefer games like Mario Kart to "better" racers or SSB to "better" fighters (Nintendo fans) as the minority. I just pointed out what you did, and you just misinterpreted my post.
"This is considered plagiarism."
Lets look at more up to date data(2006 yearly sales)
Ds 730,569
DS Lite 686,768
Total 1,417,337
PSP 583,059
http://www.gamegossip.com/content.php?type=charts
My Transformation Website
Kindle Books http://www.catprog.org/rev
Interactive CYOA http://www.catprog.org/st
Seriously, who over the age of twenty is going to buy a DS?
Seriously? I'm 34 and waiting for the DS Lite.
My brother is 30 and already has a DS (he will buy a DS Lite).
My fiance's brother (future brother-in-law) is 29 and has two DS's.
My step-mother is 62 and already has a DS.
My dad's PhD advisor (they've been friends for 30 years) has two DS's. Don't know how old he is, but I think he knows Methusela personally...
These are kids' toys we're talking about.
You mean in the same way that Lego bricks are kids toys? Yeah, I've got a pile of those too, and I'm waiting for the new Mindstorms kit to come out soon...
I think that your definition of kids toys could use some tweaking, but that's just my opinion. Toys for grownups don't have to cost a fortune...
Regards,
Ross
Did someone say pot?
They call me the wookie man, I guess that's what I am
People have different ways of amusing themselves, TV, books, parties, bars, etc. I am a 55 year old grandmother, and I love gaming. I have bookcases of games, some of them on 3 1/2 inch floppies from the 1980s. I had to quit the MMORPGs because i was calling in sick to work in order to play them. Right now, I an involved with Oblivion, and am considering buying a Nitendo system to play the RPGs. I'll make you a deal. I won't sneer at the way you have fun, if you don't sneer at the way I have fun.
I'm curious as to how you'd imagine that working... I mean, I can see a DS adpter working for the Revolution, (Wavy wand thing and all), but for the GC? Explain, please?
Didn't Nintendo Power break news of Katamari Damacy coming to the DS? Whatever happened with that?
If the apparent popularity and success of the DS is any indication of the :-)
success that Nintendo will have the Revolution, I think we all have something to look
forward to.
Ooo man the floppy drive is broken. No wait. The computer is just upside down.
Not if your arthritis keeps acting up you wont.
erm... what does this have to do with the Nintendo DS? This just says that many gamers are over the age of 20, not that they are buying Nintendo DS.
I disagree with the GP, just don't go spouting figures that have nothing to do with the argument at hand (and don't mod it insightful)
being vague is almost as cool as doing that other thing...
Here is another classic dual screen handheld from Nintendo: Game & Watch. Would be cool if they ported this to the new DS.
Jumpstart the tartan drive.
It would be similar to the Game Boy Player that sits underneath the GameCube to use the bottom connector. The hard part would be the touch screen and PDA functionality. You might have two virtual screens on the TV and a touch screen pad that connects to the player device to interact with.
Shoot man the 10 million mark was past a LONG time ago.. It's creeping up on the 15 million mark or higher now if I'm not mistaken.
Katamari was being considered for DS, but Namco quietly canceled it before even a mock-up screenshot was released.
I'm over 30 and I love my DS. I bought one for my 6 year old for Christmas and when I saw it had built in wireless, I bought two. Now she and I play head to head Mario Kart all the time. I've read that you can even play against someone over the internet but I haven't had a chance to try it.
blacked-out vans, contingency plans...
You mean a site like this? It's currently rating Retro Atari Clasics (which i presume is the one you mean) at 48%
This Space Intentionally Left Blank
You're hardly what I consider grandmother material
Only kids dream about being Mature.
I think he meant 'you r'
I think it's "Don't sweat the petty stuff, and dont pet the sweaty stuff"
Why when you can pick up a beautifully sculptured piece of expensive art, wait for 5 mins while you stare at a loading screen and then set it down with out playing a god damn thing at all.
The SCEI has always been massively profitable. Only the original xbox and 360 have been losing a great deal of money.
Hmmm... Pie...
Seriously, the bulk of the profits from ANY game console is in the licensing. When did the Gameboy, or for that matter the Gameboy Advance, really start to corner the portable market? When they fell below $100 per unit, of course. That's why Nintendo beat Sony, NEC, et al, in the handheld wars way back when. Both competitors were asking over $150 per unit, plain and simple. Most folks, both when buying a game system for themselves, or for their kids, find it hard (unless they're really hardcore) to pay more than $150 for a game system, and will wait for the price to drop after market saturation occurs.
