Current mood:	contemplative
Current music:	Rolling Stones - Wild Horses

Ninnntennndooo DS!
Putting the misery of the last few days behind me, I went out yesterday and bought a Nintendo DS. Cost me £120 along with Super Mario DS and a starter kit thing. Gamestation honestly have the best deals, I've bought a Gamecube, an Xbox, a DS and loads of games from there. Check it out if you pass one, I prefer it to Game although it doesn't have a great range of choices.

Anyway, back to my ramble about the DS. It is a very cool piece of kit, and the graphics are ten times better than what I had originally thought. They are supposed to be N64 graphics being 64 bit and all, but I think it has gone that little bit further. The start up screen gives you multiple options; you have a clock, a calender and the option of connecting to your friends, download content and even chat to them with pictures. I really can't wait to play someone over wireless, it would be such an experience.

The DS itself is a little bulky I have to admit, but it is also quite diverse. The lid is magnetic so there is no little clip that can break disallowing you to shut the console. As you already know there are two screens, one of which is a touch screen. It is very sensitive which is a good thing. There is also a built in mic for some reason, I can imagine that being used to great effect on later games. It has a rechargable battery, so no more having to constantly buy disposable batteries. There's also a back-light on this version, which enchances your ability to actually see what you're doing no end. The console even has a little thingy to put your stylus in, which is cool. Overall it is fairly lightweight, but you would struggle to fit it properly into your pocket.

The first thing I noticed was the sound. It has surround speakers! The quality is very good, it's like having your TV on at low volume. The second thing I noticed is how well the top screen interacts with the bottom screen. In some moments on Super Mario characters pass flawlessly from one screen to the other, it's very clever. The final thing that really stood out to me, apart from the graphics, was the way the games give you the option of using a stylus or using the D-pad. If you are using the D-pad there are chances in the game to use thr stylus, and vice versa. There is a good balance going on there.

I do have a problem with using the stylus though. To start with the buttons you really needs (like a, b, x, y) are on the right, so I can't use my natural hand to hold the stylus. That means I have to hold the console with my right hand, using my thumb to press the buttons, and then hold the stylus in my left, which I'm not so good at. This is quite uncomfortable and I actually got hand cramp the first time I used it. I now resort to just using the D-pad, it's a lot less effort.

I was recommended Super Mario DS by a couple of my friends, they claimed it was the best game out for the DS yet. I have to agree with them on that, it is a very good game. There are many combos you can do as many characters. The gameplay is typical mario, and there are lots of side games to occupy you. There's a feature called the Rec room which you can unlock mini-games in and play them at any time. I love these as much as the actual adventure mode, as they are sooo addictive and fun. My favourite so far is using the stylus to bounce Marios up and direct them to hit these bombs to disactivate them. I'm hooked. It's a very good game, I would recommend it myself.

So that's my little (Ok, not so little) review of the DS so far. I may go back and do some more reviews later on when I discover new games. Ok, possie out.