Nintendo DS

Nintendo DS

JP Only

Edutainment

Homebrew

"Touching is good."

See the discuss page for proposals for pruning this list. Also, note that on May 20, 2014, Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection was shut down, disabling online multiplayer on basically all first-party titles for the DS and Wii. DSiWare was shut down on March 31, 2017.

Cartridge Based

Title	Genre	Description	Box Art
7 Wonders of the Ancient World/7 Wonders II/7 Wonders: Treasures of Seven	Puzzle	Bejeweled-style puzzle action, you match jewels to break rocks and minerals which are sent to the builders to construct the seven wonders.
Advance Wars: Dual Strike	Strategy	3rd entry moved from the GBA. Has new and old COs, a small few of whom must be unlocked (due to their status in the campaign story). In addition to new units, you can use dual COs, which allows for insanely broken combinations (both for and against you), but the game is still very fun and offers quite a bit of content, solid multiplayer (until some ass picks Hachi), and even an neat action-based mini-game. The series has the same happy, bright atmosphere of earlier games. Well, until... You can check a trailer here
Advance Wars: Days of Ruin	Strategy	This is in the future, where a meteor strike has wiped out 90% of humanity, leaving you with new COs to fight with and against. This entry has a new stylistic direction, but it still has the same true gameplay, in addition to some new units. Considered the most balanced title in the series, due to reorganizing the amount of power you and your enemies hold, and features great online and offline multi-player. Subtitled as Dark Conflict in Europe, with a different translation. You can check a trailer here
Adventure Time: Hey Ice King! Why’d you steal our garbage?!!	Action / Adventure	Based on the hit Cartoon Network show, with a story by the show's creator, Pendleton Ward (no Ice King backstory though). While similar to Zelda II, it also borrows things from other games and stat-ups are done via found items vs grinding. Fun for fans and has a great soundtrack, but unlike the 3DS version, there's songs missing (boo). There are also sexy cloud people. Also, there's a collector's edition with an Enchiridion, so you can go to another dimension for a 3 part what if episode that resolved nothing in the over-arching series plot.
Again	Adventure	Another adventure game made by the developers of Hotel Dusk: Room 215, Cing. You are in the role of FBI Agent Jonathan Weaver, and you have the ability to see into the past. Nineteen years ago, a string of murders named the "Providence murders" occurred, and the killer was never caught. Now, it would seem the killer has resurfaced and is back to murdering once again. Partly fueled by personal motivation, Jonathan Weaver vows to finally catch the culprit. Was received quite poorly by reviewers, and definitely isn't the best of Cing's titles, but it's still worth a look if you enjoyed their other games. You can check a trailer here
Aliens: Infestation	Action / Metroidvania	WayForward and Gearbox have teamed up to bring a Metroid-inspired Aliens game to your DS. Control a group of Marines as you explore various settings from the series such as the Sulaco and the LV-426 in typical Metroidvania fashion. Weld doahs, fight Xenomorphs in mechs, and protect your friends as you fight off the alien menace. The game also features a perma-death mechanic: Killed squadmates stay dead, but you can find new ones along the ride. If you lose all your marines though, the game bad ends you and you'll have to start from the beginning again. Ouch. You can check a trailer here
Animal Crossing: Wild World	Sim	It's Animal Crossing. Nothing too out of the blue. Move to a town inhabited by friendly anthros (it's not nearly as furry as it sounds). Work off the debt of your house (it's not nearly as boring or tedious as it sounds)! Now with DS-specific features, like stylus control and the option to design clothing by drawing on the touchscreen! You can check a trailer here
Atelier Annie: Alchemists of Sera Island	RPG / Sim	An adorable RPG with a tropical island setting; lazy alchemist-in-training Annie is sent to participate in an alchemy contest involving the construction of a tropical resort. Great alchemy and combat systems, many fun characters, and an irresistible charm. Also a great introduction to the long-running Atelier series. You can check a trailer here There are other 2 Atelier games for DS, released only in JAP, still worth checking, because of these are among few games developed by Gust for NDS.
Avalon Code	RPG / Action	An action RPG where you scan and change the "code" of things like NPCS, monsters, weapons, and items but changes are not as significant as people would have liked. You're a kid who obtains a magical book called the Book of Prophecy that wants you to save the world but the book, which is your menu and "inventory", is designed horribly. Other things are generally standard more or less. You do have a good selection of weapons to play with but you'll probably end up using charged gun and sword attacks against most encounters. Still, this game ...has its moments. You can check a trailer here
Away: Shuffle Dungeon	RPG / Puzzle	A puzzle-based adventure with dungeon crawler elements developed by Hironobu Sakaguchi's studio Mistwalker (with music by Nobuo Uematsu!!). You save villagers and defeat various bosses. Also, you have to walk/race between the two screens as one of them will "shuffle" with another room as time passes by. Each dungeon is does this quite well. Story is awesome and crazy, the localization is surprisingly good, and the soundtrack is relaxing as fuck. Bosses are pretty interesting as well. Was ragged on by reviewers for being NOT ZELDA, but do note that it's not like Zelda much at all. You can check a trailer here
Bangai-O Spirits	Shoot 'em Up	A sequel to the Dreamcast classic. While it doesn't live up to the original, it's still a great game on its own right. Features a shitton of levels and its own level editor. This game will make your DS lag. On purpose. Or you'd be fucked trying to dodge everything at full speed. You can check a trailer here
Batman: The Brave and the Bold The Videogame	Platformer / Beat 'em Up	May be the best Batman game so far. Looks awesome, plays smoothly, has lots of content and is very true to the actual show. You control Batman as well as one other hero per stage while you fight off a lot of cool looking enemies and battle villains like the Joker or Catwoman. The game is extremely easy and helps you out constantly, but offers optional challenges and tougher battles where you can earn bonuses and upgrades for Bats. Definitely check this one out if you're into beat 'em ups and or Batman. You can check a trailer here
Big Bang Mini	Shoot 'em Up	90 levels, multiplayer, looks pretty nice plus the interesting touchscreen gameplay makes for a great shmup. You can check a trailer here
Black Sigil: Blade of the Exiled	RPG	Western JRPG with Chrono Trigger battles and Final Fantasy VI graphics, could really fit as any of those classic SNES RPGs. A few bugs, but it's generally a decent experience, especially if you've exhausted other RPG options on the DS. Could get boring at some parts and some bosses are extremely hard. You can check a trailer here
Bleach: Dark Souls	Fighting	A surprisingly solid fighter, even if you don't watch/like Bleach. Lots of characters to choose from, online play and a card power-up system (that's optional if you don't like them). Made by Treasure, so you know it's solid. You can check a trailer here
Bleach: The 3rd Phantom	Strategy / RPG	Unlike the two first Bleach DS games, The 3rd Phantom is not a fighting game, but a turn-based tactic game. Two teams fight each other's on a battlefield in a style similar to the Final Fantasy Tactics and Fire Emblem games.
Blue Dragon: Awakened Shadow	Action / RPG	A fun RPG with real-time combat, created by Mistwalker. Lots of customization, equipment showing up on characters, multiple playable characters, item synthesis, both local and online multiplayer, nice graphics, cool enemies, and pretty music by Uematsu are all great things about this game. However, choppy animation, meh translation, gross voice acting, and framerate drops can all be annoying issues. Still, a fun little RPG to sink some time into, especially with a bro or two. If nothing else, do it for the lootz.Check out a trailer right here.
Blue Dragon Plus	RPG / Strategy	Very fun real-time strategy the employs the DS stylus, Blue Dragon Plus offers plenty of gameplay with a consistent difficulty curve that keeps you entertained. An actual sequel to Blue Dragon story-wise, so if you care about story, don't play this until you finish the first. Has a bad reputation critically, but it's actually good, so fuck the magazines. You can check a trailer here
Boing! Docomodake DS	Platformer / Puzzle	Despite the name, this was indeed released out west. A very cute and addictive platformer with interesting puzzle-solving elements starring a mushroom. Fun fact: This game is actually an advertisement, because the main character is the mascot for NTT Docomo cell phone services. There's no in-game ads or phone references, though. You can check a trailer here
Bomberman 2 DS	Puzzle	Known as Custom Battler Bomberman in Japanland. Ditches the minigame system of the Touch! games in favor of a traditional Bomberman experience. Has a ton of customization options (this affects your stats and skills). The single player stages are pretty damn cool, too. Also has online multiplayer, which is always a plus. This game was only released in Japan and Europe for some reason. You can check a trailer here
Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars: The Director's Cut	Adventure	An updated port of the 1996 PC game. This version features extra puzzles, some gameplay changes, and an updated story; however, there are some oddities in the programming. The director's cut is also available on Wii, PC, and iOS, but the DS version is the only one that doesn't have full voice acting. You can check a review with some DS footage here
Bust-A-Move DS / Space Bust-A-Move	Puzzle	Arguably one of the most addictive puzzle series ever makes its way to the DS in these two incarnations. The gameplay is simple - shoot coloured bubbles to match up with other coloured bubbles at the top. Loads of modes and whatnot to keep you interested. Both versions are worth picking up, though its worth trying to test both out just to see which ones "feel" feels better for you.(PROTIP: You can actually change from the shitty touch screen controls in the options in B-A-M DS as many have complained about.) You can check a trailer for the Space Bust-A-Move here and a gameplay of Bust-A-Move video here.
Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow	Action	The first DS Castlevania and direct sequel to the last GBA game, Aria of Sorrow. Lots of replay value, in fact replaying it is more fun than the first time around. Also has a secret full-game mode with a Castlevania 3 character system. Introduces a new anime art style, which you will either hate or "hate, but get over it", BUT there's a patch called "Dawn of Dignity" (lel) which actually change the artwork back to the original game. You can check three trailers here
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin	Action	This game is pretty good. Features a concentration on teamwork and team-up skills. Also has a lot of extra characters and a balls-to-the-wall hard mode. Protip: NEVER SELL ANYTHING unless you can get more of it. 2nd of the DS games and is a total love-letter to CV fans, with lots of surprises and references to be found. You can check a trailer here
Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia	Action	The third Castlevania for the DS, this ditches the dual character system from Portrait of Ruin for a new glyph system, which includes absorbing glyphs from enemies to gain new weapons and combining two for a new special attack. Starts out linear like Classic 'vanias, but as expected, there's lots to do and explore soon enough. Good story, smooth soundtrack, cool bonus content, and a great Gothic (as in the proper kind) art style makes this one of the best out of the three. You can check a trailer here
Chessmaster: The Art of Learning	Chess	A great chess game for the DS. Tracks your ELO rating, which is a real measure of your chess power level. Its puzzle challenges are great for improving your chess and its minigames are really fun (specially Minefield Chess). On the other hand, you can't do multiplayer with a single DS and you can't change the piece's or board's art style. Everything else is perfect, though.
