Topic: DS Advice

[wizall]

I'm finally thinking about taking the DS Plunge.

First and foremost, DSi or DSlite? I will do my research, of course, but it seems from my standpoint I might as well go with the DSi.

Secondly, any must-have titles? I'm aware of the various Final Fantasies and I'll use the internets to narrow those down, but any I might miss? I really want to play another Disgaea and Disgaea DS seems rad.

I'm essentially ignorant as I've not paid much attention to this system at all, so recommend some of your personal gems... if you don't mind.

Thaaaaaanks.

[Quemaqua]

The only person who doesn't think the DSi is completely worthless is idol.  I still don't understand it, myself.  But I suppose if you don't mind missing out on a GBA slot it isn't so bad.  Still, for me, DS Lite.

As for games, well:

Knights in the Nightmare
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
Lock's Quest
Contra 4
Professor Layton and the Curious Village
Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer
The World Ends With You

That should be plenty to get you started.

[K-man]

Another vote for DS lite here.

And Clubhouse Games for me is one of those you can pop in and play for 10-15 at a time

DQIV and DQV (if you can find it)

Que mentioned the latest Castlevania game, but the others are completely worth your time.

New Super Mario Brothers if you like mario games, Mario Kart, Final Fantasy IV remake, Chrono Trigger (IMO the definitive version of the game).

[gpw11]

I bought a DS Lite about a year ago and have no regrets in not waiting for a DSi.  The pros to the DS Lite is that it has the GBA slot and is a little bit cheaper. For me that sells it.  Keep in mind, however, that Nintendo has announced that there will be both  DSi exclusive content AND DSi exclusive retail games eventually.  Nothing specifically announced for anywhere outside of Japan yet, but eventually I'd imagine it will hit.

Some people say it will be an eventual phasing out of the old DS, but I personally don't buy it - by the time that there was a large enough DSi install base to make something like that worthwhile to developers, it'd be time for a full hardware upgrade.  Oh, and don't let DSi-Ware tempt you....apparently it is absolute shit.

[Cobra951]

If they're eventually going to phase out the real DS, it's even more desirable to get now, inho.

DS or DS Lite is my 2 cents.  The GBA slot is not only part of the design of the full unit; it also has been assumed to be present by some DS software developers, meaning some DS games or other software came with something to plug into the GBA slot.  Obviously, those wouldn't work completely on the bastardized DSi.

Games:  I think most I like have already been mentioned, plus the entire GBA library of course.  I played Metroid Fusion (GBA) on it as much as any DS game.  I'm hoping Zelda: Spirit Tracks is good, unlike Phantom Hourglass, which I got to hate because of the repeating dungeon.  I also liked Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time, as well as its GBA predecessor (which I keep in the same DS box, in the slot intended for a GBA cart in the Nintendo DS box made for a Nintendo-created game--am I pressing this point too hard?).

[wizall]

This is all excellent info, fellas. Thanks. I neglected to notice the lack of a GBA slot on the DSi, which is a pain in the ass. I've a few GBA games yet to play.

[K-man]

Yeah, it's a nice inclusion.  Although with the lite the carts stick out a little bit.

Personally I still prefer to play GBA games on my GBA SP

[gpw11]

If they're eventually going to phase out the real DS, it's even more desirable to get now, inho.

DS or DS Lite is my 2 cents.  The GBA slot is not only part of the design of the full unit; it also has been assumed to be present by some DS software developers, meaning some DS games or other software came with something to plug into the GBA slot.  Obviously, those wouldn't work completely on the bastardized DSi.

Yeah, I agree with this. Although I've never used a single peripheral in the GBA slot, having it there is an integral part of the system. Like others, I've spent quite a bit of time on my DS playing GBA games I hadn't played before. You said there were a few games you wanted for the system, so go DS Lite all the way....you won't be missing out on anything.  Regardless of what Nintendo says, I seriously can't see them successfully phasing out the original DS(lite) hardware, and I imagine any DSi Exclusive games announced will be camera gimicks.

As for games, I really wanted to like Phantom Hourglass, but as Cobra mentioned, I ended up hating it. The main dungeon in that game is a huge design flaw.  Spirit Tracks is out soon, and hopefully they've learned from that.  I had a ton of fun with Picross...look into it, seriously. N+ is fun, and Retro Game Challenge was certainly one of my favourite games for the system.  New Super Mario Bros. is great, and Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Stories gets a lot of praise even though I eventually got pretty bored with it.   Fuck, there are so many great games - both high profile and sleeper hits.

Oh, and Space Invaders Extreme is the shit...seriously.  There's a sequel out now as well.