Nintendo has yet again released another handheld gaming device. However this one could be the mark of its downfall, allowing other competitors into the handheld gaming market. For the simple fact that unlike all of Nintendo’s other gaming systems, this one is by far the most questionable. As the proud owner of a Gameboy Advance I couldn’t wait to see how they would raise the bar, or attempt to in this case. For starters, the Dual Screen is unlike any other handheld in the fact it possesses two three-inch Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) screens, which can produce a 3D view of the playing field in the various games for it.

The down side is the 3D rendering that the DS performs isn’t that much better than the Nintendo 64. In addition to the two LCD screens, the lower one possesses touch screen technology. On the box and in commercials, Nintendo has constantly pushed the "touch me" slogan for its system. Now, after pushing aside the crude jokes and doing as asked; touching the lower screen does interact with the various games in surprising ways. To go along with this new feature, Nintendo has included the PictoChat software with the DS. This software allows the player to draw, write, and send messages wirelessly to another unit. However, while the touch screen is pretty cool, it’s just not practical for all games. Oil from your fingers eventually builds up on the screen, reducing its sensitivity.

I decided to give the DS a test run by playing the DS’ demo software Metroid Prime: First Hunt. While the opening cinematic was highly, impressive, seeing how it was a handheld showing Computer Graphics (CG) style animation, that feeling wore off rapidly when it came to game play. Once I got used to the fact that the game was 3D based and not 2D, it became a pain to maneuver the character in the game. Since there was no analog stick (which is a huge blunder in its design) it meant I had to rely on the d-pad (the d-pad is the cross on the controller or system its arrows indicate left up down right and left) for navigation purposes, meaning up moves the character forward, down moves her back.

After getting used to the odd controls when it came to a combat situation, I instinctively went to the B button to shoot, and to my surprise, instead of the character shooting blaster the character rolls into a ball. So after mashing the A, B, and the L and R buttons, I was at a loss as to how to shoot. It was then that I noticed the stylus hanging at the unit’s side; upon picking up and tapping the lower screen experimentally, the character than miraculously shot. I was quite proud of myself upon this discovery but that joy soon turned to horror as I realized how bad the touch screen system was. The unit size and bulk made trying to hold it in one hand and maneuver with the d-pad and tap the lower screen with the stylus highly impractical. You literally have to run to a corner in the game and set up camp, then stab the lower screen rapidly with the stylus to shoot them all.

On a positive note, the DS did manage to impress me with its built in microphone system. Although the two games I used to test the DS didn’t require the use of the microphone, it still looks promising. With a built-in microphone, opens the possibilities that there will be games created that rely on voice command and control. Imagine moving or directing your character by simply telling them what to do, instead of pushing buttons.

Also with this feature, plus the DS’s 802.11 wireless LAN (the industry standard used for wireless networking) it will be possible to talk to and play with other people in real time. Although the radius for the wireless gaming is only up to 100 meters, it is fairly impressive. In addition, the fact that up to 16 people can play off of one cartridge (game that goes into the unit) with this feature is highly impressive. And thankfully the DS comes equipped with the ability to go back a step and play Gameboy Advance games, via a separate slot in the back. But on the downside, the DS uses cartridges that are even smaller than the Gameboy Advances. Yes folks, you read correctly. The tiny cartridges just got even smaller thus drastically increasing the probability of misplacing them. Which is very bad considering the fact that their competitor Sony has abandoned the cartridge era, and moved up to the Universal Media Disc (UMD) meaning their games will be longer and hold much more information. Which raises the question of why Nintendo didn’t do the same thing and move up to a compact disc of some kind?

Overall I have to say I am very impressed with the sound quality of the DS. The stereo speakers located on both sides of the unit give me crisp crystal clear sound that is almost surround sound quality. This is surprising seeing how almost anyone who is used to a handheld is used to the annoying 8-16 bit "mono" style of sound. However the location of the speakers isn’t very well thought out. They’re located right at the points where your hands clasp the unit, muffling the sound. So to fully enjoy it you have to sort of lay it on a flat service and tap the keys, defeating the purpose of a handheld device.

All in all I am not overly impressed with DS, seeing how it costs a rather pricey $150 for basically a new age portable N 64. However, I will end up buying it due to the fact that I am a dedicated fan of "Zelda" and "Samus", two titles that belong exclusively to Nintendo. Otherwise, as it is, the DS would not make its way into my home.