Nintendo DS > Reviews > Another Dreamcast style flop?

Author's product rating:   

Graphics capability	Good
Sound capability	Average
Range of Extra Features (I.e. email)	Average
Ease of use	Good
Value For Money	Good value

Advantages:	Two screens, touch sensitive, microphone, graphics
Disadvantages:	Weight, games, WILL IT BEAT THE PSP?

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Now, picture the SEGA Dreamcast, a Y2K games console. With the built in modem, web browsing and email, superior audio and graphics, yet it was abandoned after release. Even SEGA no longer create games for them.

The Nintendo 64 and Playstation won, the Playstation particually. Sony won the large majority of the gaming market, with only a few still using N64s, but then it released it's PS2, and a lot of competitors jumped in. Microsoft, previously only seen in the PC market, raleased the XBOX, and old rivals, Nintendo, launched the Gamecube. The Gamecube is still popular, and games still being released, but the XBOX and PS2 remained dominent, the PS2 being only slightly in the league.

So why not Nintendo? Did people hate Pikachu? Or was it it was mainly Japanese anime games mainly being launched for it? I don't know about you, but I literally cannot stand any anime, you know Yu-Gi-Oh, Dragon Ball Z stuff!

Will the Nintendo DS have the same fate? Who knows! We'll have to wait a few months in the U.S. for both the DS and PSP to settle in to see which will take the lead in our country, I'm hoping the DS, as I bought one, and it was released earlier, but YOU are the ones who decide. Another thing to remember is Nintendo have controlled hand-held gaming since '91!

~So what's this all about?~

The Nintendo DS, Nintendo Double Screen, is the latest hand-held console Nintendo have released. If you don't already know Nintendo were the launchers of the GameBoy series, and after 14 years of Gameboys, Nintendo has released a successor, the Nintendo DS.

The Nintendo DS has many features do boast, and none to really hide, yet there's a few flaws.

~Touch Screen~

This, the Touch Screen, is perhaps the most important feature of the console. It allows you to control the games by stylus (you know the pen thingy) or by hand (not recommended, damages console). Some games aren't completely touch controlled, but all games currently out on the DS have a few touch features, such as menu toggling.

A built-in program using the touch screen is PictoChat, more later.

The touch screen easily gets mucky, so I recommend you buy a bundle, including a wiping cloth, to clean it with. I don't recommend you use your hands with it either as the finger prints really make it look ugly.

The screen is quite soft, and appears undurable, but I've had no problems yet, all we have to wait for are incidents like broken pixels to occur though.

~Control~

The Nintendo DS's control is a little hard. Using many buttons as well as the touch screen, the console actually boasts 13 buttons, as well as the power button and volume control.

This is a little over the top and isn't required in most games, and is harder for adults or those less agile to control.

~Wireless Gaming~

Now when hearing Wireless you think of Wi-Fi, so did I, but I've since realised this isn't Wireless internet, but just multi-player gaming, without wires. If you're within 20yards (about 18m) of the other player, you can play games with them, taking the game supports it.

On certain games, you only need one cartridge, so your friend doesn't need the game to play! An example of this is Ping Pals, a paid for chat app. Certain games require you to both have the game.

If you have a friend within 20yards, you can also use PictoChat with them.

---UPDATE JAN 06---

Now various games like Mario Kart support multi-player internet gaming over 802.11b

~PictoChat~

PictoChat is the free built in chat program. It allows four chat-rooms, each of 16 people to be filled. The odds of this happening are low as I doubt there'll ever be 63 people with a Nintendo DS, within 20 yards of you.

I still sort of wonder how it works.

You can use the on-screen keyboard to type messages or draw them on the touch screen (the bottom one). Then the messages are displayed on the top one. This also makes a nice drawing tool!!!

~Microphone~

So far, I've only found WarioWare Touched, possibly the most popular Nintendo DS game yet, to use this feature. And that's only in one level.

You use the microphone to do such things as blowing into it to create bubbbles, and levitating things and blowing up balloons. We only need to wait for a proper singing game to be released though.

The microphone is a tiny 2mm slit in the casing.

~The stylus~

The styluses are small and black, they are hard to hold. But once you get used to it, it's fine. The styluses are very small, and extremely easy to lose, I've lost 1 already, I've only had it for 2 weeks, buy a pack of 3 when you get them. They're in the >£109 packages in gamestation.

~Graphics~

The graphics are the same as a N64, my friend also says they're better than a PS1. The graphics on the majority of the games are 'cartoony'. This seems to happen on most Nintendo consoles as they're 'anime' based.

I must say though, the graphics are stunning clean, unblocky and almost perfect! Okay, it doesn't beat the PS2 or XBOX, but you can't expect it to saying it's only a fraction of the size.

~Sound~

The audio is okay, stereo based. It outputs from two speakers located on either side of the upper screen. It's not that amazing, but is slightly better than the GBA, probably about the same as a low quality MP3.

~Extra Features~

Well there's a chat program (as mentioned above, PictoChat), an alarm clock, a clock and a calendar, not a planner type, just the date type. Not that great, but it's touch screen and wireless so heh.....

///MANUAL///

As a male I don't read such things, I didn't need to, it was very simple. After you switch it on for the first time it asks for basic settings to be inputted, then no manual is needed!

~The games~

The selection of games is quite limited as it is, with only a handful to be released so far, I counted about 15, with around 5 due for release on Amazon.

It was the same with the GBA, I remember I got that when it was it released too!!!

The console, if I haven't already said, can play GBA games as well as DS games. It can't play GameBoy Colour/GameBoy games though.

Nintendo DS games are much small and lighter than a GBA game, probably about 2x3cm.

A free demo game: Metroid Prime Hunters, comes with it. This is a basic first-person shooter, and really shows off non-cartoony 3D graphics.

~Looks and Weight~

The console is very fashionable. It's silver, black and flip-up. Yet, it's a little too large, and you may struggle to fit it into an average pocket. It also weighs a bit too much, and is probably as heavy as an ancient SEGA.

~Batteries and chargers~

Unlike the GBA, the Nintendo DS runs off exclusively a rechargable battery. I would say it takes an hour or so to charge, and five hours of life are given. The charger isn't the usual AC/DC, but somewhat resembles an USB port.

On eBay people have even started selling USB chargers!!!

~Conclusion~

For the price, the Nintendo DS is fantastic. Eventually though the £99 will become the £79 then £49, as with the GBA. The games are okay, so are the graphics and sound. But the touch screen is amazing.

© http://joeanderson.co.uk, 2005.  

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