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Joystiq presents

Dost thou love DS? Then do not squander skins


When we look to our DS, we hardly ever think of important figures in history. Sure, just about anything on a DS automatically ups the value of the handheld (certain things just do not), but we never thought about how important individuals of the past would look upon Nintendo's handheld unit.

Ben Franklin, a man who is very well-known in these United States in which DSF has decided to set up shop, would most likely love the bold direction in which Nintendo has taken their handheld. Of course, he would probably be more worried about the strange picture tubes and curious garment of dress of which modern society has become accustomed to. The idea of putting images other than cute cartoon characters or other pop-culture references on our DS gets us inexplicably excited, though.

What kind of notable figure in history would you like to see on your DS? Personally, we'd love a Gandhi skin.

Detective Conan throws down the gauntlet

Just like the last horrible and cruel challenge DS Fanboy set out before you, we're asking you yet again to brave the world of the Japanese game demo and check out what Detective Conan sees when he dons his spectacles.

The official website for Detective Conan Kieta Hakase to Machigai Sagashi no Tou has put up a Flash demo for the game, allowing you to do just that. In very much a Quickspot-like manner, players must identify the differences between two seemingly identical images. Give it a whirl and let us know what you think!

[Via Siliconera]

Should Sonic die with dignity?

Game|Life's Susan Arendt has written an interesting opinion piece that basically asks Sega to just stop making Sonic games. It's not that she doesn't like the character -- she does like the character, and has fond memories of when he appeared in good games.

As she puts it, "The Sonic games veered further and further away from their simple, yet elegantly satisfying roots, and entered into a territory of uninspired gameplay, pointless mechanics, and craptastic supporting characters." With each game, a few new characters have been thrown on the already-towering pile of anthropomorphic animals who just don't matter at all.

Arendt says that the spinoff RPG Sonic Chronicles does show some promise, but that as far as the main series goes, it's over. The best recent Sonic game has been Dimps' Sonic Rush, which was ... okay. At this point Sonic Team has shown that they have forgotten how to make a decent Sonic game, and so they should just not make any more and let us preserve our memories of when we enjoyed the series.

Forget Poke Balls, these Pokemon belong in our tummies

If you've ever salivated at the site of delicious-looking Pokémon, then you're not alone. GameDaily has made a list of the top ten Pokémon they'd like to eat, and they've actually managed to make quite a few of the little buggers sound appetizing.

So, is rating edible Pokémon completely wrong, or completely awesome? We're going to go with the latter. And, in case you were wondering, our favorite was Torchic -- aka, "the walking buffalo wing." Can we get an "om nom nom nom?"

[Via GoNintendo]

Insecticide & Incesticide: How to tell the difference



Having trouble telling the difference between Nirvana's Incesticide album and DS platformer/shooter Insecticide? Afraid that you'll accidentally bring home a 15-year-old CD instead of the hard-boiled detective game? Worry no more!

We've put together a handy guide to help you tell these two "alternative" titles apart. Forget about wandering the streets in a daze, unsure which product features rock-out tracks like "Sliver" and "Son of a Gun!" No more embarrassing yourself in front of friends after mentioning an afternoon spent hunting criminal bugs with Kurt Cobain! We promise you'll never again confuse the game with the album or vice versa -- or your money back! Hit the image above for our life-changing chart!

Gallery: Insecticide


See also:
Nirvana: Plugged back in and electronicized

Phoenix Wright case generator: choose your own OBJECTION!


To promote the release of the first three Gyakuten Saiban games on PC in episodic format, Capcom has released an Ace Attorney case creator. It's all in Japanese, but the editor is self-evident enough; you can choose characters, locations, music, and graphical effects for each scene; you can make each character perform three actions per scene, and you can write their text. The text is severely limited, since the editor is designed for strings of kanji, which of course means fewer characters. You could just use more scenes to write more text, though.

Getting in is somewhat more difficult, since you need to sign up with Daletto. Luckily, there's a tutorial for navigating the Japanese signup page on Court Records. It's totally worth the trouble to be able to create near-instant Phoenix Wright animations. We only wish this had come out a couple of months ago. Check after the break for our first brief dalliance with Tsukurou! Gyakuten Saiban (Let's Create! Gyakuten Saiban).

Continue reading Phoenix Wright case generator: choose your own OBJECTION!

Gamestop preorder bonus for Harvest Moon DS Cute is cute


Gamestop can be so cruel to our wallets. We try to resist their silly preorder bonuses that come with games, but at times it's too hard to ignore the temptation.

The most recent battle of wills comes with Gamestop's bonus for Harvest Moon DS Cute. If you couldn't tell from the picture above, it's a plush cat! That may not seem like a big deal for many of you -- after all, what's another cheap stuffed animal? -- but here at DS Fanboy, we love cats (especially the "lol" kind). Maybe not as much as we love pugs, but we digress.

We like the Harvest Moon series anyway, so normally preordering this game wouldn't be an issue. Yet, since two Harvest Moon games are coming out pretty close to each other, we were hoping to spend our money on Island of Happiness instead. Cute is essentially the same game as Harvest Moon DS, except that the main character is a girl rather than a boy (plus, a few other minor additions). Island of Happiness, on the other hand, is a completely new game with a Lost in Blue meets Harvest Moon concept.

