DS Cleans House in Japan

[Vandenh]

The DS sales have shot up to stellar proportions in Japan leaving all competition in the dust.

The Inquirer has the news (http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=28575).

IN LESS THAN thirteen months, the Nintendo DS has sold more than five million units in Japan.

Compare this with the seventeen months it took the PS2 to sell the same number in Japan, and the fourteen months it took the Game Boy Advance, and you've got quite the sales explosion.
And originally I thought that the PSP would wipe the floor with the DS. Turned out to be the other way around. The portable games market is much more sensitive to gameplay and "pick-up-and-have-fun" moments I guess, something the PSP is missing.

[grammatoncleric]

That's fantastic.

[Deathbane27]

Just over half the price, better battery life, and Castlevania... hard to beat.

I'll be going on a trip in a month or so, and getting one myself. 3-hour layover in Minneapolis. :p

[Heretic Machine]

Animal Crossing + Mario Kart + Nintendogs = Win.

[bKangy]

I might get one soon too - it's got a good amount of quality titles out now, and it's not even that much. Does the region you buy it in matter?

[Stormwatcher]

Nope, there is no region nonsense on DS games!!! :)
I think that the DS is just a foreshadowing of what will happen on the next gen... Revolution FTW.

[Kyle Jones]

Just got one for Christmas...


Yeah, I can see why it sold 5 million. What a great little handheld, with so many possibilities...

[Vandenh]

When in Japan I was ready to get a PSP, but usually my handheld is also used by my girlfriend (when we travelled). She just couldn't stand a PSP (and a PSP has a very Otaku status in japan, not many people like to be seen with one) so I didn't get one (I was also not impressed with it anyway... great screen and err... nothing).
So I just got a DS for XMas and I have to wrestle her to play!! I might have to get a second one ;) And yes, it is the touchscreen, she just thinks it is much easier to play games like this. Who would have thought???? Nintendo got it right. Shows how much a veteran gamer knows about gaming ;)

[Rirath]

I'd much rather just own both. It's almost a thing of pride to be otaku in the west, like 'geek'. But seriously, it's hard to be surprised Japan prefers the NDS and Nintendogs. They've made some top notch PSP games at any rate.

[fushi]

And originally I thought that the PSP would wipe the floor with the DS. Turned out to be the other way around. The portable games market is much more sensitive to gameplay and "pick-up-and-have-fun" moments I guess, something the PSP is missing.
More like the portable games market is much more sensitive to good games and not having to resort to faux piracy (emulation) to have something to do with your machine.

That's a bit too rough, sorry. I don't really think that way. Here's an interesting up and coming PSP game in Korea (http://www.djmax.co.kr/). The intro has a Makoto Shinkai-feel to it, but the character designs are a bit meh. But the machine gets stylish games and seems to be a favourite amongst the upper middle class in Korea.

[Racknahm]

Ive been playing the hell out of Mario Kart. Must unlock everything.

[Mr.Zip]

More like the portable games market is much more sensitive to good games and not having to resort to faux piracy (emulation) to have something to do with your machine.

That's a bit too rough, sorry. I don't really think that way. Here's an interesting up and coming PSP game in Korea (http://www.djmax.co.kr/). The intro has a Makoto Shinkai-feel to it, but the character designs are a bit meh. But the machine gets stylish games and seems to be a favourite amongst the upper middle class in Korea.

Really? I've been in Korea the past two weeks and I haven't seen a single PSP. Subway, bus, airport-nothing. Then again I haven't seen anyone with a DS either, but everyone loves their cell phones.

Being stupid I imagined Korea to be gaming holy land with video games everywhere, but I really haven't seen it. I think I've been hanging around the wrong neighborhoods.

[Vandenh]

>Being stupid I imagined Korea to be gaming holy land with video games everywhere, but I really haven't seen it

True, Koreans love gaming on mobile phones. They don't like PSP and probably also not DS. Walk into any Internet Cafe to see hardcore Korean gaming in action ;)

[Reanimated]

Awesome news! Kuturagi cries.

[Cubfan]

I'll admit that I thought the PSP was going to fare better against the DS than it has. Though I'm not yet counting the PSP out. A couple of (non hardcore gaming) coworkers bought them for Xmas, and they even gave one away at the company holiday party. Maybe the PSP picked up some steam this holiday season?

