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Sleek & sexy - not words you'd normally associate with the Nintendo DS. However, the long-rumoured redesign has been unveiled & it looks like a stunner. Several different levels of brightness, full DS features and a remodelled smaller, lighter shell. No loss/addition of functionality as far as I can tell, so it really is just a cosmetic redesign - though as even the most ardent DS fan would admit, a cosmetic redesign for the DS has been long overdue ;-)

Definitely getting this when it launches in Japan. I can donate my silver DS to my wee brother & get some wi-fi Metroid Prime battles going with him - and finally kick his arse in Mario Kart!

Link: Kotaku news link...

Long overdue? The original version was only released five minutes ago!

I'm not sure with the DS that smaller = better, although a lighter model would definitely be welcome.

Long overdue? The original version was only released five minutes ago!

It's been out over a year now, and since the design has been a point of contention since the launch, I think "long overdue" is fair enough ;-)

I love my DS, but with a little less heft, a touch smaller, and with the awkward edges gone, this should be what the console should have been from the start (I'm still of the opinion that the original design was a rushjob to get it to market to compete with the PSP)

IP --

It's not a great deal smaller, as far as I can tell. The screens seem to be remaining the same size & it's really just losing the bulk of the original DS (we're not talking GBA SP to GB Micro here!)

I like the redesign and white suits it.

The only thing I find wrong with the current DS is that I find the shoulder buttons uncomfortable.

I may be in a minority but I've always liked the really chunky DS that Nintendo first showed.

Clam --

You mean this beastie:



I quite like aspects of the design - the way the screen "frame" extends across the whole unit, for example - and I do prefer it to the angular final version. However, the Lite trumps both and I can't wait to see a few more shots of the finised unit.

Yeah,thats the one.

I prefer it when consoles,pads and portables have some weight and heft to them,so I don't need to worry so much about them breaking.

buggers
right after christmas

got my boy this year. never puts the damn thing down.very addictive game play i must admit.
though the PSP is more adult.

:: though the PSP is more adult

GNH! What is WITH that argument? Why is it more "adult"?

Maybe I'm being a right old git, but my single criterion for games is that they should be fun. I don't care if my avatar is Mario in a kart or "bad-ass motherf***er gangsta dude". Actually, I do, because the latter is clearly poorly thought out marketing bollocks.

I don't see trying to make you rebuy the games you already own or the movies you already own as being particularly adult either.

New characters, ideas and innovation strike me as more adult than recycling, but then I remember the days where almost every video game was something new and exciting, rather than an EA-created rehash of an existing title.

(Sorry, DD?I know this sounds like I'm having a go at you, but it really is nothing personal. I've just heard one too many people in GAME convince friends not to buy a DS, because it's somehow "for kids". Maybe they need to check out UK-Resistance's "blue sky" campaign, or stop being taken in by Sony's marketing bollocks.)

Heh. I've tried to stop getting wound up by the division a lot of people are setting up in their minds - PSP=adult, DS=kids - but it does get me every now & then.

Nintendo are, quite clearly, an all-ages company. They dabble with more mature themes in many of their games, and some are aimed more squarely at an older audience, but they don't really involve themselves in producing the kind of pseudo-adult content that appears on Sony/Microsoft systems. That isn't to say that they discourage it though - looking at the GameCube, it's quite obvious that they were happy to let third parties produce some fairly "adult" titles for their system (Resident Evil, Killer 7, Gun etc.).

buggers
right after christmas

My thoughts exactly. The DS has made me enjoy gaming once again, and for the first time in ages there are too many new games that I want to play coming out. I got harrassed on the train by some chav-types once for not having the wicked-bad-cool PSP, and my brother once said words to the effect of "It doesn't have GTA on it so it's shit."


Video games are wasted on the young.

Ah but I heard that GTA: Liberty City Stories will be coming out on PS2 soon anyway - so there's no point in getting a PSP.

Yup, that's what I'd heard as well. The PSP will see a new GTA game at some point, but it seems crazy to announce the port when the game has not long launched. Of course, there will be plenty who have picked it up already, but for the people who are wavering about buying it - or a PSP - it just seems to remove another reason to purchase.