Fritz Chess	Chess	The other great chess game for the DS. Also tracks your ELO rating, but unlike Chessmaster, this one is played with the DS sideways, book style. Doesn't have minigames, but it does have puzzles, records of historical chess matches, different styles for your board/pieces and let's you play with someone else on the same DS. The best thing about it is its two chess variations: Chess 960 (every piece's position except pawns' are randomly set on your first row) and Giveaway Chess (a misère variation of chess, you win if you lose all your pieces and you must capture pieces if able)
Chibi-Robo! Park Patrol/Okaeri! Chibi-Robo! Happy Richie Oosouji	Action / Adventure	A very overlooked and underrated title, it's the sequel to the Gamecube sleeper hit. You basically grow flowers while fending off enemies. It's better than it sounds, trust me. Not released in Europe. Happy Richie Oosouji is the "true" sequel to the first Chibi-Robo, in that you actually do house-cleaning. It takes place in grown-up Jenny's house. New tools, new locations, same awesome gameplay (but a little bit harder.) You don't need to know Japanese in order to enjoy it. The patch for the second game,which was mentioned it was japanese,NOW HAS A ENGLISH PATCH. You can get the patch here. You can check a trailer here
Chōsōjū Mecha MG/Super Control Mecha MG	Mecha/ Simulation	A great mecha game from Sandlot. Play as a "Puppeteer" who pilots and rides mecha called Marionation Gear (or MG). Arguably the most creative use of the NDS touch screen of all-time. Each MG has a unique "cockpit", where players can pull levers to swing their robot's arms and hurl buildings at the enemy, flip a switch to transform into a car, punch in launch codes to fire nukes, and countless other imaginative setups. The MGs are more Robot Alchemic Drive (if you've played the old PS2 game, also developed by Sandlot) and "tanks with arms and legs", and less Armored Core or Gundam. Controlling your MG is slow and clunky on purpose. You are supposed to feel like you're operating a piece of heavy machinery, not unlike a crane on a construction site. With well over 100 missions, ranging from battling to racing to destroying burger joints, every MG has a use. A wide variety of MGs too, humanoid that transform into cars, trucks, trains etc., insects/bugs/crab-like, etc. Has a translation patch released in 2019, FULLY IN ENGLISH! You can get the patch here Cult classic material.
Chrono Trigger DS	RPG	The best version of one of the best RPGs of all time. Includes extra dungeons, a new ending, and all the cutscenes from the PS1 version. Also new modes, a monster battlan' minigame, optional touch-screen interface, plus tons of other extras. Time to show Lavos who's boss again and again. Even the translation has been updated for better or worse. You can check a trailer here
Commando: Steel Disaster	Run 'n' Gun	Nothing to do with the Capcom Arcade classic. Metal Slug style action, with lots of explosion and chaos going on. Beware, though, because this game is ultra insane, as you only have one life and if you die (something will happen A LOT) you're back to the beginning of the stage.
Contact	RPG	A unique game which some say "makes no fucking sense". Has a cooking system, jobs system, attack system, dating system (?!), and more. Compared to EarthBound due to its style of weird humor. Suggested to those looking for something different but classic with a twist. Has many secrets, with even more post-game. Was done by the man behind the Shining Soul series for GBA, which this plays slightly like and is also good. You can check a trailer here
Contra 4	Run 'n' Gun	Balls to the wall hard, just like Contra should be. Some were concerned that it wouldn't live up to the other titles of the series, seeing as it wasn't developed by a Konami 1st party. Luckily, WayForward really fucking loves Contra, so it turned out great. After the first playthrough a challenge mode is unlocked. That's when the game really gets awesome. Rewards (including emulations of Contra and Super C) are granted for every four challenges you beat. You can check a gameplay video here
Custom Beat Battle: Draglade 1&2	Fighting	A very customizable fighting game by Dimps centered around musical weapons. You can create your own "beat combos" by arranging moves in a sequencer, and can assign up to six "bullets" to your touch screen that have various effects. Both combos and bullets can be traded online. The first game has a cheesy and forgettable plot, and only 9 characters, but the second game is much smoother, with an overdrive feature, online play, and MOAR BULLETS. However, the sequel is Japanese only, but can get a menu translation for Draglade 2 here. You can check a trailer here
Custom Robo Arena	Action	The story is definitely aimed at children and the art is very cartoony, but battles are awesome though. You jump, shoot, throw bombs, and release tracking pods. There are also many different robos which move faster, move around the air better or have different close-range attacks. You can check a trailer here
The Dark Spire	RPG / Dungeon Crawler	A direct throwback to first-person, dungeon-crawlers of yore, The Dark Spire will challenge you (and then some) with its combat, traps, puzzles, and never-ending floors. It has great art and music, and has an optional old-school mode that turns the walls to wireframes, artwork to 8-bit-like sprites, and the sound to bleeps and bloops. Very polished. Comes with a soundtrack CD, and can be found cheap. But beware, as it is as tough as the games it's paying homage to. It does you good to learn the combat system but getting lost will still be a dick. You can check a gameplay here
Dawn of Heroes	RPG / Strategy	A fun little SRPG that has up to 26 heroes to recruit and customize and fight a shit ton of demons, trolls, and fucking dragons. Has online multiplayer for battling and trading. The level limit makes end-game tough, but it's nothing you can't handle. You can check a trailer here
Dementium: The Ward	FPS / Survival Horror	A survival horror game for the Nintendo DS. Surprisingly scary if you wear headphones and don't mind mediocre graphics. The gameplay is pretty slow-paced, but the atmosphere is chilling. You can check a trailer here
Dementium II	FPS / Survival Horror	Scarier than the first one, controls a lot better. Looks better. It's just an all around improvement. Plus the game's cover is just awesome. If you can only get one, this is the one to get. Strangely for some reason it got a PC Port, but by a different team. You can check a trailer here
Desktop Tower Defense	Strategy / Defense	It's identical to the tower defense game of the same name that you can play over the Internet, for better or for worse (I mean, the flash game is free, but this you can play on the go, plus touchscreen). It has challenges, plenty of modes to play, trophies to earn and you can customize the sprites of your towers.
Digimon World: Dawn/Dusk	RPG	An alright Digimon game, with all the monster collecting as usual. If you're tired of Pokémon, give this a whirl. Pretty simple JRPG type of game, but very fun and addicting in a sort of way.  Most fans will love this game for just being full of both old and new digimon around 400 ones to collect and even a few password only digimon.
Donkey Kong: Jungle Climber	Platformer	A fun platformer. You hold the L and R buttons to make DK rotate around pegs (clockwise or counterclockwise) and propel himself forward to advance through stages. Momentum based gameplay with good challenge in the later stages. It has nice looking sprite work reminiscent of the Donkey Kong Country series for SNES. Prequel on GBA.
Dragon Ball Origins	Action / RPG	Had enough of Dragon Ball Z? Then play this awesome game where you go through the first two arcs of Dragon Ball (up to the first Budokai arc). You control both Goku and Bulma at the same time, being able to use either the controls or the stylus.
Dragon Ball Origins 2	Action / RPG	Improved sequel to the above, in this one you control only Goku, but in some stages you can control other characters such as Krillin, Android 8 and even Arale! This one takes you through the whole Red Ribbon arc as well as the Fortuneteller Baba arc.
Dragon Ball Z: Attack of the Saiyans	RPG	Developed by Monolith Soft. Take out them damn dirty apes before they take over your planet. A solid RPG that has great music, visuals, and a semi-active battle system (for blocking). Game is done in 2-D where you explore different areas and overcome obstacles by blowing them up. There is little to no stylus use.
Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen	RPG	A remake of the NES title that improves the improvements and the extra chapter that the PlayStation version received. Also has a new script, but for some reason party chat was removed. You control different characters in different chapters, and they all band together in the last (which is longer than all the others combined.). Also on iOS / Android.
Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride	RPG	Distant sequel to DQ4. Easily beats the SNES version. Widely considered the best DQ. Has the PS2 version upgrades, plus several new ones, and a new translation with party chat being restored. You get to use monsters in your party. They can use gear in addition to skills and magic. The excellent story will make you cry bitch tears, as you take part in the main character's trials from birth, early childhood, teen years, marriage, fatherhood, and beyond as he travels the world for the sake of his family. Also on iOS / Android.
Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation	RPG	Conclusion to the DQIV-V-VI generational trilogy. A well-made JRPG with a story centered on alternating between different worlds. Once you beat the first major boss (roughly 8 or so hours in), you'll unlock one of the most expansive class systems in the series, second only to 7's. You can also recruit different Slime allies who can be found in certain towns. They even change classes, and are great allies due to their elemental resistances. There's also a new (addicting) mini-game of Slime ice-curling. Also on iOS / Android.
Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies	RPG	Take the role of a lost angel trying to regain your wings. Your party is completely customizable, even equipment changes your appearance. Features a DQ3-like job system of and the skill system and alchemy pot of DQ8. The main quest is a bit short compared to past games, but is expanded slightly upon in post-game quests. Most additional hours come from fighting bonus bosses in randomized Grottos. Also co-op multiplayer (unfortunately local-only) and (once-)downloadable sidequests. As for the online-exclusive stuff, you can get it with this handy tool. Useful as Nintendo's DS wifi support is done.
Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime	Action / Adventure	You play as a Slime from Dragon quest, trying to save other slimes who have been kidnapped. Great gameplay that has Zelda-like exploration and a number of boss battles take place in giant tanks. The story is cute, non-serious, and squishy. Has a Japan-Only 3DS sequel with pirate ships instead of tanks and online multiplayer. I hope you like PUNS.
Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker	RPG / Monster Sim	Solid gameplay, very good 3D, and has online functions (i.e. AI controlled copies of the monsters of others) the online features have been disabled. Monsters' skill sets are customized similar to Dragon Quest 8's, which grants bonuses, magic, and abilities respective to the types of skill sets you level up. Monsters can also be equipped with gear. A pretty good intro to DQM (though Joker 2 is better), despite not quite matching the depth of the GBC games. Joker 2 kicks the shit out of this, but this is still kinda fun to mess around with. The two titles aren't compatible with each other, but J2 has nearly twice as much content anyways. Has a legendary USA commercial.
Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2	RPG / Monster Sim	Take Joker 1 and overhaul the fuck out of it. Non-Professional version, but still great. 300+ monsters to recruit and/or synthesize with skills from the game's huge skill tree list (240+ trees!). You can even scout a few monsters from your DQ9 and DQ6DS carts through tag mode! You can also tag other players and recruit copies of their monsters for yourself! Multiplayer no longer "AI copy"-only outside of a small few modes. The series continues with Dragon Quest Monsters 3D, the remake of the 1st DQM with Terry, which has new monsters and EVERY monster from DQMJ2's Pro edition.
