[DS] Looking for slow, non-frantic games

Joe Dizzy

Hello all,

I recently picked up a DS Lite and am a little overwhelmed by the insane number of games out there. I've already copy&pasted slash000's "recommended DS games"-list and have been keeping an eye out for them. But right now I'm looking for something to balance out Elite Beat Agents. That is to say, I'm looking for something that is a bit more easy-going yet still allows for small gaming bursts of 5-10 minutes spread out over the day (which is how I'm doing the whole handheld thing).

Most of all I want a game that doesn't require precise usage of the stylus, as I'm playing while on the bus and that's not a particularly stable gaming environment. (EBA is pretty much unplayable.)

I'd like to give strategy games another go, which has always been a genre I've been curious about but never really managed to make *work* for me. Ogre Battle (SNES) was far too complex for me and I've yet to play a Sim City game where my town doesn't stagnate on the Small Town/Village level.

Can you recommend a strategy/simulation/slow-burn game for somebody who's completely clueless about them? What's a good gateway game? (I've got Advance Wars DS on ebay 2 weeks ago, but I'm still waiting for that to be delivered. D:)

LewieP

Professor Layton so hard

urahonky

Puzzle Quest is a good suggestion, since you can do a match in about 5-10 minutes.

finalbroadcast

Advance Wars, and FF Tactics Advance 2.

Spoit

Picross is a really good game for short bursts

Antishow

I just recently discovered the Phoenix Wright series. It's pretty damn awesome.

Pureauthor

You want The World Ends With You. Trust me.

Spoiler:

I vote for Advance Wars and Phoenix Wright.

harvest

Anno 1701 is good on the DS. It's a game about colonizing the New World where you get different goals like have X people at Y civilization level, or collect/trade for/produce Z kinds of resource. You have lots of city planning, some logistics, some very simple military combat, and exploration and it's easy to play.

EDIT: The World Ends With You rocks but hooooooly shit it's the opposite of what you're looking for.

Sheep

Bust a Move DS.

Pureauthor

Ooh, ooh! Trauma Centre!

Spoiler:

There's a new sRPG out called Rondo of Swords. It's pretty unique. Might wanna give it a look.

Redlance

Hotel dusk:Room 215 is a fun adventure game. It does use the stylus but it's not quick fast paced movements.
Shiren the wanderer is a turn based rouge-like where you can save anywhere.

Sorenson

Antishow wrote: »

I just recently discovered the Phoenix Wright series. It's pretty damn awesome.

Not for short bursts, it ain't. That there franchise is the kind of sleep cycle breakers: t'is the gift, the curse, the legacy.

I'll heartily second Professor Layton, and Animal Crossing is also pretty easy to start and stop on a dime.

Lunker

Spoit wrote: »

Picross is a really good game for short bursts

urahonky wrote:

Puzzle Quest is a good suggestion, since you can do a match in about 5-10 minutes.

I'll cosign both of these, although it's more like 5 to 45 minutes for Puzzle Quest matches. But since it's turn-based, you can just close the lid to sleep at any point, pick it up again at your leisure and you won't have missed a thing. You might also like NY Times Crosswords, although it's quite hard; I know there's a Crosswords DS out now or in the near future that might be easier.

Sheep

Ooh, ooh! Trauma Centre!

What part of this game was ever slow and non frantic?

Feels Good Man

Professor Layton is pretty much perfect for this sort of situation, I would imagine.

Speed Racer

That was the joke I think.

Also let me toss my vote in for Phoenix Wright and Hotel Dusk. Zelda and New Super Mario are also probably both worth looking into.

ph blake

Get Rondo of Swords. Features great turn based strategy and a combat system that is pretty easy to pick up but has a ton of depth behind it. It also has a nice quicksave system that lets you save anytime during battles. It is a pretty tough game, but very rewarding. Might be a bit hard to find, but if you can it is definately worth it.

Ryadic

Redlance wrote: »

Hotel dusk:Room 215 is a fun adventure game.

Limed because this is so true. One of the best games I've played on the DS. It's just so much fun. You use the stylus and at times does require that you touch something pretty accurately, but there is never a rush to do it fast.

