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Post by Keith T. Hemari on Nov 6, 2006 16:13:09 GMT -5
Ok, so tell me if I got a good deal.
I was in Florida a few days ago, visiting an on-line friend, who plans to move up here for college (and I might just be moving in with her - as a roommate, but I digress) and one of the things we did was visit the Florida Mall. There I found a Game Stop, and, having never been in one, entered it.
I've been in game shops before, but was never really taken with them, and this one seemed no different... that is until I noticed their used portables. At first the Game Boy SP's (at $50) captivated my attention... but then I noticed they had DS's for $80. I asked the clerk to see what colors they had and he brought some out, but he also brought out one that had been refurbished. I like refurbished. My computer is a refurbished PC and has served me admirably for almost two years now. Refurbished means that someone actually made sure it works and might even have fixed anything broken, it's a nice little step up from just plain used.
So, in a fit of self indulgence, I bought both it and Sonic Rush, for a total of about $107. I would say that was a good buy, eh?
So far the DS has proved its worth, doing much to quell my pessimism after the problems I had with the Advance, and Sonic Rush has been fun to play. But I have a few questions:
1: What about the DS's Opera web browser? I know it's been/will be released in Europe, but are there any plans for release here in the States? Has it been and I just haven't noticed?
2: What does it take to set up a wireless network at home? I have a cable connection and I would really like to be able to take advantage of the DS's wireless support, without having to go to McDonald's each time XD Those Big Macs aren't good for my tum'.
3: What games would you guys suggest to get for this? I already have Rush and plan to get Star Fox Command, New Super Mario Brothers, Animal Crossing: Wild World, and Tetris DS, but what other, less obvious titles are floating around that might be fun to play?
I think that's 'bout it... now I must heed the call of Sonic Rush... *game play*
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SoNick Belmont
Behind The Logo Team 
Thanks again to Jolly Joes for the avatar
Posts: 1,875
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Post by SoNick Belmont on Nov 6, 2006 16:29:37 GMT -5
I can't answer 1 offhand; a bit of research may be in order if nobody else knows anything.
Two, however, I can answer: some method of broadcasting a wireless signal. The Nintendo WiFi Dongle works quite well for this, but last I heard it's only available online (that may have changed, as it's been quite awhile...). Failing that, a wireless router will do the trick, but as they aren't cheap (mine was about $60) I wouldn't suggest getting one just for online DS usage (now if you had multiple computers you wanted to have online that'd be another story...).
And 3? I have Tetris DS, Meteos, Tony Hawk's American Wasteland, Mario Kart DS, Sonic Rush, Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow, Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, and New Super Mario Bros (...and possibly one other game; I'd have to get my DS out to see what it is).
I'd recommend Tetris DS if you can play online (...or if through some strange twist of fate you lack any other form of Tetris).
Meteos doesn't have WiFi play, but it's a fun little Tetris-esque game that's a great way to waste time between classes.
Tony Hawk's American Wasteland is a half-decent attempt at bringing the Tony Hawk games to DS; the gameplay is great, but a small change to the controls (R is now "try to land right-side-up" instead of "turn right faster") has lead to far too many "you hit the ramp at the wrong angle!" moments for me.
Mario Kart DS was fun for awhile, but I've grown quite bored of it. It will provide quite a bit of fun if you're addicted to the Mario Kart gameplay, but it takes forever and a day to find anyone online.
I'll omit any opinions on Sonic Rush; you've played it so you know what it's like (Note: Night Carnival and the latter parts of Water Palace are pure evil).
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow is an awesome game if you're into the Castlevania series; it provided me with quite a bit of replay value before I got bored of it. And as an added plus, you get to play as a team of Yoko, Julius, and Alucard Castlevania 3-style after you beat the game.
Phoenix Wright is a must-play game if you can find it; I read about a second printing of the game not too long ago, so it shouldn't be too hard to find. It is a quirky little courtroom/detective game...but you'd already know this if you'd played Phoenix Wright. The sequel is coming out in a few months, too, so you may want to pick that up when it's released.