Elebits: The Adventures of Kai and Zero	Action	Also known as Eledees in PAL regions. Adventure game where you use these spirits called Omegas to help you in solving puzzles. They consume Elebits which are livings forms of energy that turn into Watts when collected with your capture gun. Watts are used in the game to power objects and the Omegas. Omegas can evolve if you spend these Watts on them where they become a bit more useful.
Elite Beat Agents	Music / Rhythm	Western version of the awesome Ouendan series. Tap beats in tune with the music while men in suits dance in the background to help people. Help a retired baseball player fight a fire golem, help Leonardo Da Vinci draw the Mona Lisa while bullfighting, and save the world from aliens. Way more awesome than it sounds. Hard for those who haven't played music games before (mostly on later sections). The replay value is in the extra difficulties, which will beat anyone down and some secret stages unlocked, one of them being a Doom parody.
Etrian Odyssey	RPG / Dungeon Crawler	Brutal first person RPG inspired by old classics like Wizardry and the original Bard's Tale. Offers tons of character customization. Unfortunately, certain classes are almost necessary to get past the early levels. Be prepared for FOE FOE FOE! The sequels improve on this, but it is still solid.
Etrian Odyssey II: Heroes of Lagaard	RPG / Dungeon Crawler	The sequel offers a few minor improvements and rebalanced classes. You probably aren't playing for the story though, because you live for the challenge! You do get a a few bonuses here and there in EO2 for having a game-clear password from the first one, though (these are easily found online). Oh, and more of FOE.
Etrian Odyssey III: The Drowned City	RPG / Dungeon Crawler	Like the first two, but now you explore the seas and an underwater city, and all classes are completely new. The difficulty is more balanced and forgiving this time around and there's a new systems of item forging, customizing weapons, and you can even use dual classes in this game. If you are new to these kind of games, start with this one (though going back to 1 and 2 will be kind of tough). Protip: Get a prince(ss) and put skill points into the passive healing abilities. And your favorite pal, FOE, makes a comeback.
Exit DS	Puzzle / Platform	Stylish & fascinating puzzle from Taito. DS version can be controlled by buttons or stylus.
Fast Food Panic	Sim	The perfect mix between Cooking Mama and Diner Dash. Customers come in, you get their orders and cook away a la Cooking Mama. The catch is that every recipe has multiple steps, and you can change between recipes in the middle of a step to cook as fast as you can or to serve the customers that are getting impatient first. Add some random events and you have a frantic and unusual take on the time-management genre.
Feel The Magic: XY/XX	Minigame	Awesome game by Sonic Team in which you try to save the love of your life through several really wacky and original minigames. Great visuals and jawsome tunes, and if you're a dirty bastard you can also collect clothes for the girl. Known in Europe as Project Rub. So remember, the next time you find yourself dealing with a bull stampede, killer plants, or a static electricity fight with your arch-enemy: RUB IT!
The Rub Rabbits	Minigame	Sequel to Feel the Magic. More crazy minigames, silhouette love, and silly fun. Full of extras, such as a (short) secondary storyline, a baby-making game for you and your (non-existent) significant other, and Hullabaloo, a simple party game that's basically twister for your hands. An enormous amount of dress-up options for the girl, including clothing you can design yourself will surely cater to the ten-year-old-girl in you. Harder difficulties provide obscene difficulty. A bit different from the original, but you should play them both, like this one says to. "Warning! Continuous stroking, touching, and blowing may cause unwanted attention in public places."
Fighting Fantasy: The Warlock of Firetop Mountain	RPG / Dungeon Crawler	A First-Person dungeon crawling RPG that mainstream reviewers hated because it was too hard. Based on the gamebook of the same name. Doom-like as it has 3D environments with 2D enemies (AKA billboarding), MPH controls and tons of loot. Protip: Archery, Curse weapons and Berserk make a good skill combo (for the first playthrough anyway) and there is exploit to loot locked chests.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates	Action / RPG	The first of the Crystal Chronicles for the DS. It's may not be as favorable as EoT, but it has some favorable things that EoT doesn't. The story is much more interesting than EoT and you play the game with up to 4 characters at your command each with unique abilities, which makes this the puzzle solver of the duo. Has multiplayer, but you might as well play EoT for that.
Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time	Action / RPG	The last DS title in the Crystal Chronicles spin-off series. Blows RoF out of the water in every aspect except story (this one is just a mindbender). The DS and Wii versions are the same (as in literally the same game with the exact same graphics), though the DS one is played online more than the Wii one on /v/. Unfortunately, the online is extreme lag with about half a second input lag. Look at PS0 if you want online play on a portable.
Final Fantasy III	RPG	A fully 3D remake of Final Fantasy III, which was previously never officially released outside of Japan. Unlike the NES version, the orphans have a bit of individual background this time, and there's bonus content; however, most you have to unlock by sending messages back and forward via friend codes. As usual, there are many classes to choose from and to level up, but choose wisely. If you haven't played it yet, now is the time to do so. Also available on iPhone and Android as of 2020.
Final Fantasy IV	RPG	A fully 3D remake of the SNES game. Includes decent voice-acted cut scenes and a new ability system designed to offer a modicum of customization in the least-customizable FF game to date. Also of note is the increased difficulty over previous ports of the game. Arguably, the best version of FF4 currently available. Also on iOS, Android and Steam with slightly better graphics but this one is ok tho.
Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift	RPG / Strategy	The sequel to the GBA game, BUT laws can no longer make missions non-winnable, and jail has been removed. The worst part of breaking the law is being unable to revive allies until the end of battle. Enemies are above the law (as now Judges are tied to the clan itself), but your team gains "priveleges" such as boosted attack or speed, as long as you stay within the law. Side-quests are much more varied and really carry the weight of the game through their stories, which are badass. More classes, more races, more abilities. Shitload of content to keep you busy. Make sure not to stick to the main quest, its story is garbage. Game is slow as balls too; only for those with patience or playing in small bursts.
Final Fantasy: The 4 Heroes of Light	RPG	Made by the same people who gave you III and IV remakes on the DS. A classic fantasy-RPG reminiscent of the FF 1 and 3 but with its own twists. A couple of things to note is the "Charge" command in place of magic points and that you can switch jobs using the crown system.
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon	RPG / Strategy	A remake of the original Fire Emblem. You know, the one with Marth. Features online play and the usual Fire Emblem jazz. If you've played any Fire Emblem game before, you know exactly what to expect. Quite dull in terms of presentation, but is fine strategically. One new addition is that you can change the characters' classes, which might sound like a deviation from tradition, but it works well. A small few units are only recruitable if you lose some of yours, but you'll only tend to see them in the brilliantly strategic and twisted 5 star difficulty mode. Nintendo fixed this in the sequel and let you recruit everyone in one run. ALL 77. Too bad it isn't out overseas despite SD selling well.
Flower, Sun, and Rain	Adventure / Puzzle	Take all the detective puzzle games on the DS, inject them with many drugs, and you get this. Contains a very unique atmosphere unlike anything else. Made by Suda51, so that's expected. If you're searching for a really strange, unusual, and surreal experience, look no further.
Front Mission DS	RPG / Strategy	An enhanced port of Front Mission 1st (PS1 remake of the original SNES Front Mission). Being based off of that, you can play the USN scenario aside from the original OCU one, which further explains the events of the 2nd Huffman Conflict. As an enhanced port, it has lots of extras, including 10 secret missions, characters from other FM games, and even more wanzer parts. A second Front Mission exists on the DS, but it's JP only (FM 2089: Border of Madness). If you liked this one, there are more FM games to check out: FM2, FM Alternative, and FM3 on the PS1, and FM4 and FM5 for the PS2. FM3 and FM4 were localized, while FM2 and FM5 were translated by hardcore fans who are also doing FM Alternative. There's FM Gun Hazard for the SNES, also translated by fans. The franchise's last game, FM Evolved, is an TPS spin-off which tries to be a mix of FM Gun Hazard and FM Online (PS2 JP only, but discontinued), but fails miserably.
Game & Watch Collection	Compilation	Fuck year super basic gaming! Unlike the G&W Gallery series for the Gameboy, these 2 collections don't enhance the visuals and add Nintendo characters. Original style only! Still addictive fun. The first has Donkey Kong, Green House, and Oil Panic. The second has Parachute, Octopus, and the third game, is a new game Parachute X Octopus (which sounds like a frightening hentai) with Parachute on the top, and Octopus on the bottom: BACK AND FORTH. Once a Club Nintendo exclusive, which kinda made it rare (to have it physically, at least).
Geometry Wars Galaxies	Shoot 'em Up	When you turn on this game, you better be fucking ready. Expect colours, particles, killer shapes, and a huge fucking multiplier. Adds a nice RPG element where you level up a drone to save your ass, like a true bro. Remember to use a fucking screen protector on your lower screen because the game will fuck it up if you don't. Can link with the Wii version to unlock the final levels.
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective	Adventure / Puzzle	By the writer of the Ace Attorney series, and set in the same universe to boot, according to him. You have been killed and became a ghost with amnesia and the ability to possess objects. You have 'til dawn to discover your identity and why you where killed using your powers to set ridiculous Rube Goldberg machines in order to save people from dying (oh, right, you can time-travel four minutes before someone's recent death). If you like visual novels, then play it because it has really great characters and solid writing. Sadly, it's a tad too short and easy (5–6 hours if you don't get stuck), but mostly because the story has close to no padding.
Giana Sisters DS	Platformer	Take the Amiga cult classic and add a shitload of new levels, music and spritework. Still a total rip-off but still good. The difficulty is nowhere near the original though, so everybody can enjoy this. Now available damn near every main region, except Japan, because, you know, the brothers would be history. Also on iOS in normal and HD variants. Forgetable sequel also on consoles and PC.
Glory of Heracles	RPG	The fifth game, but the first of the Greek-themed RPG series to make it overseas, and an excellent entry. Takes elements from previous GoH games and adds new ones. It features OPTIONAL touch-screen power boosts to your skills and magic (akin to Mario RPG). An intriguing adventure done by an ace team of old-schoolers from Data East. Recommended to buy as it's worth every Drachma and goes fairly cheap, too. A bit easy, but features some post-game content to extend play-time.
Golden Sun: Dark Dawn	RPG	A sequel to the GBA classics, this time with 3D graphics and alot more animation and fluidity. Thankfully, they've managed to keep the artstyle and gameplay consistent with the GBA games. Still has giant walls of text and the difficulty is very low, but if you liked the GBA games and are looking for a nice little RPG, give this a try. Considered not as great as the GBA games and says fucks you with PONRs.
