Living as we do in a time when virtually everyone has a touchsensitive electronic device in their pocket, it's easy to forget just how unusual and bold the Nintendo DS was when it debuted. Given Nintendo's incredible recent success, it's also easy to forget just how important its quirky dual-screened, touch-sensitive handheld console was to the brand's survival. If we think about it, the DS could arguably be considered as one of the most important devices in the history of Mario's makers.
It arrived at a time when Nintendo's then-current home console, the GameCube, was performing worse than any previous console in the company's history. To most game-industry observers, it looked like Nintendo was in big trouble. And then the DS showed up, proceeded to sell 154 million units in its lifecycle, and became the second-most successful videogame system of all time. This, along with the Wii, reversed the trend of sluggish Nintendo sales, and re-cemented the brand as a leader of innovative concepts in gaming.
But when the DS launched in 2004, none of this was a foregone conclusion. Two screens? Where are we supposed to look? A weird, little stylus? What is this, a Palm Pilot? Indeed, pundits of the time called the DS Nintendo's "worst idea ever", with others dramatically heralding it as the company's "death knell". But then came the games.
Overnight, the Nintendo DS became a machine of unique concepts, hosting wildly imaginative games, games which reminded everyone of what has always made videogames special and different from other forms of entertainment: that is, interaction. Good games affect us through our ability to affect them. They let us experience stories through novel technology, and the novel technology of the Nintendo DS allowed us for the first time to literally touch these experiences.
Esta historia es de la edición Issue 267 de Retro Gamer.
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Esta historia es de la edición Issue 267 de Retro Gamer.
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Cabela's Dangerous Hunts 2009
Initially debuting on the PC in 1998,games began appearing on consoles from 2001 with the release of Cabela's Big Game Hunter: Ultimate Challenge for Sony's PlayStation.
ModRetro Chromatic
Meet the new handheld aiming to provide the ultimate Game Boy experience
ULTIMATE GUIDE Project Rub
OF ALL THE GAMES THAT LAUNCHED WITH THE NINTENDO DS, NONE WERE AS INVENTIVE, CHARMING, OR OVERLOOKED AS PROJECT RUB. TWENTY YEARS LATER, SONIC TEAM'S DS DEBUT REMAINS ONE OF THE SYSTEM'S MOST ENJOYABLE AND ENDEARING GAMES
Wii Balance Board
During the era of the DS and Wii, Nintendo didn't just want to sell games consoles - it wanted to sell the dream that self-improvement could be fun, whether you were exercising your mind in Dr Kawashima's Brain Training or your body with Wii Sports.
THE MAKING OF JACKIE CHAN STUNTMASTER
MOST GAMES WITH A REAL PERSON'S NAME IN THE TITLE HAVE ACTUALLY VERY LITTLE TO DO WITH THEM. BUT THERE ARE SOME STARS WHOSE INFLUENCE ON A GAME GOES FAR BEYOND THEIR FACE AND VOICE. ONE OF THE MOST IMPORTANT OF THESE IS THE GREAT ACTION GOD HIMSELF: JACKIE CHAN
Future Classic
Modern games you'll still be playing in years to come
SUPER VEHICLE-001 METAL SLUG TACTICS
SNK'S METAL SLUG SERIES IS ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC RUN-AND-GUNS AROUND WITH A LEGACY AS RICH AS ITS METICULOUS 2D ART. SO WHAT CONVINCED SNK TO GREENLIGHT AN ISOMETRIC TACTICAL RPG? WE SPEAK TO LEIKIR STUDIO'S CREATIVE DIRECTOR AURÉLIEN LOOS TO FIND OUT MORE
MAGAZINE CRAFT PAUL DAVIES
In the first of a brand-new series, we interview the game journalists behind the most iconic gaming magazines of the past. We kick off by speaking to Paul Davies about his time as editor of CVG. We discuss the videogames that hooked him growing up, his time in the industry, and how he became an unlikely hero in revamping the iconic multiformat mag
THE MAKING OF Wizardry PROVING GROUNDS OF THE MAD OVERLORD
THE CREATORS OF THE INFLUENTIAL 1981 RPG WHICH WENT ON TO INSPIRE COUNTLESS TITLES, FROM DRAGON QUEST TO FINAL FANTASY EXPLAIN HOW IT HAD ITS ORIGIN IN SOME OF THE EARLIEST ONLINE EXPERIENCES, AND WAS ONE OF THE FIRST COMPUTER GAMES TO COME IN A BOX
20 Years of The NINTENDODS
NINTENDO'S QUIRKY HARDWARE DESIGN MAY HAVE RAISED A FEW EYEBROWS TWO DECADES AGO, BUT THE BRILLIANT GAMES IT ENABLED DREW IN PLAYERS REGARDLESS OF AGE OR GENDER. RETRO GAMER SPEAKS TO THE PEOPLE WHO MADE, SOLD AND DEVELOPED GAMES FOR THE DS AS WE CELEBRATE THE BEST-SELLING HANDHELD EVER
