Topic: Just how rare IS Tetris DS?

So I heard that Tetris DS was rare, right? And then I saw a used copy at my local GameStop for the low, low, price of...........50 USD. So, what made the game so rare, besides the fact that Tetris is extremely popular?

no idea, but IGN has it on their top 25 DS games list, so it must be pretty good.

I'm not sure, but there are tons of bootlegs on eBay, so that might affect it.

Fortunately, Tetris Party is coming out in a couple months, which will hopefully make it not matter how rare Tetris DS is.

Well I have Tetris DS, and I never knew it was rare until someone on the forum said so. O_o

It was one of the first Nintendo WFC-enabled games, and the version of Tetris on the cart is really good. It was also extremely popular online for a very long time. I'm sure there are still players online even now.

I'd guess one factor is that the Tetris license seems to change hands every week.

I wouldn't be surprised if the bootlegs were a result of its rarity. From what I understand, Super Princess Peach is also a pretty heavily pirated game. In demand because it's a Mario platformer, but I'd suspect it didn't do well originally because it was a rather easy game and... maybe not a lot of guys were secure enough to be seen bringing it to the checkout?

There weren't a lot of copies distributed in North America (it was hard to find in stores even shortly after it came out), and it's one of those games people tend not to sell, so I think when it went out of print and with the growing popularity of the DS after the DS Lite came out, there were just never enough copies to meet the demand.

Edit: Now that I think about it, I bought the game and my DS Lite after I saw it featured in episode 12 of Pure Pwnage, and that show does have millions of viewers. The game might have already been out of print when that episode aired, so I wonder if PP was a factor in popularizing the game and making it more rare.

I see. Well, that would explain it, alright. Maybe I should pick it up, then......

It is awesome, but like people have said, there are a ton of fakes on ebay. Do not buy if the seller is from Hong Kong, and make sure the box has the "Touch Generations" logo on it, all of the fakes are missing this logo.

I'll never give up my copy; it's the best Tetris experience of all time, no contest. Between Push Mode (the greatest Tetris innovation since the original game), the various puzzle modes, and the wonderful retro Nintendo theming, it's quite a package.

Not all of them have the touch generations logo... I have proof because I bought it at Target brand new along with Metroid Prime Pinball which came out the exact same day,(t might have been Metroid Prime hunters I'm not sure)but it is missin g the touch generations logo.

Holy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 50 dollars!!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!?!?............... I have a legit copy!!!!!!!!!!!!!111 but my mom likes it, so it sucks.......

I'll tell her to play tetris worlds on the xbox.

@CharlieRod Does your copy play in a DSi? That would prove if it is legit or not. I guess it is possible a legit copy might not have the Touch Generations logo, but the picture on the Nintendo website has the logo, and the fake I got from ebay did not have the logo. Anyway, if someone is buying from ebay, I would make sure it has the Touch Generations logo to be safe.

Games-Stock.com has it new for $27.95.

I have one suspect bootleg and one suspect legit.
The "bootleg" one looks identical to the "legit" one except that the print is SLIGHTLY blurry (and you may not even been able to make out the difference in a photo). I noticed the "legit" one comes in a case that has the Nintendo DS logo on the inside next to the card holder, whereas the "bootleg" does not, and has a GBA cart symbol next to the GBA holder (a side note, what's the point in including those in most DS cases? )
But I suppose someone could legitimately use a replacement cover and case.
So, the "bootleg" card has an ID CP3EN0J09 on the back, and the "legit" one has the ID ATREN0J22 which sounds more consistent with DS games (first four digits match the NTR-xxxx-yyy code on the back of the case, where xxxx is the game ID and yyy is the region.
Checking google...
Looks like the CP3E one probably is a bootleg, as that seems to be the ID for Viva Pinata (NTR-CP3E-USA). (though the bootleg had the correct ID on the front of the card, which is all you're likely to see, if anything.)
One other thing, is the manual cover supposed to have "Instruction Manual" in both English and French? The PDF replacement on Nintendo's site only has it in English (unless it was released in Canada with a separate manual).

As far as I know you can get it anywhere around here.

It is quite rare over here in the UK and commands a relatively high price. It is a very good handheld version of Tetris, well worth picking up.

I should have never traded in my copy. I thought that I would be able to pick it up again later for cheap. Boy, was I wrong.

If you're planning on re-buying it just get Tetris Party Deluxe when it comes out here for $30 in June. That's at least what I'm doing.

That site sells bootlegs.