I'm already at the Tower of Babil and I've never had to grind yet~

Oh, I'm also at approx. lvl 40 with all of my characters, fighting against the doctor boss. Is that average for where I am at the story?

Even though FFIV and The World Ends With You got pretty much the same score, they both play and feel like two completely different games. I have both of them, and am currently on my way to beating both, so here's what I think.

If you've already played FFIV on any other platform (SNES, gba, etc.) then obviously go with The World Ends With You. Actually, if you've played any of the final fantasies (most specifically 1-6) you should go with the World Ends With You. Why? Because except for the story and some minor control schemes and options, pretty much all final fantisies 1-6 are nearly identical - they all have crystals as the main plot device, they all have mostly the same classes playable, hell even most of the skills/spells are the same.

TWEWY is a good choice, but it is also the more radical in terms of role-playing games. The control scheme for the action is stylus-based (unlike FFIV, which is strictly d-pad and ABXY buttons) and will take some time to wrap your head around when you factor in controlling your partner simultaneously. The story itself, while relying on some standard rpg cliches, is still able to breathe life into the genre due to its original premise, being able to address some modern issues as well as the standard love, betrayal, etc. that permeates the genre. Basically, its a role-playing game for progressive role-playing game fans. Which means if you're an experienced rpg player, TWEWY is a natural choice, as it pushes ahead the standard ethos of rpg-ism and starts to challenge what an rpg can really be.

Of course, if you're not an avid rpg fan, you should get FFIV first so you can appreciate rpg at its roots and start to understand the inspiration for future games such as TWEWY and others. They're both good games, and you really can't go wrong with either decision, so try not to stress it too much, eh! :)

If you're looking for a quick game to play on a trip, ninja gaiden dragon sword fits the bill pretty well. Clocking in at about 5 hours (at least for me) it will basically fill up your trip plus a little extra. The story exposition is also pretty light, which means that you can focus more on the gameplay and action as opposed to taking in a story.

Now, I have TWEWY and phoenix wright and all that (I really like both of them) but these I would not recommend for a short trip. Lots of reading + trip is usually not a good combination for me, as I'm apt to get headaches, not to mention that both these games can take days to complete, but whatever floats your boat~

My suggestion would be to not get three games if you were considering it, as trying to play three games simultaneously is usually too much of a strain in terms of managing what you play during your gametime (ie you'll play a bit of everything but most likely won't finish any in a long time, if at all). Especially if you're getting a game like phantom hourglass or phoenix wright, which demand a significant amount of attention and can leave you quite lost if you stop in the middle and don't play them for a long time.

That being said, your choice of phantom hourglass, which if i remember correctly was not as long a game as lets say pokemon, but was a significant time investment nonetheless, seems to evoke the following two opinions: one, that unless you're the kind of gamer that plays games rather quickly and for 8+ hours a day, phantom hourglass should be enough to last you approximately 1-2 weeks of dedicated playing time. I'm speaking of course from a high-school student's time schedule, where on average you're most likely to play a max of 4 hours per day, excluding weekends; and two, if you insist on having at least one other game, that you should get one that is of a significantly different type in order to vary the gameplay experience.

What does this mean? This means that if you're getting phantom hourglass, don't get pokemon, phoenix wright, lost magic, or children of mana until you're done with zelda first. Most likely you'll be switching gameplay between your two owned titles back and forth (when you get bored of one you play the other) so having two games that are, from a design standpoint, the same would be an exercise in futility. You already know you want these games; its simply a matter of when you're going to get them, not what.

For the ones that are left, I have no opinion of, except for trauma center. Trauma center is a possible good choice to complement zelda, if you so choose. There is a story, but Trauma Center's episodic narrative is just light enough to not need a heavy investment in its story to thoroughly enjoy. It's akin to watching episodes of house or grey's anatomy or whatever tickles your fancy, in that there is some background involved with the development of characters or so forth, but the main focus is the surgery (maybe not in grey's, i'm a man so i don't watch that show). The gameplay itself is also significantly different, so as long as you're not a wussy gamer, I think you'll like it.

Ultimately, you should avoid the story-heavy games until you're done with Zelda, and if you want to get another game (only one other for now, getting more is just a waste of money), get one that is more action-oriented and designed for short quick bursts of play. That way, you'll have the best of both worlds and have an ultimately more enjoyable gaming experience.

