Just bought myself a DS lite!

Alinestra Covelia · February 12, 2008, 16:04

In accordance with my reward system*, I have bought myself a DS Lite.

I also got three games with it: Super Mario 64 DS, New Super Mario Bros, and Phoenix Wright 2: Justice for all (though I initially intended to buy PW1: Ace attorney and they got it mixed up at the cashier).

*Reward system: For every A, A+, or A- I get in the most recent exams, I may buy one gaming platform. Order of priority was: Wii, DS Lite, gaming-level PC. Wii overlooked because of unavailability.

So yay me!

LordShiva · February 12, 2008, 16:09

How many exams do you have? This could get expensive.

Alinestra Covelia · February 12, 2008, 16:19

(I had four exams, and my grades were A-, B+, B+, and B-. I've known the results since early January so I knew I could only choose one gaming system. What really surprised me was that my A- grade was in Intellectual Property, which I had been predicting a B or B+ for.)

Maquiladora · February 12, 2008, 16:32

Get yourself Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (or any Advance Wars game), best in the series now IMO.

I got 3/4 through Justice For All then got kinda bored with it when AW

oR came out.

asleepathewheel · February 12, 2008, 16:55

Congrats.

I know how tough those A's are to get in law school. Ugh. bad memories.

I would recommend:

Drawn to life-pretty enjoyable platformer where you as god draw your character using the stylus. just got it, haven't played too far in it.
Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Etrian Odyssey (if you like old school rpg dungeoncrawlers. One of my personal favs of 2007)
Mario Kart DS

Kuciwalker · February 12, 2008, 17:35

Originally posted by Alinestra Covelia
In accordance with my reward system*, I have bought myself a DS Lite.

I also got three games with it: Super Mario 64 DS, New Super Mario Bros, and Phoenix Wright 2: Justice for all (though I initially intended to buy PW1: Ace attorney and they got it mixed up at the cashier).

*Reward system: For every A, A+, or A- I get in the most recent exams, I may buy one gaming platform. Order of priority was: Wii, DS Lite, gaming-level PC. Wii overlooked because of unavailability.

So yay me!

Krill · February 12, 2008, 17:36

Nice grades AC, good job

Main_Brain · February 12, 2008, 18:09

I got one for my mother this Christmas =)

Unfortunatly the Ace Attorny Games has really bad controls IMO, it really is quite unnerving when you find a clue and cant find the correct way to register it

DrSpike · February 12, 2008, 18:25

You should get the new Zelda game next.

Kinjiru · February 12, 2008, 18:58

Originally posted by DrSpike
You should get the new Zelda game next.

Really DrSpike? Somehow I don't picture Zelda as your thing. They are pretty fun games, they just don't seem.... Spikey enough to suit you.

Nice job on the exams AC. Like others, I recommend the Advance Wars games very highly.

DrSpike · February 13, 2008, 14:39

What games constitute Spikey-ness?

I don't actually have the DS Zelda but I would have, if I owned a DS.

Kinjiru · February 13, 2008, 15:15

Spikiness, to me, signifies a game with lots of stat optimizing to dig into. You know, which combination of gear and skills loadouts constitutes the best way to bring the pain.

Maybe that's just cause you were so vocal in the Guild Wars discussions.

DrSpike · February 13, 2008, 15:44

Yeah, I can enjoy those kind of games, but my tastes are much wider.

Alinestra Covelia · February 13, 2008, 17:03

I have decided I don't want to play Phoenix Wright 2 before I play PW1. So today I'll go to buy the first one and play that one.

My goodness but New Super Mario Bros is good. I love the Mega Mushroom - so cute!

I have never really enjoyed Zelda all that much. I've heard good things about the 3D FPS Metroid on DS (and I loved the GameCube/Wii Metroid Prime games), but my brother tells me it gave him nausea. Anybody able to comment on that issue?

Maquiladora · February 13, 2008, 17:27

Originally posted by Alinestra Covelia

I've heard good things about the 3D FPS Metroid on DS (and I loved the GameCube/Wii Metroid Prime games), but my brother tells me it gave him nausea. Anybody able to comment on that issue?

It gave me nausea too, so I sold it half way through. The controls (touch to look around at least) took some getting used to as well, wish I had a 3rd hand. I haven't played a FPS seriously on the DS since.

Asher · February 13, 2008, 20:01

You should get the R4DS and download every Nintendo DS game ever made for free.

Maquiladora · February 13, 2008, 21:02

Most of 'em are disturbing JRPGs and puzzle games though.

Alinestra Covelia · February 14, 2008, 12:13

Originally posted by Asher
You should get the R4DS and download every Nintendo DS game ever made for free.

Can't do that. As a law student, I can't do anything that would jeopardize my good name and character.

Next thing I'm going to buy is shotguns and napalm.

DrSpike · February 14, 2008, 14:32

Originally posted by Alinestra Covelia

Can't do that. As a law student, I can't do anything that would jeopardize my good name and character.

If you scan the horizon carefully you can see that ship. It seems to have set sail some time earlier.

Alinestra Covelia · February 15, 2008, 15:26

Originally posted by DrSpike

If you scan the horizon carefully you can see that ship. It seems to have set sail some time earlier.

QFT!

