eBay seller putermcgee's batch of DS games really isn't that different from other used DS games up for sale. The current bids are commensurate with other auctions for the same games, even. But these launch-era DS games are somewhat rarer (and more awesome) because they're all promo copies.
How much would you pay for a copy of Pac-Pix or Meteos that was once used as a store demo? Because right now they're at $7.50 and $3.25 respectively. Kirby Canvas Curse and Nintendogs (with special Bark Mode gifts!) are at similar prices, as is a European version of WarioWare: Touched! These are the best kind of collectibles: cheap and not ridiculously impractical.
The DS Life is a weekly feature in which we scour the known world for narrative images of Nintendo's handheld and handheld gamers. If you have a photo and a story to match it with, send both to thedslife at dsfanboy dot com.
Every gaming or technology forum has them, discussion threads devoted to posters sharing photos of their entertainment centers and gaming setups, dozens of pages bloated with uncropped photos and e-wang exchanges of congratulations or criticisms.
After a while, you begin to notice recurring themes -- overpriced flat-screen televisions, dual-monitor systems, mismatched Ikea furniture, shelves packed with games and DVDs, and desks cluttered with gadgets and gewgaws. For a laugh, someone might have a framed photo of Nintendo president Satoru Iwata visible, but that's as creative as these arrangements usually get.
Thankfully, with the Nintendo DS and other handhelds, you don't have to spend tens of thousands of dollars for the "perfect gaming setup." Other than a fun game and a free afternoon, you don't need much. Of course, it helps if you have a cuddlesome puppy, a good friend, or an ocean view ...
Maybe there's something peculiar in the water down under, but Aussie YouTube user Rawrgasmitron2000 sure produces an odd reaction upon receiving DS shovelware title Crazy Pig -- swearing like a sailor we can understand, though we usually stop short of furiously stamping the game card into itty-bitty pieces.
However, what he does next elevates this from a predictable prank to something that's altogether a little weirder: he eats the remains of the destroyed game. Not on its own, however (because that would be weird, amirite?), but as part of a blended concoction containing milk, an egg, Nesquik, and a Mario "Power Up" energy drink.
Yes, yes, New Super Mario Bros. is pretty and enormously fun. We get it. But while playing through that otherwise delightful slice of 2D platforming, we often found ourselves missing the challenge of an old-school Mario game.
That's why we're excited when we see stuff like New Retro Mario Bros., one of the downright sweetest Mario hacks we've encountered in a while. Combine the luscious, 3D-on-2D visuals of the mentally popular DS game with the level design and increased difficulty of the peerless Super Mario Bros., and you're talking about our kind of game.
That's essentially what New Retro Mario Bros. is: a landmark NES game wearing fancy new DS pants; everything that appeared in Super Mario Bros. is here, right down to the last item box and Goomba. To see just how accurate it is, hit the break for videos of the original game, as well as the updated version of World 1-1. Oh, and bear in mind that the Machinae Supremacy soundtrack is for placeholder purposes only.
Flickr user anmghstnet photographed an excellent collection of special-edition DSes now on display at New York City's Nintendo World Store. We recognized most of them from imported bundles, like theSquare-Enixhandhelds and the SD Gundam G Generation Cross Drive DS, but there are a few we haven't seen since they were first announced, like the Momotaro Dentetsu and Pokemon Daisuki Club systems.
There are also some DSes we've never seen in the wild -- the Corocoro Dragon Comics-branded portable pictured above being a good example. The cheap-looking Mario vs. Donkey Kong, Kirby: Squeak Squad, and Wario: Master of Disguise systems? Those were special K-Zone editions given away by the magazine as prizes for past competitions. Hit the gallery below for more photos of the limited-edition handhelds.
It's been a while since we've seen a Mega Man game akin to the ones of the days of yore, but now, yore comes in scarf form.
Beatboxtaun, the same craftster behind the Punch-Out! scarf, has gone and designed some winter gear based on Mega Man 2 (a game which, incidentally, has one of ourfavorite video game soundtracks). It might be getting a little too warm for scarves, since spring is just around the corner, but we're sure your nostalgia can keep you cold enough to don this beauty.
What's nice about this scarf is that it not only features the Blue Bomber himself, but also the villains of the game. Now, all she has to do is make a Mega Man 3 scarf that includes Proto Man, and we'd be super happy.
This neck mitten certainly isn't cheap, as it will cost you $150 on Etsy -- but until we get a classic Mega Man game on the DS, this is probably the next best thing. For now, though, we guess we'll have to settle for Mega Man Star Force and the like.
Another picture of the scarf is posted after the break, if you want to see the rest of the villains included.
Ninja dogs need not apply. This sweet 8gb iPod Nano you're feasting your eyes on will only be attainable by the most skilled assassins in Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword. Of course, this is all based on machine translation, so you'll have to forgive us some misinterpretation.
It appears that there will be three different ways that folks can enter for their chance at the Nano. For one, there looks to be a specific difficulty setting that will apply to this giveaway, meaning that players who partake in the game while in this difficulty setting can upload their high score for entry. Second, players can collect certain in-game prizes (or tokens, we're assuming). Third, there's an online survey that can be filled out.
Seems fairly easy to us, and there will be a total of 15 Nanos up for grabs. The contest period began on March 21st and ends on April 16th. Again, we're not certain this applies to folks outside of Japan, so keep that in mind.
Promotional Consideration is a weekly feature about the Nintendo DS advertisements you usually flip past, change the channel on, or just tune out.
