Game Freaks 365's Nintendo DS Review Guide
By Kyle W. Bell
Smashwords Edition 6 - May 2011
(Originally Published April 2010)
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Copyright © Kyle Bell 2010
License Notes:
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
Cover design by Angel Cortes cortesangel@live.com
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Table of Contents
Reviews (Alphabetically Ordered)
Introduction
Picking good games can be hard. Avoiding duds can be even more difficult. That's why smart consumers turn to experts on the subject. Game Freaks 365 was founded to help people choose games that are worth their hard-earned dollar and bypass games that are better suited for the trash can. Writing about video games is our passion. This guide aims to help the smart consumer pick the best games that the Nintendo DS has to offer.
Over 150 reviews from some of the finest games on the Nintendo DS are included in Game Freaks 365's Nintendo DS Review Guide. Popular titles include Advance Wars: Days of Ruin, Animal Crossing: Wild World, Brain Age, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Mobilized, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars, Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Mario Kart DS, Metroid Prime: Hunters, New Super Mario Bros., Nintendogs, Plants vs. Zombies, Pokemon Black & White, Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, and many more!
So what are you waiting for? Get reading!
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Publisher: Atlus
Release Date: April 21, 2009
Available On: Nintendo DS
There are a lot of games that promise the world and do not deliver. Atlus' latest game doesn't promise the world, but it does have one hundred and one games in a single package for only $20. Does it deliver?
101-in-1 is basically a compilation of 101 mini-games. Okay, there is nothing new with that. We have seen this a hundred and one times before. WarioWare is the one that really got these types of games popular on handhelds. Now they seem to be everywhere. Before you click the Back button on your browser, hear me out.
For a handheld title the concept makes sense. You can pick up and play quick and simple games while you are on the train, in the car or waiting for someone at a coffee shop. In many ways this type of game is the ideal handheld title. The downside is that developers often get lazy by releasing a bunch of crappy mini-games that are not worth playing.
Basically you have a wide variety of touch-screen focused mini-games to choose from. Unlike games like WarioWare, 101-in-1 is a little longer than the three second “micro-games” in that title. Most of these have a time limit of a minute, while others end when you fail to complete an objective. It isn't terribly complex, but that's the point.
While some of the 101 mini-games definitely are stinkers, there are a number of good games to choose from as well. A lot of them are similar (i.e. touching something, gliding an object, moving left and right). There are some stand-out games though. Basketball is quite enjoyable although difficult and they have a nice Snakes rip off. There is even a Sudoku if that is your thing. Most of these games will randomly generate. This does have a downside as sometimes the games appear impossible to beat.
If you are bored and are looking for a cheap, quick and fun alternative to those longer Nintendo DS games, 101-in-1 is a good solution. This isn't exactly the type of game that Atlus is known for. They mostly focus on the Japanese RPG market with games like Shin Megami. Maybe this is a trend towards diversification. Either way, there is a diverse collection of mini-games to be played here. If you really need to satisfy your mini-game craving, 101-in-1 Explosive Megamix is a cheap alternative to other games out there.
Graphics: 6
Sound: 4
Gameplay: 7
Creativity: 5
Replay Value/Game Length: 6
Final: 6 out of 10
Written by Kyle
Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: January 21, 2008
Available On: Nintendo DS
Intelligent Systems' Advance Wars series must have seriously confused that "love and war" saying. Previously the cute, harmless commanding officers (COs) and bright, colorful units and levels directly contrasted the ideas behind capturing cities, building armies, and killing enemies. Three iterations of Advance Wars ravaged many a handheld screen for years, but things have changed. The Orange Star, Blue Moon, Yellow Comet, and Green Earth forces are nowhere to be seen. Gone are the Andys and Jakes of Advance Wars past; their cute stories and simple relationships are never to be seen again.
Days of Ruin, the latest chapter, takes things into darker and less-cheery territories than its predecessors. The world has been reduced to rubble, rogue armies terrorize the land, and order is compromised—only a few groups fight to restore balance and peace. One of these groups, "Brenner's Wolves", stumbles upon a wandering survivor named Will. Will and Co. run along a few more survivors on their tour of the land, and the story goes hand-in-hand with their findings along the way. The survivors, as one would guess, are restless and generally pretty annoying. If the constant war and fear of terror wasn't enough, the survivors also constantly fear the "Green Thumb" virus, a disease that essentially turns its victims into walking, talking, suffering, and dying flower patches. It is clear in every cut-scene that the spirit of the past three games has been laid to waste.
Some of you out there might be thinking, "Alright, this is what I'm talking about! I love my gruesome, ruthless war stories about anime characters being bombed, killed, and tortured by a viral disease." I really did not dig the change, and most certainly did not expect this sort of thing from a Nintendo franchise. A traditional, successful shift in style from light-to-dark would be reminiscent of Ocarina of Time to Twilight Princess, not Dual Strike to Days of Ruin. I felt like everything was far too cryptic. At a point that I later realized was exactly halfway through the game, I stopped watching cut-scenes. I stopped caring about the story, couldn't stand the hokey anime-style dialog, and didn't want to stomach more depressing overtones.
To clarify, I was not literally upset about Andy or Jake being gone. Video game dialog could use a little less spunk and cheese. By a little, I mean a lot. The story is not vital to Advance Wars, so the mood change fortunately doesn't obliterate the merits of an otherwise great strategy game. However, a few other factors still work against Days of Ruin. Hardcore fans of the franchise will either love the game for it being a lot more of the same or similar fun, or hate it for removing a lot of familiar modes and units.
