You'll have to excuse us if we seem a little spacey or preoccupied, but today is the day of lurve. Of course, that doesn't mean you have to cast your DS aside.
In fact, we're curious: does the DS figure at all in your Valentine's Day schedule? Hey, we already know the little guy can inspire closeness! Perhaps you intend to face off against your partner in a romantic round of Tetris or Advance Wars, or team up to tackle Professor Layton's more devilish puzzles together, pausing only to gaze into one another's eyes.
Maybe you've decided against giving traditional presents that eventually die or are consumed, and intend to give the object of your affections a DS-related gift (or card)? Maybe you're giving them an actualDS. Is anybody giving their loved one a whole DS? That's crazy. Even if it would totally win our heart.
Sometimes, a game offers us multiple control schemes. Either we can utilize the DS's unique touch-screen interface, or we can navigate the tried-and-true seas of the d-pad and the handheld's face buttons. While each game is different and we can't really generalize on which is a better control scheme overall, we do have our preferences, just as you must.
So, do you find yourself loving the idea of stylus controls, but often revert to d-pad-based solutions when confronted with the option? Or, do you think the precision of the touch-screen puts a skip in your step? Which do you prefer most of the time?
We know we've asked you this before, even coming so close as to inquiring toward your purchasing trends for the future, but we thought it was still appropriate to stop and check in with regards to how your collection is doing. As you can see above, this is almost every single DS game this blogger owns (they just seem to get up and walk away now).
So, how many games have you purchased? How big is your stack of games? Oh, and I apologize for the lack of quality in the picture above. It was taken with my phone's camera.
Semi-ironically, while our job (exclusively) entails talking about video games night and day, it doesn't leave as many openings as you'd think to play them. It's encouraged as a part of Game Night, and, of course, a required component of reviewing, but other than that, gaming at work is a no-go for us.
Do you have a DS-capable job? Have you been able to sneak a little Ouendan in at work occasionally, or are you in one of the rare and lucky positions in which you can openly make OBJECTION!s on your Senior Version? Some of you must have the sort of all-night desk jobs that lead to extra game time.
Would you ever buy a second DS, solely because you like the color? It sounds silly, but time and again this blogger has come close to shelling out for one of those Enamel Blue Lites that appeared exclusively in Japan, only to back down at the last minute. It may sound like a fairly ridiculous reason to purchase a second version of any gaming system, but then gamers aren't always rational people, and DSes are desirable and just about cheap enough to justify impulse purchases.
Of course, some of you might well be purchasing a second DS in the very near future, as the cobalt blue DS Lite hits U.S. stores today. If you are, tell us about it!
We often letyoureadersknow when websites for games go live. That got us to wondering, though -- just how many of you like to look at official game sites?
If you do tend to visit these websites on occasion, what brings you to them? Do you often check them out for titles you're really excited for? Or, do you normally wait until a gaming blog has something to say about a particular site before your curiosity makes you venture over? Also, has an awesome (or terrible) website ever pushed you over the fence on whether or not to buy a game?
I guess what we're asking is, just how important are game websites to you when all is said and done?
This morning, our friend and colleague Alisha is off gifting the world with the very latest DS Fanboy: a new consumer with nearly endless need for training, and for whom every control scheme is novel. In other words, a baby infant. We'd like to extend premature (as of writing time) congratulations!
The impending baby got us thinking about video games, as we desperately try to make things do. Specifically, game-related baby names. Everyone reading this blog is a huge nerd, and nerds do things like naming things after game characters. What's your hard drive's volume label? What's your cat's name?
We wonder if there's anyone out there bold enough, or disinterested enough in the kid's well-being, to have given their offspring a game character name, or to plan to do so in the future. Any baby Luigis out there? Otacon? Marth? Diddy? Agent Chieftain? Lolo? Phoenix? How about a Samus? Zangief? Vic Viper? Pyramid Head? Gas-O? Corn? Waiter Skeleton? Heat Man? Two-P?
Something faintly unsettling happened to this blogger recently. For the first time since Grim Fandango left me utterly bamboozled, yours truly turned to a guide for help while playing a DS game (one that will remain anonymous, to save the already battered, tatty remains of my gamer cred).
As a rule, I don't like using guides. Not because I am fantastic at playing games (any of my opponents at Game Night will confirm that I am rubbish) but because I'm simply happy to sit there for unhealthy periods of time, brow furrowed and stylus poised, and break down the puzzles a game throws at me, come hell or high water. How about you guys? Are you happy to use guides, or do you steer clear and stubbornly try to fight your own way through?
