Official Wii/DS Q/A thread. FAQ in first post! Game reviews in second post!

[harleyquinn]

Man the DW keeps beeting me to all these questions....thats what happens when you don't actually work at work!

THK

I do work. I just have time to stop by here on my break...yep...that's it.

 

[Mainebound]

Can anyone tell me whether it is still hard to find a WII?

I looked online last night (Amazon, Best Buy, etc.) and it seemed I could only find $359 packages (bundles) or "sold out".

Is the WII really $359?

We would like to get one for our boys for the holidays but I am afraid if I wait they will not be available.

Thank you!

 

[Gillian]

Can anyone tell me whether it is still hard to find a WII?

I looked online last night (Amazon, Best Buy, etc.) and it seemed I could only find $359 packages (bundles) or "sold out".

Is the WII really $359?

We would like to get one for our boys for the holidays but I am afraid if I wait they will not be available.

Thank you!

I was never able to find one online, but they have been keeping them in stock at my locall Target. Sometimes you have to go the old fashioned route. Seriously, they're not super hard to find anymore, but I'd look now.

 

[Gillian]

DS lite screen protectors - my son is 7, I bought him a set of screen protectors. He couldn't tell. I can, but it still works really well. I cleaned the screens well before attaching them. I am not sure what brand ours are, but Nintendo sells their own, and I've been happy with everything they make. I figure it's worth it for $5.

 

[harleyquinn]

Can anyone tell me whether it is still hard to find a WII?

I looked online last night (Amazon, Best Buy, etc.) and it seemed I could only find $359 packages (bundles) or "sold out".

Is the WII really $359?

We would like to get one for our boys for the holidays but I am afraid if I wait they will not be available.

Thank you!

No, the Wii is $249. Don't buy a bundle unless you want EVERYthing it comes with. Some of them are fine, but don't expect any kind of deal. They are almost always the total cost of the full price items.

There has been a rash of systems available online, but you usually have to pay shipping.

Right now your best bet is to go to whatever store has the system advertised in the Sunday paper. I did this a couple of weeks ago for my parents' Wii. We didn't get there until about 1.5 hours after they opened and they still had plenty.

Make sure everyone you know knows that you want them to pick up the system for you if they see one.

Keep an eye on these boards. People usually post when they find one online.

Good luck!

DS lite screen protectors - my son is 7, I bought him a set of screen protectors. He couldn't tell. I can, but it still works really well. I cleaned the screens well before attaching them. I am not sure what brand ours are, but Nintendo sells their own, and I've been happy with everything they make. I figure it's worth it for $5.

See? I don't know everything! I agree about buying Nintendo's version if you can. Or just ask the guys at Game Stop which is the best one.

 

[fabfive]

Yes, you use the Wii-mote to drive. But there have been a couple of reviews on this thread that the game is really hard.



That's definitely the right age for DDR. It's pretty much like every other DDR game out there. Lots of fun. http://wii.ign.com/objects/882/882328.html

I am also buying a Wii for my 3 children (boy 15, Girls 11 & 10) I am looking for what games to buy. I checked the internet and saw these: High School Musical (not released yet), Guitar Hero 3 and Game Party. Any thoughts on theses? Any others you would get instead?

We already have Guitar Hero & DDR on PS2 should I get something else instead?

 

[rae662000]

Can anyone tell me whether it is still hard to find a WII?

I looked online last night (Amazon, Best Buy, etc.) and it seemed I could only find $359 packages (bundles) or "sold out".

Is the WII really $359?

We would like to get one for our boys for the holidays but I am afraid if I wait they will not be available.

Thank you!

I just read somewhere that they are not expecting supply to meet demand, so if you want one, I would not wait. I know other people are reporting that they are finding them but, I don't see any when I am out. Although I have one I look at the games

Here is the article I found http://www.techspot.com/news/27273-nintendo-expects-wii-shortage-to-last-through-christmas.html

 

[harleyquinn]

I am also buying a Wii for my 3 children (boy 15, Girls 11 & 10) I am looking for what games to buy. I checked the internet and saw these: High School Musical (not released yet), Guitar Hero 3 and Game Party. Any thoughts on theses? Any others you would get instead?

We already have Guitar Hero & DDR on PS2 should I get something else instead?

Honestly? If you have those games for the PS2, I wouldn't buy the Wii version unless the kids are still playing them quite often.

