Video Games - ds

Margot's Word Brain - Nintendo DS

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to as a cross) and the check or tick in a green circle. Music continues. You can scroll left or right to select a game. They don't just give you a list of games and let you select. You have to scroll through the entire list to find the one you want. The names are all written in white letters on dark yellow tiles, one letter per tile. No variation in color. No pictures, other than Margot's head always on the left screen. The entire game is visually very dull with just these plain tiles of never varying colors. Well, ok, in some games there are some orange tiles for the letters you select.

The games are: Word Link, Word Mine, Hyper Text, Word Run, Word Safe, Word Search. Word Brain is a combination of all the games played in sequence. In each game you get 90 seconds to complete the task. This is very annoying to me. If I'm trying to find "as many words" as I can, I'd really rather have more time to do it.

After selecting a game you get a touch screen that tells you: "Touch the tick to play the game. Touch the cross to see a demo. Margot also tells you this information. As she speaks her words are scrolled across the bottom of the left screen. In tiny, tiny letters. The words you see are not synchronized with her speech. It's odd. Why they felt the need to fill up the screens with a bunch of nothing (Margot's head, a sheet of note paper) and give us the tiny letters to read, I have no idea. (I think maybe they had no ideas too.)

Game: Word Link -Not an original game
Demo: The left screen changes to the note paper with the tiny scroll bar on which you can read Margot's instructions as she reads them aloud to you. Again the screen words and the spoken words are out of sync. This is a familiar game where you have columns of letters and you make words of three to six letters by touching adjacent letters in sequence. If you leave the sound on as you play, you get to hear "tick, tick, tick, tick, tick" until your 90 seconds are up. Then you get the results of your performance.

After playing a game you can get back to the game selection page by touching the start button.

Game: Word Mine --Not an original game
Demo: Six jumbled letters appear at the top of the touch screen. You make as many three to six letter words as you can using the six letters-again in 90 seconds.

Game: Hyper Txt - this one was new to me, but then I don't send text messages and I struggle with phone numbers like: 1-800-PIZZA.
In this game you "text message" touching the numbers in a phone keypad layout to type the words shown on the left screen. You have 90 seconds, but the game ends instantly if you make a mistake. And you cannot really text as fast as you want because after you tap the key you want (as many times as needed to get the correct letter) you have to wait for the next space at the top to be highlighted. If you get a new high score you get a keyboard layout on which to type your name in all capital letters.

Game: Word Run -
Demo: You have a 6X6 grid and a keyboard. First Margot types a word, then you type a word that intersects her word at one letter. Then she adds a word. This process continues until one of you cannot add a word.

Game: Word Safe -
Demo: Letters arranged in concentric circles. One letter in the center, 8 letters in the next circle and 16 letters in the outer circle. Select adjacent letters.

Game: Word Search - with a twist
Demo: Margot gives you three words and about 3 or 4 seconds to memorize them. Then you get the letter grid. You identify the words by touching the beginning and ending letters of each word. Same ole 90 seconds of course. This is pretty easy, provided you can just remember the words you need to find.

Game: Word Brain
This is a sequence of all six games. Margot gives you the scores after each game.

Only words that are included in Margot's personal dictionary work in these games. And she doesn't seem to have a very complete vocabulary. After playing Word Link and Word Mine for about three or four minutes I discovered that she doesn't know: wad, ray, gay, or deal. I don't really consider them to be very unusual words. On the other hand many of the words Margot uses seem rather unusual to me, for example: dachas, kipped, kummel, dowses, align, eerier, plough, inarch, voiles, xenias. Some of this is due to the use of British terminology. But at any rate, when you have only 90 seconds to play having perfectly normal words rejected is a little annoying.

Overall there is very little that is new on this game. There are no interesting visual anythings included. Margot does read the directions to you out loud, in cases you cannot read. (In which case can you really play word games?) Some games could really use this feature. I don't think this is one of them. There are no options to do much of anything else, or any quick ways to get around. When you finish a game that lasts all of 90 seconds, you have to fiddle around getting through the scoring pages, etc to get to the next game. If you want to play rather than admire a list of scores this is very boring. There is no left-handed option on this game.