Listen carefully. Do you hear that strange creaking sound? Hear it? Yeah, right there.

That's the sound of my credibility, stretched to breaking point!

I bought "Brain Age" last night and have been playing it. I was never a big fan of Sudoku, but this game has converted me!

My brain age is currently 25, which is actually two years younger than my real age. Woohoo!

Unspeakable Horror · February 19, 2008, 08:24

The R4DS is verily good

You can also play mp3s and watch videos with it. That's how I get my daily dose of anime when I'm visiting my parents for a day or two

The screen is a bit small but it looks surprisingly good including the sub fonts.

Alinestra Covelia · February 19, 2008, 17:50

Woah, this thing also plays GBA games! I didn't realize this until just now.

I have a load of GBA games and have completed them all except for Harvest Moon (which I don't have the time to really get into).

I'm thinking of taking Maquiladora's advice and getting Advance Wars: Days of Ruin. Seems like a more mature themed game to a previously cutesy franchise.

Phoenix Wright is entertaining but I'm getting stuck at quite a few places quite often and having to read FAQs to get past them. Several of the solutions feel fairly arbitrary, to be honest. I've only got Justice For All, but I'll still splash out for Ace Attorney (the first game) for completeness' sake. I can't guarantee I'll buy all the sequels though.

I don't like the Zelda games. They're entertaining enough to begin with but the puzzle elements irritate me immensely and prevented me from enjoying Ocarina of Time and Wind Waker. Like Phoenix Wright, the problem was all in the arbitrary problem solving.

I liked Link to the Past and other top-down Zelda games because the simple puzzles solutions there fit in with the setting. But Ocarina pissed me off a lot because I kept overthinking things and getting too involved with the realism of the world... only to realize that the solution was still just a basic lateral-thinking geometric 2-D puzzle solution at heart.

(Speaking of which, I never finished Link's Awakening for the original Game Boy. I'd better keep ahold of my GBA to play that, as the DS doesn't appear to like original GB games.

)

Maquiladora · February 19, 2008, 18:28

Originally posted by Alinestra Covelia
But Ocarina pissed me off a lot because I kept overthinking things and getting too involved with the realism of the world... only to realize that the solution was still just a basic lateral-thinking geometric 2-D puzzle solution at heart.

You sound like me playing Phoenix Wright. There is some pretty ambiguous clues in PW2 though.

Also, if you get AW

oR don't be put off by the murky look of the game like the gamespot reviewer seemed to be, it looks a bit like SMAC to begin with but it does vary more than other AW campaigns.

DrSpike · February 19, 2008, 18:29

Link to the Past.

Alinestra Covelia · February 19, 2008, 22:44

Given how much I dislike OoT (Ocarina of Time), I was very pleasantly surprised by the N64 sequel, LMM (Labia Majora's Mask). That game had not only a darker feel to it, but the puzzles really made more sense. There were a few quirky puzzles, but they were strictly optional and it didn't matter if you couldn't get them. You could just ignore them.

OoT ground to a complete shuddering halt at many places because I couldn't figure out what the hell Shigeru Miyamoto thought I would logically do next. When I finally caved and GameFAQed it, I would come away bemused instead of inspired.

"So I'm supposed to visit a place as a child but play a song I learned as an adult? WTF!"

etc.

DrSpike · February 20, 2008, 18:18

I am a fan of Labia Majora too.

halfapple111 · February 20, 2008, 20:22

it's definitely funny

UnOrthOdOx · February 26, 2008, 09:36

Originally posted by Maquiladora
Get yourself Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (or any Advance Wars game), best in the series now IMO.

I got 3/4 through Justice For All then got kinda bored with it when AW

oR came out.

My son bought Advance Wars: Days of ruin, so I took it for a test drive last night/this morning. Since it's one of them games had me considering buying a DS and all.

About 15 battles in the campaign or so.

Does this thing ever become anything even resembling a challenge? never played any advance wars before.

(the AI doesn't seem to comprehend losing the HQ = defeat and keeps letting me capture it with a flanking move while the armies are engaged elsewhere, the maps would take longer due to the point bonus the AI seems to get, but wouldn't be any more DIFFICULT if you played more "normally")

Maquiladora · February 26, 2008, 10:41

Originally posted by UnOrthOdOx

My son bought Advance Wars: Days of ruin, so I took it for a test drive last night/this morning. Since it's one of them games had me considering buying a DS and all.

About 15 battles in the campaign or so.

Does this thing ever become anything even resembling a challenge? never played any advance wars before.

Not really

Usually they include a hard campaign once the normal campaign is over, but they didn't include one this time for some reason. Which basically only leaves you to get S-ranks on all maps to extend the game, or Wifi.

If you're thinking about trying another AW game then get AW2(GBA), if you can find it.

Alinestra Covelia · April 25, 2008, 09:10

Phoenix Wright 1 and 2 appear to have an "extra" case at the end that doesn't fit in well with the progress of the story.

I heard that PW1 and 2 were originally just GBA titles, so the graphics were fairly simple. But the absence of Mia Fey and the introduction of the new 3D animated "scientific evidence" method in the last case of PW1 is apparently purely a DS-generation addition.

They also seem to have gotten new writers for it too. The last case of PW1 is waaaaaay longer than any of the other cases.