Slashdot Mirror
Ten DS Games That Should Be Made
marcellizot writes "Even though the DS is already blessed with a large and varied library of great titles, its hard not to wish for the games that should be, and the games that probably will never be. Nintendo's little white pandora's box of quirky interfaces seems destined to forever remain pregnant with possibility, no matter how creative the developers get. To vent their desires, Pocket Gamer has assembled a canon of forgotten gaming heroes and oddball fancies that would make a good fit for Nintendo's dual-screened play thing."
GoldenEye DS Theyre refering to the N64 Goldeneye made by rare. Since Microsoft bought rare butchered perfect dark. EA got the 007 contracts. The best we can hope for is a Timesplitters on DS. But it would be almost as good...
Libertarian Leaning Political Discussion Forum.
The stylus and control pad are enough to play Starcraft on it. The second screen might not be all that useful, so they can just use it to track scores or units or research progress or whatever else you don't need to click on. With the DS letting you play anyone in the world via WiFi and the controls to make it work, Starcraft can experience a resurrection as a handheld game.
I know I'd buy it.
I like basketball!!1!
I want a simple RTS that I can play with my friends locally.
One screen a map, the other for unit/building management. Toggle the screens to switch between movement and management.
Or just port Starcaft as someone already mentioned.
Forget porting Starcraft, port Warcraft 3!
Starcraft was great for its time, but Warcraft 3 is great now. If the DS can run that is an other story...
Help! I've fallen in a karma hole and I can't get up!
This is the one game that would make me buy a DS. Probably based on Civ 2 (my sentimental favorite). Civ 4 is slightly better, but would probably be too complex for the DS.
Taking guns away from the 99% gives the 1% 100% of the power.
sim city, sim farm, sim ants -- i'd play any of the old sim games on ds and have fun with it.
sim ants would be really cool as you could have below ground and above ground on each screen. just get rid of that little hole that always runs to the enemy ants colony. it made the game too easy but i just couldn't resist using it.
It's hard to believe that's how Micronians are made. Why don't we see it right now by having you both kiss one another?
Personally I'd like to know why so few SNES games are getting ports. Donkey Kong Country (1-3) were fantastic games and really could do with a nice port.
But the thing I REALLY want is Lemmings. I don't care if Sony got it, the DS screams for Lemmings. I honestly can't think of a single game better suited to a touch screen.
I like muppets.
It's the only game I've ever played on all GameBoy platforms
Nothing in the Civ4 ruleset would be too complex to implement on the DS. The Civ4 GRAPHICS engine, however, would be excessive. Civ 3 and Civ 4 were great rulesets grafted onto the most unbelievable graphical bloat ever foisted upon the gameplaying public.
Alpha Centauri's isometric three-dimensionality had a definite impact on gameplay: sea levels changed, artillery bombardment effectiveness varied with the difference in elevation, moisture & rainfall patterns differed on windward and leeward slopes of mountainsides, &c. Civ 3 and Civ 4 had prettier graphics, but none of their 3D graphics made any difference to the ruleset, which could have been quickly and easily implmented with sprites and tiles.
If Sid Meier were to bring me the Civ 4 ruleset with sprites and tiles on the DS, I would play the DS version to the exclusion of the PC version , because it would mean a return to the real roots of the Civ games and a turn away from useless bling and graphical bloat.
Sadly, with the way game development seems to be headed, I doubt I'll see Civ on the DS. I'll break down and get a DS, finally, when SimCity releases.
Custer's Revenge.
As with the Wii, I believe that the interface offered by the DS would be great for point-and-click games like Myst. The graphics will have to be downgraded a bit for the system (probably retooled completely to make good use of both screens), but it would offer simple, relaxing game play. This would be most interesting to the "non-gamer" crowd Nintendo is trying (apparently successfully) to lure in. No violence, no stress, just exploration, puzzle solving, and some nice visuals.
I know that games like this would interest my parents much more than, say, Mario Kart or even Nintendogs.
Can someone recap the list? Site blocked by work filter =/
Oh my god, how much would I love Monkey Island on DS. I've got to say, the old Lucas Arts games were amazing. Even one of the newer-ish ones was good (Grim Fandango), although Monkey Island 4 wasn't as good. I really hope LucasArts brings Monkey Island to DS, but they seem to have turned their backs on adventure gaming for now, although maybe something like Monkey Island would appeal to casual gamers, something the DS appeals to aswell.
Syndicate and Ports of Call would also be nice on the DS. It seems that some companies has picked up on this. With Settlers, Sim City and Theme Park coming. And why not, I imagine it must be pretty cheap with all of the art already made just needing a bit of tweaking.
:). The smaller screens makes the low res graphics nicer in my opinion. And having the stylus and touch screen you can have mouse and keyboard (on screen) functionality. It's really like having an instant on, old pc in your pocket.