My real disappointment was that for some unknown reason I was actually expecting this game to be about words and their meanings. It must have been something about "will test your word knowledge....and vocabulary". I have learned more about words by visiting freerice.com , which I learned of through someone else's review of something. Whoever you are out there: Thanks!

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood: Nintendo DS

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leave my DS speakers turned down since I have other stuff playing in the background, but this is the first DS game I've ever played where I turned down the sound because I couldn't stand listening to it. There were rumours that Richard Jacques, the composer on games like Sonic R and the Saturn version of Sonic 3D Blast, was working on the game's soundtrack, but I find that incredibly hard to believe given the state of the product I played.

The actual game mechanics are better, but still rather flawed. The maps are all hand-drawn 2D, upon which your 3D cel-shaded characters are free to run around, controlled by the stylus. You can switch to any of the characters in your party at any time by tapping their icon, although Sonic remains your `point' character for conversations and the like. You can explore the environments to find side quests, most of which are fairly uninvolved and straightforward. In addition, access to certain parts of each area is restricted depending on who you have in your party. For instance, if you don't have Knuckles with you, you can't climb certain walls to reach high areas, and if you don't have Tails, you can't fly from one high point to another. The way in which this is done, however, feels rather forced - the game explicitly tells you which character you need to use at a particular location with a handy icon, ruining the sense of exploration and discovery you might have otherwise felt.

In terms of battle mechanics, the game feels like a throwback to Sega JRPGs of old, particularly the Phantasy Star series, with some elements taken from other JRPGs like Final Fantasy. Each of your characters falls into one of three archetypes, Power, Support and Shifter. They also have some stats, and it's fairly ambiguous as to what each stat affects - the game does not explain this to you. In any case, there's an `Auto-Level' option much like in Mass Effect that can take care of this for you if you feel so inclined.

The main source of differentiation in the characters is the abilities they bring to the table. These fill the same role as special abilities in other games like Chrono Trigger, in that they have special properties, such as being associated with a particular element, or inflicting a status effect. The latter in particular is crucial to doing well in the game, since status effects can be stacked (even the same ones!).

In addition, you can pair each character with a Chao of your choice. The Chao function much in the same way that Espers do in Final Fantasy VI - they bestow some special property on the character that they wouldn't have otherwise. The effects range from fairly simple things like endowing the paired character with a particular element in his/her attacks to more useful effects like regenerating HP or PP between rounds. I haven't played long enough to make sure, but it also looks like the effects of a paired Chao get more powerful the longer it's paired.

So we have the makings of a fairly decent, if unoriginal combat system. However, Bioware managed to muck this up by tossing (of all things) quick timer events into the fray. When you decide to use your special moves, you need to input a series of Ouendan-style beats and sliders. If you mess up, your special move fails and you just wasted your PP. Presumably the game keeps some internal statistics that determine your attacks' effectiveness - why does it need to present you with this pointless reflex test? It makes sense in a game like Ouendan precisely BECAUSE the game is Ouendan - the beats are set to music, which aids you in mastering the timing for tapping the beats. In Sonic Chronicles, there is no such aid, and the sequences end up feeling tacked on as a result.

The most annoying part is that the DS, being what it is, often isn't able to keep up with the action on screen, and as a result the dropped framerate affects the speed at which these sequences are shown to you, messing up any sense of timing you might have gotten through muscle memory and turning what should be a fairly straightforward part of the battle system into pointless tedium. On top of this, you need to go through the same process to block enemy special moves, and it's subject to the same problems.

And don't get me started on the ridiculous minigame you need to play in order to escape from battle (or if your opponents decide to escape from battle).

I'm still trying to figure out where I stand on this game. The few things Bioware got wrong are almost enough to push me over the edge, but I'll put forth a hesitant recommendation to at least those Sonic fans who have been waiting forever for a game that isn't terrible. This game is better than most other recent Sonic efforts, but I'd strongly recommend preparing for some frustrating battles...and turning the sound off.