To start, the War Room is gone. There is not a hard campaign. You cannot switch between COs or carry out Dual Strikes. A lot of units have been dropped out of the war: say goodbye to neo tanks, mega tanks, and stealth planes. There are a few others missing as well. Many would consider Days of Ruin to be a huge step backward from Dual Strike, which was easily the beefiest Advance Wars game in the series. That would be an incorrect assumption.
Although Days of Ruin does not feature the enormous quantity of stuff, I think it balances out the units and maps incredibly well. First of all, the new terrain types create all kinds of obstructions that have to be strategically thought about: thinking about movement costs is now incredibly important, as well as judging (and checking) enemy location and movement/attack radius. Second, the new units are fairly placed and work brilliantly in the game. The new anti-tank unit is the only indirect attack unit that can counter-attack: though you cannot drive it next to a tank and start shooting, it won't be a sitting duck when pesky infantry or recon units come along to attack. Speaking of infantry, bike units are able to traverse longer distances and capture cities like infantry units. Their only additional strategic element lies in their movement type, which is different than regular units. Since they have tires, they cannot cross certain kinds of terrain as easily and can't even approach mountains. Other new units include the seaplane (which can attack any unit), the gunboat (a disposable, single-attack naval unit), and the flare (useful for the scarce Fog of War scenarios), among a few others.
Mission objectives are generally laid out very well and there are a decent amount of "puzzle maps", where the objective isn't to destroy everything as much as it is to purely outsmart your enemy. I enjoyed these maps but they involved a lot of trial and error, so practice patience. Maps where brute force was essential were very entertaining. A lot of times I would beef up my army and simply flood the enemy territory until I blocked off their route to their headquarters or factories. Then I had time to capture the territories and win the fight. Creating effective choke points and roadblocks are keys to mastering Advance Wars, and Days of Ruin often gives you the opportunity to do so.
Unfortunately there are a few flaws that are not so subjective to experience or familiarity with Advance Wars. First of all, the matured graphics are not colorful or cheery. In fact, they are often discolored and bland. The bright green plains and blue oceans of the past have been starved and polluted to shades of purplish brown and murky green. The animated attack sequences are uglier than they were in the first Advance Wars; strangely the detailed 2D sprites and backgrounds from before have been replaced with hideous, blurry images. The smoke and fire effects are even uglier than before. What is the deal?
Finally, as far as I am concerned, getting rid of a lot of features for the "sake" of adding Wi-Fi online play is a stupid idea. Advance Wars makes a fantastic multiplayer experience, do not get me wrong, and being able to play with a huge number of custom maps is always a treat, but I for one have spent about 99% of my personal experience with Advance Wars playing single-player maps, and having the dozens and dozens of War Room maps and other features was a much better idea than adding Wi-Fi multiplayer. To clarify, there is nothing wrong with the multiplayer. It works well and even lets you use voice chat features.
All in all Advance Wars: Days of Ruin falls short of being as good as Dual Strike or even the first two Advance Wars games. Dual Strike, as I called it in 2005, was the best DS game of its time. In reflection I consider that accurate. Although in all technicalities I could and should view this as the worst Advance Wars to date, I actually consider it among its predecessors as I consider Metal Gear Solid 2 among the other MGS games: some black sheep fit well enough in the crowd to be acceptable.
Graphics: 6.5
Sound: 8
Gameplay: 9
Creativity: 7.5
Replay Value/Game Length: 8
Final: 8 out of 10
Written by Cliff
Advance Wars: Dual Strike
Developer: Intelligent Systems
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: August 24, 2005
Available On: Nintendo DS
The Advance Wars series is the best handheld strategy series to date. Using a simple interface but complex tactics, Advance Wars has always been a game that the hardest of hardcore or the newest of newbies could pick up and enjoy. Nintendo and Intelligent Systems have managed to bring all of the strategic action to the Nintendo DS in the best way possible, Advance Wars: Dual Strike.
Advance Wars was great, but Advance Wars 2: Black Hole Rising took everything and made it better. Similarly, Dual Strike is basically AW2 with a lot of new stuff and a continuing story. The Black Hole army was defeated but once again they're trying to recover and gain power. It's up to the Allied Nations of Orange Star, Blue Moon, Yellow Comet, and Green Earth to rise against the Black Hole forces and silence them once and for all. New Commanding Officers (COs) come into play and mix up the story, but the old protagonist Andy has been replaced by an annoying new guy named Jake. Jake wouldn't be so bad if he wasn't an Orange version of your typical suburban wannabe...but that's a different story.
The gameplay remains largely intact, with the same turn-based stuff we've all played and loved for four years. Each side gets a turn and the battle cycles around until a headquarters location is captured or all units of one side are destroyed. There are 25 units (which include six all-new units) at your disposal, ranging from infantry units to stealth planes. Using different types of terrain for transportation and defense, the goal is to finish each battle with as much success and as few casualties as possible. Every once in a while during the campaign, players are forced to complete missions within a certain number of days or before a missile explodes overhead. These different parameters require for near-perfect strategizing, so progression through the game takes a lot of skill. Capturing different properties is as vital as ever, especially when you factor one of the new properties. Also, using COs and their CO Powers effectively makes things much easier or harder, depending on your skill. As I said, there are several new COs and getting used to their different strengths and weaknesses is going to take a lot of practice.
