11. Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift – Azza
It’s a Final Fantasy game. Of course we love it!
If you ever played Final Fantasy Tactics or Tactics Advance, you know exactly what to expect here. Everything is mostly the same aside from narrative and graphical changes.
The tactical gameplay is the same, as are the guild mechanics and the class system. The judges are also still around to change up the field and ruin your plans for the fight, should you choose to not read the rules beforehand.
The story, while set in Ivalice, is not a continuation of the previous games. Instead, the game features a new main character and narrative. Honestly, the game is more of the same great gameplay and writing that the original two games put out. If you loved those, you’ll love this as well.
12. Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time – Dave
This JRPG makes me wonder how much disrespect Luigi would get without the charisma bonus from his ungodly high stache stat
This game fucks. The sequel to the GBA’s Superstar Saga uses the power of the Nintendo DS to double the screens and the power of time travel to double the Mario Bros. The Mushroom Kingdom of the past is invaded by the sinister Shroobs, a race of evil alien fungi with designs on giving every resident a fate worse than death. Fortunately, Professor E. Gadd in the present happened to be experimenting with time travel at the time, so the adult Mario Bros. can give their baby counterparts a fighting chance.
The gameplay is fairly straightforward. Navigate the world using the four brothers, with the babies sometimes having to split up to solve puzzles. You’ll encounter classic enemies and fun shroob equivalents that will be overcome with turn-based combat that alludes to classic Mario fixtures: you can jump on enemies, use hammers like it’s Donkey Kong, and expendable items like fireflowers. You get bonuses for timing your attacks properly, and utilise badges for specific modifiers. It’s not overly cerebral, but it’s fun; you have plenty of options by the game’s end, and the dexterity required for the most powerful moves will keep you engaged.
It’s got a cute aesthetic, fun character interactions, enchanting music, and explores a darker tone than the standard Mario title. The comedy doesn’t reach the heights of some other Mario JRPGs, but it still presents a gripping battle between good and evil of a scope that wouldn’t be eclipsed until Mario decided to 3D platform IN SPACE.
13. Animal Crossing: Wild World – Melty
Man, that is 100% pure, fresh-squeezed, organic STUPIDITY, …!
Animal Crossing: Wild World was the first game I played in the franchise. Boy, was that one hell of an introduction for me. This game is so calming and serene, not even the bees can ruin the mood. Without even going into the music and the adorable characters, this game has the best parts of cosy gaming: fishing, collecting fossils, catching bugs, planting trees, and making friends. On top of this, the sass of the villagers is much more captivating than their island-life counterparts.
I can honestly say that AC: WW was an escape for me. I spent most of my childhood running around the town and clearing weeds. Do you remember when you were younger, and you’d stay up late playing your Game Boy or Nintendo DS, then hide it under your pillow when your parents walked by? This was the cartridge in my DS during those times.
I couldn’t contain my excitement when New Leaf was released, but I do have to say, it didn’t compare to Wild World in my eyes. This is where my love for Roald began, and when New Horizons was released on the Switch, my beloved Roald returned to me… and to make things better, he was my first islander. That being said, Wild World will always hold the lion’s share of my heart where Animal Crossing is concerned. It’s definitely a game to try out if you’ve never played it before.
14. Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy – Sean
Oh hi, Darth!
Most games on this list may be recommended due to their notable quality. This is not one of those games. I want to highlight Lego Star Wars II simply due to its sheer and utter brokenness.
Unlike the console versions, which are of a finished, high-quality experience, the DS version of The Original Trilogy is a buggy, broken mess that’s equal parts surreal and charming in its presentation. There are levels that simply cannot be finished, cutscenes with VERY strange direction, awkward platforming, and a host of quirks that make this a truly bizarre game. This is a game that’s worth playing just to experience the absurdity firsthand. A bit like a video game equivalent of The Room.
15. WarioWare: Touched! – Dave
Wario continues to be a shrewd businessman
It was inevitable that the Nintendo DS would also be host to its own microgame onslaught. It differs from the previous WarioWare games by making full use of the Nintendo DS’s features. You can utilise the stylus (and mic) to intuitively drag, draw, rub, cut, pick, and blow all sorts of stuff.
As is typical for a WarioWare game, the microgames (very brief, often mental minigames played one after another) are given context by the individual stories of the gaggle of weirdos who nominally associate with Wario. My favourites are disco dancer Jimmy T. and newcomer Ashley (the latter of which comes with her own Adams Family-esque theme song). If you clear enough microgames, you get to see how their day goes, and by that point, you’re in too deep and are playing for the love of the game.
A future DS entry, WarioWare: Do It Yourself, allows you to make your own microgames. If you have creative inclinations, it would be the perfect complement to the micromadness here.
16. The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass – Riley
Ship out, kid! Anchors aweigh!
One of the few direct sequels in The Legend of Zelda series, Phantom Hourglass takes place directly after the events of Wind Waker as Link and Tetra sail the Great Sea in search of New Hyrule. Link is thrust into a new adventure where he must save the ocean king and the archipelago that he resides in from a grave threat with the help of Ciela, a fairy that is suspiciously Navi-coded. You have to sail around the archipelago on the ship of the disgruntled sailor, Linebeck. As Link isn’t directly driving, he charts the course, and the vessel follows the path.
