November 21, 2004 marked the beginning of a new handheld era for Nintendo, the era of the Nintendo Developer's System/Dual Screen (or Nintendo DS, for short)

We've seen the likes of Mario, Samus, Link and other great gaming icons share their bounty on the platform with a few building their name from it like Maxwell of Scribblenauts, Dr. Derek Stiles of Trauma Center and of course, the legendary Pokemon of the Sinnoh region in the DS-exclusive versions of Pokemon.

So my question to you guys is simply:

• Why did you buy the DS
• Which DS did you start with
• How long have you had it
• Your recommended killer apps for it

and...

• How the DS has affected you (whether you got deeper into portables or some other reason...)

My two cents: To me, the DS was where I began with main-stream portable gaming (with my first portable being the Pokemon Mini).
I totally went gaga for it when I saw the Nintendo DS Day special on G4, so I had to ask my dad to get it. I knew about the PSP but since no one could ever trump Nintendo in portable gaming, I skipped it and got the DS.

To date, I have had 4 DS systems (2 DS Phats, both Titanium, the original color [The first one was apparently destroyed by neglience because of my nephew, the second met its end around June this year.], A Crimson/Black DS Lite and a black DSi.

My journey with the DS started in December of 2004 and is still going strong as of today.

My recommendations:

• Mario Kart DS
• Rhythm Heaven
• New Super Mario Bros.
• Metroid Prime: Hunters
• GTA: Chinatown Wars

So how far have you come with the Developer's System/Dual Screen?

My first DS was the DSi. I bought it in June, because I was about to leave for China for a year, and taking my Wii was impractical. Of course, now I wish I had gotten one sooner! I had never really played too much GB and GBA, but I did love my Game Gear back in the day, so the DSi got me back into portable gaming like the Wii got me back into console gaming.

The one "killer app" I want is a DSi VC. I want to play all the older portable games. Most I didn't get into because my GBC and GBA didn't have a backlit screen, and I hated squinting or sitting directly under lamps or windows to see it well. I could have gotten a GBA SP, but that was during my gaming lapse, so it never happened.

I hope this portable is pretty sturdy, I don't want to be going through 3 DS's in 5 years because they break. My GBC has taken a beating, but still works like it did on day 1.

The first question is a stupid one i mean it's Nintendo who doesn't like Nintendo well for me it's a no brainer getting a DS and i got one since Dec 8 2004.

I Start with DS PHAT, Dec 27 2007 when with DS Lite, DSi since April 16 2009 and DSi XL probably in Q1, Q2, Q3 2010 or later depends on my financial situation in the future.

Well 4 Years, 9 months and 25 days (and since 06 i think the DS is the Greatest Handeld System ever created).

My recommendations:
Pokemon Platinum Version
Yoshi's Island DS
Chrono Trigger
Fire Emblem Shadow Dragon
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia

Why did you buy the DS - November 21, 2004 (edit, thought this said when... doh!) I bought the DS because ... well it had two screens, one of them was a touch screen, and it was set to have a pretty awesome looking Metroid Prime game. I had never played Mario 64, so there was another big appeal. Also, the wireless multiplay off a single cartridge was pretty enticing.

Which DS did you start with - The phat of course

How long have you had it - Got rid of my original phat to get my Zelda DS Lite, still have my wife's DS Phat though.
We've bought 5 DS systems to date - 2 Phats, 2 Lites, and 1 DSi.

Your recommended killer apps for it

• Animal Crossing Wild World
• The World Ends With You
• Final Fantasy Tactics A2
• Castlevania (all three of them)
• Puzzle Quest CotW
• Zelda Phantom Hourglass
• Chrono Trigger DS

How the DS has affected you? - It's given me a much higher opinion of "portable" gaming - so much that I value the DS far more than the Wii. It's the best Nintendo system that's come out since the SNES.

1: I've always liked Nintendo more than the other companies and I loved the GBA when it came out, so I thought this would be a good one, especially after seeing previews in game magazines.

2 & 3: The original silver DS Phat. I bought it a month after it came out in Europe. I don't remember the exact date but it was early April. It had just been my birthday (I was 12 at the time) and I'd been given enough money to buy it, and a couple of games, Super Mario 64 and Pokemon Dash (Should've bought WarioWare instead). My brother and Sister both got their own DS Phats, one silver and one pink and all 3 of them broke in some way. I/we didn't upgrade to the DS Lite but I got my Black DSi on my birthday which was, coincidentally the same day it came out in Europe, April 3rd. Only have 1 at this time.

4: Out of everything I've played, (limiting it to 5) I would recommend

• Final Fantasy XII: Revenant Wings
• Trauma Centre: Under The Knife 2
• The World Ends With You
• Metroid Prime Hunters
• Elite Beat Agents

.
I've come a long way with the DS. The GBA was what got me started with handheld gaming but the DS gave me a much bigger interest in it, with it's interesting library and (at the time) new way to play games with the touchscreen. Such a great console, hope Nintendo keeps it up with the next one