About the same time that hordes of Japanese salerymen were getting their new Nintendo DS’ I was opening the box of my own. It was sort of magical in a way. I put off my pre-order and figured all would be ok, but alas Nintendo was not prepared for us.
Now Japan got a few games that we here in the US were not at the luxury of receiving. Such a gem as Tendo Dokuta was not picked up by any US publisher – and had my Japanese been going better I would attempt to import it but I am weak. While they benefit from larger options on release day we were treated with a wonderful little demo of what Metroid Prime would have looked like for the N64… I kid.
My wife was wonderful enough to track one of these difficult to secure toys. That is what it is, don’t fool yourself. But, I love my toys, and my video games.
After my wife tracked down one of the last remaining DS’ on the west bank at Circuit City she was unlucky in finding a copy of Super Mario 64 DS (originally titled with the strange 64X4, but I like 64 DS better) at a local Wal-Mart… along with 6 more DS’. So while the mission was grand the rewards were spoiled. I was happy anyways.
So I pulled out my digital camera and snapped some shots of the DS box and SM64 DS boxes. Side by side, on my kitchen table, right next to some red carpet cleaner. I did not care. Carefully I cut across the diameter of the sticker which sealed the box. The DS was a bit larger than I expected it to be. I am impressed, this is a hearty beast.
Yes, you should charge the battery for the recommended 4 hours before playing… blah, blah, blah.
These games are small. I now understand 100% why hard cases are needed -and oh do I love hard cases for portable games- as these games are small. Small to the point that I would not feel comfortable carrying it in my pocket loose in fear of losing it.
So I entered all my info into the DS. If you’re ever wandering around New Orleans and have Picto Chat up and see someone named Shaper in a room, that is probably me. My default color is orange.
Of course I tried Picto Chat. It was the first thing. While doodling for a bit I found that the touch screen is about double the senitivity that my Pocket PC is. It was registering all touch and movement very well where my iPAQ is a bit jerky sometimes where others it will not register touches.
So I shutdown Picto Chat and try the Metroid Hunters demo. The thumb strap is really nice and comfortable. At this point in time I was still not use to touch screen style fake analog, so I need to try Metroid again tonight.
While trying to get adjusted to the DS’ size and shape I was not paying attention, but my wife opened SM64 DS. I read an article where Tim Rogers got upset with someone who played a game before him. I guess that I am similar, but I like to be the one to open the game. There are many times where I will open a game look through the manual and then put it on a shelf for a few weeks, but I like to open it. I would associate it to planting your flag in a new found land.
Anyways after about 10 min of messing with Metriod I figured the thing needed to charge and I decided to let it charge, while sitting in a comfy chair and playing SM64 DS.
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Aside: When the N64 came out I was still in High School. I somehow managed to convince my mother to procure me a N64 and SM64 for Christmas, in November. I struck a deal with her that I could play it over Thanksgiving weekend and then put it away until Xmas as it was cheaper than buying it for me later and renting the system over Thanksgiving weekend. This also meant that I knew everything I was getting for Xmas and I had to improve my grades. I was a sucker for SM64 and agreed.
Zoom ahead 8 years. –Holy shit, has it really that long?-
Christmas is upon me again and I have to drive 14 hours each way to get home. On top of that my wife wants to visit her brother who cannot make it home. That is an additional 10 hours each way. Not including misc. driving that is 48 hours of being in a vehicle and probably 20 hours of it driving. While money is tight, my lips were not and my want for the DS was pretty clear. To silence my tongue for both the DS and going to her brothers driving time I was given the word to get a DS. Nintendo has the power to silence me and whip me into shape yet again.
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So I boot up the DS while it is charging and play some SM64 DS. Not sure if I was supposed to or if it is recommended against –probably is- but I did it nonetheless. I was pretty happy to see that you can still manipulate faces in this game, but in a whole new way, and dear lord is it fluid. More on that later.