Some big things that really change the gameplay are the introduction of dual-screen combat as well as tag-team battles with multiple COs. Sometimes it's up to you to win the war on two fronts and defeat an enemy CO while also fighting a completely separate battle at the same time. These matches require a lot of attention and detail because they're essentially two battles in one. Choosing the proper CO for each battle is only the start, because victory or defeat can make or break the whole battle. Fortunately you can control both COs if you wish, but there's an option for AI-controlled COs for newer players. I found myself controlling the other CO, because the AI-controlled COs usually went and got themselves killed pretty quickly.
The tag-team battles make up the second half of the game, where you fight a normal battle with two COs. You can switch between the two at any time and take advantage of their capabilities, which makes things interesting. For example, series veteran Max has always been good with tanks but is terrible with indirect units like Rockets and Artillery. If I were getting pounded away by enemy Artillery, I'd probably want to switch Max for another CO so I could counter the enemy without having to get too close. However, if the enemy decided to change its plan and send tanks after me, Max's superior firepower would take care of them with ease. Furthermore, the multiple COs can now unleash what is called a Dual Strike (hence the subtitle in the game's name), where both COs use their CO Powers and attack in the same round. Being attacked with a Dual Strike can ruin an entire battle, but hitting your foes with a Dual Strike gives a much higher chance of winning.
In addition to a 28-mission campaign, there are several other options that deserve credit. Nintendo provides an excellent multiplayer option, allowing up to eight players to wage war using only one cartridge. Also, the War Room mode from the previous games makes a return. New gameplay modes include Survival and Combat. In Survival mode, you are given limited time, funds, or turns and you must finish the battle before that limit is reached. Combat mode is interesting to say the least. It's basically a real-time game where players drive around manually and shoot with the A button. Capturing buildings and destroying units is as simple as before, but you don't take turns doing it. It's not a big enough experience to call a full game, but if anything, it might be interesting to call it a very basic handheld preview of the GameCube's upcoming Battalion Wars.
Something that surprised me was the fact that Dual Strike has good music. Nintendo has never been known to develop the best MIDI handheld tunes, but Advance Wars sounds pretty good. Finally I can play a Nintendo game without turning the music off. The sound effects pack a punch for such a small game, as well. In the graphical department Advance Wars excels with updated graphics from the previous games in the series. The map itself looks similar, but the archaic structures now look a little more modern with a slightly three-dimensional look. The actual cut-scenes through which battles are shown look much better than before. The animation is cleaner, the color is brighter, and the explosions look much fierier.
I'm just going to come out blunt in conclusion: I love this game. Nintendo and Intelligent Systems have served up three straight strategic masterpieces. The Advance Wars series has always been good, and fans of strategy or the AW series should definitely buy Dual Strike. It's easily the best DS game, and I might go out on a limb to say that it's my favorite strategy game. Advance Wars rocks.
Graphics: 8
Sound: 9
Gameplay: 9
Creativity: 8
Replay Value/Game Length: 10
Final: 9.3 out of 10
Written by Cliff
Animal Crossing: Wild World
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: December 9, 2005
Available On: Nintendo DS
Nintendo changed the world with franchises like Mario Bros., Zelda, Metroid and Star Fox. They all but created the platform genre, they led the way for 3D graphics on home consoles, and they established a thriving fan base that remains active today. Among these accomplishments are several quirky games that they have published that do not exactly fit into the caliber of revolutionary as the aforementioned. Kirby, Advance Wars, WarioWare, Pikmin and the game that I am reviewing, Animal Crossing, all fall into a sub-category of less-important franchises that in themselves have not made Nintendo what they are, but combined with the rest of the library make an impression of their own.
Animal Crossing: Wild World is the Nintendo DS follow-up to the surprisingly successful 2002 GameCube game, Animal Crossing. In many ways, it should not surprise us. After all, the formula seems to be based around the main component of the wildly successful game from Electronic Arts, The Sims. You control a character, yes, but you don't experience the micro-management that is involved in The Sims series. Instead, you directly control your character and are responsible for achieving nothing really. You do not have to satisfy any needs. There is no eating, emptying your bladder, or sleeping. You directly control your character's actions to do whatever you want. If you want to be a couch potato, fine. It is also fine to do any array of activities from fishing, catching bugs, socializing with your (sometimes) friendly neighbors, shopping, designing clothes/flags/umbrellas/hats, exploring the stars, collecting items for the local museum, planting. There are really an endless number of things for you to do.
That said, there are certain restrictions and limitations. You start out broke, dirt poor in a taxi cab, moving into a new town with strangers that you don't know. Tom Nook, the shop owner, provides you with a house. In return though, you have to pay off your house with bells and run errands for him for a short time. You can pay off your mortgage by selling items such as fruit (which you collect from trees), fish, shells, bugs, and furniture, among other things like clothes.
The point of shopping in Tom Nook's shop is simple: fill your house. You can do this by shopping or by obtaining them as rewards/gifts. Aside from that, you shop to pay off bills. If that does not make sense to you, ask yourself how if your goal is to clear a driveway of snow, you do that without a shovel. If you want to collect bugs or fish, you are going to need a net or a fishing rod. Harvesting fruit requires just shaking the tree, so no equipment is necessary and neither is there for collecting sea shells. There are instances where you can find buried items throughout the village, which require a shovel.
Some of the more memorable parts of the game come from events that take place in the world. Nintendo did a fantastic job, as they did in the original, of incorporating major events and creating their own. The famed fishing tournament returns with big fanfare as does the house-rating committee. The museum is larger with more impressive displays. The fishing tanks are larger, plus there are two new additions: the cafe where you can get coffee, and the observatory, where you can stargaze and create your own constellations.
