The Nintendo DS Games Wishlist

The site Retrogaming with Racketboy has up a wishlist of sorts, calling out the classic titles begging to be released to the Nintendo DS. Along with the Super Mario All-Stars + Super Mario World cart that I've been wanting to see for a while now, Racketboy calls out Super Metroid, the Sega Genesis Collection, and the Namco Museum as great candidates for DS releases. He also asks for new titles, like a compilation of Wario titles and a NSMB-style remake of Super Mario Bros. 2. "MattG PressTheButtons also had a really great idea for an original DS game that would serve as a follow-up to the very popular New Super Mario Bros. But instead of continuing with the traditional Mario gameplay, Nintendo would go back to the Super Mario Bros 2. (Doki Doki Panic) action, complete with turnip-throwing goodness. Would it be quite as successful? Possibly not. But I think Nintendo is currently in the position to take some fun risks with some trademark franchises that could give the gaming community something new to talk about."

My list, in no particular order...

[FlyByPC]

A decent Sudoku implementation,
A really good (dedicated) Chess game, with WiFi connectivity and ratings,
Civilization (again, WiFi connectivity would make this ROCK),
Syberia I and II,
Magic: the Gathering (yeah, yeah -- but it's good addictive fun sometimes),
The entire Ultima series,
The Frontier/Elite series (Frontier First Encounters, etc),
The Might and Magic series,
Starflight I and II,
Flight Simulator,
Zork etc (with graphical updates -- keypad for directions etc),

The DS is an interesting concept -- WiFi connectivity really adds another dimension to the genre. I still don't get why they added a microphone, though...

Chrono Trigger

[voice_of_all_reason]

With Final Fantasy 4 Advance-esque extra features

The Hell with Games...

[superdan2k]

...what I want is an affordable DS cart loaded up with Firefox, a lightweight mail client (put the keyboard on the touchscreen), a lightweight AIM app, telnet/ssh, and maybe even an IRC client. Give me that, and I won't need an iPhone.

Interactive Physics

[Bones3D_mac]

How about more of the weirder style games where you exert some type of physical control over characters, enemies and the environment itself, rather than focusing gameplay on controlling a single character directly? Sure, you got stuff like Super Monkey Ball and Rocket Slime out there already, but this is only scratching the surface of what the DS is capable of. For example, imagine some type of RTS game where the playfield has elasticity properties the player can alter during gameplay. certain areas could have sudden elevation changes, rippling effects, twisting, pinching or other oddities that could alter progress.

Or how about games that allow the user to create their own objects with adjustable properties, or construct an object from a large number of preset parts, similar to Mind Rover: The Europa Project [mindrover.com].

The bottom line: we need more games that force you to think outside of the box, and not just for purposes of speed or button mashing. The DS has so much untapped potential, it's not even funny.

Please no...

[grumbel]

I like Metroid and Mario a lot, but please not yet another retro release, Nintendo already had way to much of that in the last years or did everybody forget the Mario Advance series, Mario64DS, etc.? I am kind of sick and tired of getting the same games from Nintendo year after year. How about some completly new stuff instead of just another franchise milking game (YI2,...)? Pikmin was the last truly new thing that Nintendo did (ignoring all that casual gamer stuff, Nintendogs, Brainage, etc.) and that already was way to long ago.

If there ever come more rereleases for the DS then please in the form of a flashcard and downloads over the VirtualConsole, but not as full price cartridges.

Seaman, duh!

[morari]

The system already has a built in microphone, and I'm sure that the touch screen would work wonderfully. Come on, Sega!

Re:Chrono Trigger

[7Prime]

How about an FF3-like remake of Chrono Trigger? I really wanted them to do this with FF6, but that's extremely unlikely, since it was just released for the GBA, but I could settle for Chrono Trigger. Both FF6 and CT were games that really felt like they were meant to be set in a 3D world, but were forced to use the 2D graphics of the time. I don't think it's at all, out of the question, seeing as though they already grouped CT in with the last remake of the series. Now that the GBA is dead, and we've gotten a taste of FFIII on the DS, they can't justify simply using the same same sprite-based engine like they did for FF4-6.

Language learning

[porcupine8]

For a class in Design of Learning Environments, my partner and I designed (on a very, very low level, obviously) a DS game that would simulate immersion-based language learning. Basically, you have to survive in and explore a foreign city, gaining the language skills necessary along the way.

I have to say, it rocked, and we and everyone in our class wants one. Unfortunately, voice recognition won't be to the point where this would be feasible for a few more years. I hope that someone does pick up on this type of use eventually though, because done right this would be the ultimate solution for people picking up a second language for travel. The DS provides the possibility of voice input, instant feedback, communication via wifi with native speakers, portability (though you need non-spoken activities for use on public transit), everything you could ask for in a language package in a video game wrapper that could be designed to be quite fun on its own merits.