Have you ever used your DS for something it definitely wasn't intended to be used for? Like, as a last-minute flyswatter or as a bookend? We all know it plays the best handheld games around, but there's an untapped well full of possibilities between a person and their DS. What kind, do you ask? Well, we can think of a couple. Head on past the break to see what we mean.
In a recent piece summarizing Famitsu's 1000th issue and its extensive Shigeru Miyamoto interview, Next-Gen's Tim Rogers makes an impassioned plea to the celebrated game designer to visit a competent hairstylist. Well, geniuses have been known to let their hair go wild -- just look at Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, and, uh, Don King.
Rogers argues that he's never seen Miyamoto with a decent haircut, adding, "My father, though he eats salad with his mouth wide open, has never designed a video game, and is not in the habit of being photographed for magazines or appearing on television, has a better haircut than Shigeru Miyamoto."
The father of modern video gaming will always be remembered for his classic characters and games, regardless of his hair situation, but we still want to hear your thoughts on his hair -- just fine or in need of a trim? Bring a pair of scissors past the break for a couple more Miyamoto photos.
Horror of horrors -- last night, while vacuuming, someone in the house (read: not your current writer!) stripped the cable of the DS Lite charger. After the tears and accusations, it occurred to us that hinge cracks and falls aren't the only accidents that can befall our beloved handhelds. Anything similar happen to yours? We know lost games can be a problem, and we've heard about lost styli. Tell us about the worst things that have happened to your handhelds. What did you do? We'll be calling Nintendo today and hoping some kind soul will send a new charger over.
Recent news that the Tokyo Philharmonic is to belt out a selection of tunes from the Ace Attorney series had some of us fingering our passports and checking April flights to Japan.
It also resulted in us taking some time to gaze into the middle distance, and reminisce about some of our favorite music from DS games. Ouendan and the Castlevania games are obvious choices, while Advance Wars: Day of Ruin is a more current favorite, but what about you, readers?
We often post about game clothing and gear, because most of the time, we want it. Still, that doesn't mean we necessarily buy anything. How about you? Do you have any game related shirts, hats, scarves, shoes, jewelry, or anything of the kind? If so, tell us what you've got. We'll try not to be too jealous.
We know we've asked you before, but after yesterday's silliness about 90% of DS owners yarring it up at the expense of the industry, we were curious about how many DS games you think you've bought over time, and how many you expect to buy this year. Go ahead and estimate. There are millions of us, after all, and if we're each buying even only a couple of games per year (like we'd stop at two), we're pretty sure the industry can weather this piracy crisis.*
*By piracy crisis, we're really talking about people actually wanting to use awesome homebrew apps and functionality.
Earlier this week, while cruising the vast fields of these internets, we noticed something pretty epically hilarious, i.e., this very thread on NeoGAF: Would I die if I eat a DS game?
We'll let you digest that one for a moment. It took us a few to get past the initial giggles. And then we couldn't help but wonder ... with all the DS Fanboy readers out there, surely someone's child/infant sibling/dog has perhaps tested this theory. So we have to ask: has anyone eaten one of your DS games? If so, what happened? Was the game okay? Obviously, if it was Elf Bowling, we don't care about the cart.
To make up for mentioning Elf Bowling, we have a little present for you after the break.
Sometimes, a game offers us multiple control schemes. Either we can utilize the DS's unique touch-screen interface, or we can navigate the tried-and-true seas of the d-pad and the handheld's face buttons. While each game is different and we can't really generalize on which is a better control scheme overall, we do have our preferences, just as you must.
Semi-ironically, while our job (exclusively) entails talking about video games night and day, it doesn't leave as many openings as you'd think to play them. It's encouraged as a part of Game Night, and, of course, a required component of reviewing, but other than that, gaming at work is a no-go for us.
This morning, our friend and colleague Alisha is off gifting the world with the very latest DS Fanboy: a new consumer with nearly endless need for training, and for whom every control scheme is novel. In other words, a baby infant. We'd like to extend premature (as of writing time) congratulations!
In a recent piece summarizing Famitsu's 1000th issue and its extensive Shigeru Miyamoto interview, Next-Gen's Tim Rogers makes an impassioned plea to the celebrated game designer to visit a competent hairstylist. Well, geniuses have been known to let their hair go wild -- just look at Albert Einstein, Ludwig van Beethoven, and, uh, Don King.
Recent 
We know we've asked you before, but after 
Earlier this week, while cruising the vast fields of these internets, we noticed something pretty epically hilarious, i.e., this very thread on NeoGAF: Would I die if I eat a DS game?