As far as I know, NES games do not return in this game and if they are, they are very well hidden. This is an unfortunate omission, considering some people bought the original based on the NES games alone. Consider the missed opportunity that Nintendo had with this. It would have been awesome to use the online component with Wild World to visit a friend's village, enter their house and play multi-player NES games with friends. Wi-Fi connected multi-player NES games on the Nintendo DS. The possibility was there and unfortunately was not pursued.
Speaking of Wi-Fi, the limitations of Wild World's Nintendo Wi-Fi capabilities are disappointing. I imagined a world where players would interact online without the restrictions that Nintendo put as safeguards from playing with people you do not know. That is the point of online play: you want to play with people you don't know. If you have to play with friends, what's the point? Why not just play with them in LAN play? I saw a golden opportunity here where a vast world, broken up into different villages. In my imaginary Animal Crossing, they could vote for a mayor, participate in events, etc.
Pretty much you are restricted to playing with people online that you know. Obtain their friend code (and yours), enter it and allow that person into your village by opening the gate. They will need your friend code, they'll visit your village and you can interact with them. Basically the only purpose of this is to explore a new town for its fruit, fish and shopping items. You can also write letters to your friend, but will have to do so in the post office of the town from which your friend lives. Honestly, this system is more of a hassle than what it is worth.
Even with the disappointments of online play and the lack of NES games, Animal Crossing: Wild World retains enough charm from the original and innovations of its own just enough for me to suggest its purchase. It's a cute game that families will love. Up to four characters are allowed in your village on one cartridge, enough for a family of four. They even pay off the same mortgage, living in the same house. Wild World will be a forgettable release once the real upgrade in the franchise occurs with Animal Crossing Revolution, but until then, this is a great title to play in small bursts on the go.
Graphics: 9
Sound: 8
Gameplay: 8.5
Creativity: 9
Replay Value/Game Length: 10
Final: 8.9 out of 10
Written by Kyle
Asphalt Urban GT
Developer: Gameloft
Publisher: Ubisoft
Release Date: November 21, 2004
Available On: N-Gage & Nintendo DS
When Gameloft released Ghost Recon for the N-Gage, I knew they were a talented development studio. Asphalt Urban GT for the N-Gage reaffirmed this belief. Now, however, with the release of the DS version, I have doubts about their commitment to having the highest quality product. Don't get me wrong, this is not some crap racer that you would find on most handhelds. Asphalt Urban GT is a solid street racer, with slick visuals, decent controls, and a nice variety of cars. It does have some faults that I can't forgive though, as this is their second chance, with the release of the Nintendo DS, to fix their mistakes.
Instead of building an entirely new game, taking advantage of the DS' superior hardware, it was decided that they port, and slightly enhance, the N-Gage version of the game. Being that I liked the N-Gage version, I will give it some slack, it is still a good game. It is just not what you would expect from the Nintendo DS. Asphalt nearly pushed the N-Gage to its limits (Colin McRae did for sure). You do not get that feeling with the DS version of Asphalt.
As I said, the DS was not specifically in mind when development for the DS version started. They ported the already-announced N-Gage version to the DS, adding a bottom-screen map, cleaner visuals, and not much else. Regardless, this is still probably the best looking DS launch title, next to Super Mario 64 DS. The cars look massive compared to their N-Gage brother. There is still fogging, and collision detection is still a serious issue in the game, that has not been tweaked.
Asphalt has a larger assortment of game options than a candy store has of chocolate. Maybe not, but there are a large number of options. You have Instant Play, Road Challenge, Free Race, Time Attack, Cop Chase, Championship, and Multiplayer. Some of these modes vary a large degree, but most are fairly similar. For instance, Instant Play is exactly what the title says. It allows you to play a game without going through any menus. Your car, track, etc. is all selected for you. Free race allows you to select your vehicle category, vehicle color, and track.
The bulk of your game will be played in two modes: Road Challenge and Championship. In Road Challenge, you are given a vehicle type that you need to master, which in-turn will unlock another vehicle type. You will be allowed to race only as that type, against that type, in a set of four races. You need to place in the top 3 to continue to the next race in the series of four.
Meanwhile, Championship is the epicenter of play. Here is where most of your time will be spent playing the game, more than likely. By winning tournaments, you can either earn money or unlock other races. You do this by falling in the top 3 places. Placing first would unlock a new race, along with award you with some cash. The cash can be used to buy new vehicles, which are required to participate in the various tournaments. The Tournament mode is separate from the Arcade mode, where all the other game modes, highlighted above, are located.
One of the more original ideas in the game was Cop Chase. In this, you drive a police car, speeding past civilians, while chasing down targeted speeders. You will have to get them in your radar zone, which is a few yards behind their vehicle. Once the red box turns red, you need to remain behind their car for three seconds, to record their speed. Once the speed is recorded, you move on to the next car. This mode is also available for multi-player.
The race for best racer on the DS has begun. So far, Asphalt GT is leading the pack, but the group only consists of two games: Asphalt and Namco's Ridge Racer. Perhaps when Need for Speed Underground is released for the DS, we will have a game that takes full advantage of the hardware capabilities, but until then, if you are the least bit of a racer fan, and do not own the N-Gage version, I suggest giving Asphalt a spin.