Personally, I own and love my DS. Just finished Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time, played it for probably eight hours straight on my day off Monday, longer than any gaming session I've had since college. The last boss fight was ridiculous, it lasted maybe an hour and a half to two hours. Could be that I suck though.

[BenSkywalker]

I had figured that this happening was an obvious eventuallity- and I think that Sony was expecting it. The PSP is not and never was going after the DS or GBA- it was aimed squarely at the iPod and in that aspect I think they are doing extremely well with it. UMD movies dominate the PSP shelf space in every store in my area that has anything PSP- games(there actually are a few) are stacked sideways on their sides at most locations. It seemed fairly obvious that Sony didn't care about hand held gaming when you took a look at their lineup and their hardware. Nintendo has, every time they had competition in the handheld arena, come out with considerably less powerful units(less power hungry) and considerably less in depth games(pick up and play)- exactly what the hand held market always wants.

Picked up my PSP on launch day and in all honesty it is a real POS for gaming- but I bought it to be a media player and that it does very well.

[joruussuun]

I bought a PSP Pack on launch day... man Lumines was awesome... and sold it all three months later.

[Vandenh]

>but I bought it to be a media player and that it does very well.

Dude.. as a media player it sucks. Only the screen is worth it. Get a real media player (actually wait a bit until they get a screen that is as good as PSP).

[Reanimated]

I bought a PSP Pack on launch day... man Lumines was awesome... and sold it all three months later.



Same here.

I waited for GTA to come out, played it, thought it sucked ass, then promptly put everything on Ebay and picked up a DS.

Best. Move. Ever.

[sparkfizt]

I ended up getting a DS, handhelds are about the only thing I like from nintendo (primarily a pc gamer) and I bashed the handheld pretty badly before it came out. I still dont believe two screens were neccessary though :P i've yet to encounter a game where the second screen really tied together the game. The reality is when you play a DS it's very difficult to focus your attention on more than one screen at a time, as a result you cant have too much going on in both screens or your going to have to constantly shift your attention. The PSP is cool and all but from my experiences in EB's and such stores with a demo unit arent good.... primarily it comes down to load times which seem to be excruciatingly long and often, and it may be just me but i cant get used to that analog stick. I just hope they can stay away from the re-makes and ports for the DS(remember the gameboy advance landscape?), for a company that screams about innovation so much could you please stop trying to resell me your games from 20 years ago? :(

[Vandenh]

>i've yet to encounter a game where the second screen really tied together the game.

True that.. the touch screen is a much better feature. DS would have been perfect with a single bigger touch screen. To me it looks like that second screen was added to the machine so one could fold and protect the screens instead of a gameplay gimmick.

[GrinR]

My poor PSP. Lonely and covered in dust.
The DS beckons like a fabulously hot gay man.
Sadly, I am straight.
Mobile tears fall.

[thecrazyd]

My poor PSP. Lonely and covered in dust.
The DS beckons like a fabulously hot gay man.
Sadly, I am straight.
Mobile tears fall.
That is really stupid.

[Reanimated]

I don't know, the second screen is pretty handy for Castlevania DoS. I mean it just displays the map (or whatever else you set it to), but it's pretty handy to not have to be constantly pausing the game to look at the map. I can see exactly where I'm going at all times.

[sparkfizt]

yeah, castlevania it is a nice convenience :P game woulda done fine without it tho ;) I mean really.. if you knock off the 2nd screen then by nature your production costs would have to go down, allowing you to make more profit with the current pricing, or even cut price lower. another option mentioned before was to simply have a larger primary screen, that also would of been cool. However I will say there is one game (not really out yet) that takes advantage of both screens, and that is the 1st person metroid game. I was surprised how well i could control a handheld fps using the touchscreen to mouse-look and then the top screen has your view. I'm reeally finnickey about fps controls since anything less than a mouse and keyboard usually leads me to frustration real fast :P but all in all I was impressed with the control scheme for the DS.

[automaton]

I'm really glad I waited a year to purchase a handheld. If one was to go by launch+3 months alone the PSP was the clear choice. It takes a good year for the true colors of a platform to come out. The PSP is still selling on the Sony hype/chic factor, but the DS is really where it is at if you want to play video games.