SimCity Creator: Nintendo DS

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leave my DS speakers turned down since I have other stuff playing in the background, but this is the first DS game I've ever played where I turned down the sound because I couldn't stand listening to it. There were rumours that Richard Jacques, the composer on games like Sonic R and the Saturn version of Sonic 3D Blast, was working on the game's soundtrack, but I find that incredibly hard to believe given the state of the product I played.



The actual game mechanics are better, but still rather flawed. The maps are all hand-drawn 2D, upon which your 3D cel-shaded characters are free to run around, controlled by the stylus. You can switch to any of the characters in your party at any time by tapping their icon, although Sonic remains your `point' character for conversations and the like. You can explore the environments to find side quests, most of which are fairly uninvolved and straightforward. In addition, access to certain parts of each area is restricted depending on who you have in your party. For instance, if you don't have Knuckles with you, you can't climb certain walls to reach high areas, and if you don't have Tails, you can't fly from one high point to another. The way in which this is done, however, feels rather forced - the game explicitly tells you which character you need to use at a particular location with a handy icon, ruining the sense of exploration and discovery you might have otherwise felt.



In terms of battle mechanics, the game feels like a throwback to Sega JRPGs of old, particularly the Phantasy Star series, with some elements taken from other JRPGs like Final Fantasy. Each of your characters falls into one of three archetypes, Power, Support and Shifter. They also have some stats, and it's fairly ambiguous as to what each stat affects - the game does not explain this to you. In any case, there's an `Auto-Level' option much like in Mass Effect that can take care of this for you if you feel so inclined.



The main source of differentiation in the characters is the abilities they bring to the table. These fill the same role as special abilities in other games like Chrono Trigger, in that they have special properties, such as being associated with a particular element, or inflicting a status effect. The latter in particular is crucial to doing well in the game, since status effects can be stacked (even the same ones!).



In addition, you can pair each character with a Chao of your choice. The Chao function much in the same way that Espers do in Final Fantasy VI - they bestow some special property on the character that they wouldn't have otherwise. The effects range from fairly simple things like endowing the paired character with a particular element in his/her attacks to more useful effects like regenerating HP or PP between rounds. I haven't played long enough to make sure, but it also looks like the effects of a paired Chao get more powerful the longer it's paired.



So we have the makings of a fairly decent, if unoriginal combat system. However, Bioware managed to muck this up by tossing (of all things) quick timer events into the fray. When you decide to use your special moves, you need to input a series of Ouendan-style beats and sliders. If you mess up, your special move fails and you just wasted your PP. Presumably the game keeps some internal statistics that determine your attacks' effectiveness - why does it need to present you with this pointless reflex test? It makes sense in a game like Ouendan precisely BECAUSE the game is Ouendan - the beats are set to music, which aids you in mastering the timing for tapping the beats. In Sonic Chronicles, there is no such aid, and the sequences end up feeling tacked on as a result.



The most annoying part is that the DS, being what it is, often isn't able to keep up with the action on screen, and as a result the dropped framerate affects the speed at which these sequences are shown to you, messing up any sense of timing you might have gotten through muscle memory and turning what should be a fairly straightforward part of the battle system into pointless tedium. On top of this, you need to go through the same process to block enemy special moves, and it's subject to the same problems.



And don't get me started on the ridiculous minigame you need to play in order to escape from battle (or if your opponents decide to escape from battle).



I'm still trying to figure out where I stand on this game. The few things Bioware got wrong are almost enough to push me over the edge, but I'll put forth a hesitant recommendation to at least those Sonic fans who have been waiting forever for a game that isn't terrible. This game is better than most other recent Sonic efforts, but I'd strongly recommend preparing for some frustrating battles...and turning the sound off.