Graphics: 8
Sound: 7
Gameplay: 8
Creativity: 6
Replay Value/Game Length: 9
Final: 7.6 out of 10
Written by Kyle
ATV: Quad Frenzy
Developer: Skyworks Technologies
Publisher: Majesco
Release Date: November 22, 2005
Available On: Nintendo DS
Racing games anymore come in all shapes and sizes. From full-blown simulation racing such as Gran Turismo to a more arcade feel like Need for Speed and even futuristic F-Zero and kart-racing Mario Kart, the entire gamut of possibilities within the genre has been more than covered. All-terrain vehicles are no exception, with many racing games having been created involving them. Quad Frenzy, however, is the first such game on the DS. Is it worth playing? Read on.
Quad Frenzy may have been a budget game, but even for a budget game, the graphics in this game look a bit on the basic side. A higher level of realism could have been realized if more time had been put into them, but instead the graphics seem to come across as somewhat of an afterthought. They're not horribly pathetic though, and they do get the job done sufficiently. The sound effects are typical ATV-racer fare, and the music is nice but unobtrusive. Still, that's all one can reasonably expect from a budget title, so I have no major complaints in the sound department.
So far as the gameplay goes, this is where everything starts to break down. Quad Frenzy boasts one of the weirdest menu systems I have ever seen, with A advancing through the menus and B going backward. It does not sound so bad until I mention that the menus loop when you get to an end. When you get to the screen right before the race starts, you don't hit A to advance to the race, but you hit start to do so, so you'll have to remember that. Still, that isn't a big deal, and you'll get used to it over time.
Once you finally do get to a race, don't expect this game to be as easy as most. This is not a racing game where you can just hold down the accelerate button the whole time. There are sharp turns, and the controls seem a bit oversensitive in the fact that you can turn too far in a direction far too easily, especially at high speeds. As a result, you'll often need to slow down to turn corners.
As if this isn't bad enough, it is also pathetically easy for your guy to fall off of the ATV. Expect to fall off nearly every time you come over a huge hill and forget to correct the balance of your vehicle or do so incorrectly. You can also fall off from running into things or from having opponents run into you. In most games, this wouldn't be so bad: a couple seconds delay and you'll be back on the course pointing in the direction you need to go. Not so in this game. In this game, we're talking about a five-second delay, after which you're placed back on the track on your ATV in the exact position it was in when you fell off, including what direction you're facing, whether it is forward, backward, or sideways. I know it's really an attempt at realism, but it is still annoying.
At least the controls aren't too bad. Like I said before, they are a bit oversensitive sometimes, but they do what you tell them to. You can accelerate and brake, drift around corners, and you can control the position of your ATV in the air to try for a more balanced landing. As if that isn't enough, you can even do stunts on your ATVs if you are inclined to do so, and there's a style mode where this is a necessary feature of what you're doing.
So far as replay value goes, there are twenty-five courses in the game, five each in five different categories. At the beginning, you'll only have the first course in each category unlocked for use in the quick race mode, and it will certainly take at least a little while to unlock all of the stages even after you have learned the intricacies of the game well enough to win races. Beyond the quick race mode are a racing season, a style season and also a practice mode. It even boasts multi-card multiplayer for up to four people. So there's enough here to keep you occupied for a while.
Let me just state the facts. This is a decent game in many respects, especially if you're patient enough to learn to play it well. The main downside of this game, in fact, isn't anything in this game, but rather the timing at which this game was released, in the wake of Mario Kart DS. As much as there is to do in this game and as decent of a game as it is, the fact is that, unless you are a diehard fan of ATVs, Mario Kart DS outshines this game in every way. If you already have that and need something else because you're tired of it, this might be a decent choice if you're patient enough, but if you are trying to find just one racing game for the system, this probably shouldn't be it.
Graphics: 5
Sound: 7
Gameplay: 5
Creativity: 6
Replay Value/Game Length: 7
Final: 5.9 out of 10
Written by Martin
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Developer: THQ
Publisher: THQ
Release Date: October 10, 2006
Available On: Nintendo DS
Avatar: The Last Airbender is relatively new for a Nickelodeon show, but it must be doing fairly well if it has reached the point where THQ has seen fit to release a set of games based on it. And surprisingly, despite having the same story as the GBA version, the DS version is radically different in terms of gameplay. And yet, as in many cases, different doesn’t mean bad, and indeed, the DS version of Avatar is a pretty good game.
Graphically, Avatar is like most THQ games in that the graphics are pretty good but are not awe-inspiring. Compared to what few episodes of the show I have seen, however, the graphics are appropriate to the license that the game is based on. Everything is bright and cheery, much like the show. Overall, this is a typical THQ game graphically, but there is nothing wrong with that.
In terms of the sound, the music is very oriental sounding, which is fairly appropriate to the environments in the game. Sometimes the music sounds more like ambient noise, which can be annoying after a while, but overall, the music isn’t that bad. The sound effects are par for the course, with nothing overly ambitious to be found, but what is there is pretty good. In terms of voice acting, most of the cutscenes in the middle of the chapters and the incidental conversations are accomplished by text boxes, but the major cutscenes at the end of chapters usually have voice acting, and the voices sound very close to the actual voices of the characters from the show. This relative abundance of voice acting is a commendable trait in this game and drastically improves the overall quality of the sound.
So far as gameplay is concerned, the DS version of Avatar, despite following the exact same story as the GBA version, is radically different in its execution. Where the GBA version is based more on puzzle solving than combat, the DS version is more focused on combat. It actually falls somewhere in the middle between an RPG and an action title, having elements of each.
