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Review : Nintendo DS Lite game system

On Sunday I went to Pink Godzilla Games over in Seattle with only an intention on getting an old 8-bit Famicom game for my Generation NEX and possibly one of their new spiffy t-shirts. It ends up that is was the official US release of the Nintendo DS Lite and this was the first time that I have actually seen one in person. I was blowed away by how the color of the screen just jumped off the unit and right at your eyes. After playing Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan for a few minutes on it I knew that I had to get one right then. The import Japanese DS Lites were on sale at Pink Godzilla for a while now and both Target and Wal-Mart put their shipment on sale a full two weeks before Nintendo wanted them to.

The Nintendo DS Lite is a slightly smaller interpretation of the Nintendo DS and it sports about a quarter less bulk that the normal DS. It has a totally flat clam shell design with rounded corners and it looks and feels like an Apple iPod. It can be slipped into my coat pocket with out a noticeable bulge. It has a true clam shell design and feels almost totally symmetrical in your pocket like an iPod.

The stylus is much larger and easier to hold. The touch screen gives you a little bit more resistance when you drag the stylus over it.

Now here is the real reason why I had to upgrade. The screen is way brighter and it seams to be slightly bigger. The colors just jump off the screen and it makes old DS games seem bright and new. There is now four levels of brightness that can be set at the system menu by tapping the brightness icon.

Gameboy Advance games look crisp, sharp and bright. It looks just as good as the new Gameboy Advance SP and the Gameboy Micro. However the Gameboy advance cartridges do not fit in side the unit totally as they did in the regular DS. The cartridge sticks out about a third the way. This does not get in your way but it is worth mentioning. Nintendo included a port cover that looks like half a GBA game so it can be a nice smooth form factor in your pocket.

It still has a great battery life that is pretty close to what the normal DS got.

However some of the things that I wish fixed on the Nintendo DS were not changed on the DS Lite. They are.

1. When playing a GBA game there is no way to map the L and R buttons to the X and Y buttons next to the A and B buttons. This makes Street Fighter or King of Fighter games still slightly weird because you have to use the top L and R buttons while the X and Y go unused.

2. There is no way to link it to a GBA or a Gamecube via the link cable so it is no good to play The Legend of Zelda : Four Swords for Gamecube, Animal Crossing Gamecube or Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles. on the Gamecube.

These aside this is one fun sexy unit. If you are a hard core DS gamer then you might want to upgrade. Gamestop will offer $50 credit for a classic DS so you can upgrade to a DS Lite for only $80. They sell for $130 if you are not trading anything in. If you are quite happy with your DS then there is not as much reason to upgrade.

I am quite glad to see that the DS has gotten some really great games and held it's own in the market place. I am damn glad that I upgraded and it makes me want to rediscover my DS games. BBQ upgraded as well and I saw at Gamestop today that three of the other gamers there made the upgrade so I am not the only Nintendo freak that had to have one. The DS Lite shows that Nintendo knows how to crank out the fun.

Jake at June 12, 2006 Reviews

Comments

Posted by: Allen at June 13, 2006 3:36 AM

Posted by: wujimon at June 13, 2006 5:23 AM

Posted by: BBQ at June 13, 2006 12:29 PM

Posted by: ShotgunSteve at June 14, 2006 10:36 PM

Posted by: John J at June 17, 2006 10:41 PM

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