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood: Nintendo DS

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The visuals are very nice (especially the backgrounds) and the gameplay is simple and fun and might need some getting used to since some moves require you to follow moves on the touch screen. My only problem with the game are some of the sounds are illfitting such as when someone gets KO'd and one or two of the songs. (I havent beaten the game yet)

Honestly the only game you could compare this to is Super Mario RPG, not any of biowares other titles because simply they made the game to be like Sonics world, not it's a good RPG for Sonic and it's looking to be a game that could have a sequel. If you like Sonic and you like RPG's it's worth getting. The review sites aren't being fair in their comparisons of this to Biowares other titles when Sonic is different in every regard, while Sonic isn't the best RPG, it's far from bad, it's a lot of fun and isn't worth passing up.

de Blob: Nintendo Wii

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humor of the Rabbids games, or early Lucasarts titles. There are lots of challenges set up along the way (ie. paint 50 buildings yellow in 60 seconds, etc.) to keep things interesting, or you can just explore and try to paint all the tree, buildings or townsfolk before the (generous) timer runs out.

My only knock is the lack of a jump button. It's something many players have mentioned. You jump by flicking the wiimote down, and while it works, its just not as accurate as a button press. The controls are very responsive however and this is only a slight setback.

DeBlob is easy enough for children, and at the same time offers enough extra challenges for any level of gamer, and is an all around great family game. It's a clear 'must own' title for the Wii and one that should not be overlooked. I hope gamers will choose to support DeBlob so publishers will take more risks with titles like this! No more shovelware!

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood: Nintendo DS

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well, but you can't appreciate it, because the screen shakes when trying to track a character that is in motion. The backgrounds that looked detailed standing still look like something out of a flash game in motion and it all becomes a murky, janky mess that isn't pleasent to look at. You can work past this, but it does bring down the overall mood of the game.

Sonic is controlled in the same way as Link in Phantom Hourglass and this system works fine, but it is a little frustrating that you have to use the stylus. During battles when you just want to tap A and get through them quickly, you can't, you have to click attack and then select the target. It isn't a huge problem, but it is just a bit frustrating.

The biggest frustration beyond the cheapness is the pacing. The game throws you a bunch of fetch quests with little backstory or incentive. The quests aren't hard, but they are just filler and rarely pay off anything more than health or powerups. During the fetch quests you'll have to deal with on-map enemies that will attack you (or you them) and this will send you to the battle screen.

The battles are turn-based and basic. You have Attack, Defend, POW moves, Items, and Flee. These options are pretty much the same as other RPGs and identical to Mario RPG. The only mix up in all of these is the POW moves. Your POW moves are your magic, when you perform a POW move on-screen cues will pop up, that you'll have to perform in order to get the maximum power and accuracy out of your attacks. These cues are the bits that resemble "Elite Beat Agents" you'll have to tap on-screen buttons on rhythm, tap them so many times in a set number of seconds, or follow a button as it moves on screen. It is a fun, interactive way to keep the players involved in the battles. These on-screen cues only appear in the POW moves and when defending from enemies POW moves, it is the best part of the battle system, and I wish it would have been integrated in the normal attacks as well.

Finally, a lot of attacks "missed" which is a huge pet-peeve, it is really bad at the beginning of the game, but it does seem to calm down about halfway through.

Another thing that is identical to Mario RPG is the equipment and items. You can equip amulets, gloves, pants, etc. to increase your characters stats. You can also find and raise Chao that can provide special types of upgrades, these can be traded with friends. Again, it is still fun even if it is an obvious clone of Mario RPG.

It may sound like there is a lot wrong with this game, but honestly it rises above all these complaints to provie a good portable RPG that makes the best of a crusty old character that still has a lot of good will with a core group of gamers.

Bioware fans are going to be disappointed with the license and the Easterness of the design. Sonic fans, though, should be ecstatic for this game. The pacing does pick up a bit after a couple of hours and the battles are less repetitive then some RPGs and if you have good will towards any of these characters you are going to get sucked in. The story is nothing special, but it doesn't get bogged down in seriousness, even if Sonic's BADITUDE is on full display.

Sonic RPG is a lot of fun, it doesn't take itself too seriously which is why it is so easy to forgive it for not being very original, and at this point in Sonic's life I'd rather have a solid ripoff, then another mediocre (or worse) attempt to recapture old glories. As a portable RPG that is going to be played in short spurts it is a very good game, that may have a bright future in sequels yet to come. As for this time around though? It is a really good time.

LEGO Batman: The Videogame: PlayStation 2

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- you have to figure out your way through the missions buy building and finding different things. Some of these can be quite hard for younger kids.

