New mario bros. Also anyone got the new DS lite on pre-order?

[Edgedamage]

Anyone here playing it? And anyone thinking of getting the DS lite it releases June 11Th.

[lcddream]

i'm kinda playing it...i played a good bit when it first came out. while it was alot of fun for me initially, i find that it lacks the innovation that the title deserved( i mean it has been 15 years). i think there should have been more alternative mario "forms" or suits whatever you wanna call them.

wall-jumping is a good addition

also the sound that "butt-stomping" makes kind of annoys me...its like a crash cymbal sound.

personally i think they should have styled it like that new super paper mario type of game that was announced for the gamecube.

paper mario platforming style.

http://www.n-sider.com/articleview.php?articleid=515

overall its good don't get me wrong, but i expected to be wowed to the fullest.

[pointdablame]

I was going to go pre-order a DS Lite until I found out they are only releasing it in white at launch

I'll wait for the navy.

[Edgedamage]

Me I have been switching between Mario and Metroid. Over all I am happy with the new Mario. But I noticed in the first couple of levels in world 1 I got the I've been here before feeling. But it is still really nice to play. As for the DS lite I will just settle for white. I hope the new DS is as tough as the current one. Mine fell 5 1/2 feet onto the floor and only got a little tiny dent on the outside corner.

[Tahnok]

I picked up NSMB and played it on a flight for a while. My overall impression of the game was good. I have to agree with most of the reviews though that the suits need refining (especially the blue shell). I found the multiplayer minigames to be quite a bit of fun too, even though almost all of them are directly from Super Mario 64 DS (and no, I wasn't playing the wireless part on the jet).

[Stingray]

It's the best thing that's happened to 2D platformers since Super Mario World. I played it pretty much non-stop until I beat it. Now I'm playing back through and picking up the levels that I skipped over the first time. So far this is my favorite game of 2006 by a very wide margin.

Yes, I am a Mario platformer junkie, so take my opinion for what it's worth.

-S

[spiffyshoes]

I bought the new Super Mario Bros. game on its release date and have been playing it on my DS Lite.  The game is amazing but it is still just a standard mario game.  There isn't anything super innovative about it over any other Mario game.  If you like Mario you will like it but don't go in expecting it to be something completely new.  The multiplayer/single player minigames are pretty awesome though.  A good number of them are the same ones that were included in Super Mario 64 DS but they have also added a bunch of new ones.  The mini games are some of my favorite part of the game because they take advantage of the touch screen and microphone features allowing you to get some pretty interactive game play.  And for me the interactive game play is what owning a DS is all about.

As for the DS lite I would definitely recommend getting one.  They are amazing.  The screen looks so much clearer compared to the original DS.  Plus I think the buttons on it feel much better.  They feel more squishy like the buttons on a regular controller pad rather than clicky like the ones on the original DS.

The games I tend to play the most on my DS other than the new SMB are Brain Age, and The Rub Rabbits.  Both of them make good use of the touch screen and microphone.  Plus they are just plain fun.

[Stingray]

The game is amazing but it is still just a standard mario game.

This is exactly WHY it's so good.

-S

[bishmasterb]

I picked up my copy of SMB last week, and I was going to buy two DS's (I don't own any currently) but the Gamestop employee talked me into waiting for the DS Lite...

So now I have a shiny new SMB sitting on my bookshelf gathering dust until June 11th.

I want to pickup a couple more games, any suggestions? I'm considering:

* Mario Kart
* Animal Crossing
* Super Mario 64 ?

[bishmasterb]

Mario Kart is excellent.. much better than the abomination on GameCube.

Animal Crossing had me hooked for hours a day for about 2 weeks and then -BAM-, I was sick of it.

Super Mario 64 is pretty cool.

Games that were kinda duds for me were Trauma Center and Metroid, both of those are collecting dust on my shelf.  I'd trade either one off, but people only offer me junk I can get for $10. 

