Topic: Nintendo DS - 5 Years of Portable Domination

Well, it's been 5 years since the Nintendo Developer's System/Dual Screen (DS) has been released to the masses, changing portable gaming as we know it.

Whether it was the revolutionary touch screen, the wireless multiplayer or the fact that it was the system to get back in 2004, we have all laid hands on a DS (so I think).

I remember around Christmas 2004 when I opened the box and slid out the titanium DS Phat and immediately started playing Metroid Prime Hunters: First Hunt. My nephew spilled OJ on it and I waited patiently for 4 months until I got another one. My neighbour sold me his DS Lite around last year, since he knew my old DS was almost hitting its twilight, and now the DSi (and DSi LL) is here to re-create a fresh approach that has been appealing to players young and old for around 5 years.

I've felt like the DS and I shared a journey, technology moved forward and so did I myself.

Before I bore you guys, what was your favorite Nintendo DS moment? Was it playing online with strangers with Nintendo WFC for the very first time? Was it beating your favorite DS game or was it just the fact that you went out on launch day (Nov. 21, 2004) to become the first to witness the future of portable gaming?

Post them here! And happy 5th birthday Nintendo DS. From what I'm seeing, you have a mighty long way to go, succeeding the Game Boy line and expanding portable gaming further into the distant future. 5 years so far, and touching is still good.

yeah nintendo power had this really sweet article about it. when i had my Phat i think i played it more then any console at the time because of uniqueness of the experience. The system also did something no other handheld before it had lots of variety. Out of all the DS games i've plaed the most memorable have to be.

Mario Kart DS
Metroid Prime Hunters
Nintendogs
Resident evil deadly slience
Animal Crossing WIld World

There is still alot of games i want so i'm saving up for a DSi.

why you putting 5 Years of Portable Domination hasnt nintendo always been domante in the handheld area

quote=Andy100003]why you putting 5 Years of Portable Domination hasnt nintendo always been domante in the handheld area

[/quote]

Yes, with the Game Boy. But remember the Nintendo DS was a big venture with the Big N. Why wasn't it a Game Boy? They thought people would hate it, but they didn't. If it was called the Game Boy DS, then Game Boy would survived. But now the DS has come into its own as probably one of the world's greatest portable gaming systems of all time.

No denying that right there, and Nintendo still dominates portable right up to this day, I was saying what DS has done to whip the industry into shape once more, and how it managed to fend off competition from Sony's PlayStation Portable and claim bragging rights for us Nintendo men and women of the world!

Rather than 5 years of the Nintendo DS ruling portables, I prefer to think of 20 years of Nintendo dominating portables. That's what really amazes me. PSP and Game Gear had their moments, especially the PSP, but Nintendo has always been the king. You would think it wouldn't be so hard to make a good portable system, but I guess it is.

I got my DS about 3 years ago. I was really excited and wanted to get games like Resident Evil Deadly Silence. Actually, that game was the reason I wanted the DS. I managed to get some really good games, but my Touch Screen is busted. I hope the next Nintendo handheld will carry the GameBoy name.

Some of my best moments: finishing The World Ends With You, Mario Kart DS online, hundreds of hours on Pokemon Pearl, and my left wrist becoming sore from playing.

I bought the original DS at launch 5 years ago. I bought Super Mario 64 DS to go along with it. The first few months after launch were rough, because there really weren't too many games out. That all changed though as the system has a fantastic selection of games now. My favorite system to game on since the SNES days.

Happy birthday DS!

It's great that Nintendo's handheld tradition has been strong for the past 2 decades.

PSP was the heaviest competitor and the DS still beat it. That's what I love to say to my PSP-fanboy friends. More time, I can find someone with a DS to play with and there are more DS than PSP owners in Jamaica as I see it.

I just hope Nintendo looks back at their success, continue what they're doing today, and keep moving the portable gaming market forward.

PSP was beating DS for awhile in Japan. I wonder how the race is going today. The PSP really is a wonderful little device with a lot of good games, but only if you are into specific genres. It's lacking some of the variety DS has.

Agreed Nintendo been the undisputed King of the Handheld since 1989 aka 20 Years actually longer then that since Game &Watch era so actually Nintendo has been dominating this Market since 1980 so that makes then 29 Years. And Happy 5th anniversary to the Great and worthy successor to the Game Boy, The Nintendo DS.

I'd have to say my favorite DS moment is when I discovered Metroid Prime Hunters. It started my love for the MP series.

I made a little song.
Happy Brithday to you!
Happy Brithday to you!
Happy Birthday dear Nintendo DS!
We'll always play you!

Okay, lame song.

Cheers to my favorite video game system of all time.

I remember getting the DS at the European launch. The imported ones were overpriced. But the Touch Screen was a blast. I spent the long trip on the train to school just fiddling around with the drawing option on PictoChat. A friend and I used to draw a picture, copy it, and draw something new on it and then pass on the DS to create animations. And we used it to play pictonairy. The Metroid demo was very promising, and playing Super Mario 64 on the go was a cool new experience.

One my fondest memories of the DS was waiting for Mario Kart DS, partially because it was the first Nintendo game to support the online mode. A few months later I picked up the imported US version of Metroid Prime: Hunters from the game shop as soon as it came out. It was a blast !

But the DS truly became a blast for me when finally, in spring 2007, I got my hands on a copy of Pokémon Diamond. Platinum was even better and with HeartGold and SoulSilver coming up there is another game to look out for next year.

A less memorable moment was when my DS hinge broke. I had to replace the casing of the DS so i ordered a new one on the internet. When I finally got everything back together, it just wouldn't work anymore. I had to replace it with a DS Lite. The screen was a lot brighter though, so I was happy with my new friend. I passed up on the DSi which was revealed later that year and released the spring after it. For now I'm happy with the DS Lite.

5 Years of great portable gaming. I guess time flies when you're having fun.

DS has been thus far my favorite portable video game system. My former DS Lite was a very god system but I traded it in for DSi early this year when that came out and both of my DS have flown half way around the world as I took my DS Lite to my visit to my home country (India) last year, and I also took the DSi this year when I visited India again. They kept me entertained on the plane!

And looks like the DSi LL is a hit in Japan.

My favourite memory is not of Mario Kart or Metroid Prime but rather playing a little game you have probably never heard of called Sprung. I remember playing this and thinking "This system is so awesome". I don't know why that's my favourite memory it just is.

[sarcasm]I never played it but I heard it is the absolute greatest game ever.[/sarcasm]

Happy 5th birthday DS!