Grand Theft Auto: Chinatown Wars	Action / Sandbox	Uses a top-down perspective similar to early GTA games. Looks pretty and plays extremely smoothly. Don't expect it to go easy on the story just because it's on the DS. Ported to PSP with 'better' graphics but is amazingly poor on that.
Harvest Moon: Sunshine Islands	Sim	Great control improvements on the previous installments with the option of choosing to play with the stylus OR the gamepad. Same great Harvest Moon gameplay with characters introduced in the previous game. TIP: The original HM series is now known as 'Story of Seasons' worldwide because of some kind of licensing bullshit. Every game released with the Harvest Moon name after 'A New Beginning' for the 3DS is a filthy rip-off.
Harvest Moon: Grand Bazaar	Sim	Yet more Harvest Moon. Feels kind of dumbed down, the game is 5 screens large so that says something. The NPCs and waifus are pretty boring too, but the game is more focused on manufacturing and items-creating than the other HMs, so if that was one of your favorite aspect, check it out. Also yes, mining is gone.
Harvest Moon: The Tale of Two Towns	Sim	Stamina and crops are simplified and are made easier with trenches making watering much faster. Choose between the rival villages of Bluebell which focuses on animal care-taking and Konohana focusing on your ordinary crop growing, nothing much new done with either sadly. And tool and farm upgrades are only done once per season to force you to play longer. Also boring fetch quests. Well... enjoy the new characters and story.
Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure	Platformer / Puzzle	Despite the EA name, this hybrid platformer/puzzler is right Cracking! The top screen is a standard platformer, but with walljumps and sword fighting, while the bottom is a puzzle game that ties neatly to the gameplay. Plus, it features a badass British gentleman, who's anything but stereotypical. You can even get the jolly-good soundtrack off EA's site FOR FREE! GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!
Hero's Saga Laevatein Tactics	RPG / Strategy	A strategy game with a fun battle system. Also all the characters are Spanish for some reason, amigo.
Hotel Dusk: Room 215	Adventure	A game by Cing, the creators of Trace Memory; this game is a little more refined than their previous title. Explore the eerie Hotel Dusk while unraveling the mystery behind it. Fantastic atmosphere, great characters and a nice art style make this a must play. Not much replay value, though. "I got myself a paper clip."
Last Window: The Secret of Cape West	Adventure	The sequel to Hotel Dusk. It was released in Japan and Europe only, but you can import it since all DS games are region-free. Everything great about the predecessor is also in this game, and is also a must play.
Inazuma Eleven	Sports / RPG	A soccer action RPG title from Level 5. Yes, a soccer RPG. The RPG part has you recruit thousands of players to your team, develop their stats and have them learn new techniques. The battles are super fun, using the stylus to move the players around, pass, kick and summon a fucking fire dragon to score a goal. Story and chars are so-so. EU and JP only. If you don't like glorious British accents, there's an undub. Sequels are confirmed for a Q1 release in the west! And there's an open translation for the 3rd game going on The translation project for the third game had stopped since IE3 was confirmed for release in the European 3DS eShop, and IE1 was officially released in the American 3DS eShop as well (both are tweaked versions, part of the JP-only trilogy compilation). Jolly good cooperation!
Infinite Space	RPG / Strategy	Build and customize ships, battle space pirates and take over the galaxy. Deeper systems than a lot of DS strategy games. Tons of sidequests and missable shit. Your character is The Generic Young Hero but at least he gets a Garlock-makeover halfway through the story. Battles are slow paced but still manage to be fun. Note: Don't buy fake flowers for sickly lolis unless you want them to grow up as evil dominatrices who will try to kill you.
Izuna 1 & 2	RPG / Roguelike	Like other roguelikes, dungeons are randomly generated. Except these have sets separate from each other, with bosses at the end of them, making for a more casual-styled approach. That said, it's still brutal with traps and ambushes. Thankfully though, you can explore with two characters at a time, and when both die, they only lose gear, not their levels or stats. Because of the quick-burst style gameplay, it is a bit easy. If you want a MUCH harder game, consider Shiren the Wanderer.
Jam With The Band / Daigasso! Band Brothers DX	Music / Rhythm	Play a wide variety of songs with a bunch of instruments. MIDI like music means all your screw-ups and shitty improvs come out of the speakers. About 7000 songs available for download, but the whole mess about music licensing means you can't delete any (and you only have space for 100 of them). You can't download them on a flash cart, instead you need to find saves with songs pre-loaded or use programs for importing/exporting individual songs within a save. Also released in Europe with a halved download limit. Same deal about flashcards still applies. The game also contains a nearly full-featured composer with 50 instruments, with 100 slots independent from the download slots. In fact, almost all of the songs available to the Japanese are user submissions. Not to be mistaken with the Japan-only predecessor from 2005, "Daigasso! Band Brothers", which honestly hasn't aged very well. You can check a trailer here EDIT As of 2014 the online service for these games has shut down taking with it many files that were hosted on the service. The only way to aquire new songs is to manually download them (The BDX Mega Pack is full of music files for this game and is the best way to get BDX files right now) and insert them into your save file. For this you will require a flashcart. Go to the Jam with the Band Wiki for details on how to do this.
Kingdom Hearts 358/2 Days	Action / RPG	A sidegame of the KH series. Focuses largely on Organization XIII, the villains from KH2 and Chain of Memories. Unsurprisingly, there are massive gay undertones in the main story. Takes a very few concepts from Chain of Memories, but plays like the traditional KH formula, except stages are broken up into missions and there are many different enemies and bosses. There's a bonus mode that lets you play missions as other XIII members which is very cool and characters (even Donald, Goofy, and Mickey) and you can even multiplayer locally. Hope you like sea salt ice cream.
Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded	Action / RPG	Has different sorts of gameplay in the worlds and bosses, but in the main action (which is the majority), you can customize Sora with a Sphere Grid-like system, and fight enemies with Birth By Sleep's battle system. Like The World Ends With You, you can tweak difficulty and loot payoff options. Although it rehashes stages and enemies, it remixes any expectations unpredictably well, has a good deal of extras and post-game content, and returns to the light-hearted feel from KH1. Second best sidegame after Birth by Sleep. Got some low reviews from sites, because idiots don't know how about the options menu, or care to access the cool extras. Different enough from 358/2 Days that you should get both if you like.
Kira Kira Pop Princess / Pop Town	Music / Rhythm	Loli rhythman, dancan, and dressan up. Most manly game ever. What more do you want? An undub to get rid of the terrible English voices? Here Original Japanese title was Pinky Street Kira Kira Music Hour. The sequel, Pop Town (AKA Pinky Street Kira Kira Music Night) has a hard mode and stars the rival girl. Unfortunately, there is no undub for it. All clothing pieces are from actual Pinky Street figurines, for the collector in you.
Kirby Canvas Curse	Platformer	Tries something completely different and is touch-screen only. Instead of sucking things up and platforming like usual, you draw paths for Kirby to roll on. You can still copy powers, which is required for some bonuses. There's also bonus characters to unlock with different powers. Most of the game is fun and cute-looking, and the soundtrack is filled with groovy Kirby remixes, but it has really fucking annoying water levels.
Kirby Squeak Squad	Platformer	A traditional Kirby title, and the weakest on DS. It's fun, but damn is it short. You can beat it in less than a day. Probably a good intro title for a kid to get into Kirby, though. You can find a few scrolls to upgrade abilities slightly and a new feature lets you save items and combine them for later use in Kirby's void of a stomach, which makes this even easier than it already is. Called Kirby Mouse Attack in Europe.
Kirby Super Star Ultra	Platformer	A remake of the SNES classic with some new content. New game modes and spinoffs, slightly updated visuals and new FMVs. A must have for any Kirby or 2D platformer fan.
Kirby: Mass Attack	Platformer / Strategy	Kirby's split into 10 by some asshole so he seeks to return to normal. You control "Kirbys" with the touchscreen, guiding them constantly in clearing obstacles, fighting, exploring, etc. Each alone isn't too strong either, but with several, they can tackle tougher enemies and obstacles. Each only takes 2 hits before dying, but you can revive them if you're fast or eat food to make a new one. Not so casual, but actually a bit frantic. Several puzzles need X# of Kirbys to complete, thus raising tension to keep 'em alive. Check it in action HERE. The mini-game modes are also kickass, including pinball, racing, and a semi-RPG mode.You will not believe how much senseless death and destruction there is in this game.
Knights in the Nightmare	RPG / Strategy	The fourth in the "Dept. heaven' saga (along with Riviera and Yggdra Union, while the third has not been made). You control the wisp with the stylus to activate the spirits of your dead soldiers in a very strange mix of bullet hell, chess and SRPG. The story is told through flashbacks as you progress through the game. After beating the game you unlock new game +, where it presents a "what if?" situation with a new protagonist. The last half of the game drags on between intense boss battles, but is still an excellent game if you can get into it. Also features tons of characters and an hour long tutorial (optional).
Konami Classic Series: Arcade Hits	Compilation	↑ ↑ ↓ ↓ ← → ← → B A
The Legend of Kage 2	Platformer	It took them just 24 years to make a sequel to this classic arcade game. You choose from either Kage or the newcomer Chihiro and go do ninja things like slaying demons, kill other ninjas, look badass and jump high. VERY HIGH!
The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass	Action / Adventure	The touch controls take getting used to, and the game is mostly easy and kind of linear, but that goddamn Temple of the Ocean King is the most off-putting. Forced stealth, non-killable enemies, and arbitrary time limits in that are a dick. Somehow the rest of the game has managed to make a good chunk of fans enjoy it (others plain hate it). Sequel to The Wind Waker so, if you never played that one, brace for some minor spoilers. Spirit Tracks below is preferable for newcomers.
The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks	Action / Adventure	Sequel to Phantom Hourglass that improves on its predecessor. The game is still easy and linear (on-rails even), but mixes things up every so often. There's a re-occurring dungeon like the Temple of the Ocean King, but all of the flaws have been removed and/or fixed. Oddly enough, it has some very memorable parts, likable characters, one of the best final boss fights in the series, some of the best music in the series. PROTIP: Wait for the camera to center on Link before you start flute-playing. OTHERWISE IT WILL MESS UP THE ENTIRE SONG. EVERYBODY GETS STUCK ON THIS AT SOME POINT. EVERYBODY.
The Legendary Starfy	Platformer	Cute game, awesome for youngsters, but still fun enough for an old bag like you. The sprite graphics are great with bright and colorful 3D parallax backgrounds. The game is extremely easy, but has tons of stuff to collect and many many extras. The story is nice and cute too. Densetsu no Stafy 4 is also on the DS but JP only. The others are on GBA and also JP only. Luckily, none of these games require much, if any, reading.
