Casual Games, Nintendo DS, PSP, iPhone
Where do you play with your DS or PSP?
Handheld gaming devices have been the godsend to gamers on the go. They’ve been the perfect companions for those long trips to Grandma’s house or those quiet moments alone while on your lunch break at work. The current generation of portable devices allows us to not only play games, but indulge in all of our favorite forms of multimedia at any time, anywhere. But where do most people play? The results of a recent poll may surprise you…
We can finally get our hands on (through import) Nintendo’s newest iteration of their super-popular portable, the DSi. But before we get caught up in all the shiny-shiny newness hype (TWO cameras!!!), it’s worth noting that not all the DS games introduced so far have managed to use the current DS’s features. Plenty stopped innovating with two screens, or took a big punt and used the extra screen as a map or character info screen; some barely even used the DS’s innovative touch screen. (Press here for start! Now put that silly stick away, you won’t be needing it.)
The pen is allegedly mightier than the sword, but in Time Hollow for the Nintendo DS, a pen has the same powers as Doc Brown’s DeLorean or Bill & Ted’s phone booth. Even if the Back to the Future and Bill & Ted series are the only authorities you know on time travel, you should have no trouble with this game. Kiddies, it’s time to put away your flux capacitors and start practicing drawing time holes.
The latest game in the Castlevania series, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia is taking the vampire vanquishing franchise to new heights, and breaks down gender barriers at the same time. The first game to feature a sole female protagonist, though Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin had a female main character, Charlotte (Jonathan!), sharing the spotlight, Ecclesia’s Shanoa is a worthy successor to the monster hunting throne.
DS-toting travelers rejoice: Nintendo sampled a new use for your DS at last month’s Aircraft Interiors Expo USA.
The Xbox LIVE Arcade features a plethora of coin-operated classics, including the likes of Frogger, 1942, Centipede and Asteroids. But what kind of arcade doesn’t include the king of them all? That’s right, I’m talking about Space Invaders, and starting in early 2009, gamers will have the chance to play this 2D intergalactic masterpiece via the Xbox LIVE Arcade. Other pending releases include arcade heavy-weights R-Type and Arkanoid; sprinkle on a few new arcade-style gems and this list of downloadable content is worth more than that sack full of quarters your ‘70s era self would have spent. 
We all love our DS, but what about the next handheld console from Nintendo? Will it have slight differences from the DS, or could it be something entirely different? Could Nintendo even go from two screens back to one? After the premiere of the unimpressive DSi, I’ve got a REAL wish-list for Nintendo. The 
Everyone poops. We learned that when we were four. There are novels and movies depicting this perfectly natural act, but in this ADD-filled world it’s kind of a waste of time to sit on the toilet and do nothing productive. The advent of portable games has filled this gap, but you don’t want to spend too much time on the toilet. So you have to find the right measure of a game that can be played in short spurts, or during marathon sessions after all those tacos.