Krust --

Chavs can fuck off - I've had more fun with my DS than I've had with a console in quite some time. The moment I get on the bus, I'm going to pop on the headphones and have a blast at Ossu Tatakae Ouendan, then I think I'll do some work around my village in Animal Crossing when I get home :-)

I got a DS for xmas and it lurvley. Advance Wars is bus/gaming heaven.

As for the redesign its good to see they seem to have hidden the on/off somewhere as I keep hitting that thinking its the pause button.

The DS is lovely, and I finally 'GET' Nintendo (I was a 'near-nintendo-virgin' up to this point to be honest).  I know have to fight the wife and the 3 year old to get my hands on it.

One thing that struck me about this news was that Nintendo Europe denied any DS revamp the very day before Nintendo Japan announced this...

Heh... NoE are a bit of a disaster at times. Hugely embarassing for the head of the Euro division to loudly deny a redesign in an interview, only to be made a liar the very next day by another arm of his company.

BUMP

Is GBA compatibility still a feature, one of the main reasons I bought a DS was for this. (Although 'twas only for Gunstar, which turned out to be massively disappointing, but still...)

Yes, the new DS still has a GBA slot.

PSP more adult. let me clarify that,
to be honest. we have both. hence a fair comparison. the PSP, is rather chunky and buttons a bit further apart, not quite siutable for little hands,most under tens are not allowed to download content form the NET,which opens the world of PSP up, no childrens movies as yet have been released in UDM format and at the price not really in pocket money terms are they.

the range of games for Nintendo is fantastic, with plenty of all age ranges,but the younger mind set of characters for pokeman for instance,is incredible,good fun game play et al.

but not the type of game an over 17 year old would likely get hooked on.

also,out here at least. PSP is marketed in glossy magazines,stuff,IT,Maxim,FHM.game boy DS not to be seen in such publications other then reviews,

so i would say in asia at least. PSP= above 17 DS below 17.

but both great in there own way.

:: not the type of game an over 17 year old
:: would likely get hooked on.

Well, apart from Meteos. Or Animal Crossing. Or the utterly fantastic Mario Kart DS. Or Zoo Keeper. Or Kirby... (and so on). Just because a game can appeal to all ages, that doesn't mean someone who's not a kid will shun it. In fact, it often means people of all ages will embrace it ? at least people who are sick of the Sony "gangsta motherf***er rap shooter" generic-o-games. Evidently, I (and a bunch of people I know) must be "17 again" or something.

From what I can tell ? at least in the UK ? the PSP is primarily targeted at people who think they want a cool gadget, but don't really know why. Literally no-one I know with a PSP is raving about the actual games (in fact, few mention them at all), but about all the additional features (despite, you know, rarely actually using any of them), and how "cool" the console looks (until the screen is covered in fingerprints, presumably). Crucially, everyone I know with a DS (including a fairly large number of ex-PSP owners) is raving about the actual games. Most of these people, it has to be said, are in their 30s...

Maybe there's a certain mindset of people who grew up with really great, innovative games in the 1970s and 1980s who see through the thin gloss of today's gaming market and actually appreciate innovation and new ideas when they see them, hence the success of the DS, and its ability to usually out-sell its "glossier" (but brain-dead) rival.

The guy on the seat infront on the bus home last night had a PSP... dunno what game he was playing but it looked terribly dull, although the graphics did look pretty good considering the screen size.

I was much happier reading my book.
('Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell')

Oh, Animal Crossing...

Love that game - though that bastard Tom Nook has just nailed me for another 120,000 bells... :-(

OK - Necro post time ;-)

Managed to bag a DS Lite a day early (Thank Currys) and want to know what else I should pick up games wise.

So far got:

Brain Train thingy...
Mario Kart DS

Zelda and Final Fantasy for the GBA

What else should be _must_ buys?

Advance Wars:Dual Strike.

Whatyadoin still reading? Go buy it now!