Lego Rock Band / Rock Band 3	Music / Rhythm	Basically Rock Band: Unplugged for the DS. LRB takes the cutsie approach from the toyline, whilst RB3 is more akin to the regula games. Both plays very similar with small differences that you'll probably won't notice unless you keep switching between games. Check this link for the songs on LRB and this for the ones on RB3, but don't forget to sort the lists to see which songs are available on the DS ports.
Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ	Shoot 'em Up	It's a fun, semi-typical shmup-run 'n gun hybrid, but bosses are taken from fairy tales and shit, except zombified and horror themed. It can be rage inducing hard at times (dodging is your friend). The full game is available on DSiware for just 800 points.
Lock's Quest	Strategy / Defense	Fun little tower defense game, perfectly suited for the DS. Also has multiplayer.
Logic Cubes	Puzzle	A collection of puzzles centered around squares. Has 50 levels of 10 different puzzles, including cool ones you have probably played before like the typical Pokémon ice cave puzzle, the one in Zelda where you have to walk on every tile of the floor without passing over the same tile twice, Professor Layton's use-these-tetraminoes-to-make-a-hat puzzle, and even a version of Loopop Salad. Sadly, you can't choose a level, you have to start the 50 levels challenge every time you want to see the second level again. At least you can save mid challenge.
Lost in Blue Series	Adventure / Survival Sim/ Lost: The Game	Interesting survival sim about castaways, their adventure on the island and (maybe) their eventual rescue. You should feel at home if you're a fan of these types of stories or played Survival Kids on the Game Boy before. The first game has the best storyline, the second makes the girl useful, the third is a complete crock that even hardcore fans have a hard time enjoying.
LostMagic	RPG / Strategy	An RPG game where you and the monsters you capture go fight evil. To call upon the magics of earth, water, fire, wind, darkness and light, you must draw their various symbols. Different stronger magics use different combinations of these symbols. There are a lot of different spells to learn and monsters to collect. This is a touchscreen-heavy game and your lower screen WILL suffer, but it's still worth every minute.
Luminous Arc series	RPG / Strategy	The first one has a great story but downgraded graphics and gameplay. The second one boasts some nice improvements over the original that make it worth playing. Luminous Arc 3 is in Japanland only, though a translation is in progress. Overall pretty easy, but great for anime fans. These games have lots of fanservice and take about 200 hours to reach 100%. Lots of breasts, oh god what the fuck breasts everywhere ma'am what are you doing.
Lunar Knights	Action / Adventure	Essentially Boktai 4, but with all the MGS-lite stealth elements from the previous games gutted out. What's left is a fun but very clunky isometric hack-and-slash. Works off an in-game system rather than real solar sensors, but you can use the sensors from one of the original Boktai carts if you insert it in the GBA slot. Each provides different additional bonuses. Vampire purifications are replaced with touch screen shooting minigames where you fly the vampires into space.
Maestro! Jump in Music	Music / Rhythm	You follow Presto, your happy-go-lucky bird protagonist, on hunt for all the music notes in the world, having been nicked by the big baddy in the bizarre opening movie. Your goal is to help him overcome the various obstacles in his path, using your stylus to pluck strings and hit monsters. You can even sing along with the mic (don't worry, it's optional). OH SOLE MIOOO. Also available on iOS.
Magical Starsign	RPG	A bunch of kid wizards travel in space to find their professor. Cool planet system where if a home planet of a type of magic is in a certain alignment, it will receive a bonus or penalty. Also, you can tap to boost spells or defend a la Paper Mario.
Magnetica	Puzzle	Yay, Magnetica! This little puzzler is available literally everywhere and in every format on WiiWare as well, and not without reason. It's THAT good. Besides, touch controls are a natural match for this game.
Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time	Action / RPG	BAYBIES
Mario & Luigi: Bowser's Inside Story	Action / RPG	This third entry of the M&L series is arguably the best of the series. If you hated Partners in Time for its obnoxious babies, lack of Fawful, irritating controls, complete linearity, or just not being as good as Superstar Saga, then you will love this game. Goes relatively cheap at some places, and is worth buying. Got a remake on the 3DS with extra content just like Superstar Saga. Strangely, Partners in Time's still a DS exclusive. Go figure why they remade 1 and 3 only.
Mario Hoops: 3 on 3	Sports	Play basketball with the cast of Mario Kart! Do some sick dunks, or sweet alley-oops. Easily one of the best Mario sports games. Just remember to pick up the coins. God have mercy of your poor soul if you're left-handed.
Mario Kart DS	Racing	The Mario Kart everyone loves, Blue Shells and all. Lots of tracks and online is fun (if you don't mind the snaking). You can play multiplayer even with people who don't have the game via DS Download Play (although they'll be stuck playing as Shy Guys). lol DS online was shutdown eons ago. Sequels on 3DS and WiiU/Switch (as of 2020).
Mega Man Star Force series	RPG	The spiritual successor to Battle Network. While it's definitely not as good as Battle Network, it's still worth a play if you liked them. 1 & 2 are pretty decent games. 3 happens to be fucking amazing for bringing back lots of discarded content, such as Program Advances and a remixed hybrid version of 3's Style Change and NaviSoul (the best version from 6, which kicked ass), and is arguably as good as BN 2 and 3.
Mega Man Zero Collection	Action / Hack 'n Slash	This is a compilation of Mega Man Zero 1, 2, 3, and 4. You can either play an "Easy Scenario", which takes you through all four with just one save slot (and, as the name states, an overall easier experience) or play each of them seperately and with its original difficulty. Completing each game unlocks 'mod cards' which you can use to change certain things in Mega Man Zero 3, like adding people to the base or upgrading your weapons. If you've never played the GBA versions, you better damn well play this. Got a nice re-release on PS4/XONE/Switch/PC with extra content.
Mega Man ZX / Mega Man ZX Advent	Action / Hack 'n Slash	Sequel to Megaman Zero series. Big and complex levels, wonderful OST, selectable male/female protagonist. Difficulty level is less than Mega Man Zero, but there's fucking spikes everywhere because Inticreates is full of trolls. The second is preferable since the boss-weapon system is much cooler and the game is overall better. Also re-released on PS4/XONE/Switch/PC with extra content.
Metal Slug 7	Shoot 'em Up	It's what you'd expect from a Metal Slug game, right down to the RAWKET LAWN CHAIR. Not the strongest in the series, though still worth a shot. The art is just as smooth as other entries, but because of the DS' resolution it had to be scaled down, which makes it look kind of weird. There is a combat school mode that alows you to become awesome and befriend the moe drill instructor. Has an superior remix for the PSP, titled Metal Slug XX.
Meteos	Puzzle	Sakurai's puzzle brainchild. Plays like Tetris Attack on crack, which is, not surprisingly, fucking awesome. Fire those bastards into space! Trivia: His wife can't think of new ways to design menus, so all screens in this game looks awfully familiar smh.
Metroid Prime Hunters	Action / Adventure / FPS	An FPS that handles fairly decently. Controls sort of need some getting used to, otherwise online multiplayer is pretty fun unbalanced decent. Said to control a bit better on the 3DS thanks to the slider pad, but you'll still need to use the stylus to aim. As other FPS games on NDS that uses the stylus for aiming, it's not very friendly for left-handed people, so keep that in mind.
Metroid Prime Pinball	Pinball	Samus rolled up into a ball and decided to be a pinball. You know how this works. Surprisingly good. Also: One of the few games that makes use of the DS Rumble Pack!
Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes	Puzzle / RPG / Strategy	Do you like block/color matching puzzle games? Do you like strategy games? Do you like RPGs? Do you like all three of them combined into one glorious package? If yes, go buy this game. If no, go buy this game anyway. The character design is an odd choice, but the story, characterization, gameplay, and music all make up for it. Has an HD variant on big boy consoles, but this has awesome dual-screen duels (and honestly there is no reason for a game like this to be in HD anyway).
Monster Rancher DS	Monster Sim / RPG	The same monster-raising, stat-building, tournament-fighting that Monster Rancher fans have come to expect. Instead of using CDs and DVDs to generate monsters, you can either draw on the touchscreen, record sound on the microphone, or read a GBA cartridge to make monsters. You can preserve a monster when it gets too old, and fuse monsters to make new ones, but the game punishes save-scumming by making your monster practically worthless for fusing. Actually the second Monster Rancher DS, but the first was never localized outside of Japan.
Monster Tale	Action / Adventure / Platformer / Metroidvania	Members of the Henry Hatsworth team have rejoined forces as DreamRift to create a game that mixed Metroidvania with Monster World. You get a critter in the lower screen who can assist you in top/bottom/hybrid screen puzzles and fights. Not only that, but you help raise the little beast in various ways (like a Digimon, but less bullshit and more fun). Pretty easy.
Moon	FPS / Survival Horror	Made by Renegade Kid, who made Dementium. This game is the team's second attempt at making a DS FPS/Horror game. This time, it's on the moon, hence the title. Responsive touch-screen controls, good looking environments and graphics, and fun boss fights. It's kind of on the short side, and never really TOO scary, but it's worth picking up. An improvement over Dementium. Also got a remake/updated version on the 3DS with improved visuals, but the game is delivered in episodic format rather than one big package. It's largely the same as the DS version, so whether you want it on the 3DS or DS, or physical or digitally is up to you. The remaining 3 seasons are available for purchase.
Mr. Driller: Drill Spirits	Puzzle	Doesn't really make much use of the DS's features, but hey, who needs 'em. Still a great game that's easy to play, but hard to master. US version is missing a extra character, along with Dristone mode (which is fucking amazing), so get the European version.
Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer	RPG / Roguelike	This game is packed with content, such as puzzles, tons of weapons and items, and cool spell scrolls. Each area is randomly generated, making for a fresh experience each play-through. It's a roguelike, so it's brutal (i.e. lose stats and items after death, start at beginning) but not as brutal as some (you can pass on items through storage or be rescued via Wi-Fi). If you like this, try the Wii sequel, solely titled Shiren the Wanderer. Shiren 2, 4 and 5 are also on DS, in Japanese. The Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games play almost identical, but with a Pokémon paintjob.
N+	Platformer	A port of the popular (and free) flash game. Features a map editor and sharer and multiplayer modes. Also on Xbox 360 Arcade and PSP, but with different levels because the game developers are cool like that.
Nanostray 2	Shoot 'em Up	Made by the Iridion II team, which was badass unlike Iridion 3D. Addresses the original's content problems by offering multiple schemes, allowing for a much better experience. The original isn't bad, but is a bit harder to get into and vertical only. The team is making a 3DS spiritual successor called Nano Assault.