Glad to hear it. I've got a 6 year old girl as well, will she like Animal Crossing?

You didn't like Kart on the Gamecube?! Wow, my family has spent literally hundreds of hours playing that, we love it.

[horseboy]

The original SNES version has the best gameplay IMO. But the fact that it only supported 2 players makes me almost want to give the edge to N64. I haven't played the DS version yet, though.

[bishmasterb]

You guys make me want to run out and get the NES and SNES versions of Kart...

[gamecreature]

Glad to hear it. I've got a 6 year old girl as well, will she like Animal Crossing?

You didn't like Kart on the Gamecube?! Wow, my family has spent literally hundreds of hours playing that, we love it.

She may be too young for Animal Crossing - there's a lot of communication between the characters that might challenge a first-grade reader. My kids are older and while they both took to Animal Crossing, my son soon lost interest while my daughter is still playing. Nintendogs might be a better game for your youngster.

I just finished Age of Empires DS and I'm currently playing with Brain Age and Lost Magic (a game that really gives your stylus a work out!) I enjoyed them all but your mileage may vary.

[Tahnok]

The original SNES version has the best gameplay IMO. But the fact that it only supported 2 players makes me almost want to give the edge to N64. I haven't played the DS version yet, though.

The original Super Mario Bros. was for NES. You're thinking of Super Mario World (which this game is not primarily based on).

You guys make me want to run out and get the NES and SNES versions of Kart...

And there never was a MK for NES. The first one was for SNES. The N64 one is generally considered the best in the series though.

Sorry, just gotta be Mr Know-It-All.

[horseboy]

The original SNES version has the best gameplay IMO. But the fact that it only supported 2 players makes me almost want to give the edge to N64. I haven't played the DS version yet, though.

The original Super Mario Bros. was for NES. You're thinking of Super Mario World (which this game is not primarily based on).

You guys make me want to run out and get the NES and SNES versions of Kart...

And there never was a MK for NES. The first one was for SNES. The N64 one is generally considered the best in the series though.

Sorry, just gotta be Mr Know-It-All.

Ummm... actually I was talking about Mario Kart, not SMB. I think even my mom knows that SMB was originally on the NES.

[bishmasterb]

You guys make me want to run out and get the NES and SNES versions of Kart...

And there never was a MK for NES. The first one was for SNES. The N64 one is generally considered the best in the series though.

Sorry, just gotta be Mr Know-It-All.

Sorry, I meant SNES and N64. I don't even own a NES (which is a crime in and of itself).

[Tahnok]

Fair enough. I was hoping they were both just slip-ups. Not only is not owning an NES a crime, but not knowing which systems SMB and MK were debuted on would be too.

[bishmasterb]

Fair enough. I was hoping they were both just slip-ups. Not only is not owning an NES a crime, but not knowing which systems SMB and MK were debuted on would be too.

As punishment, I have been lashed in the public square, dunked in water and drawn and quartered. Seriously though, you guys are making me long for the days of NES again. Think I'm going to have to pickup one off Craigslist.

[lcddream]

or in the buy sell trade of byoac

[horseboy]

As punishment, I have been lashed in the public square, dunked in water and drawn and quartered. Seriously though, you guys are making me long for the days of NES again. Think I'm going to have to pickup one off Craigslist.

Dude snag one of these bad boys...

http://cgi.ebay.com/TOP-LOADER-NES-NINTENDO-SYSTEM-NEO-FAMI-FAMICOM-INDIGO_W0QQitemZ8287843988QQcategoryZ62054QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

They are much more reliable than the old style NES since they are toploaders, and they have composite video out (which the toploader NES's didn't). They are very well made. My brother and I both have one and have never had a problem. They are also compatible with all standard NES joysticks and such. These things are pretty sweet. Shop around on ebay and you might even be able to find one of these things for less than the one I linked to. You won't regret it.

