Reasons Why I Disagree

1. Its not a console

Hockey_Slayer

Such ignorance. It plays interchangeable games, right? Hence, it is a console. And a damn fine one, too.

[QUOTE="tazzydnc"][QUOTE="Redmoonxl2"]

[QUOTE="tazzydnc"]oh and the DS's mp3/video capabilities totally suck. PSP's blow it out of the water and besdies the memory card it all comes standard.Redmoonxl2

So wait, the PSP's mp3/video capabilities play into it's ability to play games...how?

Truth be told, most people who want those capabilities will go to something more reliable, like an iPod, not buy something inconvenient and fragile as a PSP.

And it's pointless for either side to bring it up because it has nothing to do with gaming. 

You're quite right when you say being able to play music has nothing to do with gaming, but it is nice to be able do it anyway. That Nintendo MP3 Player is my only digital music player so I do use it a lot. However, I still play games more on my DS then listen to music on it.

Best handheld of this generation perhaps, but can never be the best overall console. I can't experience the same level of excitement as.. say.. Halo 3 over Xbox Live or watching 300 on Blu-Ray on a DS. You just can't replicate that on a machine with a screen size that tiny.

  

-Spock-

It was my opinion. And anyway, playing Metroid Prime: Hunters sucks me into the atmosphere as much as the GameCube ones do. And that's saying something.

oh and the DS's mp3/video capabilities totally suck.  PSP's blow it out of the water and besdies the memory card it all comes standard.tazzydnc

The Nintendo MP3 Player cannot play videos. Are you using homebrew or something? I don't mind, I compared the sound to another cheap MP3 player and they sounded about the same, my only gripe with it is only plays MP3 files and not WMAs as well.

DS is an amazing console. But people here would rather talk about home consoles and even stupidly suggest things like, "Handhelds don't matter and aren't consoles." I'm going to say why I think you're wrong.

1). DS is the cheapest console (and easily the most portable).

It is a pretty obvious statement, but the fact you can buy a DS for under £100 is an excellent bargain, especially for what it offers. A system that cheap which offers decent 3D graphics, outstanding 2D graphics, a touchscreen and wi-fi (which 360 doesn't have bulit in) is a bargain. Not to mention it's great battery life.

2). DS has a vast library of games for EVERYBODY.

DS' library is pretty much forgotten by "hardcore" gamers because of the uncontrollable hype home console games receive. It's a shame, because not many other consoles can claim to attract as wide an audience as DS can, for all ages. Not only is the quantity good, but the quality is generally amazing. Here are some examples of what I mean (upcoming and present games):-

Platformers:- New Super Mario Bros., Yoshi's Island DS, Kirby: Power Paintbush, Super Mario 64 DS, Kirby: Squeak Squad, Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2, Sonic Rush and many more...

RPGs:- Pokémon Diamond and Pearl, Dragon Quest 9, Final Fantasy 3, Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time, Contact, Magical Starsign, Children of Mana, Pokémon Ranger and many more...

Strategy Games:- Advance Wars: Dual Strike, Battles: Prince of Persia and more...

Puzzle:- Tetris DS, Polarium, Meteos, Mr. Driller: Drill Sprits, Actionloop, Pokémon Link and many more...

Racing:- Mario Kart DS, Diddy Kong Racing DS, Ridge Racer DS and more...

Simulation:- Nintendogs, Animal Crossing, Theme Park, Lostmagic and many more...

Adventure: The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, Phoenix Wright games, Another Code, Hotel Dusk, Touch Detective, Professor Layton and many more...

FPS/FPA: Metroid Prime: Hunters, Bionicle Heroes, Goldeneye: Rogue Agent and more...

Brain training games:- Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training: How old is your brain?, Big Brain Academy and more...

Survival Horror: Resident Evil: Deadly Silence, Alone in the Dark 5 and maybe more..

Sports:- Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games, Mario Slam Basketball, and lots of Madden and FIFA games and many more...

Side- Scrolling Beat 'em ups:- Viewtiful Joe: Double Trouble and maybe more...

Shoot 'em ups:- Nanostray games and maybe more...

For a full list of games, see here:- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_DS_games

3). Excellent input method for games.

Hardly an original point, but the touchscreen and microphone did change the way we play and how we perceive games. Anyone who has played Nintendogs can tell you that. It was a pet simulation, but without using DS's revolutionary features, it would have been quite generic, bar the fact the dogs move and act realistically. It was also a testing ground for the Wiimote and one could argue a touchscreen and motion sensing are very similar, bar the fact the touchscreen works on a 2D plane and the Wiimote on a 3D one. Not only this, the buttons are in an easy to reach place. There aren't too many buttons, nor too little, just the right amount. Of course, if need be, developers could make a basic use of the lower screen to create more buttons.

4). GBA backwards compatibilty.

Having backwards-compatibility with Game Boy Advance titles was an excellent move on Nintendo's part as the GBA was infested with amazing titles, retro and original that needed playing. Whilst sadly lacking the processor needed to play original Game Boy and GBC games, it wasn't such a huge loss due to GBA's magnificent, huge library. People who never experienced the overall excellence that is GBA can start collecting great games without having to buy another system. Not only this, but the GBA port allows for system expansions. Things such as Metroid Prime Pinball's Rumble Pak or the expansion cartridge used for the Internet browser. I have a device called the Nintendo MP3 player which though GBA software, lets my DS blast music. It sounds bad without headphones, but with headphones, the quality is as good as many MP3 players. You need an SD card for it, though, DS + Nintendo MP3 Player (£20) + memory card is cheaper than PSP (let alone PSP with a memory card) so I know who got the better deal (hint: DS). DS can (as I mentioned earlier) can surf the web as well, but despite how useless it is (the browser doesn't support Flash and Javascript and is slow), it's nice to know DS, like PSP, can do it.

Thanks for reading (if you got this far) and comments would be appreciated.