Borrowed from the RPG genre is the concept of an over-world with semi-random battles. I say semi-random because we’re not talking about battles happening randomly, but rather a system closer to that of Super Mario RPG and its sequels where you can see the enemies and try to avoid them. However, the enemies can sometimes be hard to avoid. Also borrowed from the RPG genre is a level-up system to increase energy and battle capabilities, and the level-ups are fairly common, so you’ll never have to spend a lot of time increasing your levels, although, particularly at the beginning, you may need to spend some.
The battles themselves, however, operate in real time, which is where this game borrows from an action genre. When you collide with an enemy, you will be shown an environment with your group of people and the group of opponents you will be facing. Unlike the GBA version, where the characters you aren’t using will just follow you and do nothing, your allies will be controlled by artificial intelligence and will actually engage the enemies. However, the artificial intelligence of your allies isn’t going to win many battles for you, leaving you in a position where you’ll still have to do a lot of the work yourself.
In terms of the battle system, each of the four buttons on the DS has a function, two for defense and two for offense. For offense, you have a basic attack and a bending attack button, and you have the same two options for defense. If you have usable items on the bottom screen, you can use them in the midst of battle, although most of the time it’s a good idea to pause the game first, and you can use items while the game is paused, which is nice. The main problem is trying to keep tabs on the energy levels of your allies, as you will often be responsible for keeping their health up.
Overall, the game is primarily exploration and battling, with some exceptions. There’s quite a few mini-games that can be played in various areas that give a hint of variety, but these don’t really occur that often, and most of them aren’t overly exciting, but at least they provide a change of pace. There really won’t be any reason to replay this game after you beat it either, but it is reasonably lengthy, so that isn’t a significant problem either.
What then is my recommendation? The DS version of Avatar is a very good action/RPG hybrid, and I would recommend it to all Avatar fans if it weren’t for the fact that the GBA version is just as good of a puzzle-based title. Therefore, if you are a fan of Avatar, you owe it to yourself to try at least one of the two, but which one should be determined by which type of game you like better, as they both are roughly even in quality for their respective genres.
Graphics: 7
Sound: 8
Gameplay: 7
Creativity: 6
Replay Value/Game Length: 7
Final: 7.1 out of 10
Written by Martin
Best of Tests DS
Developer: Otaboo
Publisher: Conspiracy Entertainment
Release Date: March 4, 2008
Available On: Nintendo DS
Brain Age may not be Halo 3 for college students; it could be considered the equivalent for retirees. That is because the whole “brain games” genre that Nintendo created, or at least popularized on their handheld system, has caught on with an older crowd like no one really expected. As a result, there are a number of spinoffs. Whether from Nintendo (Big Brain Academy and Brain Age 2) or from third parties looking to cash in (Brain Assist, Mega Brain Boost, Left Brain Right Brain) Heck, there are even Spanish-teaching games on the Nintendo DS. Best of Tests DS is just another one of these types of games flooding Nintendo's handheld.
Best of Tests DS is a simple game and as such, this will be a simple review. There is not really much to this budget title. You have two different modes to choose from (three if you count the Training mode). First you have your Intelligence tests, and the other mode is a set of Memory tests. The way it is set up you will have to play through on the Easy difficulty, unlocking Normal and Difficult as you complete them. Each of the three difficulties has three game lengths: Short, Medium and Long (10, 20 and 30 questions, respectively). You will progressively play and unlock each length and difficulty to complete the game.
The whole idea of a game like this is either to exercise your brain or to determine how intelligent you are. Instead of giving you an IQ, it will give you an Intelligence score and Global score. What exactly these numbers mean, I don't have a clue, and neither does the game. If you are going to have a set of tests to show your intelligence, they should at least show your... intelligence (or lack of).
The questions they ask for the intelligence tests are simple and straightforward. How many sides are there on these objects? What object is out of place? If I turn an object, what will it look like? What word has the opposite meaning of the one listed? You will also have to solve patterns for various number sequences and card sequences. Some of them can be confusing, especially the card ones which sometimes seem to have no consistent pattern. Others assume you must be borderline retarded: 7, 6, 5, 4, 3... which number comes next? Or how about the opposite of ugly? Is it “No”, or maybe “Her”? Come on!
Best of Tests DS would more appropriately be named “Best of Kindergarten Tests DS” or perhaps “Waste of Time DS”. If only SAT tests were this easy, I would be going to Harvard. For a “game” that tries to cash in on the Brain Age craze, it fails to do either of the two things that it set out for: entertain and test. You cannot test for something without some kind of results. This game tells me nothing about either my intelligence or my memory. With that said, you will have to either lack all intelligence or have the memory of an amnesiac, after reading this review, to buy this game.
Graphics: 4
Sound: 2
Gameplay: 2
Creativity: 4
Replay Value/Game Length: 2
Final: 2.8 out of 10
Written by Kyle
Backyard Basketball
Developer: Atari
Publisher: Atari
Release Date: September 25, 2007
Available On: Nintendo DS
Atari has been making sports games involving kids for years now. The Backyard series is one of the longer-running sports franchises out there. Now the series has finally come to the DS in the form of Backyard Basketball. Is this entry in the series a slam-dunk or an air ball? Read on to find out.
Graphically, Backyard Basketball on the DS follows the same graphical style as its console brethren of the GCN generation, and it looks very similar to the console ones. The console ones were never games to break the graphics engines of their systems, and neither are the graphics in this game, but they look very nice and animate fairly well. They convey much to the feel of the game, which is the most that can be asked. Overall, the graphics are pretty good.
