Highlights
- Sonic Rush Adventure is a great example of how good 2D Sonic used to be on handhelds at the time, with new elements like sea travel and minigames.
- Super Princess Peach is an underrated platformer with unique gimmicks like Peach's talking umbrella and the use of emotions to unlock abilities.
- Super Mario 64 DS is a good remake of one of the best platformers of all time, despite its control system limitations on the DS.
Nintendo DS is one of the most successful gaming systems of all time. It managed to turn millions of people who had never touched a videogame console before into casual players, and while many of them would subsequently leave the gaming world behind, many others embraced gaming thanks to this console, and still have fond memories of it to this day.
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Due to its success, the DS spawned a vast library of games. Surprisingly though, there were not many great platformers, a genre which is usually closely associated with Nintendo. However, that does not mean that the system doesn't have any true must-haves for platformer fans, as there are more than a few gems to be found on the system.
6 Sonic Rush Adventure
- Release date: 2007
While Sonic was struggling with its main titles on home consoles at the time, he was having a good time on handheld. This was thanks to Dimps, the studio responsible for the great Sonic Advance trilogy on Game Boy Advance, which was followed by the Sonic Rush titles on DS. Sonic Rush Adventure is rightfully considered to be the better one of the two, and it's easy to see why.
The game takes everything its predecessor had and adds some new elements, like its heavy reliance on sea travel as a theme, something which is also adapted into minigames during the adventure. Overall, the game isn't much different from other games in the series, but it's still one of the best examples of how good 2D Sonic used to be on handhelds at the time.
5 Super Princess Peach
- Release date: 2006
Super Princess Peach is the first game where Princess Peach is finally given the role of sole protagonist, even if she was already playable in other games before. This is a traditional 2D platformer where, in an unexpected turn of events for the series, Peach must save Mario and Luigi from the hands of Bowser. While the game is a basic platformer at its core, there are a few gimmicks that make Super Princess Peach stand out from the masses.
First, there's Perry, Peach's talking umbrella which plays a pivotal role in defeating enemies and helping the princess traverse levels. Second, displayed on the bottom screen there are four emotions: joy, gloom, rage, and calm. Each of them unlocks unique abilities, and players need to use them accordingly to solve puzzles and defeat some enemies. Sure, the game may be far from being a classic in the genre, but Super Princess Peach is still a surprisingly underrated platformer.
4 New Super Mario Bros.
New Super Mario Bros. was the beginning of the homonymous subseries, and it was also the first 2D mainline Mario game after more than 15 years. The game offers a different visual style for the series compared to past games, which was completely new at the time, and it brings back many classic features of 2D Mario games. There are also some new power-ups, like Mega Mushroom and Mini Mushroom, which can alter Mario's size for a brief period of time.
The game was followed by three sequels, which improved on its original formula. While this is true, the first New Super Mario Bros. is nonetheless a great platforming experience, and it can still provide some unique features due to the fact that some things, like the aforementioned Mega and Mini Mushrooms, were never brought back in the same capacity in the series.
3 Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure
- Release date: 2009
Henry Hatsowrth in the Puzzling Adventure is one of the most unique platformer games on the system, as it took full advantage of the DS' dual screen. On the bottom screen, players control the titular Henry Hatsowrth as he traverses 2D levels in a traditional action-platformer style, defeating enemies, overcoming obstacles, stocking up collectibles, and so on. The peculiar gimmick here is that every defeated enemy is sent to the bottom screen, where the game transforms into a puzzle game.
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Every defeated enemy is transformed into a block on the bottom screen. Lines of blocks continue to rise up over time until they reach the top, at which point corresponding enemies are revived into the level. To prevent this, players must play a "connect 3" puzzle of sorts on the bottom screen, thus preventing enemies from respawning. While this is far from being a complex and well-rounded puzzle game, it's still a nice little gimmick that makes this game feel different from every other platformer, and it's one of those games that could probably only exist on DS.
2 Kirby Super Star Ultra
- Release date: 2008
Kirby Super Star Ultra is a remake of the classic Kirby Super Star, which was already widely considered one of the best games in the Kirby series. This version adds four new main game modes, along with a complete visual overhaul of the adventure and full-motion cutscenes, which easily make this the definitive edition of the game.
It's a shame that Kirby Super Star Ultra is nowadays becoming more and more rare, and it will probably be difficult to find a copy at a reasonable price unless the game is somehow brought back on another system. Other than that, this game is a must-have for every Kirby fan, and for every hardcore DS gamer as well.
1 Super Mario 64 DS
- Release date: 2005
Super Mario 64 DS is an enhanced remake of the classic Nintendo 64 title. While the game has the same levels and setting as the original Super Mario 64, there are also many differences, which mainly come from the fact that there are now four playable characters (Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Yoshi) instead of one. Each of the playable characters has unique abilities, which will be necessary in order to get some of the game's Stars (some of which are hidden in very difficult stages).
What prevents the game from being an overall improvement over the original is the control system. Nintendo DS lacked a proper analog stick, which forced the developers to focus the game's control system around the touch screen and D-pad, neither of which is ideal for a 3D platformer. Despite that, the game is still a good remake of one of the best platformers of all time, and it should be played by every platformer fan.