And New Super Mario Bros.? I enjoyed it, but I can't really say whether you would or not; I've heard mixed reviews of the game. And despite what I've heard online, it is not normal to complete the game with around 60 lives. I did so with quite a bit less. The lack of a "flying item" is a bit of a disappointment, and the shell item really isn't as hard to control as I've heard others claim; you just have to know how to release the "run" button and slow down every once in awhile.
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Post by BlazeHedgehod on Nov 6, 2006 16:35:10 GMT -5
As far as I know, Opera DS will not be landing in the states anytime soon, if at all. However, the DS is region free, so feel free to import the UK version (which landed Oct 6th, if Wikipedia is to be believed). Nintendo has an easy wireless solution for the DS; though you'll ONLY be able to use it with the DS, I believe. For $30 you can purchase a "USB Wifi Dongle". It's very painless to install and gives you a range of, what? 100 feet, I think? Plugs right into any USB port on a PC, and, assuming you have the software for it installed, will let you play your DS through the internets. I own Sonic Rush, New Super Mario Brothers, and Mario Kart DS. I've had a fair amount of fun with all 3 of them, but each seems to have a problem or two that keeps them from being super-wow-knock-my-socks-off great. Obviously, somebody is going to say Pheonix Wright. Think of it as kind of... a Japanese adventure game, in a way. You play a lawyer who has to find clues in a witness testimony and object to lies they might say in real-time. It's very fun, with a pretty sharp sense of humor. I've also heard good things about Trauma Center: Under the Knife. You must perform surgery with the stylus in that game. Though, I've heard it gets very difficult. Megaman ZX was recently released to a pretty good reception. It's somewhat a standard Megaman X game, but there are, as there always are with the new spinoffs, some pretty big changes, too. Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow also got quite a bit of acclaim, too - many say it was better than Aria of Sorrow on the GBA, and I considered Aria of Sorrow nearly on-par with Symphony of the Night - which suggests Dawn of Sorrow may infact be the titular 2D Castlevania. There is also a great deal of hype surrounding Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, which is due out in a few weeks. There's also Final Fantasy III, which hits next week. It's a remake of the original NES FF3, but upgraded to feature Playstation-level 3D graphics. (though, I've heard it's also very stringent on gameplay updates - in other words, it's purely a graphical update and nothing else; the gameplay is transplanted almost directly across from FF3 NES with no changes) Elite Beat Agents was just released, a music/rhythm game for the DS with a crazy Japanese sense of humor. You must tap certain locations on the touch screen in time with the music that is playing. Elite Beat Agents is the america-only sequel to the japan-only Ouendan, which features more of the same if you enjoy EBA. Contact also just was recently released to mixed reviews. It was that DS game people were confusing with Mother 3 some time ago. Sort of an action RPG. |
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Post by J on Nov 6, 2006 16:39:31 GMT -5
If you're up for exercising your brain, you could always get Brain Age. The added plus is that you could go head-to-head with anyone else to see how your brain ages compare.
Other than that, I can't make any more recommendations that haven't been said.
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Sofox
Behind The Logo Team
Yeah, I'm still a jet propelled fox, deal with it
Posts: 1,273
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Post by Sofox on Nov 6, 2006 16:47:45 GMT -5
I'd like to add a question to Keiths':
Is it possible to get rid of that irritating "epilepsy warning: touch screen to continue" screen?
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Post by BlazeHedgehod on Nov 6, 2006 16:50:22 GMT -5
Nope! That's always there. I think Nintendo nearly got into some trouble with a stupid mom (or grandma) when her kid had a seizure from playing a Gamecube game. Everybody was like, "wtf, it says right in the manual about epilepsy warnings." but Nintendo still started printing newer, more prominent warnings before every game started. Even some Gamecube games have them, and I'm sure most Wii games will, too.
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Oni Lukos
Behind The Logo Team
Still spinning, for some reason...