[Tahnok]

As punishment, I have been lashed in the public square, dunked in water and drawn and quartered. Seriously though, you guys are making me long for the days of NES again. Think I'm going to have to pickup one off Craigslist.

Dude snag one of these bad boys...

[URL removed]

They are much more reliable than the old style NES since they are toploaders, and they have composite video out (which the toploader NES's didn't). They are very well made. My brother and I both have one and have never had a problem. They are also compatible with all standard NES joysticks and such. These things are pretty sweet. Shop around on ebay and you might even be able to find one of these things for less than the one I linked to. You won't regret it.

Top load has absolutely nothing to do with it. The reason the top loader seemed to be better than the NES is because it didn't have a region lock. When the grey screen pops-up that means the NES thinks you are trying to play a game from a different region. The top loader removed this lock, since it was released at the end of the NES lifetime. You still get other loading problems with the top loader (such as scrambled images).

It will, however, probably be much more reliable than any of the old systems since it has a new connector on it. Of course though, I've heard mixed things about these new NESs.

[Stingray]

Buy a used Dreamcast for $20 and run NesterDC. Say goodbye to the flashing blue screen.

-S

[Howard_Casto]

What really ticks me off about this is nintendo only seems to be willing to release 2d games on the ds. 

I want the New smb for the gamecube dang it!

This whole mario64 style of mario is great and all, but I really wish nintendo would start supporting classic platformers on their home consoles.

[brophog]

I agree, Howard. 2D Mario is far from dead, why did it take this long to produce? And why only on a handheld?

The reason generally given for these kinds of things is that expectations from the consumer are so high in terms of graphics and length that developers feel they can't really such a product without a fear of disappointment. Hence, they release it on a handheld where these kinds of expectations are drastically reduced.

Personally, I'm not buying that reasoning. Developers have used graphics and length to push games for so long now that they're afraid to lose their crutch.

[Howard_Casto]

I think the problem is companies are trying too hard.  On 3d games you HAVE to innovate, because, quite frankly, your average 3d game totally sucks.  The genre is too new and thus much improvment can be made.  2D games are a different story, they have been around so long and have been refined so much, that a developer really has to do is make new levels and a new story. 

I think the best example of this "trying too hard" thing is the megaman series.  They have released around 30 megaman 2d games in the past couple of years.  All but the latest totally sucked.  Why?  Well they tried to re-work megaman in each game they did, adding lame gimmicks, lame storylines coupled with major graphical overhauls.  Unfortunately with all the reworking someone forgot to tell capcom that megaman is all about the jumping and shooting.  It's also about levels that are so tweaked to the jumping and shooting that it is a thing of beauty. 

Now the most recent game is really good.  Why?  Cause they basically just prettied up the original megaman engine.  With classic megaman platforming you can never go wrong. 

Same goes for franchises like castlevania, metal slug and mario bros.  Don't worry about innovating, spend all of your time working and re-working those levels and making sure the gameplay mechanics match the original.  THEN go back and overhaul the graphics and add in any special do-dads you have time for. 

[spiffyshoes]

What is wrong with Super Paper Mario?  I think that game looks like it is going to be some pretty sweet 2d platforming on the Game Cube.

[bishmasterb]

I just received a "Yobo" NES console that I bought off eBay, $28 with shipping.

I've yet to plug it in as I sadly don't have any NES games. Hopefully picking up some today off Craigslist.

First impression is that this thing is tiny! Much smaller than the original NES, and very light. Seems pretty cheaply constructed (no surprises), but the controllers seem okay.

[brophog]

  Don't worry about innovating, spend all of your time working and re-working those levels and making sure the gameplay mechanics match the original.  THEN go back and overhaul the graphics and add in any special do-dads you have time for. 

Pure marketing. EA is the poster boy for this.

[Otraotaku]

I was going to go pre-order a DS Lite until I found out they are only releasing it in white at launch

I'll wait for the navy.

same here... well maybe by then they will have a red to import... muhahha