Just because you can mod me down, doesn't mean you're right. Shoes for industry!
The feasability of that is questionable... As I said though, there's some hope come revolution; it's infinitely more feasable with that hardware.
Does anybody remember the Game & Watch gallery games for the Game Boy Color? Those games were classic Nintendo, and served me well on many a train journey... a remake for the DS would be awesome!
Chivalry, dude, chivalry. Suck it up and give your lady the pretty DS Lite, and keep your Paht DS until you save up to get a Lite of your own. Trust me.
Now that's the way I want to meet a girl! Rowrrr!
Just like a woman to write a post thinking she knows about playing games ;)
(just kidding)
In all serious, I'm 25, got a good job, and am drooling for the DS lite. The best games I've ever played were the 2d games of the 16-bit generation, which seems to be the sweet spot for the ds, and it's freaking portable. I'll buy one the first day I can. Now if only they would port nights to it and all of you mainstream geeks would have seen what you've been missing for the past ten years.
I am totally with you on the Quake port. I've even played through Quake on my laptop, using the touchpad and 320x240 resolution to get a feel for how it would play. It works very almost perfectly.
Add wireless online multiplayer, bots and some good DM levels and they could throw out the single-player game and I'd still buy it.
Starcraft just wouldn't work though, the screens don't have the resolution. I'm hoping for an original RTS.
Nintendo seems to have a policy against classic PC ports though (because there were SO MANY games on my ol' 386 that would be perfect for the system, yet the only one that's appeared is Worms, and a crappy modern version at that). Maybe it's a reaction to the PortStation Portable thing. So I don't think we'll get Quake, at least not until Nintendo relaxes that rule.
It'd be worth buying a DS lite for that one alone.
You must be new around here, young lady...
Oh, and if you thought MMORPG's were bad for your social life, tread veeeeerrrrry carefully with Oblivion!
You too eh? I assume they chose red, yellow, blue and black because they are all colours that sound different, but for some reason it just doesn't understand blue very well for me.
Are you in/from the US? I'm in the UK, so I assumed it was just an accent thing, but maybe the recognition needs tweaking.
Only game I can think of where you actively play a bad guy without it ever being made clear to you that you're evil (SPOILER ALERT) Everyone is happier in the new world yet you have to change it back to the one where most people are unhappy. You even kill one of your 'friend's' mother in front of him.
I think you meant 'ur'
Are you completely unable to think logically? I guess some people really need it spelled out for them...
If the average age of a gamer is 30, it's a safe bet the average age of Nintendo DS owners is somewhere around that same number. Maybe a little less given that handhelds do tend to be more popular with young children.
However, since the response was to some jackass, who still thinks gaming is for kids, it's good to debunk that myth with some solid facts.
In Soviet Russia, I ruled you
Hard as it is to say this, since I agree with your point, you're not making a safe assumption. The age of the average gamer doesn't necessarily tell you anything about the average age of a certian subset of gamers. It would be great to debunk the OP with some solid facts, but you haven't presented any.
Funny that you mention the ability to think logically. There's an entire branch of logic, called inductive reasoning, dedicated to this very thing. I suggest you study it.
"The age of the average gamer doesn't necessarily tell you anything about the average age of a certian subset of gamers."
You assume that platform specific subsets are wildly different from each other and have no or little correlation. All the evidence I've seen points otherwise, including the ESA study I linked to in the first place. It had avg age breakdown between PC and console gamers. PC gamers were slightly older, but only by a year or two, if I remember correctly.
The Japanese DS Lite launch coverage in the press also points to the same conclusion.
In Soviet Russia, I ruled you
US, (raised in Texas) I've tried different ways, trying to emphasize the 'oo' sound and speak louder and that didnt work. Then my girlfriend (raised in New Jersey) plays it once, wasn't that loud and got through it no problem. I've tried different volumes in my voice and have had better success with quieter voices, but it still doesn't work that well for me. I'd rather just do the word memorization rather than be upset its counting off for its voice problems.
"You assume that platform specific subsets are wildly different from each other and have no or little correlation."
I'm not assuming anything. You're the one assuming they aren't wildly different from eath other. While probably correct, this is exactly the claim the OP was making, so you're begging the question. I re-read the linked article, and still couldn't find any evidence to support this specific claim, and I don't think the difference between PC and console gamers qualifies. Perhaps the actual data of the study is available somewhere in finer detail?