As an old school gamer I couldn't possibly be happier with my DS. Playing games with the stylus is pulling me back into gaming and exciting me the way another FPS sequel couldn't possibly. This experience only makes me look forward to the Revolution even more. I want NEW gaming experiences!!!

[GrinR]

That is really stupid.

What can I say? It looks bad and doesn't fit my style. As a mobile gaming device, that is important as I'll be outside. We've been through this before a million times, with all the "you're not a real gamer - it's about the games" blah blah, but for the same reason I wouldn't wear a motorcycle helmet on the subway (no matter how cool the VR games inside it were) I won't be holding that nerd beacon of a DS.

[boratika]

My poor PSP. Lonely and covered in dust.
The DS beckons like a fabulously hot gay man.
Sadly, I am straight.
Mobile tears fall.

'Cept typically chicks dig the DS a whole lot more than the PSP, which is much more of a boys club. Sausagefest even.

I think you're analogy's broken. Or maybe someone's just repressed.

[Mozain]

I just hope they can stay away from the re-makes and ports for the DS(remember the gameboy advance landscape?), for a company that screams about innovation so much could you please stop trying to resell me your games from 20 years ago? :(

Some of us actually want re-makes you know. I like playing Nintendo games from back in the day (Secret of Mana on DS = ^_^). And I don't know about you but I have seen far more "new" games released then remakes and ports. I mean Nintendo has always had great games, hell it seems to be one of the selling features for the Revolution even. as for "Screaming Innovation", thats such a comparitive statement. You have to compare them to the other game/systems on the market and when you do this they are clearly doing what they say. I mean they could only release say 1 new innovative game a year and still be ahead of the others.

[GrinR]

'Cept typically chicks dig the DS a whole lot more than the PSP, which is much more of a boys club. Sausagefest even.

I think you're analogy's broken. Or maybe someone's just repressed.

It's impossible to say anything about gayness without this chestnut popping up.

It is possible to recognize gayness and not want to be a part of it without having "repressed" gayness oneself. Trust me, if there is one thing I'm not repressed about, it's gobbling cock - and I still don't want a DS.

[Dariath]

Fushi, any clue how to find out the names of the songs that are in that DJMax trailer? Or, infact, anyone? Pretty good music...

[baz]

My girlfriend has just picked up a DS, she's been playing Pheonix Wright on it basically non-stop since she got it.

There is a tonne of good gaming to be had on the DS, you're definately missing out if you don't grab one.

[GrinR]

My girlfriend has just picked up a DS, she's been playing Pheonix Wright on it basically non-stop since she got it.

There is a tonne of good gaming to be had on the DS, you're definately missing out if you don't grab one.

You know, there's a lot of good gaming I'm missing out on. The Gamecube has Resident Evil 4... and I just can't bring myself to buy one. Sucks for me. Hell, now that I think of it - there's LOTS of GC games I want to play.

Maybe I'll go grab one.

[thecrazyd]

You know, there's a lot of good gaming I'm missing out on. The Gamecube has Resident Evil 4... and I just can't bring myself to buy one. Sucks for me. Hell, now that I think of it - there's LOTS of GC games I want to play.

Maybe I'll go grab one.
Thats the first step. Once you see how awesome the cube is, you won't be able to prevent yourself from buying a DS. You are well on your way to the dark side.

[dr_wily]

man i totally forgot that metroid prime hunters is still slated too on top of the great list.

i love my gba sp, and have been trying DAMN hard to not buy a DS, since im still bitter most of the DS games would play fine on the SP. That and the fact that its huge and ugly. But kirby, mario/luigi, advance wars, castlevania, KART(!!!!), sonic rush, meteos, in ONE YEAR? just damn.

On another note, I personally snagged the fzero GBA game for 9.99 shipped at the zon last weekend. sweet.

Oh and wonder why its the NINTENDO DS and not the Gameboy DS? hmmm <ponders>

"
Quote:
Originally Posted by GrinR
You know, there's a lot of good gaming I'm missing out on. The Gamecube has Resident Evil 4... and I just can't bring myself to buy one. Sucks for me. Hell, now that I think of it - there's LOTS of GC games I want to play.

