Current Situation

“The consumer doesn’t want more of the same,” says Nintendo Executive Vice President of Sales and Marketing Reggie Fils-Aime. “They want something truly innovative.” So far, it seems like Reggie is right—Nintendo has sold roughly 3 million units of its dual-screen handheld worldwide since its debut last November. Take into account DS’s relatively lackluster launch lineup, and those sales figures are that much more impressive.

Unfortunately, the DS software library isn’t looking much better during these first few months of ’05. As usual, it’s a sprinkling of Nintendo-made games (such as the recently released WarioWare: Touched! and Yoshi Touch & Go, due in March), and that’s about it. This as Sony’s PlayStation Portable arrives in game stores on March 24.

Looking Ahead

Like a distant traveler with his destination in sight, DS owners will definitely see a boatload of titles this fall that take advantage of the machine’s capabilities (touch pad, microphone, and Wi-Fi). Nintendo will do its part with showstoppers like Mario Kart DS, a portable Animal Crossing, and a new Super Mario Bros. DS also has a spark of solid third-party support, including a new Castlevania from Konami and two Final Fantasy installments (FF: Crystal Chronicles and FFIII) from Square Enix.

Notable Games

Advance Wars DS • Fall ’05 — Thanks to the machine’s two screens, you can keep an eye on both air and ground attacks in this strategy war game.

Animal Crossing DS • Fall ’05 — Use the DS’s wireless feature to visit your bud’s village and trade decorating secrets.

Castlevania DS • Fall ’05 — Konami’s acclaimed adventure series uses the DS’s lower touch screen to cast magic spells on the undead.

New Super Mario Bros. • Fall ’05

This one looks more old than new, as the plumbers return to a life in 2D.

Mario Kart DS • Fall ’05 — Not much changes as Mario and co. race to DS, which is just fine by us.

Metroid Prime Hunters • Spring ’05

Rather than a solo adventure like the two console installments, this Prime is all about the multiplayer component.

Copyright © 2005 Ziff Davis Media Inc. All Rights Reserved. Originally appearing in Electronic Gaming Monthly.