My point in replying was not that you were wrong, but that your rudeness to your first reply was unjustified because you did, in fact, fail to support your argument with relevant data.
I've never played the regular FFT, only the "Advance" version. What did they take out that you liked so much?
Umm what kind of college students have massive amounts of time? As far as I've seen, most college students I know who have graduated have *way* more free time with a full time job than they had doing their degree.
ok, let's take a step back from the trolling here, and look at what is actually being said rather than randomly firing off insults.
/.ers use it". Your argument was pretty much saying "90% of internet users use IE". Completely unrelated.
;)
The first post on this thread was claiming that the DS is a "kids' toy" and that "[no one] over the age of 20 is going to buy a DS"
your rebuke said that "Average age of a gamer is 30. 19% of gamers are over the age of 50."
NEWSFLASH! This doesn't refute anything the original poster said. They were talking about the DS being a kids system. The entire POINT of what he is saying is that even though there is an active community of gamers that are above 20, none of them are buying a Nintendo DS. Your argument that "it's a safe bet the average age of Nintendo DS owners is somewhere around that same number" is NOT refuting what the original poster said, in fact it's just completely ignoring his entire point in the first place.
You cannot refute an argument by ignoring it, you have to refute an argument by giving evidence against it. Just because the average gamer age is 30 doesn't mean the average age of a Nintendo DS user or a Mattel's My First Gaming Console user is going to be the same age. If you provide some data to back up your claim that DS users are the same age then that is a reasonable argument (and I'm sure you could find it somewhere, since I agree with you there). But what you did provide proved NOTHING
To put it in a way that you could understand easier: Let's say the poster said "IE sucks, barely any
"I guess some people really need it spelled out for them..."
Glad to be of assistance
being vague is almost as cool as doing that other thing...
Glad to see someone here has their head screwed on right.
I want to know what the moderators who keep upping this guy's arguments is smoking
being vague is almost as cool as doing that other thing...
"To put it in a way that you could understand easier: Let's say the poster said "IE sucks, barely any /.ers use it". Your argument was pretty much saying "90% of internet users use IE". Completely unrelated."
All studies, including the one I quoted, that I have read state gamers, in terms of their age, are a pretty uniform group. All studies, including the one I quoted, show the same trend: gamers are getting older.
If the original poster would've asked how many people over the age of 30 are buying a Nintendo DS, then it would've been a different issue, but since he said age 20, when all studies say gamers are WAY over 20 in avg. No matter how you look at it, there's going to be quite a few people over 20 buying that thing.
You can pretend like Nintendo DS buyers are demographically a completely different group, but that would be completely out of touch with reality.
In Soviet Russia, I ruled you
you're still not getting it are you?
the point the OP was making was exactly that the DS is catering to a different group. The study you quoted didn't have anything that refuted that claim. The point I am trying to make isn't that he is not out of touch with reality (because I believe he is), it is that what you quoted didn't refute his claim at all
being vague is almost as cool as doing that other thing...
Actually, most of the next-gen consoles have already come out. Both the DS and PSP are out. The Xbox 360 is already out. There is absolutely no reason for the sales to keep declining like they have.
People who say, "It is the end of a transition cycle so sales should be down" really don't know what they are talking about. In Japan, the number of gamers has been steadily shrinking from ten years ago (and is only being reversed now due to the DS... hmm...). In North America, this trend has begun only a few years ago. NPD sales have shown a decline in overall revenue in the past few years except in 2005 due to more expensive hardware (hello PSP, DS, and Xbox 360!) And even then, software isn't moving as it should. PSP software is in the toilet. Games like Gran Turismo 4 are selling less than Gran Turismo 3. Even mighty Final Fantasy 12 got outsold by Animal Crossing WW in Japan. The #2 software publisher (first is EA) and console maker, Nintendo, has been very vocal about the decline the industry is headed in and why the company is taking such massive risks to 'revitalize' gaming. While we have our cute little opinions, Nintendo, who has been in this industry the longest, is banking billions that this is true. I would examine the situation much more carefully before using the 'console cycle means low sales'.
One thing people never mention when they say 'low sales is due to the console cycle' is, out of the five years, WHICH year is this? Is it the last year? We are in that last year now. Is it the year before? The year before that? Do you honestly believe that two or three years of decline is the same as a console cycle? If so, then we have been in a LONG console cycle!
Low sales due to console cycle transition? I think not. This is a myth that needs to die.