Maybe I'll go grab one.
"

agreed.. i only have one console, and as a casual gamer it has kept me plenty busy.. some of the best games ever on that console. Start with metroid prime, f-zero, smash bros, zelda, eternal darkness, Viewtiful Joe 1 and 2, Tales of Symphonia, and mario kart. Then move to metroid prime 2, mario tennis, pikmin, rougue squadron 2 and 3, wave race, and beach spikers. Then finally, the quality 3rd parties (if you havent already): timesplitters 2 and 3, beyond good and evil, the 3 prince of persias (run GREAT), baulders gate dark alliance (sadly no sequel on cube, and despite everyone saying how crappy the frame rate is, I could not tell at all. total BS), and simpsons hit and run.

I have yet to try that RPG Baten Kaidos, or that turn based one.. and will eventually have to pick up the kirby racing one, as it has a ironman super offroadish 2d mode.

ok im done.

[agentgray]

...something the PSP is missing.
What would that be? Oh, yeah. Games.

Not just dumbed down knock-offs but real games. Lumines is the only shining star. GTA can suck my dick and jane.

I like Penny Arcade's post a while back (Monday?) that said that the DS games are actual honest-to-God sequels and whole games, not just knockoffs.

[Kelegacy]

I don't exactly like the aesthetic design of the DS, but I think it's a great gaming gizmo. I'm so goddamn tempted to go out and buy one this very instant, but I'm holding...holding for a bit more. I have to do a mad dash to the stores this weekend to return some clothing and other Xmas stuff so the cash that filters back into my pocket may in turn go into a cash register somewhere, with me skipping out of the store with my cherry red Dual Screen w/ Mario Kart package and my hairy chest glistening through my brown and orange unbuttoned, large collar 70's shirt.

That last bit was unintentional. The cat jumped on the keyboard.

[mister_slim]

I thought WarioWare: Touched used the second screen in ways that wouldn't have worked with just one screen. Apparently no one else like the game though. Anyway, I think using the second screen as a supplementary source of information works well, as Kirby, Castlevania, and Mario Kart showed. Info you don't need all the time, but is still useful on occasion. Scoping out red shells on the map is really useful, for example.

[omnithrope]

My wife and I love my DS.
The only problem is that we need to share the damn thing...

Animal Crossing has been fantastic.

[the Rephr]

Funny thing is I got that same bundle and of course the decals are nice with the cool flames " not embraceing gayness " but the flame decals look good on the top of the ds. went out the very next monday and bought Tiger woods PGA tour and cant put it down. plus of course Madden love the added features in both especially TWPGAT useing the stylus as a club is killer, but yeah after my big run on I got the Mario Kart Bundle

[Groo]

Same here.

I waited for GTA to come out, played it, thought it sucked ass, then promptly put everything on Ebay and picked up a DS.

Best. Move. Ever.

I have both a PSP and a DS. And you know what? I don't play either one very much, lol.

I played the shit out of Lumines when I first got the PSP, but the only other game to catch my interest on PSP has been Ridge Racer. I got pretty far into the game, and managed to fuck up my save file somehow. Now, I'm playing through it again.

Even though I've played through some of the DS's "best" games, the only one to really catch my interest has been Phoenix Wright. Man, that was a fantastic game, I hope they bring over the sequels. Hopefully Trauma Center and Trace Memory will hold my interest when they come in through GameFly.

And neither system has any upcoming games that really have me interested. Loco Roco, Me and My Katamari, and Exit all look good, though.

[Kelegacy]

My cousin part-owns the videogame store where my downtown apartment is located, and I just told her to save me a Mario Kart bundle for this weekend. I was gonna go down tonight and grab it but was a bit late. The neighbors have wireless internet, as does the store, so I'm gonna see if I can leech of that first before installing my own or getting the USB plug.

So after puking my brains out for the new year, I'll have Mario Kart and whatever else I grab to recuperate my ailing body.

[the Rephr]

My cousin part-owns the videogame store where my downtown apartment is located, and I just told her to save me a Mario Kart bundle for this weekend. I was gonna go down tonight and grab it but was a bit late. The neighbors have wireless internet, as does the store, so I'm gonna see if I can leech of that first before installing my own or getting the USB plug.