You can use this to purposefully traverse certain spots, avoiding enemy encounters, hitting salvaging points and secret areas and other sailors’ ships. Whilst not as free as the Great Sea, there’s plenty to find and explore in this smaller ocean, which makes it great for a handheld title. The puzzles in the dungeons make great use of the DS functionality, too: you can draw on maps, sketch paths for your tools and utilise the touch controls to make more precise movement and aiming possibilities. Whilst going back and forth to the Ocean King’s temple after every major dungeon can get a bit repetitive, there is a lot to love about this adventure.
If you’re finding yourself in the mood for some multiplayer, there is a mode built into the game where you and a buddy can compete to find and collect force shards and carry them to your safe area while avoiding the threats of the phantoms that roam the halls. Also, while salvaging, you can find ship parts to customise your ship; collecting all of a set grants a bonus, but which parts you get is random. So, if your friend has a ship part you need and vice versa, you can trade parts and both take advantage of fully matching ship bonuses!
17. Rhythm Heaven – Melty
Your cue was 8 minutes ago.
Before I get hailed as a rhythmic genius, I would like to preface this entry by confirming that I cannot get past the first level. However, growing up, I watched my younger sister play this game, and she was damned good at it. I wish I could play like she does, alas, it is not meant to be.
A game purely based on how well you can keep time with rhythm challenges, Rhythm Heaven includes fun visuals as well as sounds that tickle parts of your brain. This game is played by holding the DS sideways and using your stylus to swipe in time with the sound. To make things even more challenging, the screen will sometimes go black, making you concentrate purely on audio-based cues… It’s probably not the best game for hearing-impaired people.
18. Hotel Dusk: Room 215 – James
Best not check Room 1408
To cater towards the more casual non-gamer audience, the DS had a lot of point-and-click, adventure, and visual novel puzzle-style games. Hotel Dusk: Room 215 showed that the book experience could be transformed into something never quite seen before. You play as Kyle Hyde, a detective looking for his missing partner, Bradley. He arrives at the hotel and checks into Room 215. What follows are narrative twists and punchy writing to keep you entertained from start to finish.
Hotel Dusk flips the script with the way you hold the console. You hold the console sideways like a book. This was an ingenious idea, allowing those more used to reading books to feel more familiar. The art style is also very distinct. Character portraits look drawn with pencil, shaded in black and white. The environments are 3D and in colour, but are consistent with the style and don’t feel out of place.
If you’re into visual novels, give this one a go. There’s a sequel on the DS called Last Window: The Secret of Cape West. I haven’t played that one yet, but I’ve heard good things.
19. Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time/Darkness/Sky – Sean
Gotta catch ’em all (all of the feelings)
The first Pokémon Mystery Dungeon games proved that taking the cuddly beasts and throwing them into randomly generated dungeons with rogue-like elements was a formula that could work. When the sequel washed up on our shores some two years later, it was confirmed that the formula could work well.
The gameplay is more or less the same as it was before. After taking a personality quiz, the player is assigned an avatar of a Pokémon and then given the option of choosing a partner. Following that, the pair of you gradually build your team and progress through many, many floors of dungeons to complete whatever tasks you take on. You have to manage not only your HP but your own hunger too, so preparation and good inventory management are essential.
Even when the main game is ‘finished’, there’s a good chunk of postgame content to get through, including gruelling dungeons that seemingly never end, with often difficult boss fights at the climax. Clawing your way through 100 floors of deadly encounters only to beat the boss and then not offer to join you just…. stings.
The story is the most well-known aspect of the games, which is a sentence that is only rarely ever associated with Pokémon. Though Rescue Team had its moments, Explorers really draws the onion knife on a number of occasions, and is packed with twists and turns that draws the player into a truly engaging story. I can never look at Grovyle and Dusknoir the same way again.
But seriously, screw that escort mission with Cresselia during the postgame. SCREW. IT.
20. Pokémon Dash – Melty
A competition of pure Balloonacy
A Pokémon racing game? Sign me up. Though you’re only able to play as a Pikachu, the other selection of Pokémon that appear in this game is elite. As it was released at the same time as Gen III, we get each of the starters racing alongside you, as well as Meowth, Munchlax, Bulbasaur, and Teddiursa. Wait… Munchlax? Yes, Munchlax! This Gen IV Pokémon appears for the very first time in Pokémon Dash, despite having one of the lowest base Speed stats.
Whilst traversing the different terrains in this game, your goal is to beat the other Pokémon in a race to the finish. These races include walking across water, navigating muddy plains, cutting through quicksand, fumbling through forests, and even flying in a hot-air balloon. With the connectivity between Pokémon Dash and the main GBA games in the franchise, you get a chance to contest on a course shaped like your main team’s Pokémon. I remember consistently racing atop my Swampert… Though I always secretly wished that if anyone were to beat me, it would be Bulbasaur or Teddiursa.
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