Fat Ninja

“Judge me by my size, do you?”

Nintendo never really sold me on their Dual Screen (DS) system. I felt it was a niche product with niche features. I honestly believed that it wasn’t designed with broad appeal in mind and that there was a good chance I would be one of those who found it lacking. It was based on these assumptions that I bought Sony’s PSP. Sadly, I’ve been fairly underwhelmed with the PSP on account of its lack of killer apps combined with its ridiculously expensive memory. However, with the release of the Nintendo DS Lite, my decision to skip the Nintendo DS has since turned out to be a solid one. For a fraction of the price I had to pay for my Sony PSP, I picked up the slim, sleek Nintendo DS Lite; and since getting it in the mail, I’ve been simply blown away by its capabilities.

The Nintendo DS Lite is really a lot more than a simple revisiting of the original DS. Nintendo has truly revamped, redesigned and rebuilt their powerful handheld, and the results are fantastic. Looking at the DS Lite, its white casing smacks of that austerity that we’ve all come to associate with the iPod. In terms of size, the DS Lite is a marvel, cramming revolutionary hardware into a convenient package that slides easily into your pocket. Ergonomically, the DS Lite isn’t necessarily contoured to fit perfectly in the human hand, but its rounded edges, light weight and intuitive button placement make it feel more than comfortable without sacrificing functionality.

Little. White. Different.

Once you open the clamshell handheld and power it up, you’ll find that the dual screens are well lit, providing ideal gaming conditions regardless of your surroundings. One of my big issues with the PSP was that I could not, for the life of me, play it outside without risking vision damage. The DS Lite, on the other hand, offers two brilliantly lit screens that make it possible to play in almost every circumstance.

Everything about the aesthetic design of the Nintendo DS Lite is about austerity and functionality. Comparing it to its bulky prededcessor, the DS Lite is just leaps and bounds ahead in every way, offering all of the same gaming goodness in a smaller, simpler package. And to think that Nintendo is charging a mere $129.99 (plus tax where applicable) is just boggling to me.

Mario SMASH!!

Final Thoughts 

Aesthetics and pricing aside, however, the DS in general is quickly winning me over with its great games library. Thus far I’ve picked up three titles for it; New Super Mario Brothers, Brain Age and MarioKart DS. Each one has thoroughly impressed me. While finding a lot to love in “rediscovering” the cast of Nintendo characters with whom I grew up is no real surprise, I’m staggered by how much I love the implementation of the stylus and touch screen. I distinctly recall scoffing at this concept when info about the DS first began to surface, and, yet, here I am playing Brain Age and participating in Pictochats with it. It’s definitely a credit to the ingenuity and innovative thinking that Nintendo is renowned for.

OVERALL RATING: Must Have

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