With bigger and more grand environments the characters often end up being quite small and the biggest source of frustration is when the camera angles don't reveal where you are walking very well.

We (me and my wife) finished the 1st set of the missions on the rental and now I am buying the game (never bought indy)

Kirby Super Star Ultra: Nintendo DS

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yourself a favor, stop reading and BUY IT NOW!

LEGO Batman: The Videogame: PlayStation 2

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that were apparent in previous Lego games: the difficulty is simple to say the least, and the game isn't that long at all. Still, with the hordes of unlockables to find that will hold your attention and keep you playing for a while. All in all, Lego Batman is a fun and family friendly diversion that anyone can enjoy and easily pick up and play.

Nancy Drew: The Hidden Staircase: Nintendo DS

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that were apparent in previous Lego games: the difficulty is simple to say the least, and the game isn't that long at all. Still, with the hordes of unlockables to find that will hold your attention and keep you playing for a while. All in all, Lego Batman is a fun and family friendly diversion that anyone can enjoy and easily pick up and play.

Star Wars: The Force Unleashed: Nintendo DS

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that were apparent in previous Lego games: the difficulty is simple to say the least, and the game isn't that long at all. Still, with the hordes of unlockables to find that will hold your attention and keep you playing for a while. All in all, Lego Batman is a fun and family friendly diversion that anyone can enjoy and easily pick up and play.

Hell's Kitchen: The Video Game: Nintendo Wii

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that were apparent in previous Lego games: the difficulty is simple to say the least, and the game isn't that long at all. Still, with the hordes of unlockables to find that will hold your attention and keep you playing for a while. All in all, Lego Batman is a fun and family friendly diversion that anyone can enjoy and easily pick up and play.

Air Traffic Chaos: Nintendo DS

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so as to maximize the amount of points you get?

The later airports (which act as stages) give you more gates and more runways to deal with, and each airport can be played on 3 difficulty settings, each setting with a different goal. All in all, about 12 stages, which provide around 10-15 hours of gameplay if you want to beat all of the stages. I'm sure there are people that will enjoy playing the stages over and over again, as well.

Some things are frustrating, like there are times when you can't issue an order to a flying plane, like 'speed up' or 'slow down', and it never gives an explanation as to why it does that. Sometimes the plane is just flying and not doing anything, but I can't issue orders. This has led to several mid-air collisions for me. Also, I think simple 3D graphics could've added a little more to the presentation. I'm not sure if the game is part of a series or not, but it looks like a GBA port.

A fun little game that is pretty cheap, only $20 US. Puzzle fans and gamers that enjoy brain teasing games will get a kick out of this.

Nancy Drew: The Hidden Staircase: Nintendo DS

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so as to maximize the amount of points you get?



The later airports (which act as stages) give you more gates and more runways to deal with, and each airport can be played on 3 difficulty settings, each setting with a different goal. All in all, about 12 stages, which provide around 10-15 hours of gameplay if you want to beat all of the stages. I'm sure there are people that will enjoy playing the stages over and over again, as well.



Some things are frustrating, like there are times when you can't issue an order to a flying plane, like 'speed up' or 'slow down', and it never gives an explanation as to why it does that. Sometimes the plane is just flying and not doing anything, but I can't issue orders. This has led to several mid-air collisions for me. Also, I think simple 3D graphics could've added a little more to the presentation. I'm not sure if the game is part of a series or not, but it looks like a GBA port.



A fun little game that is pretty cheap, only $20 US. Puzzle fans and gamers that enjoy brain teasing games will get a kick out of this.

de Blob: Nintendo Wii

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a great atmosphere that compliments the graphical style perfectly. Also, it's more dynamic than just being a set list of songs that you hear as you are playing through the various levels. First of all, you can select different moods for Blob, which affects the soundtrack for each level. Even more impressive is the fact that different instruments are added into the mix depending on the current color of Blob and how much of the level you've colored.

While de Blob has a couple of different multiplayer modes, I haven't tried them out yet, but I've heard pretty good things about them from game review websites.