Our featured item for this Easter Sunday, the North American commercial for Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword, already made the rounds earlier this week, but if, like us, you're a fan of stealth assassins, that's probably of little concern to you. Put on your cleanest black jumpsuit -- make sure to run a lint-roller on it first to pull off all that cat hair -- and sneak past the post break for the video.
We love fans. Not only because we are fans and we're completely narcissistic, but because they always come up with some of the coolest things.
Take, for example, this remake of Metroid II: Return of Samus for the original Game Boy. It may be nothing new for a fan to recreate an oldschool game, but this is one of the best we've seen. DoctorM64 not only did a great job with the sprites, but also tweaked the level design a bit so that the game flows more smoothly.
If you want to try this remake for yourself, it's only a click away. Keeping in mind that this is only a tech demo and not the completed version, we're sure that you'll be even more impressed. Also, you can check out DoctorM64's blog to get a feel for the creation process.
As folks who love the DS to be all kinds of different colors and modded inall mannerof amazing ways, we often stare at our boring white DS Lite and wish we could punch it up with some color. But, alas, we are far too afraid that even an attempt at taking out the screws would result in the handheld's failure to work any longer. Seriously, you should have seen the spice rack we tried to make back in wood shop. The thing was fugly.
Yet, we have found hope through a flickr photostream. One soul, who describes this ambitious project as their "first time to paint such a demanding job," really managed to set the bar for first attempts. Just looking at this thing, we can hardly believe that this person has never taken apart and painted a DS before. It's quality.
Does this give you a yearning to try and paint your own DS? Still too scared to give it a go?
Lacking the friends needed to put together an Electroplankton/iPhone band? Too impatient for Korg's DS-10 release this summer? Don't let those trivial obstacles discourage you! You don't need a too-live crew to compose a rumpshaker, nor do you need expensive software applications. In fact, having a Nintendo DS isn't imperative either. As many chiptune musicians can attest, you don't need the latest handheld technology to lay down a boss track.
Take this artist in the video above, for example -- he's using Nanoloop, a homebrew synthesizer/sequencer available for both Game Boy and Game Boy Advance systems. You can download the program on the developer's official site for free! Of course, there are a few additional items required for the complete setup:
Expensive? Sure, but listen to that music! These are the lush songs your android grandchildren will make babies to after watching the sun set on an alien world.
It just so happens that today, we came across two Tetris related pieces of furniture that are perfect for the household. Is this a sign that we should be redecorating our homes? We think so, but unfortunately, we have people we live with to consider. And, oh yeah, no money.
Pictured above is the TT Chair, which happens to be shaped like the beloved L block. We like how you can place it on the floor at different angles -- very fitting (and also necessary) for Tetris furniture. The cost is about $220 per chair, though, and they are only available through a Japanese website called Rakuten.
Equally impressive is the Tetris mirror, pictured in the gallery below. Unlike the chairs, this beauty by Soner Ozenc isn't for sale, to our knowledge. Still, even if it's completely impractical, we love that you can move the pieces around at will. This mirror would give its owner another excuse to be late for work in the morning, not to mention a way to combine gaming with vanity. No, we weren't staring at our beautiful selves, we were just rearranging the Tetris mirror, honest.
Painting specialists ColorWare want to add some spice to your life by giving your DS a stylish new paint job, or by providing you with a brand-new custom unit.
The only thing that comes to mind, for us, is creating a DS themed after our favorite sports team and slapping a sticker on the top of the clamshell. And considering that we don't partake of the DS line-up of sports titles available, as we often favor the console variety, we can't really see that much appeal in giving the DS a splash of color.
But then we start thinking about what people with actual artistic ability could do with a professional paint job like this on their DS. True, most folks who mod their consoles and handhelds might prefer to do the painting themselves, as it all ties into the whole I made this part of it, but perhaps the time saved or price are the factors that could weigh heavily on someone's decision. Then again, we don't really know how much it would cost to paint something like a DS. Our skills lack.
Or maybe this can be a really expensive prank. Snatch a friend's DS, send it in and have them paint it puke green on top of puke green, that kind of thing? Actually, that might not be a bad way to get your own DS, because if our friend did that to us, we'd tell them to keep it.
Well, maybe about 40% science and 60% "haha, awesome." A new website called Broken Review puts electronics through a battery of tests (or, rather, the tests are battery) to determine their durability. The first item they experiment on? A poor DS Lite.
In the beginning, the tests are simple, everyday situations: how scratched does a DS Lite get in a pants pocket with keys? But in subsequent tests, the DS is beaten, scratched, run over, submerged, and dropped from increasing distances -- on video! It survives for much longer than we expected! This could be very useful if you're planning to throw your DS out a window.
There's no arguing that Link's Awakening is one of the most unique titles in the Zelda franchise, and perhaps even one of the best. It's been remade once, in color, which leaves a challenge: how can we possibly improve upon it further? The answer is clear: Lego art. Enter Lwelyk, Lego artist extraordinaire, who has redone a number of creatures and characters from the game, as well as one of the franchise's most iconic symbols -- the rupee.
It's not Lwelyk's first foray into game-influenced Lego mosaics by a longshot; the artist has an entire site devoted to these efforts, and it's definitely worth a look.
eBay seller putermcgee's batch of DS games really isn't that different from other used DS games up for sale. The current bids are commensurate with other auctions for the same games, even. But these launch-era DS games are somewhat rarer (and more awesome) because they're all promo copies.
It's been a while since we've seen a 
Well, maybe about 40% science and 60% "haha, awesome." A new website called Broken Review puts electronics through a battery of tests (or, rather, the tests are battery) to determine their durability. The first item they experiment on? A poor DS Lite.