That's also what appeals to me about homebrew on the DS. It's kinda like being back in the early 90's. Only this time I actually know how to program
We're a greedy lot here at Pocket Gamer. Even though the DS is already blessed with a large and varied library of great titles, we can't help but wish our lunchbreaks away over the games that should be, and the games that probably will never be.
To vent our desires, we've assembled a canon of forgotten gaming heroes and oddball fancies that make a good fit for Nintendo's dual-screened play thing. Would it help if we said "Please!"?
10 games we'd love to play on DS
We want: A LucasArts adventure game collection
Before consoles and PCs got all hung up on 3D and LucasArts got all hung up on churning out legions of below average playable adverts for the Star Wars cash cow, LucasFilm Games (as it was known back then) carved out a reputation for quality point-and-click adventure games driven by its S.C.U.M.M. engine (that's Script Creation Utility, fact fans). This scripting tool yielded a plethora of adventure romps that would fit the DS's stylus like a glove. We would love to see an adventure game bumper cart celebrating the genre including Maniac Mansion, LOOM, Sam and Max Hit The Road, Full Throttle and, of course, The Secret of Monkey Island. Yes, you can get them on homebrew, but they really need to be tweaked for the smaller screen.
We demand: Okami DS
If there is one thing that the DS handles deftly, it's cell shading. Whilst the PS2 version of Okami's beautiful pastel depth may be out of the DS's reach, the scope its stylus would provide for manipulating the washed out dreamscape of Okami is obvious. A DS version with less emphasis on action and more of a focus on Okami's innovative celestial brush and puzzle sections would tick all of the right boxes for the casual RPG fan.
Give us: Pilot Wings DS
The game that helped to launch the N64 (and less famously the SNES) screams First-party Nintendo Smash from every pixel. And so where better to grant Pilot Wings a third flight than on what is arguably Nintendo's most Nintendo-ish console to date? Simulating wind to billow a paraglider's parafoil by blowing into the mic would be a great addition, as would the option to plot custom courses through the stages with the stylus (exchangeable via wi-fi, naturally).
Still want: Sketch Fighter DS
We've already made some noise about how much we would like Ambrosia's casual gaming gem to grace the DS, but this list would not be complete without a repeat shout in the hope that the right people might be listening. With its simple blasting action, its signature visual style and the option to draw your own multiplayer battle zones, one could be forgiven for thinking that this game was designed specifically for the DS. Ambrosia, if you are out there...
How about: A board game compendium for big kids?
The DS already has a fantastic card and board game collection in 42 All-Time Classics. But on the last day of school term, it was always the kids who brought in Operation and Mouse Trap that drew the most attention, whilst the boffins that tried to encourage a round of chess and checkers were left to sit in the corner discussing The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe. We want a big kid's version of 42 All-Time Classics featuring the likes of Operation, Jenga (wi-fi possibilities), Mouse Trap, Kerplunk and any other game where the board is the least important part of the apparatus.
Please: Mario Paint DS
Mario Paint was a surprise hit for the SNES during Nintendo's 'Let's brand all of our first-party titles with Mario' phase, and paved the way for the ultra rare 64DD series entitled simply Mario Artist. These games enabled you to create images and 3D models, and even offered the option to share artwork via an online communication kit. We've got a stylus and wi-fi now - come on Nintendo, need we say more? You know it makes sense!
Be crazy not to do: Marble Madness DS
This long lost arcade classic was also the first game to appear on the Atari System 1, and set the machine apart from its contemporaries as the apex predator console of its day. Ori
---
ECHELON is a government program to find words like bomb, jihad, plutonium, assassinate, and anarchy.
Black and White. I played this game again the other day and I realized how much I like how it was set up.
I can't believe nobody mentioned Diablo 2 yet. There are way too many people who still play that game for it to not do awesome on the DS. Battlenet via Nintendo WiFi would pretty much seal the deal. Sure it would need a few UI tweaks, but otherwise it's pretty much a straight port.
Frag 'em all...
It seems that every Tetris game released since 2001 is broken by design. For instance, Tetris DS inherits its infinite spin and T-spin triple rules from Tetris Worlds.
LOCKJAW, on the other hand, is exactly as broken as you want it to be.
Transport Tycoon would make an excellent DS port. The graphics of the era translate nicely to the DS screen resolution. Plus, the game just screams for the stylus input. With the various open-source TT project in existence, perhaps we'll see a homebrew version one of these days.
As well as starcraft, and warcraft 1,2, or 3. Blizzard's addictive games + the DS would be great.
I have a 1Gig AthlonMP 2800+ system with an old Radeon 9800 card and the game is quite playable. You can't use super-high graphic detail, and might have to choose your world size so that it fits in your available RAM, but it can be done!
