Here in the U.S., we're finally seeing a few more colors, though nothing to compare with the rest of the world. That's not the only area in which the DS is lacking, either; we've missed out on some truly spectacular limited edition systems. While we get the somewhat lackluster Guitar Hero DS, Japanese DS owners are rolling around with eye-searing yellow Pikachu Lites, plain-Jane Final Fantasy Lites, the gorgeous silver Lite for It's a Wonderful World, and even a Bathing Ape DS.
If you happen to be sitting on a mountain of cash, you might have one of these, or another example of a fantastic Japan-exclusive. It's more likely, however, that you're like us when one of these babies debuts; you sit at your desk, tears slipping down your cheeks, as you press one forlorn hand against the screen. Since it's Monday, let's get all this week's wallowing and depression out of the way right now with a little journey through some of the special editions the world has seen -- from the ones you could get to the ones that were a little out of reach.
Many of you will no doubt recall the gorgeous and very, very yellow limited edition Pikachu DS that remains painfully unattainable to us. With no official release planned for the hardware, we began to give up hope on ever owning one, but it looks like Nintendo could be offering another two Pikachu Lites to winners of a new contest being held to promote Pokémon Mystery Dungeon twosome Explorers of Darkness and Explorers of Time.
You can enter once a day between now and May 21st, when a couple of lucky winners will clinch themselves a treasure chest containing the most beautiful DS Lite known to man, a Wii, a HDTV, and more Pokémon goodies than they can shake a stick at. Head here to learn more.
With all the news from TGS this week, we thought it might be the perfect time to tie in with a little Show and Tell session featuring the limited edition DS Lites those of us outside Japan so often sigh over. Reader Eoghan sent in the picture available after the break, and now we just want to track down the location of these goodies and rob them. And then we thought ... if PAX is a veritable DS mecca, what must the crowd at TGS look like? These things could be everywhere. Oh well. Since we're not there to ogle the array of Lites, we'll just have to make due with Eoghan's very pretty picture.
Got something you want to show off? Crafts, cakes, collections from modest to extreme, t-shirts ... whatever you've got, if it has a little Nintendo flavor, we want to see it. Just take some pictures (or copy your web album links) and send them to showmeit [at] dsfanboy [dot] com. We'll take care of the rest.
Sharp-eyed reader Fashnootin noticed something interesting while poking around the Best Buy website -- the Brain Age 2 bundle. But not the super-hot two-toned Lite we've been drooing over, oh no ... this Lite is all red. Now, we've seen the gorgeous red and black Lite in the hands of some of our fellows, so we know it exists -- so what's with this one? Could there be another bundle? Another new DS Lite? Or is it simply a mistake on Best Buy's behalf? We snagged a screencap of the image just in case it disappears. Reader thrillho also caught a picture in the sales flyer, so it's not a one-off.
We do so love to start the mornings off with a little gossip, and this pic is as juicy as a ripe strawberry. We rather prefer the red and black model, but we wouldn't say no to an all-red Lite, either.
Attempting to cope with the painful realization that we'll never receive one of these limited edition yellow DS Lites, we have adapted several "Your Mama" snaps to use as insults on the people who actually have them. Here is what we've come up with so far:
Your DS Lite is so yellow, traffic slows down when you take it out.
Your DS Lite is so yellow, we can't believe it's not butter.
Your DS Lite is so yellow, Crest Whitestrips told it to go to the damn dentist.
Your DS Lite is so yellow, you've mistaken it for corn on the cob at least twice.
These are really bad, we know. If you can come up with anything better, leave your suggestion in the comments! Past the post break, we've got a couple photos of the Pikachu-emblazoned handheld. Collectors had to submit an application at one of Japan's five Pokémon Center's last June just for a chance to buy the canary-colored system. If you were stuck in the US or anywhere else that wasn't the land of the rising sun, you were out of luck. How rude!
Another Square Enix game, anotherspecial-editionDS Lite. SE seems to have set up a template for these: logo on the left, line art on the right, money in the bank.
This time, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates gets the special-edition treatment on a Crystal White DS Lite. For Japan, obviously. We like the pseudo-stained-glass look, which can be found in full color on the box. This new DS variant is great news for people who were holding out on a DS purchase until the Japanese Ring of Fates came out. It's probably a little irritating for Square Enix fans who already have a plain DS.