Neves	Puzzle	The best tangram collection for the DS (you might think there aren't many, but you'd be wrong. Tangrams are apparenty hot on the DS). The controls are tight and it has lots and lots of tangrams.
Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors	Adventure / Visual Novel	You wake up on a cruise liner with eight other people, and all of you have entered the "Nonary game", where you will put your life on the line. This game combines visual novel-esque story segments with "escape the room"-type puzzles. Instantly gripping, with some of the very best story-telling you'll see. The game has multiple endings, some happier than others, and it's worth it to play through to all of them. If you only play one VN, make it this one.You can check a trailer here The first game in a series, the second is available on PS Vita and 3DS, and the third on PS Vita, 3DS, and Windows.
Ninja Gaiden Dragon Sword	Action	Looks very nice, and the controls are pretty spot on. You hold your DS sideways and mostly use the touchscreen to play, which is different, but somehow fun. Has the brawling and platforming you'd expect from modern NG, but a little shorter and more compact.
Ninjatown	Strategy / Defense	The other great tower defense game for the DS. Round, cute character designs and somewhat amusing characters. Sort of challenging unless you're going for A-ranks on everything, which is hard as hell.
Nostalgia	RPG	Rather good retro-styled RPG in full 3D with excellent visuals, a rather unusual steampunk setting and lots of things to do besides and after the main storyline. The gameplay is rather easy (with surprisingly difficult battles popping out here and there), but does not boil down to mashing the attack button throughout the game. Also, those airship battles are breathtaking (for the first 50 times or so). Kinda similar to Skies of Arcadia (DC/Gamecube) both in gameplay and art-wise).
Okamiden	Action / Adventure	Much better than Zelda DS games, a fine sequel that stays true to the spirit and tone of the original. Brush techniques work wonderfully well on DS. Also, the protagonist is the most fucking adorable thing you'll ever see in a video game. Also worth mentioning the game is 30 fucking hours. It controls significantly better on the 3DS thanks to the circle pad.
Ontamarama	Music / Rhythm	Another rhythm game, but in this one you must use the D-pad AND the touchscreen to play, which is harder than it sounds. Press or circle some balloon-animal thingies with your stylus to charge incoming arrows, and use the D-pad to follow the arrows and the rhythm. Check this link if you didn't get all that. Disoriented? You will be.
Pang Magical Michael	Puzzle	Go back to 1989 with this new release of the classic arcade game Pang/Buster Bros. The same ol' balloon-popping action you loved in the arcades, it was even published by Mitchell, one of the publishers of the original game (the other being Capcom).
Phantasy Star Zero	RPG	Phantasy Star Online's awesome little brother. Character creation has huge customization opportunities. Has online play and multiplayer, which is a blast with a group. The main story is okay, and even changes a bit depending on the type of character you create. Each one has implied tentacle molestation though...
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney	Adventure / Visual Novel	The first in the series. Take control of Phoenix Wright while you object like the motherfucking fist of the north star. Has an extra case exclusive to the DS version, which is awesome. It's been ported to a fuckton of other platforms as of 2020, but this one got an extra case that uses the built-in DS microphone (also on the 3DS port).
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Justice For All	Adventure / Visual Novel	The second entry in the series; while it's generally considered the weakest (along with Apollo Justice), the fuckwin final case makes up for it. The thing with this game is that its weakest case is the worst case in the series, but its final case is considered to be one of the best if not the best in the series, so it really pays off. Plus Franziska. Also on a fuckton of platforms.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney: Trials and Tribulations	Adventure / Visual Novel	Phoenix's last game on DS, and it is one hell of a ride. The final case is mind blowing. This is also on a fuckton of platforms since the first 3 games are sold as a trilogy nowadays.
Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney	Adventure / Visual Novel	A revamp of the series, with a new protagonist. While considered one of the weakest in the series, it's still pretty rockin' (literally). Includes DS-exclusive features from Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney's extra case.
Ace Attorney Investigations: Miles Edgeworth / Gyakuten Kenji 2	Adventure	You know what this game has? Franziska. You know what this game doesn't have? Magic. Any questions? Of course not. While this is a very nice game in itself, it really shines with its meta-humor so be sure to play the other games first (which includes the original Phoenix Wright trilogy as well as Apollo Justice.) Step back, I'm gonna try LOGIC! The slightly better Gyakuten Kenji 2 (AAI2) is Japan-only, but there's a very well done English fan translation.
Planet Puzzle League (US) / Puzzle League DS (EU)	Puzzle	Remember Pokémon Puzzle League (N64) and Tetris-Attack (SNES)? This is from the same series. It features great gameplay coupled with the DS's touch-screen and online multiplayer make for a fantastic version of an old classic. .
Plants vs Zombies	Strategy / Defense	Hey, remember 2009?! Me neither, but this game is here to remind you a little bit of that era of mobile games, so do yourself a favor and play this great tower defense game so that you can exist. The main differences with the PC version are one less seed slot and one mode that uses the microphone, but they don't make this game any less fun. Also, this one was released before PopCap patched out the Michael Jackson-like zombie in favor of some bland disco-inspired one to avoid being sued.
Picross DS	Puzzle	A bunch of Picross puzzles on your DS. Everyone likes picross puzzles.
Picross 3D	Puzzle	It's picross, except with a cube instead of a grid. Beginner friendly with decent challenge later on. Protip: do the long ass tutorial. If you like puzzle games at all, check this out! Has a sequel on the 3DS.
Pic Pic	Puzzle	Like picross as you solve puzzles to create a picture but with different puzzles. There are three modes with 400 pictures to create for each (1200 pictures): Maze, Connect Numbers (ex:4-4), and fill in the 9x9 area with the number in the middle (ex: number is 6, 6/9 blocks are black, 3/9 blocks are white).
Color Cross	Puzzle	Picross with a twist. Instead of using one color, the pictures in this game use a lot of them, and every one of them has their own set of numbers to follow. Think of it as a lot of picross inside a large picross, and then the problem is to solve them in a way that makes every little picross fit inside the large one.
Pokémon Platinum	RPG / Monster Sim	Gotta catch 'em all, just like the three previous generations. The updated version of Diamond and Pearl, it includes a greater variety of Pokémon native to Sinnoh, graphical updates and a deeper storyline, as well as revamped gyms and battles brought up from 'snail' speed to 'turtle' speed. Includes tons of stuff to do over Wi-Fi once the game is finished. Diamond and Pearl are really only worth playing these days for historical/sentimental value (if such things can really be applied to Pokémon games).
Pokémon Heart Gold and Soul Silver	RPG / Monster Sim	Pokémon as you know it, but with nostalgia-goggles cranked up to the max. You can have any Pokémon (yes, even Wailord) waddle around behind you. Remake of what people will argue is the best iteration in the series, while remaining very similar to Platinum. Much longer than most Pokémon games, as you can continue on to Red and Blue's Kanto region after you finish the main Johto campaign. An item called GBPlayer can be used to play the original music too, which is pretty cool, I guess FUCKING FANTASTIC.
Pokémon Black and White	RPG / Monster Sim	The fifth generation of Pokémon, taking place in the Unova region (sort of based on New York City and the surrounding area). A lot more plot-based than past installments. There's 156 new critters to find, and all 649 Pokémon have smoothly animated sprites in battle, which change when their HP is low or they have a status effect. The speed of the battles has been cranked up, so if you turn attack animations off then they'll be over in a flash, making level- and EV-grinding much less tedious. TMs have infinite uses now, so you needn't worry about who to give them to. It should also be noted that until you finish the main story, all of the Pokémon you'll see are new. Yup, no more Geodudes and Zubats. However, many of the new Pokémon feel like new counterparts of critters from the original games (Timburr is basically Machop with a log; there's also a bat and a rock). Apart from this, Black and White feels more fresh than past games - if you've lost interest in Pokémon due to the repetitive nature of the series, these two might rekindle your interest because once you go Black you never go back.
Pokémon Black 2 and White 2	RPG / Monster Sim	These are basically what "Pokémon Grey" would have been, but instead of being a normal special edition they're full blown sequels, set two years after Black & White 1. New story, new protagonist, new characters and more. Unova feels similar to how Kanto felt in Gold & Silver - it really feels like time has past since the previous titles, plus the route you take through the region is a bit different. Features a "Pokémon World Tournamant", which lets you battle Gym Leaders and other characters from previous games, including Red himself. Unlike Black & White, you can find Pokémon from previous generations during the main story. Yup, that means more Zubats.  One new quality of life change is how quickly you're thrown into the game - you get your starting Pokémon, Pokédex, Pokéballs and Running Shoes incredibly quickly compared to previous titles, and you can skip most of the tutorials.
Pokémon Conquest	RPG / Strategy	Pokémon meets Nobunaga strategy RPG. You, with your trusty Eevee, travel throughout the region befriending Pokémon and battling Warriors and Warlords to conquer the region and unite it as one nation. Warlords can join the player's party once defeated, allowing the player access to more Pokémon. Probably one of the best Pokémon spin-offs out there.
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky	RPG / Roguelike	Unlike the roguelikes above, it's hard to gauge difficulty here. Everyone's a Pokémon, and like Poké-games, have elemental weaknesses, so depending on what you and your partner are can make different dungeons easier or harder. The game is kind of quest-based, so unlike Izuna and Shiren, it's not entirely linear. You only lose your items when you die, since you keep your attacks. A different approach, but one worth trying. This game is surprisingly emotional at times and has a great soundtrack. The relatively low score is due to the reviewers believing that besides more pokemon, more areas, new mechanics and added subplots it wasn't new enough for a updated pokemon game. Overall this is the best of the PMD's and among the best Pokémon spinoffs.
Princess Debut	Rhythm / Sim	You get to live the dream and be the little girl. In addition, you're also a princess. The ball will be held soon, and it's up to you to find yourself a dance partner/love interest. Dancing is done through stylus movements a la Elite Beat Agents, with difficulty depending on the song style. Find cute outfits, new songs, and possibly your true love in the manliest game of all time. Developed by Cave, who is most known for their INSANE bullet hell shooters, so this is quite the diversion for them.
Professor Layton and the Curious Village	Adventure / Puzzle	Lots of brain teasers and logic puzzles to wrap your head around, plus an enjoyable storyline and quirky characters. This reminds me of a puzzle...
Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box (Pandora's Box in Europe/Australia)	Adventure / Puzzle	Continues the story after the first Layton. Still awesome and look, professor! I found a puzzle! The story has some crazy twists this time.
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future ('Lost Future in Europe/Australia)	Adventure / Puzzle	The conclusion to the Professor Layton trilogy (but not the end of the series). The best Professor Layton so far with an awesome story and its ridiculous spoiler with some cooler mind-fucking puzzles.