Posts: 6,060
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Post by Oni Lukos on Nov 6, 2006 16:53:32 GMT -5
*glances at your location tag*
...either we've got another TMBG fan here that didn't take the census, or you're copying me!
Anyway, for the questions:
1) It is confirmed, but no date has been announced.
2) Very easy. I can answer questions about routers if necessary.
3) I think this one's been covered there and back again.
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Post by Admin on Nov 6, 2006 17:44:55 GMT -5
Ok, so tell me if I got a good deal. Long story short; Yes. I'd say you have. =P 1: What about the DS's Opera web browser? I know it's been/will be released in Europe, but are there any plans for release here in the States? Has it been and I just haven't noticed?As has already been answered; it has not yet been released in the US, but you can import the UK version; or failing that, probably any other European version as well; in my case, even though the manual and box art is in Dutch, the program itself is still in full English. (even the one I have with the Dutch-lingual manual still has the program in English.) BE REALLY MINDFUL WHICH VERSION YOU TAKE. The browser has a DS version and a DS LITE version. The DS regular version will work on both versions, but the included RAM Expansion pak of the Lite version is too small to fit in the regular DS. 2: What does it take to set up a wireless network at home? I have a cable connection and I would really like to be able to take advantage of the DS's wireless support, without having to go to McDonald's each time XD Those Big Macs aren't good for my tum'.Eat their salads instead. ;P Apart from that though, your options are as follows: -A wireless Broadband modem/router -A WiFi USB stick (such as the one Nintendo itself has for sale; though I never got mine to work properly) 3: What games would you guys suggest to get for this? I already have Rush and plan to get Star Fox Command, New Super Mario Brothers, Animal Crossing: Wild World, and Tetris DS, but what other, less obvious titles are floating around that might be fun to play?PHOENIX WRIGHT  Erm... OK, aside from that, some titles I own which are quite enjoyable (depending on the genres you like, of course) are: Advance Wars Dual Strike (Turn Based Strategy) Lost Magic (Realtime Strategy with RPG elements) Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow (Sideview platformer) Meteos (Puzzler; think "Tetris Attack/Puzzle League" but with vertical block shuffling rather then horizontal) Trace Memory ("Point and Touch" Adventure) Touch Detective (P&T Adventure; haven't finished yet, but I like it so far) Good fun but really a bit too short to pay full money for: Dragon Quest: Rocket Slime (Top-down platformer) Electroplankton (Trancey music creator/"demo player"/Voice recorder) Games that "work well enough" alone but really show their gusto in Multiplayer mode include: Metroid Prime Hunters (First Person Shooter/Adventure) Mario Kart DS (Racer) Bomberman (Top down "dig your own maze" game) And one I wish I hadn't bought: Worms: Open Warfare (very poorly done) |
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Post by Mystical Thief 001 on Nov 6, 2006 17:51:51 GMT -5
I've heard Contact is good, as far as number 3 goes. 'Least you can get a quirky RPG, since Mother 3 isn't U.S.-bound.
Mario Hoops 3-on-3 is also quite a game. It'll keep you occupied for around 3 weeks+, even if playing nonstop.
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Post by Keith T. Hemari on Nov 6, 2006 18:41:31 GMT -5
Thanks for all your suggestions, guys^^
I actually remember seeing that dongle thing at a Target, I might just go for that.
Ok, so the Opera browser isn't coming to US any time soon... where would be a good site to import it from? 'cause the more I think about it, the more this sounds like a great feature for when I travel.
Thanks again for all your inputs.
