Tidman’s Take: Games I’m Still Playing

So, if you listen to the podcast, you may know that Iregularly eschew the hottest of new releases to pick up a game I’d beaten– or at least stopped playing– awhile back. For example, I play through the Game Boy Zelda games about once every other year because they still stand the test of time as truly excellent games. So as we come to the end of DS’s lifespan, I’ve gotten all pensive over what games I’ll end up coming back to that released on the system. Please note, while Shantae: Risky’s Revenge and Cave Story both on DSiWare probably would go on this list, since I’ll be able to transfer those games to 3DS, they are, unfortunately disqualified. So, without any particular order, here are the DS games I’ll probably still be playing in a decade:

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Treasure World

Who would have thought I would have ended up so enamored of this non-game after such a short time? I gave it high marks, making it one of my favorite ideas for a DS title: a game based on the real world, going places and finding Wi-Fi signals. Yes, it was just a glorified Wi-Fi finder, but the collect-them-all aspect of the game has kept me coming back on-and-off ever since I originally put the game down.

Meteos

One of my absolute, all-time favorite puzzle games ever, even surpassing other notable puzzle game Tetris DS. What put this match-three puzzler head and shoulders above the rest was its fantastic world concept in which each individual world has a different gravity effect on removing the tiles from your screen. Truly an innovative game that I plan to pick up again and again, even though I’ve unlocked everything in the game.

Mario Kart DS

There’s a lot to be said about the Wii version of Mario Kart. It took the best parts of the series and threw them all into one neat package with stellar online. But Wii was the second to get it right. Mario Kart DS was, and possibly still is, the definitive version of Mario Kart better than any other version created. It had class and flair, and it had the most seamless version of an online system that DS would see. Truly, Mario Kart DS will be a game I come back to again and again, even with future installments on the horizon. Hey, I still play Mario Kart 64, from time to time.

Pokémon SoulSilver… er… White

Pokémon is one of those series that just keeps me coming back for more and more. I’ve maxed out the clock on more than one version, so I’m sure I’ll keep playing the latest and greatest version out there right now: SoulSilver. At least, that’s what I’d be saying if not for the fact that Nintendo is releasing an unheard of new version on DS just weeks before 3DS makes the old hardware superfluous. Now, I haven’t played Pokémon White yet, but just from what I’ve seen of it, the game looks to be just what I need to keep me coming back for my Poké-fix. I really look forward to getting my hands on the game when it releases next week. Until then I’ll just have to dig out SoulSilver to get some of those exclusive event Pokémon.

Final Fantasy IV

Embarrassing fact: I have now owned this game on two different systems and have yet to beat it. On the SNES version I at least made it to the moon before putting it away and never coming back, but I think I’m stuck at Castle Baron this time getting ready to face off against the legions of Golbez. The fact that I’m not even half way through the game should spur me on to completing it this time, yet it keeps getting pushed aside in favor of more DSiWare fun or another round of treasure hunting. So, yeah, I’ll probably still be playing this game in 10 years, because it’s fantastic, but the bigger question is, will I have beaten it yet?

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So there you have it, the list of games that I plan on coming back to even though there’s a shiny, 3D tomorrow on the horizon. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t other games that I’ll play again. I’m sure I’ll end up picking up The World Ends With You again, not to mention the Zelda games which were both excellent. What do you think you’ll still be playing in a few years? Be sure to leave a response in the comments.