Professor Layton and the Last Specter (Spectre's Call in Europe/Australia)	Adventure / Puzzle	The first game in a prequel trilogy, where we get to know how Layton met Luke. More of the same, but if you liked the first three Layton games, you will enjoy this one, too. The American, Australian and Japanese (but not the European) versions of the game include a "100+ hour" RPG, Professor Layton's London Life.
Puchi Puchi Virus	Puzzle	"Pure awesome" is where the gameplay comes in, but that is an overestimation. All you need to do is wipe out virii before they take over the screen by tapping like colors to form triangles and tapping one of them again to get rid of all three. Of course, it's hardly that easy. Also has some crazy collectible cards of your patients.
Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords	Puzzle / RPG	Your not-so-simple puzzle and RPG game. The pieces you match are gained in the form of mana which are then used to cast various spells that can cause damage, delay turns or cause status effects. You level up, allocate your stats points, learn new spells, and equip various equipment that don't just increase damage or defense. A version of this is availaible on DSiWare as well.
Puzzle Quest 2	Puzzle / RPG	This is quite different from the previous Puzzle Quest. Some puzzle pieces are different, equipment is more simplified and more boring, and you explore dungeons that are linked together. You can no longer capture monsters, learn their skills, ride them, buy your stats and some other things like in the original. With those gone, they added in a load of minigames which are also solvable by matching three pieces.
Radiant Historia	RPG	An excellent and lengthy RPG offering brought stateside by Atlus, Radiant Historia will draw inevitable comparisons to the revered Chrono Trigger because the story is centered around time travel. However, here you enter specific scenarios in which you must fight (quick, grid-based, turn-based) battles and make strategic choices to succeed. Excellent production values and accomplished character/world design. Easily one of the best games on the DS. NOT to be confused with Radiata Stories, which is a totally unrelated PS2 game.
Resident Evil Deadly Silence	Action / Survival Horror	A port of the PlayStation original. Features updated controls and a new game mode. Graphics, sound and even FMV are mostly the same, and plays pretty faithfully to the original. If there isn't any other alternative, this will do.
Retro Game Challenge	Minigame	Based on the popular Japanese show Game Center CX, where a comedian (Arino) plays old games and comments on them. If you're a veteran or amateur retro-gamer looking for a fix, check out RGC, which duplicates the feel of gaming in the 80's. Unlock various games (including a full RPG!), peruse gaming magazines for tips filled with retro lingo, scribble cheats on paper, and revel in in the 8-Bit heydays of gaming, complete with Engrish. Even though it's short and rather easy, give this blast to the past a try. The English voice acting isn't bad, per se, but if you want the real Shinya Arino commenting on your play instead of Yuri Lowenthal, the undub patch can be downloaded here. There is also a JP-only sequel which is superior for its SNES and GBC style games, but you'll only be able to play it by looking up guides since it features very text-heavy games. There's a fan translation patch out now, look it up.
Rhythm Heaven	Music / Rhythm	The sequel to the (Japan only) GBA cult classic. Made by the people behind the WarioWare series. Basically a bunch of quirky, rhythm based minigames. Highly addictive with some great music.
River City Super Sports Challenge	Fighting / Sports	A remix of the extreme sports game, Crash 'n the Boys, its predecessor, and Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu (an arena styled fighting game). Even though the speed and look takes some getting used to, it's pretty fun. Oddly enough, it's rife with cameos and nods to Kunio's old rivals, including a showdown with the motherfucking Dragon Twins.
Robocalypse	Strategy	Watch this trailer. If that doesn't make you want to play the game, then you you're lying; you never watched the trailer. It features non-retarded funny dialogue, a great story, and easy-to-learn controls. The game is a bit on the easy side and a little short, but it does have a hard mode to make up for it.
Rondo of Swords	RPG / Strategy	Like a mix of Shining Force and Fire Emblem, Rondo of Swords is about prince Serdic and his allies who must reclaim his throne from enemy forces. The story is decent, but can get pretty twisted depending on your key decisions. The combat involves making a path, striking through multiple enemies, and getting boosts from allies. Battles are fuck hard, but that's why you can retreat (when allowed to) to review your tactics and even send out allies to train and get supplies.
Rooms: The Main Building	Puzzle	This is a really creative sliding tiles puzzler, despite the presentation being a little rough on the edges. Your character can walk between contiguous tiles and starts in a tile of the puzzle, the goal is in another tile of the puzzle, and you just have to reach the goal to win. But nothing can be this simple in a puzzler, so you have to face things like tiles with walls, telephones that can teleport you to another telephone, closets that swap tiles when you enter, ladders to get the tile above yours and all kinds of interesting obstacles.
Rune Factory 1, 2, & 3	Sim	Harvest Moon with RPG elements. Surprisingly fun and addictive. Rune Factory 3 is by far the best one in the series. Combat in it sees a massive improvement, dozens of techniques can be learned and executed with weapon types that don't even make sense (e.g. Some sort of flashing sword technique with a HAMMER). Also one of your waifu can turn into a phoenix in battle to help you. Suggested that you play them in order, because the gameplay mechanics improves drastically in every sequel and you definitely won't be able to go back. Suggested tagline: Grow crops, fight monsters, level up, and plow your waifu. Has an undub if you want Japanese voices.
Sands of Destruction	RPG	Funny and charming JRPG reminiscent of PS1 era JRPGS, especially Xenogears (in gameplay). This time you're destroying the world rather than saving it. Music and art is really good. Voice acting is good too for the most part, but the pauses between lines can get irritating. Addendum: Most of the game is spent beating up on furries.
Scribblenauts	Platformer / Puzzle	Get the Starite.  How do you get the Starite?  By summoning nearly anything (no living people, nothing vulgar, nothing licensed) with your handy dandy notebook. Fun for everyone for at least an hour, after that it depends on whether you're the sort who'll solve everything with MINDCONTROLDEVICE and LASSO or someone who'll try for new things. Good for playing in short bursts. Surprisingly full of existing memes, and the JP-version even has Konami cameos.
Super Scribblenauts	Platformer / Puzzle	If you hated the first Scribblenauts because of its flaws then you'll love this. Controls are SO MUCH BETTER, levels are really awesome to do, and best of all, not only can you create anything you can think of (except vulgar and vague stuff), but you can modify them using multiple ADJECTIVES. More fun to be had and you can play hours upon hours of the game and NOT EVEN LEAVE THE TITLE SCREEN!
Scurge: Hive	Metroidvania	A port of the popular GBA title. At heart, it's a traditional sci-fi metroidvania, but with an isometric camera, and an interesting "infection" mechanic that forces you to think carefuly before leaving the safety of each save point. Features everything you would expect, including a badass female protagonist, power suits, multipurpose laser gauntlets, friendly AI's, and overrun research facilities. The platforming, puzzles, and combat are all precise and satisfying, and the game's plot moves at an excellent pace.
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor	RPG / Strategy	SRPG with over a hundred demons to recruit into your part. Tons of character customization via skill copying and fusing demons together, but boss battles are ragequit inducing fine if you use your brain. The battle system is kind of generic and the visuals are lazy, but it shines with a lot of replayability through five different endings which depend on the choices you make during the story. If you need to grind, you suck. Ported to the 3DS with slightly better graphics and voice-overs.
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2	RPG / Strategy	Sequel to the first Devil Survivor except now aliens are invading. Plays EXACTLY like the first game except now it's BLUE. Updated demon roster, skills, and the addition of the demon condemenium makes fusing demons a little easier (No more giving up that awesome unique demon just for fusion materials). Multiple endings, hard bosses, and such return. Play this if you still haven't had your fix from the first game. Also boobs. Ported to the 3DS with slightly better graphics and voice-overs.
Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey	RPG	Classic Megaten gameplay is back with this marvelous entry in the SMT mainline series. When a mysterious black hole filled with demons appears in the middle of the south pole and threatens to devour the entire earth, it's up to you, your unit of elite soldiers from all over the world, and, most importantly, your own legion of demons to go in and kick ass. What sets this game apart from other RPGs is that random encounters don't have to end in violence. By negotiating with demons, you can obtain money and items and even make them join your own ranks. Your dialog choices also affect your alignment towards law and chaos, which affects battles. 300 races of demons to recruit and many hours of playtime with different endings.
SNK vs Capcom: Card Fighters DS	Cards	Sequel to the Card Fighters games on the Neo Geo Pocket, this one changes the rules a bit, as now cards have elemental attributes much like in Magic: The Gathering and the playfield is much larger, but otherwise it plays much like it's predecessors. Sadly the single player campaign is the lowest point in the game, as you have to plow through a ridiculous excuse plot which justifies you facing the same palette-swapped NPCs over and over and it even forces fetch quests at a few points, but otherwise you'll probably breeze through it since the AI is pretty braindead. Best played with a friend, so if you're using a flashcard go there and grab a savesate. Beware if you actually buy a used copy, since the first print of this game had a awful game-breaking bug which was patched on the second print.
Sokoban DS	Puzzle	It doesn't matter how old it is or in how many media you can find it, Sokoban it's still an awfully good puzzle game.
Sonic Colors	Platformer	The third and final entry of the Sonic DS series, by Dimps as usual. Plays similar to the Sonic Rush games, but Sonic can now stomp, walljump, and use 5 new powerups. Less linear than the Rush games, presenting some new challenges. The soundtrack is very good. Not as long or visually impressive as its Wii counterpart, but more fluid and faster-paced.
Sonic Rush / Adventure	2D Platformer	2D Sonic games similar to the Advance series. Rush is quite solid and even has music by Jet Set Radio vet, Hideki Naganuma, Rush Adventure is a bit weaker than Rush, especially where music is concerned, but it has a number of mini-levels that provide some decent challenges. Both made by Dimps.
Solatorobo: Red the Hunter	Platformer / RPG	Spiritual successor to Tail Concerto on the PSX. In an anime art style, ride upon thine mighty robot as you beat up other robots in a broad and diverse world. Difficulty may be a little on the easy side, but good fun, and entertaining story. Also furries.
Space Invaders Extreme	Shoot 'em Up	EXTR3ME SPACE INVADERS FUCK YEAH! Basically Space Invaders, but set to a rhythm, and features power-ups and superior gameplay. Expect some acid tripping and awesome music.
Space Invaders Extreme 2	Shoot 'em Up	The slightly improved sequel to Space Invaders Extreme. The acid tripping keeps going, but this time the Fever Time bonus rounds got updated to be in real time, providing a more dynamic gameplay, also better music than the first one. Has a moe themed level, for the weeaboo inside you.