Wario Ware Touched - brill fun

:: what else I should pick up games wise

I guess it depends what sort of thing you like playing. I highly recommend the criminally under-rated Zoo Keeper, which can now be picked up for a song (13 quid from movietyme.com). It's a fast, frenetic puzzler on a par with Tetris. The only problem is the appalling Quest mode (because it's blatantly unfair, and you need to top every high-score table to unlock "super hard mode" and get the real high scores); other than that, it's ace. (And the people saying it's no better than Flash-based Bejewelled efforts have clearly not played Zoo Keeper, or don't understand the concept of portable gaming.

Elsewhere, Mr Driller 2 has actually provided the bulk of my non-Mario Kart DS gaming time. It offers little over previous versions of the game, but it's fairly cheap in most places now and worth a look.

In terms of platform games, Kirby: Canvas Curse is a rather unique effort, which uses the stylus extensively (and intuitively). It's fun, and quite relaxing. And then, of course, there's the new Mario Bros. game, which has been receiving almost unanimously positive reviews.

Well Dual Strike is brilliant but has already been mentioned...  Id go for
Yoshi Touch and Go!  Is so simple its excellent and really addictive.

Slips
 

Cheers

I see Zelda and Starfox are aimed for the End of Year...

any body connect via wi-fi hotspots eg. in starbucks uk? how easy/fast is it? Can you invite/be invited to play a game against anyone in the world?  Heard rumours of ds internet connection?

Easy to set up in most places for wireless play...just need the WEP code if they have one,, then just search and let it sort it out itself...

As for good games...check out bargain bin at COMET - they had Advance Wars DS for ?12 in ours recently.  Other then that TESCO have good prices normally a ? or so cheaper than elsewhere...

Dankell --

Must-buys? Try these games, all out in the UK right now:

Metroid Prime Hunters - a great portable FPS
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow - classy side-scrolling action
Trauma Centre: Under the Knife - bitch-hard surgery game
Kirby: Power Paintbrush - a fun twist on this platforming series
Advance Wars: Dual Strike - the finest turn-based strategy available on any handheld system
Meteos - great little puzzle title
Zookeeper - as above
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - hilarious adventure game
Nintendogs - a great, if short, twist on the virtual pet genre.
Animal Crossing: Wild World - slow, sedate and hugely addictive
New Super Mario Bros. - the best platformer in years, and a fantastic new Mario title
Tetris DS - utterly essential, rich puzzle title, and being able to play opponents worldwide is the icing on the cake

If you enjoy Brain Training, you might want to look at Big Brain Academy, due out on July 7 over here.

If you're into importing - and remember, the DS is region-free - you could do worse than picking up a copy of the Japanese rhythm-action classic, Ouendan.

As for other good titles, have a look for:

Another Code: Two Memories
Electroplankton
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time
Metroid Prime Pinball
Nintendo Touch Golf
Pac Pix
Pokemon Link
Project Rub
Resident Evil: Deadly Silence
Sonic Rush
Super Princess Peach
Tony Hawk's American Sk8land
Wario Ware Touched
Yoshi Touch & Go

Once you're done with all of those, you can look forward to titles like Starfox Command, Final Fantasy III, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Chibi Robo, Phoenix Wright 2, Mega Man ZX, Lunar Knights, Pokemon Diamond/Pearl and Elite Beat Agents coming later this year!

DS is quickly becoming my favourite games system, knocking even the SNES and PlayStation out of their top spots - my only complaint is that I don't have the money or time for all of the games that I want for it!

Cheers All - lots of tips there ;-)

Finally, anyone recommend a good case for Lite + Games (GBA + SD)?  All the ones in the high street seem very bulky

Advance Wars DS for ?12.99 still available in our COMET...

This is what I use for my Lite - Black Smart Case - but it's import only at the moment, I'm afraid, and it doesn't have space for cards or carts.

As for cases, try the old GameBoy cases. Each one of those will hold four DS cards quite snugly, and they're easily available on eBay. I've actually got a cheap business card mini-folder that will take around 20 DS cards, and I just pop any GBA games I want to take into GBA cases and drop them in my pocket.

I use my PSP case that I bought (from HMV I think)...?12 approx, will hold 7 cards (6+1 in the machine) which is more than I have.