Senshi

I think anything that has a story that requires your attention (Phoenix Wright, Hotel Dusk) might not be the best idea if you're gonna be playing the game in short bursts. They are definitely fantastic games if you can devote an entire evening to them once in a while. Really good, in fact. Like, you should be giving evenings to your DS already.

For shorter bursts, try Advance Wars (Days of Ruin was so good <3). Layton has been mentioned before and is SO up your alley--just close the lid in the middle of anything and open again to play.

MinionOfCthulhu

Ryadic wrote: »

Redlance wrote: »

Hotel dusk:Room 215 is a fun adventure game.

Limed because this is so true. One of the best games I've played on the DS. It's just so much fun. You use the stylus and at times does require that you touch something pretty accurately, but there is never a rush to do it fast.

Isn't it pretty much impossible to find now?

Speed Racer

Hotel Dusk has a mildly complicated story, true, but it also has journal entries that you can catch yourself up with pretty quickly. Also the notebook.

Ryadic

MinionOfCthulhu wrote: »

Ryadic wrote: »

Redlance wrote: »

Hotel dusk:Room 215 is a fun adventure game.

Limed because this is so true. One of the best games I've played on the DS. It's just so much fun. You use the stylus and at times does require that you touch something pretty accurately, but there is never a rush to do it fast.

Isn't it pretty much impossible to find now?

Plenty of copies on Ebay for a reasonable price. If all else fails, Ebay is the place to go.

KrunkMcGrunk

Phoenix Wright doesn't lend itself to short bursts. Also, if you aren't a fan of Anime, stay away from PW.

New Super Mario Bros may be a good choice for you. I think it auto-saves between levels, and a typical Mario level is like 2-3 minutes long.

Mariokart DS might be a good choice. You can do challenges and time trial races that take about 5 minutes. No hope for a Grand Prix though. And the tougher Grand Prixs will make you swear your ass off, so it's not really relaxing. Fucking blue shells.

The_Scarab

Hotel Dusk.

But dont ever stop playing it for more than a day or two or you will be completely lost when you come back to it.

Pancake

No one ever talks about it, but Age of Empires on the DS is pretty much the only DS game I ever play anymore.

It's a turn-based strategy game kind of like medieval Advance Wars, but better because it's just better and you should listen to me because I know these things.

MundaneSoul

Lots of good suggestions here, though I'd make one caution.

I love Puzzle Quest, but it does require precise stylus use and may be a bit too touchy for a bus ride. There have been a few times I've accidentally pulled an illegal move without meaning to, and that was in a stable environment.

Pancake

MundaneSoul wrote: »

Lots of good suggestions here, though I'd make one caution.

I love Puzzle Quest, but it does require precise stylus use and may be a bit too touchy for a bus ride. There have been a few times I've accidentally pulled an illegal move without meaning to, and that was in a stable environment.

You forgot that Puzzle Quest also actively hates you and tries to cause you pain and suffering in the hopes you'll end your own life.

The_Scarab

Pancake wrote: »

MundaneSoul wrote: »

Lots of good suggestions here, though I'd make one caution.

I love Puzzle Quest, but it does require precise stylus use and may be a bit too touchy for a bus ride. There have been a few times I've accidentally pulled an illegal move without meaning to, and that was in a stable environment.

You forgot that Puzzle Quest also actively hates you and tries to cause you pain and suffering in the hopes you'll end your own life.

And it killed bejewelled and stole its skin

Cantido

I've yet to find the original Pheonix Wright. Where are you people finding your copies? I've given up on finding Tetris DS. I dont have that much money.

I just finished the Campaign on Advance Wars. I cant seem to get Worldwide working. Is there no longer an online community?

Pancake

Cantido wrote: »

I've yet to find the original Pheonix Wright. Where are you people finding your copies? I've given up on finding Tetris DS. I dont have that much money.

I just finished the Campaign on Advance Wars. I cant seem to get Worldwide working. Is there no longer an online community?

I imported mine from the Japans but I can't remember what site it was from. The Japanese versions of all the Phoenix Wright games have an English language option so importing is very possible even if you don't speak a heathen Asian language.