Spectral Force Genesis	Strategy	40 nations are at war, and you get to pick one. Each turn counts as one in-game month, and each month has a different phase. Invest in your city to attract citizens and troops, strengthen your defenses, invest in trades, scout out for new generals, form alliances or persuade opposing nations into joining you and conquer everyone else. Battles are in real time, with three allied and enemy squads on the map. Unfortunately, it's single-player only. Don't rely on alliances too much. The computer isn't afraid to attack you when the opportunity arises. Has mixed reviews and opinions, so you may want to try before you buy.
Spider-man Web of Shadows / Spiderman Shattered Dimensions	Action / Adventure	"Spidey Metroidvania?" Sounds weird, but works. The Webhead really feels like the nimble superhero he's supposed to be. Controls are fluid and webbing around is all kinds of fun. Add-in the abilities you can find while exploring and you have a good-to-great game. The sequel adds challenges and different modes (Boss Rush, Time Attack) and breaks the game between three characters, who unlock abilities separately. Storywise, they're completely unrelated, so no need to play them in order. Sadly, both are rather short, but it's fun while it lasts. The sequel has challenges to keep you busy after you beat it.
Style Savvy	Business Sim	Don't let the cover fool you, this is pretty good business sim. You are in charge of your own boutique, with everything that that entails. Set your store's target demographic, deal with different suppliers, force slow moving pieces on unsuspecting costumers and participate in fashion contests to further promote your store in a neverending struggle for great profit. Check this review if you are interested in getting this game (for your sister, obviously *wink*wink*) Sequels on 3DS.
Suikoden Tierkreis	RPG	A spin-off of the Suikoden series. You're able to recruit up to 108 members for your party. Artwork is really pretty, but VA is sketchy (the protagonist sounds like he had 20 energy drinks). A Japanese dub/better font patch is highly recommended and makes the game a much better experience. Search gbatemp.net for it.
Super Mario 64 DS	3D Platformer	It's a port of Super Mario 64, but lets you play as Yoshi, Mario, Wario and Luigi (read: mostly Luigi). Each has their own specialties and abilities as well. Has 150 stars now, oh and some mini-games and multiplayer. Controls are dodgy due to the lack of analog control on the DS, but functional enough. However, if played on the 3DS, the controls are greatly improved by the Circle Pad. Another port is SUPPOSEDLY coming for the Switch in late 2020, mock me if wrong.
Super Princess Peach	2D Platformer	Super Mario for girls. Manipulate the emotions of the princess so you can clear her obstacles. Way too easy, but has some pretty sprite graphics, and is oddly fun. Nice game to make your little sis or gf into videogames instead of spending time with those shitty mobile games or watching stupid stories on instagram.
Super Robot Taisen OG Saga Endless Frontier / EXCEED	RPG / Ecchi	Monolith Soft game where you play a Space cowboy surrounded by tits. Other than the gratuitous fan service, there is a pretty good battle system. Also has KOS-MOS from Xenosaga and that's always nice. We might never get the sequel overseas since Bamco holds the rights and are huge dicks. The sequel (SRTOGS EXCEED) is out in Japan. Except for the design\name of a few characters, this game is completely unrelated to any Super Robot Taisen game, both in terms of gameplay and plot. Unless you played Original Generations, you won’t even notice the references, actually.
Tetris DS	Puzzle	You all know how this works by now, you faggots. This version is so popular it may as well be the DS's only e-sport, gauging how many insane koreans and wapanese you will find in it. Play through tons of 8-bit Nintendo-themed worlds in the main endless mode. Play through twists on the Tetris formula in others. There's even a Balloon Fight-themed touchscreen mode! Hell yes, this could very well be mankind's greatest achievement. It follows the 'Tetris Guideline', if that matters.
The World Ends With You	Action / RPG	An offbeat action RPG featuring dual-screen real-time combat where you must control two characters at once. The urban-based plot is refreshing and unique. Mixes up conventional RPG mainstays, thanks to stuff like: changing battle aspects at will, fashion trends affecting your attacks and clothing stats, mind-reading in mass crowds, and getting stronger by digesting various foods. The main story is short, but it features lots of content and an fairly long post-game story. It's experimental, and not "perfect", but still a must play.. One of the best games on the system by far.
Theresia	Adventure / Survival Horror	A first-person survival horror adventure with an amnesiac protagonist; the story is somewhat better than you'd think. Although it looks great, the endless backtracking through identical corridors and entirely unpredictable, health-sapping traps make it hard to recommend for the impatient. After the first story is finished, a second, shorter tale is unlocked.
Time Hollow	Adventure / Visual Novel	You receive a pen that lets you fuck with the past, including preventing accidents. However, just like every other "tamper with the past" plot, everything starts going haywire. A good game, but pretty damn short and simple. Oddly enough, the new game+ can be beaten in "pretty much five minutes", due to a plot loophole.
Touch Detective 1 & 2 ½ (US) / Mystery Detective 1 & 2 ½ (EU)	Adventure / Visual Novel	The adventures of Mackenzie, a young girl that aims to be a detective like her late father with the help of Funghi, her oddly shaped pet and companion. It has cute visuals and nice humour, but it got average review scores because the puzzles are sometimes a bit too far-fetched and the interface can be counterintuitive. Worth a try if you like the genre. The 2nd game is a bit longer, has some interface tweaks and a bigger cast including some returning characters. Sequel confirmed for 3DS, no words on a western localization. Also on iOS and Android.
Trace Memory (US) / Another Code: Two Memories (EU)	Adventure	A short but fun adventure game. Usual point and click designs are present whilst throwing in some puzzles to make use of the DS's features. The North American version, Trace Memory takes some liberties with the translation, and makes Ashley into an American (She was British in the original, but whatever). If you like it, check out the sequel on Wii, titled Another Code: R – A Journey into Lost Memories - it's less creepy, has more puzzles, and more likeable characters. You can check a trailer here
Trauma Center: Under the Knife 1 & 2	Sim	Operate on mutant viruses. Plot is wacky and over the top, and the gameplay is excellent, incorporating some of the best uses for the DS's touch screen. The sequel is more polished, and has a MUCH more sensible difficulty level (whereas the first gets fucking impossible quite challenging). Surgery where you fight a spider prancing on a patient's heart. Said spider is also on fire. Sequel/spinoff/remakes are also on Wii.
Ultimate Mortal Kombat	Fighting	Surprisingly perfect acceptable arcade conversion of Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3, with excellent controls and local multiplayer. As an added bonus, it also features the Puzzle Kombat minigame from Mortal Kombat Deception.
Valkyrie Profile: Covenant of the Plume	RPG	A spin-off of the Valkyrie Profile series in the form of an SRPG with elements of the original battle system integrated in isometrically. Not as great as the originals, but still fun. It also has an original storyline where you aren't necessarily the good guy. Your actions can change the next chapter, the final boss and the ending. Story can be pretty depressing. Also the English in the game is early modern, which may be awesome or campy depending on your taste.
Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise	Virtual Life Sim	Based on the original and made by the same team who made Diddy Kong Racing DS. Has a lot of new features and new species of Pinatas.
Wario: Master of Disguise	Platformer	A quirky Wario game where you only use the directionals to control Wario, with every other function being done either with the stylus or by blowing on the mic. This time Wario can put on various costumes which grant him different abilities, all of which are activated by drawing patterns over his head with the stylus.
WarioWare: Touched!	Minigame / Puzzle	Wacky microgames. If you've played WarioWare before, you know what to expect. Utilizes the touchscreen for most of the microgame sets, rarely using the mic or buttons. The main game is surprisingly easy, but has oddly catchy music.
WarioWare D.I.Y.	Minigamea / Puzzle	This WW has a twist: It lets you create your own microgames from scratch! This is for game designing what Mario Paint is for creating fine art. Graphics, music, programming, it's all you. It also lets you download, upload, and share microgames over Wi-Fi. Includes 70+ pre-made microgames, 100+ pre-made music tracks, and 20+ tutorial microgames which help you learn the ropes, and all of the pre-mentioned can be edited to your choosing. Aside from customization (which takes a short while to learn), the single-player is a bit limited, so the longevity of this is dictated by your creativity and how much you download from online. DIY Showcase on the Wii has extra games, and ties in with this, so get that too, if you can.
Witch's Wish	Adventure / Visual Novel	Anon wants to be the little girl, and the little girl wants to be a witch in a town where only the rich can afford to. Not only is it cute, the music is charming and you can use "the story showcases certain social issues in a way that children can understand" as a flimsy excuse. Downsides are limited save points and the American release stripping out nearly all voice acting. Other than that, it's probably the cutest game you'll ever play.
Worms: Open Warfare 2	Strategy	Classic Worms gameplay adapted for the DS. Open Warfare 2 is recommended over the first installment, as it fixes nearly all of the faults of its predecessor. Plays good, looks good, plenty of weapons and maps to keep things interesting, and has a fair amount of customizability. The multiplayer experience is solid, but the community is rather small, and like many DS games, it can take a while to find a game. Also available on the PSP.
Yoshi's Island DS	Platformer	A sequel of the original Yoshi's Island on the SNES. It's not as good as the original, but can be pretty fun when you get used to the new mechanics. The blind-spot between the screen can be a pain in the ass though.
Yu-Gi-Oh! World Championship 2011 Over The Nexus	Card Games	The most recent entry in the World Tournament series, and a pretty good one at that.  This one has some of the (5D's wise) latest cards in the game.  Along with some nice extras and features, it turns out to be a really good way of learing the ropes as well as testing out custom decks and all that.  Obviously outdated as fuck thanks to Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal, but it's still the latest World Tournament game in the series.  World Tournament 2012 rumored to be on 3DS kek never happened, so this is the last and latest DS-based Yu-Gi-oh! game for all we know

Nintendo DSiWare

DSiware started with the DSi and continued with the 3DS. These are essentially small file-sized games to be played and stored digitally. Some are meant for quick-fire play, but others have more depth. Longevity varies per title, obviously.

If you have a DSi versus a 3DS, there's still plenty of games and options available. It will also be supported for a little while longer, so you might want to keep your eye out for some future releases anyway. Of course, the 3DS gets you charged sales tax, so there might be some perk to using DSi points for a little while longer.

DSiWare is downloadable and transferable with the 3DS. However, you won't be able to keep any of your save data (due to Nintendo's legal bullshit). That said, all you have to do is download a free application off of the DSiWare Shop (the 3DS already has the means to do so without said app). Have both plugged in (or you'll get a fuckton of warning messages), set up a full or custom transfer (the full is much more convenient), and Pikmin will transfer all your data. If you get an error message, whatever was in the middle of being transferred will have to re-transfer, but everything else will already be sent over, and won't start all the way over.

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