New Super MArio Bros is the best game I've played in years, gawd I love 2D.

CU Radbacker

I just did a favour for someone and instead of accepting money - which I don't like to do - they're buying me a DS Lite. Cool! Are there any good bundles out there?

M@

My local Game has 1 free game from a choice of about 6 for ?109.

Included in the offer were Metroid Prime and Brain Training which have both been mentioned here.

The offers on Games website seem less good though.

GAME:
White DS Lite with Brain Training and Tetris DS and Screen Protector and Cloth??129.98

Black DS Lite with Metroid Prime, Sonic Rush and Screen Protector and Cloth??129.98

For games, check out http://www.movietyme.com

So how in blazes do you set up the Wi-Fi connecction? I've done everything they say and it just won't find my router.

Any tips?

James --

Check this link for some advice. I've never had a problem with the two routers I've tried it with - it just detected them straight away - and the few hotspots I've found worked pretty well.

Still think PSP has the edge on this...

Bigger screen, better games (and I hear ps1 games are gonna be available on download free).

Watch movies, listen to mp3, record TV and whatever else is in the works..

Do xbox hve a plan for a portable?

If not, they've really missed a trick.

I pick PSP.

I've checked the router list and my D-Link DI 614+ is not compatible.

Arses.

Anyone wanna buy a router?

Bigger screen? Definitely.

Better games? Debatable. There are certainly some cracking games on the PSP - Loco Roco springs to mind - but there are more that appeal to me on the DS.

I would be very, very surprised if the PS1 emulation on the PSP was tied into a free download scheme. It would be unprecedented, and given the cost involved in getting the games running on the PSP - not to mention the cost of running the kind of download service envisaged - I would be astonished if PSP owners didn't end up paying at least a few quid per title.

As for the other features - movies, music, GPS etc. - I guess it comes down to what you want. I'm not interested in watching movies on the go, I have a lightweight dedicated MP3 player & stuff like GPS, camera functionality etc. doesn't really appeal. I want a robust, compact portable games system with a solid catalogue of interesting games that are built with gaming-on-the-go in mind, and the DS (and the GBA before it) match my needs perfectly.

Microsoft have long been rumoured to be moving into the portable market, but I would be surprised if it happened soon. The DS and GBA still have a firm grip on the portable gaming market worldwide, and the PSP is carving its own niche as a high-end convergence/gaming device. There doesn't appear to be as much room for a Microsoft gaming platform in the portable market as there was in the home console market.

Well... for my needs (or more specifically, the needs of my son) a peice of hardwear that can play games and play movies will save me from buying a portable games console and a portable dvd player.

As for the free ps1 downloads, I have no concrete evidence for this and what you say seems to make sence, so that may all be bullshit.

I still think the games are better

Cheers, Guys.

I eventually picked up a black DS Lite from Gamestation with Mario Kart for ?110 and picked up Brain Training too. Couldn't find a cheap Advance Wars DS in Comet though...

Having a bit of fun so far, but I also can't connect to the WiFi service sadly, although it can see my home netwotrk, plus there is one bright red pixel on each screen, which is a bummer - so I might take it back.

More worrying though, is that my 'Brain Age' is currently in the 80s...!

M@

Unless things have changed, Nintendo bucks the trend regarding dead/stuck pixels, with a no-dead-pixel guarantee. For some reason, the DS Lite appears to be more susceptible to dead pixels than the el-chunky version. Therefore, do take it back and get a "perfect" model.

Other than that, enjoy!

Banners, you're not using Airport are you?

Well, I just got the router working. It's a Buffalo AirStation WYR-G54 and I've just knocked it down from 802.11g to 802.11b (albeit temporarily).

Predictably, I just got beaten to shreds in my first online race at Mario Kart, but it was quite close(!) Better put som epratise in...

Cheers,

M@

Inspired by this thread I got one of these at the weekend.

DS Lite, New Super Mario, ANY other games up to ?30 (I got Tetris) and a carry case - for ?129.99.

I also got Advance Wars for ?13 and Yoshi Touch and GO for ?18 from my local Tesco.