I don't know how long your road trip is, but if you're getting ds games, I would not particularly recommend ninja gaiden ds for on the road. Not that it is a bad game (in fact, I thoroughly enjoyed it), it's just that I was able to beat the game in five hours flat (not even speed rushing through the game neither, and on my first try as well).

Actually, depending on how long your trip is, that might be the perfect game for you to get. And then get one other game that's a bit longer, and you should be set~

To be honest, I've yet to walk into a gamestop in my area that wasn't run by gaming nerds behind the counter, and I say that with all due respect hahaha. This idea that gamestop hires inept gamers baffles me, but perhaps I'm lucky in that case. However, the gamestop managers are a completely different story, and I have had numerous bad experiences when they are behind the counter.

One time I was thinking about getting Dynasty Warriors 4 (hahahaha) and I walked in and I thought about it for awhile. Since I was relatively naive, I decided to ask for advice. When I asked about whether this game was worth it, he replied with "it's the last one in stock, last one in stock, buy it before it runs out of stock" and me, still being naive, decided to purchase the game solely on the merit that it was the last one in stock (it was an old game at the time, so it seemed plausible that they wouldn't get more copies for awhile). So I purchase the game, and guess what I see happen a few hours later walking by? The same d-bag pulling the same line on the same game, this time on a middle-aged mother. I was furious. I knew that it was impossible for them to have received a new shipment while I was gone (it wasn't on their delivery day which I happened to know) which means HE LIED TO ME. THE D-BAG GAMESTOP MANAGER LIED TO ME TO MAKE A SALE. I have never before encountered a situation when someone (especially a manager) would stoop to such a low as to make a blatant lie (not even a sugar-coated one) in order to make a sale. And not only that, but I had visual confirmation he was doing it to others as well.

Now, I wouldn't be so miffed if this was one isolated case (because there are tons of other gamestops I can go to), but both my close friends and I have seen this kind of d-baggery at multiple gamestops across the state. Which means to me that there is a serious problem in Gamestop management, for this kind of disreputable behavior to be prevalent at such a high level and at so many different branches.

This is why I hate Gamestop. This may also be why others hate Gamestop as well. If you'd like me to entertain you with more Gamestop horror stories, please let me know, I've got a few more that I can share.

Personally, I think it depends on what your current collection of games are. If you're overloaded with RPGs and the like, then you might as well go with mario kart, for a change of pace. And if you've already tried mario kart before (like on the n64 or something) and you're itching for something new, then you should go for the world ends with you.

Basically, at the high level of awesomeness these games have, its rather a matter of circumstance than it is about 'which one is better', because you're most likely going to get both of them, eventually. The real question you need to ask yourself is which game you want to get first~

DOA Extreme 2~

hahaha, I actually tried to play it as a game. I'm thinking there were probably a couple of things I could have been using my hands for that would have been a better investment of time than to wrestle with bad volleyball controls and card games? geez

I've got a white DS Lite that I've had for over 2 years that I've abused thoroughly. Touched it everywhere, played it all the time, always stuck it in my pocket with all the lint and stuff hahaha. The only thing I used to protect it was the screen protectors, because I hear that those scratches can really screw up the screen.

So here's my synopsis of its current condition. For one (and I think this is an issue with all DS Lites when you've had it long enough) the stylus port gets a little worn in, which means it doesn't hold the stylus nearly as taut as it does on a spanking brand new one. Nothing you can do about that unless you use another stylus all the time. Second, any of that discoloration or yellow tint you may get only appears on the back of the DS, and possibly the L and R buttons. You'll obviously get some easy to wash off grime near the directional pads and buttons if you play a lot, but the front of the DS is otherwise clean.

The grime that's really hard to get out is the one that gets into the stylus port, surprisingly enough. Pretty much all the crevices where the clear plastic meets the white portion of the DS is where you'll find that impossible to clean grime. This also includes the area with the removable battery, the power and volume switches, the GBA port, as well as the outlining of most of the DS. Also, the two rubber stoppers near the top back of the DS will get dirty as hell.

The thing is, this is a problem with all the DS Lites if you really love your DS to the ground like I do. Hiding that kind of stuff with a darker color is overrated. You should be proud that your DS has gotten old, just like your mom. Besides, all the grimy and discolored stuff is uaully covered by your hands anyway, so there's no reason to be embarassed. This is just my opinion, of course. I'm not a dirty pig, but at the same time, I'm not a clean freak, and I appreciate things that show their age.