I started playing with the standard control setting, but was left with a bad taste in my mouth about it. So I switched to the analog layout. This is much better, but still took me a while to get use to (like an hour).
Hold up, let’s back track.
I played the hell out of the original. I explored every area, shot myself out of cannons hundreds of times, and collected all 120 stars. When done I was left with Yoshi on top of the castle, and with nothing to do. I was also the first of my many friends to accomplish this feat. SM64 taught me how to use an analog stick. Things that seemed difficult to perform back then are now second nature to me. SM64 was not only an amazing adventure, but also a great learning tool that is irreplaceable.
When SM64 DS opens up we see the same intro and our hero Mario coming up out of a pipe… then his under appreciated brother Luigi, and nemesis Wario. But we also see Yoshi, right were we left him on the roof of the castle at the end of SM64. That struck a cord that I cannot comment on, continuity for all the people who had put as much time into the game as I. Needless to say it was exactly what I had been hoping for from Nintendo.
There were also some cosmetic changes. The only one that I noticed was Bowser:
Bowser Old:
Bowser New:
I noticed that right off the bat. There were others too, but mainly they just looked a little better or smoother or… something. The trees still look horrible. The main thing is that when the game zooms out, for boss battles or user controlled, it looks really good. Much better than the 64. This could be due to the size of the screen thought.
See, all screen shots for the DS do not do the in game look justice. Not only do the screen shots look jagged, but blurry sometimes too. In game they are sharp and crisp. I did notice that the game looks very N64 when I hold the DS my normal distance from eyes (about 1.5 to 2 feet), but when held at arms length (as I will occasionally play like when laying in bed) it does not look as N64-ish. In fact, it looks quite good. So this again leads me to believe that it is probably the screen size and resolution that makes the game look better than screen shots.
The stills that were used in some of the mini games look amazing. Nice and fluid, beautiful colors. Awesome, for lack of a better word. The mini games –which there has to be at least 40 to open- range from really good to meh, but fun. There is so much in this game, truly.
So I got use to the touch screen analog. It took a while, but that is what SM64 was for with analog controls, and that is what SM64 DS will be for. I am really thankful that I have medium to large-ish hands though (I would say average) as I would not want to be able to extend my thumb any less. The shoulder buttons are in a strange place too, just a little to far from the face buttons. It was quite uncomfortable for a bit. The face buttons are also really small. I feel as though I’m playing with flat C buttons from the N64 controller. This is the largest over all flaw of the design.
Now I did like to mess around with Mario’s face in the N64 version of the game, but it got boring after about 5 min. Every once in a while I would delay playing SM64 to manipulate some face. But the DS has drawings to manipulate. Similar to a pencil outline, you’re given the lines of either Mario or Yoshi’s face to move with your stylus. The lines move, bend, and glide as though you were moving them through jello. When left to its own the game will start to make the lines contort and bounce and zoom. It is quite entertaining.
Then you will say to yourself, what is this button in the lower right hand corner. Well it allows you to draw what you want, then manipulate it in the same way as you could Mario or Yoshi’s face. So slightly different from the N64, but so infinitely creative. My wife and I must have drawn and manipulated dozens of drawing, or just watched them bounce, squiggle and zoom. We did this for about 30 min just passing it back and forth. I could have spent much longer doing it though.
These are just impression, but I like them. I saw one new level of the game and many new elements. All impressed me and showed that Nintendo still has a spark. I am only left with a bad overall feeling. I loved the N64 and the doors it opened when it was released. But it never solidified. Even when the system’s run was officially over, I still was left thinking that SM64 was the best thing that happens to the system. I like the door way that has been opened with the DS, but it leaves me wondering how many developers will walk though it. I bet that Blizzard could make an amazing game and include WiFi to make it penultimate to the system, but will they? They took a chance on the N64 that blew up in their face.
Worries aside I am happy and will probably put much time into it. Playing GBA games on it is a plus too. I want to go on here, but I fear I have already passed the point that most are reading to. So I thank you if you made it with me here.
-Regards