I turn the graphics quality way down, but it is cool to zoom into your city and see all the things you built, etc..
Blar.
Where is this title? With WiFi, this is the perfect title for the DS system. Nobody ever talks about it though, and Nintendo hasn't mde a peep about it. Is this on the slate for Christmas 2009 I hope?
moox. for a new generation.
The touch screen would be great for controlling a game like this, and the DS's limited 3D capabilities would be plenty for showing 3D aircraft fuselages in flight. (Or hand painting your aircraft livery!) Of course, it would need to be several orders of magnitude more complicated than the SNES one to stand up nowadays. (ie. way more airports, aircraft types, seating config/quality customization, fare customization)
What sound do people on rollercoasters make? Hint: it's not Xbox 360.
Is Rocket Jockey.
Hey, if I had EV, Oolite, anything like that on my DS it would be used for a lot more than just my alarm clock. I'm just sayin' :P
- December
- December
- December
- December
- December
- December
- December
- December
- December
- December
- November *
- December
* Only the last weekIt's March, FFS. Shouldn't we only get this top-ten-tripe around year end?
At the bottom of the
I had huge hopes for "Hotel Dusk: Room 251", a graphic novel in game form. It is actually a pretty good game if you enjoy a decent story. The interesting, interactive puzzles mixed in here and there help set off the story.
But I can't help but wonder how mind blowingly great it could have been had the creators hired a real, honest to God writer, like Stephen King, or Neil Gaiman, etc... Damn that would be cool. Anyhow, thats my "most wanted"...
It was even mentioned on Slashdot!
Knight Lore, Ant Attack. These games would all work fine on the DS.
Doesn't it make you feel good to know that our freedoms are protected by politicans, lawyers and journalists.
But aside from that, what I hope they wind up doing is finding a way to take the old-school games that you download onto your Wii, and put them on your DS. Some attachment to the Wii that loads them onto a cartridge for the DS or something. Then you'd have whatever size library they have for the Wii, available portably. And I'm sure it would inspire a lot of cross-buying, more so than the sad GBA/GC connections worked into a few games (actually, I'd rather NOT have away of contacting Tingle, thank you very much!).
Warning: Apple/Nintendo fangirl. Likes her electronics cute & cuddly. May be rabid.
Perfect Dark DS
A man chooses, a slave obeys - Andrew Ryan.
Yes, Minesweeper.
And not the silly Palm version where your first guess can be a mine and you lose right away - grr. Imagine competetive Minesweeper trying to finish it first out of 16 people. Finally a multi-player game where I can rule!
Also, how about 2 or more player SpaceWar with all the great options like negative gravity?
And - how about re-doing a version of Boggle that has multi-player single card play? Expecting me to buy several carts to play against a real person instead of a computer opponent that can plow through 1000s of anagrams per second was lame.
Magic the Gathering with built in rules would be fun too - leave out cards that are hard to deal with.
A simpler card game would be double or multi-player Solitaire, where everyone can play cards on any Ace-Pile and tries to get all cards out first. Probably only enough screen space for 4 players. Is there a Bridge game yet for the DS?
A cartridge with a cable that went to the CAN plug of your car to get/change codes would be cool. This could, for example, show RPMs or instantaneous mileage on cars where that is not shown on the dashboard. Maybe the CAN could be plugged into in wifi thing that communicated with the DS instead of a cable.
Also, all future games should have a weird combination of buttons that will make the bottom screen seem like a telephone keypad and the top like a SMS receiver or something so you can pretend the DS is just a cell phone.
Those games would be perfect for the DS, there is one thing, while having lots or rpgs on the DS all of them are lousy linear out of the box jrpgs none of them any good. The machine is heavily in need for a decent rpg, also Star Control 2 would be a match made in heaven.
But for the Wii. The Wii Mote could be the perfect interface for MM:)
See my blog http://ilovecookes.blogspot.com/ for light hearted technical information.
Check out civfanatics.com. There is no uber-tuning guide, but there are lots of people making the game work on low-spec machines.
Blar.
The original Populous would be perfect for the DS!
My Journal
Lemmings
Elite/Frontier
Civilization
Colonization
Deluxe Paint or Personal Paint
Octamed Soundstudio
And rename the DS to Amiga Pocket
The screen is 256x192 - that's just not enough for starcraft even if the entire rest of the GUI was on the second screen. You can't see enough action to control a battle. You also can't reduce the resolution - you couldn't see a burrowed zerg if the sprite was smaller.
An RTS is probably possible and something more limited (maybe similar to Defcon) would definitely work, but a straight port of starcraft won't be any good. A starcraft-styled game is the closest we could expect.
Cannon Fodder
a Command & Conquer game would be awesome!
Sim City!
Zuma!
Civilization!