So after puking my brains out for the new year, I'll have Mario Kart and whatever else I grab to recuperate my ailing body.
When going wireless with this thing dont use super G get a regular old standard wireless G router cause the DS only uses about 1 to 2 mps anyway but wont log on to B at all.

[outontheporch]

I took a train to scottland last week from London, it was about 3.5 hours...I played Mariokart DS and Final Fantasy IV both ways while listening to my ipod. And I still have a queue of games I havent gotten to yet! My psp has been collecting dust...the only thing I've used it for in the past several monthes has been to watch Air Force One starring Harrison Ford, rated R for violence and language. I'm thinking of trading it in to get SSX DS.

Edit: I want to add that I played Metal Gear Acid to death when PSP launched. The only other game I've played more than a week or so has been MVP 2005, but the controls are kinda funky on the PSP and the AI is way hard.

[Zeal]

Handhelds cannot be compared to home consoles.

Anyone who does so is an idiot.

[Nessus]

I play my DS more than my Cube, PS2, or Xbox. I don't know what it is. I guess I just don't have time for the more in-depth console experience currently.

Next game I get will be Metroid Prime Hunters. Just hope the single player mode is fleshed out because from the short video from PAX it looks amazing.

[51|RandoM]

ds has games, psp doesn't, it really is as simple as that.

[Groo]

ds has games, psp doesn't, it really is as simple as that.

If you're 12, the DS's lineup is fantastic. Unforunately, I've already seen almost everything the DS has to offer on other Nintendo consoles. On top of that, I grew out of playing cute crap like Animal Crossing a long time ago. So, pray tell, what games does the DS have for me?

[Zeal]

If you're 12, the DS's lineup is fantastic. Unforunately, I've already seen almost everything the DS has to offer on other Nintendo consoles. On top of that, I grew out of playing cute crap like Animal Crossing a long time ago. So, pray tell, what games does the DS have for me?

Absolutely nothing.

[Kagger]

I find the map in Mario Kart handy. I can see how ahead I am, which is great, and the blue shell screaming towards me.

[outfromoutwhere]

People talk about the DS being huge and ugly, but I just got mine two days ago, and this piece of hardware is just amazing. Once you actually have a chance to hold it and play with it for a long period of time, it feels so... perfect. I've only been playing Mario Kart, as I'm poor and can't afford any other games, so I'm feeling the pointlessness of the second screen. However, looking at games like Ouendan and Kirby, I think we'll start seeing more games which rely completely on the touch screen. Really, each game has to focus on one screen, and what's amazing about the DS is that whichever one it uses most, it uses extremely well.

[baz]

If you're 12, the DS's lineup is fantastic. Unforunately, I've already seen almost everything the DS has to offer on other Nintendo consoles. On top of that, I grew out of playing cute crap like Animal Crossing a long time ago. So, pray tell, what games does the DS have for me?

Don't worry man, they are bringing out Animal Crossing XXXtreme in 2006. You'll be able to bone those crazy animal sluts and carry out hits on town residents. You can pimp out hoes and deal drugs as well, should be good for you.

[Groo]

Don't worry man, they are bringing out Animal Crossing XXXtreme in 2006. You'll be able to bone those crazy animal sluts and carry out hits on town residents. You can pimp out hoes and deal drugs as well, should be good for you.

Like I said, I'm not 12 years old, so I have no intereset in silly GTA style crap either.

[agentgray]

Like I said, I'm not 12 years old, so I have no intereset in silly GTA style crap either.
I'm pretty sure you can find a copy of Solitaire or Minesweeper somewhere.

[Kelegacy]

I just checked Amazon...Animal Crossing is going for over 60 bucks?? What the heck is up with that?

[mister_slim]

Apparently Nintendo underproduced it. It's already sold like a one and a half million copies in Japan. Nice title, by the way.

[pacman]

Apparently Nintendo underproduced it. It's already sold like a one and a half million copies in Japan. Nice title, by the way.

That's crazy...I'm glad I got mine immediately when it came out; I feel bad for people who may have to pay exorbitant amounts to play it :(

[Kelegacy]

That's crazy...I'm glad I got mine immediately when it came out; I feel bad for people who may have to pay exorbitant amounts to play it :(
I'll be waiting until they print a few more copies...or I will run around until I find it cheaper at retail here in boondock Maine.