HSM is a singing game. I think the girls might have fun with that one for a while.

By 'Game Party' do you mean Mario Party? I would suggest that one too.

Here's my list in order of importance for those ages (excluding GH and DDR).
1. Super Mario Galaxy
2. Wii Play (for the second controller)
3. Zelda
4. Rayman
5. HSM

What other games do they really like for the PS2? That will help me give you better suggestions!

I just read somewhere that they are not expecting supply to meet demand, so if you want one, I would not wait. I know other people are reporting that they are finding them but, I don't see any when I am out. Although I have one I look at the games

Here is the article I found http://www.techspot.com/news/27273-nintendo-expects-wii-shortage-to-last-through-christmas.html

Yes, there definitely will be a shortage. In fact there is one still right now. There have not been enough systems to keep up with the demand since it came out and it will get really bad again soon. But I still would not buy a bundle that has stuff I don't want until the beginning of November. I've seen and heard about enough systems available at local stores to not get panicked yet.

 

[rae662000]

Yes, there definitely will be a shortage. In fact there is one still right now. There have not been enough systems to keep up with the demand since it came out and it will get really bad again soon. But I still would not buy a bundle that has stuff I don't want until the beginning of November. I've seen and heard about enough systems available at local stores to not get panicked yet.

I completely agree, I wouldn't either. I was just unaware of the anticipated shortage for Christmas and if I was on the fence I would jump for a unit not a bundle now versus later.

 

[fabfive]

Honestly? If you have those games for the PS2, I wouldn't buy the Wii version unless the kids are still playing them quite often.

HSM is a singing game. I think the girls might have fun with that one for a while.

By 'Game Party' do you mean Mario Party? I would suggest that one too.

Here's my list in order of importance for those ages (excluding GH and DDR).
1. Super Mario Galaxy
2. Wii Play (for the second controller)
3. Zelda
4. Rayman
5. HSM

What other games do they really like for the PS2? That will help me give you better suggestions!



Yes, there definitely will be a shortage. In fact there is one still right now. There have not been enough systems to keep up with the demand since it came out and it will get really bad again soon. But I still would not buy a bundle that has stuff I don't want until the beginning of November. I've seen and heard about enough systems available at local stores to not get panicked yet.

No, actually is is on Target's website as Game Party for Nintindo Wii coming out on 11/7. What about Boogie?

 

[left210]

Everyone I've ever seen is a complete waste. They cut down on the sensitivity of the touch screen and bubble up. The hard cases that fit around the outside of the case are okay, but unecessary for all but the most reckless (I can't think of a better word) of owners.

Of course since I feel that way about them, I've never tried one myself so hopefully someone has a good one that has worked for them. i've definitely seen more than my share of cracked, scratched, utterly abused DSs, so I understand the need.

Thanks for the info. DS7 does take care of his GBA & is very careful when he plays his Dads PSP; however, he has dropped his GBA on occasion and I didnt know how fragile the DS was and whether it would be good to get one of these cases. I do think I will try the screen protector because I have seen some really abused screens and maybe that will help.

Any recommendations on good games for 7 yr old boy for DS. He has tons of games for his GBA that he can play on it but would like to get him a new DS game so he can use the two screens. Thanks so much.

 

[geetey]

male + 7 = Pokemon

At least that seems to be the trend here! Diamond or Pearl are the DS versions. They can also play any of the Advance games in the DS. Honestly, my ds and all of his friends play the pokemon games.

 

[left210]

male + 7 = Pokemon

At least that seems to be the trend here! Diamond or Pearl are the DS versions. They can also play any of the Advance games in the DS. Honestly, my ds and all of his friends play the pokemon games.

Are any of the Pokemon games better than the other? Which one should I get? Great suggestion- he loves Pokemon.

 

[harleyquinn]

I completely agree, I wouldn't either. I was just unaware of the anticipated shortage for Christmas and if I was on the fence I would jump for a unit not a bundle now versus later.

Jump! Jump!

No, actually is is on Target's website as Game Party for Nintindo Wii coming out on 11/7. What about Boogie?

Well, I obviously haven't heard of it! lol Boogie is supposed to be cool, but I would recommend you rent that one first if you can. I don't think it has a ton of lasting appeal. IGN gave it a 4.5 out of 10 which is a really horrible score. http://wii.ign.com/articles/812/812920p1.html I would definitely buy HSM before Boogie.