We probably won't waver in our decision to stick with Island of Happiness, but if you're a fan of the franchise and haven't played Harvest Moon DS yet, this preorder bonus might make the purchase a worthwhile one.

[Via Siliconera]

These Game Boy plushies smile back at you


Do you love your Game Boy so much that you just want to hug it to death? Then perhaps instead of a game system, you should have a plushie. These cute little handheld dolls also have sweet little facial expressions, making them all the more lovable.

The best thing about KungFuCowgirl's Etsy creations is that they're not ridiculously overpriced. They only cost $14 a pop, which is very reasonable for something handmade. We love craftsters, but we always appreciate them more when they don't exploit our gaming love for everything it's worth.

[Via Technabob]

Mario Farty DS



At first glance, Flickr user Punkfish-'s modded DS Phat is like a thousand other slightly underwhelming DIY mods. But then you catch wind (ho ho) of the upper half, and a double take is the only reasonable reaction. That's because Mario is ... farting! Breaking wind. Tooting. Passing gas. Cutting the cheese.

Needless to say, we are shocked and appalled (okay, and also amused). We hope Punkfish-'s sister, Rosa, appreciates her DS's new look!


[Via GayGamer]

So who is the greatest gaming canine ever?

The results to one of the most interesting questions we've heard in quite awhile has come in and gaming's greatest canine is apparently Parappa from the Parappa the Rapper games. While we'll cross the divide that separates Nintendo and Sony handheld fanboys and admit that the Parappa games are great, we're a tad bit upset.

As you may recall from our original post on this topic of discussion, we were heavily in favor of K.K. Slider. We also considered the dog from Duck Hunt. But, Parappa? Eh, we don't agree. What about you all?

[Via Joystiq]

The Game Boy of the Industrial Revolution


Many a history buff know full well the contributions the lowly steam engine has made to not only the development of our native country, the U.S.A., but also that of the world. And now, finally, one of the driving forces behind the Industrial Revolution is now being used for something far more important: powering Game Boys. Actually, we're not sure why someone would make a steam-powered Game Boy, but hey, our hat is off to them because we could never do such a thing ourselves.

We have a hard enough time figuring out which way the AA batteries go in.

[Via Go Nintendo]

Name Sonic Chronicles' aliens

You can do your part to give a non-generic name to one part of Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood: the mysterious alien race. Sega Europe's Sonic City is holding a poll to name the new alien group found in BioWare's RPG. You're limited to one of nine predetermined choices, seen in the image here. We're pretty sure the word "Chaos" doesn't need to show up again in a Sonic game. We're partial to "Icebo" ourselves. As long as it's pronounced "Ice-bo" and not "I-see-bo." We're also fans of "The Darknood" which implies noodity.

The game title remains beyond our control.

Shiren the Wallpapers



Despite the endless praise Shiren the Wanderer's fans have for the new DS remake, you need only look to the nearest gaming forum to find examples of curious gamers immediately turned off by Shiren's US/EU boxart. Of all the marvelous concept art Sega of America had at its disposal, this is what the publisher decided on?

In a post at Jeremy Parish's (of 1UP fame) blog holding roguelikes up as "the quintessential desert-island-game genre," commenter Emilio shared a link to wallpapers fashioned from that official artwork, and, as you can see in the cropped shot above, they are divine.

You can grab 1024x768 and 1280x1024 versions by loading up the official Japanese site and selecting the fourth option in the top-right menu scroll. Or you can just page through the wallpapers in our gallery! Make sure to view them in "Hi Res" for maximum effect.


See also: 2008's Biggest Blips: Shiren the Wanderer

[Via Toastyfrog]

Man proposes using homebrew Bejeweled

Hey, casual games don't have to be cynical exercises in making loadsamoney. In fact, our inner romantic dork almost swooned after recently reading the tale of Bernie and Tammy, who tied the knot thanks to the mother of all casual titles: Bejeweled.

Okay, so strictly speaking, it wasn't the Bejeweled, but a DS homebrew version of Popcap's wildly popular creation, as developed from scratch by Bernie. The game is a favorite of his partner Tammy, so the young Casanova wrote her a special version, and gave it her to play.

The reason why Bernie's Bejeweled was special? Well, when Tammy reached a certain score, the screen cleared and a ring scrolled down in its place. Apparently, it was at this point that Bernie got down on one knee and popped the question. A no doubt thrilled Tammy said "yes." Awwww.

Congrats, you two! We're off to buy new hats!

[Via Game|Life]

The DS Life: Sleep Mode



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.

Like many other three-year-old boys, Kristopher divides his playtime among toy cars, toy trains, and toy things with buttons and lights. When his dad's iPhone isn't available for him to appraise with his tiny, curious fingers, he flips open his Nintendo DS Lite, a hand-me-down from his mother (she now owns a newer edition/color).

Of course, we don't expect to entertain you with just photos of some kid and his DS -- no, we have something much more hilarious planned for you! Jump past the post break and into Kris's crib!

Continue reading The DS Life: Sleep Mode

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