I'd strongly recommend de Blob to anyone who wants a fresh, fun, and original gaming experience on Wii.

de Blob: Nintendo Wii

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a great atmosphere that compliments the graphical style perfectly. Also, it's more dynamic than just being a set list of songs that you hear as you are playing through the various levels. First of all, you can select different moods for Blob, which affects the soundtrack for each level. Even more impressive is the fact that different instruments are added into the mix depending on the current color of Blob and how much of the level you've colored.



While de Blob has a couple of different multiplayer modes, I haven't tried them out yet, but I've heard pretty good things about them from game review websites.



I'd strongly recommend de Blob to anyone who wants a fresh, fun, and original gaming experience on Wii.

Mystery Case Files: MillionHeir: Nintendo DS

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to blow things around the screen.

Professor Laytons Curious Village was a mystery / puzzle game that was much better than this. It's puzzles revolved more around logic and reasoning rather than seek and find. Millionheir feels more like a word search with pictures (I would choose this over a word search) that have little to nothing to do with the plot.

I skipped the rookie mode and chose detective mode (you are given a limited amount of time to find the clues within a picture). I had at least half the time left for each picture except one. I never felt rushed to hurry and solve the task at hand even without using the hint button. Upon completion, you do get more difficult settings if you feel like replaying it again...but I don't have an interest in completing a game just to find different items within the pictures.

Other reviewers call this a 'thinking' game, but I find there are much better 'thinking' games out there (Professor Layton, Flash Focus, Brain Age, most adventure games, most rpg games, and most strategy games).

Based on the reviews, there is definitely a population that enjoys it, so be sure to read their reviews to see if you have similar interests as I seem to be in the minority and not the target audience for this game.

The nice thing about this game is the price relative to most DS games, BUT I would have enjoyed reading 3 new mystery novels for the same price (10+ used mystery novels).

The Price Is Right: Nintendo DS

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do, slowing down the game considerably. More than that, you start out in Contestants' Row, where with a brief spiel by the disembodied voice of announcer Rich Fields, to the accompaniment of a grainy, still photo of the prize you're bidding on, you place your bid using the touch stylus.

Whether you in or lose the prize, you find yourself on stage to play a pricing game. If you lose an IUFB, you get a strike (the game operates on a "three strikes, you're out" system) and then play a pricing game regardless. The developers had to make a few minor changes to the gameplay for games such as It's in the Bag (they show you a product and you match a price to it), which is understandable--but what's not understandable is why they scrimped on implementing a physics engine for Plinko so that the chips would fall in a realistic way; as it is, the chips you let loose fall down predetermined paths governed by a simple mathematical formula. I will admit however that it IS nice to see they didn't leave out the sound of the falling chip as it negotiates its way down the board.

After each pricing game, you go straight to the Big Wheel. Lose there, and you're back to Contestants' Row to repeat the whole cycle.

And losing at the wheel is a virtual certainty, since unless you're the final spinner or you get a dollar, it's basically a certainty that you'll get one-upped. Every time I've stayed on 95 cents, someone after me has gotten the dollar. And, in the unlikely event that you stop on the dollar, someone else ALWAYS ties you. And, to add insult to injury, I have NEVER won a spinoff.

I would strongly urge people to buy the PC version, as I just bought that and it's TONS better. Get yours today:
The Price is Right

Nancy Drew: The Hidden Staircase: Nintendo DS

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do, slowing down the game considerably. More than that, you start out in Contestants' Row, where with a brief spiel by the disembodied voice of announcer Rich Fields, to the accompaniment of a grainy, still photo of the prize you're bidding on, you place your bid using the touch stylus.



Whether you in or lose the prize, you find yourself on stage to play a pricing game. If you lose an IUFB, you get a strike (the game operates on a "three strikes, you're out" system) and then play a pricing game regardless. The developers had to make a few minor changes to the gameplay for games such as It's in the Bag (they show you a product and you match a price to it), which is understandable--but what's not understandable is why they scrimped on implementing a physics engine for Plinko so that the chips would fall in a realistic way; as it is, the chips you let loose fall down predetermined paths governed by a simple mathematical formula. I will admit however that it IS nice to see they didn't leave out the sound of the falling chip as it negotiates its way down the board.