Game Party is only $20 and it looks like fun. Just be careful not to get too many mini game games (Wii Sports, Wii Play, Mario Party, Rayman, Wario Ware, Carnival games). They are fun for a little while, but don't have the lasting appeal of Zelda or Mario Galaxy or Zack and Wiki.

Thanks for the info. DS7 does take care of his GBA & is very careful when he plays his Dads PSP; however, he has dropped his GBA on occasion and I didnt know how fragile the DS was and whether it would be good to get one of these cases. I do think I will try the screen protector because I have seen some really abused screens and maybe that will help.

Any recommendations on good games for 7 yr old boy for DS. He has tons of games for his GBA that he can play on it but would like to get him a new DS game so he can use the two screens. Thanks so much.

I would definitely get him one of the hard outter cases that snap on then. I wouldn't call it fragile, but I've seen some cracked ones and it's worth the $5 or whatever to give them a try.

Are any of the Pokemon games better than the other? Which one should I get? Great suggestion- he loves Pokemon.

The only DS Pokemon game is Diamond/Pearl. It's the same game with one different legendary pokemon. So pick up one of those.

Another great game on its way for anyone who likes pokemon is Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker. DQ is one of my fravorite gaming franchises and this new game is going to add a lot of pokemon type things, while being enough different to warrant the purchase. There's a GREAT article about it in Nintendo Power this month. Ign has a little info: http://ds.ign.com/objects/682/682870.html#features

More suggestions: Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, Nintendogs, Any of the Mario Brothers games

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

male + 7 = Pokemon

At least that seems to be the trend here! Diamond or Pearl are the DS versions. They can also play any of the Advance games in the DS. Honestly, my ds and all of his friends play the pokemon games.

Yes, our DS7 is obsessed with Pokemon Diamond and Pearl. We also had to get some of the Game Boy games.

 

[left210]

More suggestions: Mario Kart, Animal Crossing, Nintendogs, Any of the Mario Brothers games

What is Nintendogs? Is it an actual game or is it like a pet dog where you feed it, etc.

 

[harleyquinn]

What is Nintendogs? Is it an actual game or is it like a pet dog where you feed it, etc.

Little of both. It's hard to really give it it's due by just saying it's a pet sim game. You train your dog to do tricks and have competitions with it. It responds to your voice only. The kids are still obsessed with it and it's been out a long time. If you know your son won't train it, Don't bother with the game, but you should be able to pick up a used copy pretty cheaply. There are a whole bunch of different versions, but the only difference is the breeds of dogs you can get. The kids can link up and play with each others dogs (we do this at programs at my library. I'm a children's librarian). After they link a new breed will be available for them to adopt.

It really is a great, realistic super fun game.

 

[geetey]

I will have to look into the Dragon Quest games, but it seems nothing quite compares to the appeal of Pokemon. Both of my kids bought Spectrobes but that didn't last like a Pokemon game does. Personally I don't get the appeal, but do prefer characters that say more than just their own name. Pikachu!

 

[geetey]

DD and DS have Nintendogs and they don't 'care' for them anymore. I put Nintendogs in the same category as Tamagatchis. Maybe the game would be more fun for them (my kids) if they have more friends with the game? I think the technology was intriguing to them at first (voice recognition) but they are more into 'gaming'. (I hope this makes sense! )

Harleyquinn - have you played Puzzle Quest? If you like Bejeweled or puzzle games, it is a nice combo of puzzles and gaming. I just beat the game and DS is dying to get his hands on it (there are only 2 memory slots and DD already has one).

Yes, I have my own DS game but no DS.

ETA - the sad face is because their poor puppies don't get any play time not because the kids didn't like the game. I just reread what I posted and it looks like I am sad they don't like the game.

 

[harleyquinn]

I will have to look into the Dragon Quest games, but it seems nothing quite compares to the appeal of Pokemon. Both of my kids bought Spectrobes but that didn't last like a Pokemon game does. Personally I don't get the appeal, but do prefer characters that say more than just their own name. Pikachu!

That's totally true! there is nothing like Pokemon. The only Dragon Quest game that has the pokemon element is Joker, so don't bother with the others (they are Role Playing Games...well actually Pokemon is an RPG too, but DQ is very different from Poke). I think Joker is a great idea for slightly older kids (8-12) looking for something when they are done with D/P.

I stopped playing Pokemon about 2 games ago, but DH is still obsessed. He's trying to complete his Pokedex.