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Post by Jolly Joes on Nov 6, 2006 18:59:21 GMT -5
H Hog, I wouldn't call Rocket Slime a platformer. It's more Zelda-ish. I like it though because the puns of that game actually makes me chuckle. The thing I have a against it is that it is too easy--but that's expected from a TOSE-created game. Still, I don't regret spending $30 for it. Ok, so tell me if I got a good deal. Depends. Did you get a DS or a DSLite? $80 is a good deal for a DSLite--not so much for a DS. Also, get Kirby's Canvas Curse. One of the best games I've played on the system that uses the stylus in a great way. Get Castlevania:Dawn of Sorrow also. In fact: Kirby's Canvas Curse + Dawn of Sorrow > Sonic Rush + New Super Mario Brothers. Not to say that Sonic Rush and New Super Mario Brothers are bad games. I just find Kirby and DoS to be superior. Also, be on the look out for the upcoming Yoshi's Island DS and Castlevania:Portrait of Ruin. I also echo the reconmendation of getting Elite Beat Agents, Ouendan(import), and Meteos. Though with Meteos, stay-away from the upcoming gimped Disney Version. Stick to the original. Also, you should keep an eye out for the upcoming Gunpey DS for more puzzle goodness. I guess I could reconmend Pokemon Mysterious Dungeon Blue--if you like rouge-like RPGs. Pokemon Ranger, Children of Mana, and Magical Starsign(moar RPGs) just came out, though I have yet to play them. I would talk about Lost in Blue, but you would probably have a hard time finding it. |
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Post by Optimus Prime on Nov 6, 2006 19:19:00 GMT -5
... I like Contact. It isn't forgiving, but gutting soliders in a chef's outfit with a fruit knife =D? How often do you get to do that? Plus I figured out how to pet Mochi rather than just... jabbing him. Now he hates me less. Yeeeeap. YOU WILL FEAR MY FRUIT KNIFE!
... I do have better weapons, but I like my widdle knifey =(.
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow is also highly recommended by Angst, but I'm a fangirl. It's just pretty x_o. NSMB disappointed me. As noted, it's not bad, it's just... a little weak. Considering what expectations it faced, though, it's a good game. Personally I think Super Princess Peach was more entertaining even with its lame-ass puzzles. Being on fire is fun =D plus I love emo Goombas. EMOOOOOO~!
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Post by Agent BA-0 "ZZT" on Nov 6, 2006 20:13:24 GMT -5
Elite Beat Agents or death.
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Post by Andrusi on Nov 6, 2006 20:15:30 GMT -5
You should get Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Pretty Cure Max Heart, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, and of course Phoenix Wright.
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Post by 王泥喜 on Nov 6, 2006 20:46:39 GMT -5
If you're into importing, I must ask what kind of stuff you commonly import:
- Ouendan is considered by many the "Must-have" JP import title.
- Jump Superstars is pretty good if you need a Smash Bros. clone, although I reccomend waiting until the end of the month for the upcoming Jump Ultimate Stars. It looks to be much more enjoyable thanks to Wifi compatibility.
- If you want to be the first to play a new Phoenix Wright game, remember that Gyakuten Saiban 2 DS has a full English lanugage option.
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Post by J on Nov 6, 2006 22:20:43 GMT -5
You should get Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Pretty Cure Max Heart, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, Phoenix Wright, and of course Phoenix Wright. ICWUTUDIDTHARANDY. |
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Post by Keith T. Hemari on Nov 6, 2006 22:41:41 GMT -5
If you're into importing, I must ask what kind of stuff you commonly import: I haven't actually done any importing. Haven't had any need, hence the asking where to do so.  |
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Post by Ashuku on Nov 6, 2006 22:57:10 GMT -5
Get advance wars Dual strike, and meteos.
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Post by Jolly Joes on Nov 6, 2006 23:19:14 GMT -5
I haven't actually done any importing. Haven't had any need, hence the asking where to do so. is pretty reliable! The merchandise I order from them usually ships pretty fast. -- Opera Browser for DSLiteAnd while we are at it... OuendanOr if you want to try a US site that imports the goods there is NCSX. |
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Post by Keith T. Hemari on Nov 6, 2006 23:21:43 GMT -5
Ahh, thanks!
I don't have a DSLite, just the original version. Not so much a good deal as if it were the Lite, but still, pretty decent.
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