Joe Dizzy

Thanks for the suggestions so far. Most of the stuff I've been keeping an eye on anyway. But the repeated mention of Hotel Dusk has moved that one up on my list a bit.

Are there any good GBA games I should be on the lookout for?

Senshi

GBA games? Riviera, Final Fantasy VI (I should think. I mean, what the hell, it was sex for the SNES), etc.

GOLDEN SUN. GOLDEN SUN ONE AND GOLDEN SUN TWO. THESE GAMES.

Glal

Senshi wrote: »

GBA games? Riviera, Final Fantasy VI (I should think. I mean, what the hell, it was sex for the SNES), etc..

SwashbucklerXX

I have found Animal Crossing, Rune Factory, and Pokemon to be excellent games for playing on public transportation.

BTP

Hello all,

I recently picked up a DS Lite and am a little overwhelmed by the insane number of games out there. I've already copy&pasted slash000's "recommended DS games"-list and have been keeping an eye out for them. But right now I'm looking for something to balance out Elite Beat Agents. That is to say, I'm looking for something that is a bit more easy-going yet still allows for small gaming bursts of 5-10 minutes spread out over the day (which is how I'm doing the whole handheld thing).

Most of all I want a game that doesn't require precise usage of the stylus, as I'm playing while on the bus and that's not a particularly stable gaming environment. (EBA is pretty much unplayable.)

Well, taking all of that into consideration, let's hope this is a good enough list for you.

Uses D-Pad:
New Super Mario Bros.
Mario Kart DS
Super Mario 64 DS
Polarium Advance (GBA)
Mario Golf: Advance Tour (GBA)
Pac-Man Collection (GBA)

Uses Stylus:
Polarium
Clubhouse Games
Brain Age series (even if only for Sudoku)
New Super Mario Bros. mini-games*
Super Mario 64 DS mini-games*

* Quite a few of the same mini-games are in both games. I'm just putting this out there since back in the day, people were going "It's worth it for the mini-games alone, man!"

Uses both D-Pad and Stylus:
Bust-A-Move DS (given choice to use one or the other)
Phoenix Wright series (can use either at any time)
Tetris DS (depends on the mode you're in)

Regarding Polarium and Polarium Advance:
- Please note that I haven't actually played Polarium Advance, so I don't know how the additional stuff in that game compared to the original is like. What I do know is that custom games made in the original Polarium can be used in Polarium Advance and vice-versa, so I figure it's worth a shot. Besides, it was made to be played on a GB Micro anyway, so it's should be awesome for "on-the-go/few minutes of spare time" moments.
- As for the original, knowing what you said about EBA being unplayable, you could have issues with this game as well in just drawing the lines you want to draw. However, if you tap the ends of where you want your lines to go, it will work in the same way as if you drew the line. Example: Imagine you wanted to draw a square. Drawing the four lines would obviously work, but if you're on a bumpy road, you can also just tap on the four corners of where your square would be in the same order you would draw the lines.

Speed Racer

I think I may be the only person who hated Golden Sun.

freakish light

Mushroom Pie wrote: »

I think I may be the only person who hated Golden Sun.

Probably not, from what I've read around here. Can't remember specific examples. I, myself, can't remember anything about the game except that I think I beat 1 and made it part of the way through 2. Otherwise, it's a complete blank in my mind.

You can get all the Final Fantasy games I-VI between the DS and GBA, and they're not particularly fast-paced, though the random battles make me want to snap the fucking thing. I'm partial to the two Metroid GBA games as well.

MinionOfCthulhu

Mushroom Pie wrote: »

I think I may be the only person who hated Golden Sun.

Do you hate Golden Sun?
Yes/No

>Yes

Ohhh, you're being silly. You really meant to say 'no'. Let's continue as if you answered the way we wanted you to.

harvest

I never played Golden Sun because it seemed to have this half-hour long wall of text before you ever got control of the character, and then it had a few more 20-minute long walls of text before you got to ever kill anything. This may be hyperbole.

Stover

Kirby's Canvas Curse if you can find it.

GoodOmens

Spoit wrote: »

Picross is a really good game for short bursts

This. Best gaming bargain out there.

I endorse several other games in this thread, but Picross should come first.