The sound is pretty standard fare for a Backyard game. Since it is a DS game, the commentary is not present, but all of the other sound you would expect from a Backyard game is present and accounted for. To sum it up, I have no major complaints about the sound either, although it does seem to be pretty standard and generic fare with nothing new or different.
In terms of gameplay, this game is pretty much the same as what you have been used to for years. You pick a team of kids and play a game of 3 on 3 basketball. All of the necessary mechanics of other Backyard Basketball games are here, and there is a system of power-up items that can be earned and used as well, which is something I do not think I personally have ever seen before in a Backyard game.
Regarding play modes, you can play a single game either with going through all of the trouble of picking teams or without it, whichever you choose. You can also play through a season of games if you would like to, and the game has DS multi-card play so you can play against another human opponent. Although online play might have been nice, it would hardly be necessary or expected for a game like this.
The replay value of this game would depend on how much you like basketball. There are only two other basketball games on the DS that I am aware of, and neither of them take themselves any more seriously than this one, so even the serious fan of basketball who wants a basketball game for the DS might come away preferring this game given the options at their disposal. Still, this game is by no means a basketball sim and should not be assumed to be such. It is just another pretty good entry in the Backyard Sports series, nothing more, but nothing less.
Graphics: 7
Sound: 6
Gameplay: 7
Creativity: 5
Replay Value/Game Length: 6
Final: 6.3 out of 10
Written by Martin
Big Bang Mini
Developer: Arkedo Studio
Publisher: SouthPeak Games
Release Date: January 20, 2009
Available On: DS
These days it is pretty hard to innovate. Sometimes when I play video games it feels like everything has been tried, done and experimented with. Big Bang Mini is not a "Big Bang" of video game imagination, but it is a fun little shooter that comes at a slow period of the season. It adds to the growing list of strong third party offerings on the Nintendo DS.
What Big Bang Mini is at its heart is a 2D shooter. I find it difficult to draw comparisons to other shooters since your little ship (it's actually more of a triangle or ball, depending on the level) doesn't ever move anywhere except around the bottom screen as the enemies float around on the top screen firing down on you. It somewhat reminds me of playing a mix between Asteroids and Space Invaders with spiffy graphics and touch screen controls
To fire at the enemy you will have to stroke up on the touch-screen. Your ship is controlled moving it around on the bottom screen with the stylus. You obviously will want to avoid enemy fire while aiming your stroke as precisely as possible at the enemies on the top screen. If your fireworks miss the target, it explodes and sends back little pieces of debris at your ship. When you defeat an enemy a star will fall from the sky. Collecting stars will fill up a bar on the side of the screen. Once this bar is full the level will end.
Your little ship though is not the same in each of the nine different levels in Big Bang Mini and it comes packed with different abilities. For instance, you obtain a vortex that sucks in enemy fire by drawing a twirl, a shield by drawing a line and so on. Neither are the locations, the enemies or the different types of projectiles that get thrown around the screen.
Overall I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised by this Nintendo DS offering from SouthPeak. I came into it the first few levels skeptical, wondering how different the later levels would be and was glad to see a good amount of variety in enemies, bosses and background design. It doesn't hurt that the game is visually stimulating as well. At only $20 Big Bang Mini is a big bang for your buck.
Graphics: 9
Sound: 8
Gameplay: 8
Creativity: 9
Replay Value/Game Length: 8
Final: 8.5 out of 10
Written by Kyle
Big Brain Academy
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: June 5, 2006
Available On: Nintendo DS
So quickly after their last brain-based hit, Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day!, Nintendo and NST have followed up with the colorful Big Brain Academy. The questions at hand are numerous: what's with all of these brain games? Is Big Brain as entertaining, addictive, and noticeably effective as Brain Age? Is it really worth another $20 to test the brain again?
Big Brain Academy's focus drives away from simply the sensitivity and reactivity of the brain and also focuses on categories like memory, the ability to compute, analyze, and think quickly. There are numerous mini-games available to test your brain's "size," and the trick here is to come out with the biggest, fattest brain possible. The mini-games in Big Brain Academy are favorable when compared to those in Brain Age. They're a little trickier. For example, one of them called "Coin-parison" asks you to compare two different amounts of coin and select which of the two is more valuable. Of course, you're expected to select one of the two amounts in a matter of seconds, so the game asks a lot of your mind and forces you to think extremely quickly for optimal results.
Another example is the game "Flash Memory," where you're forced to very quickly memorize a sequence of numbers and symbols and then duplicate them with an on-screen calculator. I'd say that the learning curve is a little higher here than it was with Brain Age, but only slightly. I discovered that Big Brain Academy not only tests your brain, but also your eyesight. Games like "Flash Memory" and "Shadow Shift," which forces you to identify a character based on its shadow, really test how well you can see what is going on on-screen and interpret it.
Big Brain Academy, for the most part, is accurate. After practicing with several of the mini-games, I took my first Big Brain Test and came out with excellent analysis and memorization skills, but I lacked in computing and thinking quickly. This is pretty accurate to my real-life self, as well as my grade of a B-, which was my high school average.
Visually, Big Brain Academy is a prettier, more colorful, and more engaging game than Brain Age. There still isn't much animation, and there is nothing exciting going on on-screen, but it all beats the Times font and gray backgrounds of Brain Age. The music and sound effects are quirky and sound a lot less like something that you'd expect from a brain game.
Big Brain Academy is a much better game than Brain Age. There are more mini-games, each testing a specific area of mental activity. The addictive quality remains. The presentation isn't as serious and looks and sounds better. Really, the only thing that Big Brain Academy doesn't have when stacked against Brain Age is the abundance of sudoku puzzles. Still, Big Brain Academy is worth your $20 and testing your brain has never been as much fun.