After each pricing game, you go straight to the Big Wheel. Lose there, and you're back to Contestants' Row to repeat the whole cycle.



And losing at the wheel is a virtual certainty, since unless you're the final spinner or you get a dollar, it's basically a certainty that you'll get one-upped. Every time I've stayed on 95 cents, someone after me has gotten the dollar. And, in the unlikely event that you stop on the dollar, someone else ALWAYS ties you. And, to add insult to injury, I have NEVER won a spinoff.



I would strongly urge people to buy the PC version, as I just bought that and it's TONS better. Get yours today:

The Price is Right

Disgaea DS: Nintendo DS

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and with a gaggle of allies, your job is to conquer the Netherworld. The adventure is full of a lot of fun. Some hilarious antics as well as a really likeable cast of characters. The story is told through still shots of the characters facing one another and talking.

Disgaea became popular largely because of the game's different approach to the SRPG genre. On the surface its pretty basic. You send your characters around on a grid style map and they attack the enemies and you win usually when all the enemies on the map are defeated. Some battles require different approaches.

There are a couple of things about Disgaea's system that separate it from other strategy RPGs. Some of them bizarre, others not so much. First there's the Geo Panel system. On the maps you'll certain tiles that are a certain color. These are Geo Panels. There are also Geo Symbols which have certain effects. Placing Geo Symbols on a specific color will make that Geo Panel color correspond with the effect of the Geo Symbol. Therefore, if you place a Geo Symbol that increases a characters attack on a yellow Geo Panel, all yellow Geo Panels will have an attack up. However, you can also destroy Geo Symbols. This causes a chain reaction that either turns all Geo Panels into the same color as the one which the Geo Symbol you destroyed was placed on or causes the Geo Panel to be destroyed completely. Either way, it racks up bonuses for your battle gauge. The Geo Panels and Geo Symbols add a distinct puzzle element to the game.

Even better for Disgaea is the senate of the Netherworld. Battling will net you Mana Points which you can use in the Senate to recruit characters (the more Mana you spend the better the character) and assign him a job. Just the same, however, the senate has power over certain aspects of the game such as what items are available in the shops and whatnot. You can appeal to the senate and they'll vote on certain issues. You won't always win, but you can persuade by force, meaning, battle members of the senate who do not side with you. It's kooky and weird, but it works. There are also exams the senate gives you which are battles Laharl must fight alone.

Lastly, there's the item world. Throughout the game you can go into certain items and venture ten floors in and fight a boss. Doing this power ups items. The item world is no joke, however, as it's incredibly hard to conquer. Disgaea itself is not the easiest game around. There are many moments of the game dedicated to simply raising characters.

Disgaea is an all around immense game. The storyline takes quite a bit of time to get through but there are plenty of side quests abound and there's the item world. All this together can make Disgaea seem like a never-ending experience.

The DS version doesn't add a whole lot to the game, however. There's a map of the battlefield on the top screen, which can really help since the camera is still a problem. You can turn the camera but your view might still be obstructed. The map on the top screen makes it much easier to deal with this issue. There are also, of course, touch screen controls, but you'll probably feel much better off using the D-Pad and buttons. There are also a couple of new quests added to what is already an immense game.

The game looks no different than its PSP or PS2 counterparts, however, it still makes Disgaea the best looking Strategy RPG on the DS to date. There's also some good music here as well. In truth, there's little, if anything that's been changed in the production values. The voice acting is still a little subpar, for the most part. It's been an ongoing criticism of the series. There's a lot of humor to the story but some of would've been so much better had the voice work been a bit more lively.

Disgaea has found the perfect home on the DS. This is by far the best version of the game youc an buy. The only real problem is that this is the games third release within five years and if you've already got it... it might not be worth picking up again. When it was released for the PSP in 2007, there were quite a few extras that made it worth picking up even if you'd completely mastered the PS2 version. This time around, there aren't that many extras that weren't in the PSP version.

After five years it's still a fantastic game. Disgaea is still one of the best SRPGs out there and the DS version is by far the best version of the game you can get.