To celebrate the July 20th opening of its new Tokyo store, the Pokémon Center will be offering Pikachu-branded, yellow DS Lites to an unannounced number of gamers. Those who're looking for a chance to grab one of the special edition handhelds will be able to submit an "application" at any of the Pokémon Center's five locations in Japan. Submissions will be accepted up to July 1st, and those eligible to purchase the 16,800 yen DS Lite (approx. $138) will be notified by postcard later in the month. Even if you're not a Pikachu fan, you could always just acquire one anyway and tell everyone that the face on the lid is actually a rosy-cheeked rabite.
Despite a near-decade's worth of handheld variants featuring the mousy mascot, these Pokémon-designed consoles show no signs of slowing down. Take a stroll through memory lane and check out all the Pikachu portables we were able to round up after the post break.
Posted May 31st 2007 12:00PM by Eric Caoili
Filed under: News
Square Enix'sWonderful World edition DS Lite marks the first of what we're sure will be many Gloss Silver bundles to grace Japan, but will never -- absolutely never -- see an official release in the states. Set for release along with the game this June 27th, the limited edition handheld shows of the "It's a Wonderful World" logo and Tetsuya Nomura's skull badge design. Pricing for the set hasn't been announced yet, but expect to pay a king's ransom if you plan on importing.
If you happen to be a Seattle Mariners fan, and you're in the area, rush down to Safeco Field to pick up one of these bad boys -- this is a US-exclusive Lite with the team's logo embedded into the shell. This is exactly the kind of thing we need to see more of in North America if Nintendo wants to continually rock out US sales like those in Japan. More cool stuff like this, less commercials during kiddie cartoons. Mainstream, here we come!
There are only 2000 of these special edition Lites, and this is everywhere on the 'net today, so we expect a few fans may end up trolling eBay with tears in their eyes in a few weeks. It's too bad Nintendo doesn't own a sizable interest in the St. Louis Cardinals -- then we'd finally be able to convince a certain mother unit that the DS is even more awesome than the Wii!
As if packing 500 characters, 300 mobile suits, and over 120 stages from 15 different Gundam series wasn't fan service enough, Bandai Namco plans to release a special edition DS Lite bundle with SD Gundam G Generation Cross Drive. The customized, crystal-white handheld will feature the same red branding seen on Amuro Ray's Rx-93 ν Gundam in the animated film, Mobile Suit Gundam: Char's Counterattack.
It's doubtful that the strategy-RPG game or the DS Lite will ever make it stateside, so interested parties will likely have to settle for importing when the title hits Japanese shelves this August 9th. The bundle's 21,840 yen price tag comes out to approximately $183, but expect to pay a premium if you're buying from an online shop. Head past the post break for a look at SD Gundam G Generation Cross Drive's packaging and screenshots.
We knew the launch was crazy, but this is ridiculous: some (unconfirmed) sources over at 4 color rebellion are stating that the entire launch allocation of two million copies of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl have completed sold out ... in less than a day. Furthermore, half a million DS Lites (including the new special edition, shown here) flew off the shelves as well. Next week's sales numbers should be ... interesting, to say the least.
We're not sure, but this might be an all-time sales record in Japan, and if one takes into account the proportional population of Japan versus the U.S., Pokemon Diamond and Pearl exceeds even Halo 2's ridiculous first day numbers (2.4 million sold in 24 hours). Take that, Master Chief.
So, Nintendo finally tossed us a bone and set the Black and Pink version of the DS Lite for release in North America. Still, any real gamer knows that all the awesome special edition everythings are Japan-only, and this little beauty is no exception. Soocer/football fans, go ahead and drool...the stylistic playbook sketch makes the Onyx Lite that much hotter. Sure, if you want it badly enough, you can import it...but who knows how much you'll be paying?
Many of you will no doubt recall the gorgeous and 
Sharp-eyed reader Fashnootin noticed something interesting while poking around the Best Buy website -- the 
As if packing 500 characters, 300 mobile suits, and over 120 stages from 15 different 
So, Nintendo finally 
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