Graphics: 6.5
Sound: 6.5
Gameplay: 8.5
Creativity: 10
Replay Value/Game Length: 9
Final: 8.3 out of 10
Written by Cliff
Boing! Docomodake DS
Developer: AQ Interactive
Publisher: Ignition Entertainment
Release Date: March 10, 2009
Available On: Nintendo DS
Apparently video games featuring mushrooms are fairly popular. Games like Super Mario Bros., which features a plumber who grows and gets extra lives from eating mushrooms. Then there is a whole video game - Mushroom Men - which not only devotes its title but makes use of the delectable fungi in its gameplay. Finally there is Docomodake, a game where you play as a walking mushroom that divides itself to solve platforming puzzles. Oddly enough, it is the most normal of the games I just listed.
The first thing that I said when I picked up the box for Docomodake DS is that it looked a lot like a 2D Mario game. While it has the same look and feel with a vibrant color scheme and merry soundtrack, the best comparison I could make is to Klonoa 2 on the GBA. It is light on combat (which is more of a focus in games like Mario) and heavy on puzzle solving.
As I mentioned, Boing! Docomodake DS is a platforming game in which an emphasis is placed on puzzle solving. The levels are relatively small, but the focus here is on execution and figuring out how to reach the level's exit. This is easier said than done. Docomodake is a game that makes you think, as well as plan out how you are going to go about each level that you play in the game.
Basically your only goal is to reach the end of the level. On the way though you can collect coins as well as chests to improve your score (time is another factor in calculating your grade). You move your mushroom with the control pad or you can use the face buttons (A/B/X/Y) if you are a lefty. Up on the control pad has your mushroom jump while pressing down on certain platforms he will drill down into them.
The focus here is on touch screen gameplay. By pressing Docomodake he releases a mini version of himself. You start off with five of them and can collect more as you go along. The nice thing about the mini mushrooms is that you can stack them up to create a ladder, throw them at objects and enemies, place them as steps across a gap, lay them down on a button while you move past a blockade and so on. Minis that are close to you will follow you while others on the map can be called back by tapping the hand above Docomodake's head.
The Nintendo DS was touted as being a driver of innovation. It has certainly delivered on that promise. Docomodake is just another example of developers making use of the touch screen in creative and fun ways. This game is quite addicting, as well as a decent challenge. While there are only a total of 40 levels, you should get a good five or more hours out of it. The concept is interesting enough that you will likely come back for more.
Graphics: 8
Sound: 6
Gameplay: 8
Creativity: 10
Replay Value/Game Length: 6.5
Final: 7.7 out of 10
Written by Kyle
Bomberman Land Touch!
Developer: Hudson Soft
Publisher: Atlus
Release Date: November 17, 2006
Available On: Nintendo DS
During the GCN generation, two Bomberman games were released. They had two things in common. One, their single player modes were decent, but not very exciting. Two, their multiplayer modes were engaging and worthy of much playing time. Such seems to be the Bomberman way. As such, one might wonder why they bother with a separate single player mode at all since people only care about the multiplayer.
And yet, it would seem that Hudson can be taught. For their first DS Bomberman game, the single-player went back to Bomberman's roots and did 2D chambers with patterned enemies. I haven't actually played that game, so I don't know if that worked well. For this game, they once again dropped the platformer-style single-player mode in exchange for something we've seen almost too often on the DS: the mini-game compilation. But this set of Bomberman-themed mini-games is a step above any single-player mode I've ever seen in other Bomberman games, and thus, while not up there with the multiplayer, it is actually worth playing. More on that later.
Graphically, Bomberman Land Touch! is styled closer to the graphical style of Bomberman Generation than Bomberman Jetters, which is a good thing in my opinion since I always preferred Generation. In all honesty, compared to Generation, there is no overly noticeable drop in the graphical quality of this game. Granted, Generation didn't break the GCN's graphical capabilities, and neither does Touch break the DS's, but the fact that they are comparable in quality is commendable nonetheless. Don't get the impression from what I've just said that the graphics are bad. They are not. For a third party game, they are easily above average, and are actually quite good by DS standards. Overall, I have no significant complaints here.
On the sound front, the sound effects are typical Bomberman fare. I would expect no more or less in all honesty. The music in this game is quite good. I wouldn't go so far as to call it addicting, but it is somewhat memorable. My one complaint here is that they replaced the multiplayer battle music from Generation and Jetters with a new melody, but the new melody is about as good as the old one, so it is a minor gripe. Overall, the sound is done fairly well.
In terms of gameplay, this game splits fairly evenly between the single-player mode and the multiplayer mode. The single player uses the stylus almost exclusively. You use it to move, to indicate that you want to talk to someone or do something. The only things that you don't use the stylus and touchscreen for are that some of the mini-games use the microphone and you can use the start button to pause the game. That's it. Still, it means that you rarely have to fumble between the stylus and the buttons, which is definitely a good thing.
The story behind the story mode is certainly basic. Bomberman (or Cheerful White, as he's called in this game) gets kidnapped by pirates and taken to Bomber Island, where he has to explore and win pieces in mini-games to open up more areas and win tokens to trade for items. This means that you basically have to win each mini-game twice: once to get the piece for the game and a second time (which is more difficult) to get a token for it. Some of the games are hard even to win the first time, and some of them aren't that hard the first time but seem near-impossible the second time through.