The Rom Report - Part 1: SNES Games on the DS

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I seem to be spending more time with SNES and NES Roms on my Nintendo DS rather than my 30-odd Nintendo DS games. So here's a report on what really works, what works somewhat, and what doesn't work at all.

The hardware I'm using:

• Dark Blue Nintendo DS
• R4DS Slot-1 Flashcart
• 1 gigabyte Kingston Micro SD card (made in Japan)

The homebrew software I've been using:

• SNEmulDS 0.6 for SNES games
• nesDS for NES games

So lets start with the SNES games that I've been playing:

• Chrono Trigger - Seems to run pretty well. Text alignment is just a teensy-weensy off but otherwise performed well during my brief time with the game.
  
  
• Contra III: The Alien Wars - There were graphical glitches in the main menu, but once I got past that, the game ran smoothly. Difficult games are not really my cup of tea, so, little play time as well.
  
  
• Earthbound - This game is probably the best of the lot, but like most games, it does have some kinks here and there when it is run using the emulator. The first boss fight with Frankie didn't go so well because a graphical glitch prevent me from seeing all the important stuff...only the pyschedelic background was showing.
  
  It was only after I fiddled with the emulator's graphics settings that I was able to continue with the game. And it's so far so good! Definately a must have.
  
  
• F-Zero - I always heard that this game was fast, but maybe the emulator and the small Nintendo DS screen were the cause of speed being lost in translation. It does run fine though.
  
  
• The Lost Vikings - Not working.
  
  
• Super Castlevania IV - A finicky game which runs when it wants to.
  
  
• Super Mario All Stars - This compilation of NES Mario games, re-skinned with graphics to take advantage of SNES hardware is one of my favourite games, along with Earthbound. This compilation consists of the three Mario games release in the US, Super Mario Bros 1, 2 and 3, and the previously unreleased (in the US) Japanese Super Mario Bros 2, now dubbed as Super Mario Bros: The Lost Levels.
  
  The save system for Super Mario Bros 3 is abit cooky, and you'll have to replay those levels that you have completed in a particular world again, so don't forget to use the emulator's Save State function instead to save your progress.
  
  
• Super Mario Kart - Not working.

I'm still running some tests on other games, but do stay tune for Part 2!

Head Count!

I hit a milestone recently, having expanded my library of original Nintendo DS to a whooping 26 titles. Some of them are really nice games to play, some are perfect time wasters and some are utter disappointments. The following is the entire list, and how I came about to obtaining each title.

1. Animal Crossing: Wild World. This game was officially bundled with my Nintendo DS when I bought the DS in Dubai.
   
   
2. Super Mario 64 DS. This was my second game, and my first secondhand game.
   
   
3. Mario Kart DS. I paid a premium for this secondhand game (RM 100), but it was worth every cent.
   
   
4. Metroid Prime Pinball. The one and only game purchased from the Nintendo counter at Jusco Midvalley.
   
   
5. Brain Age: Bought this at Sonig video games shop at Midvalley at the insistence of my mum. Turned out to be quite enjoyable.
   
   
6. Electroplankton: Probably one of the most expensive games in my collection, having bought it at Play-Asia, this one should be every music loving DS fan. More music and art than game.
   
   
7. Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam: Got this third hand from a friend. A bit expensive though for some SSX-experience on the DS.
   
   
8. Metroid Prime Hunters: This came all the way from it's original owner in Sarawak. Second hand title.
   
   
9. Mario and Luigi: Partners in Time: Second title purchased from Sonig Midvalley, and yes, premium pricing as well.
   
   
10. Advance Wars: Dual Strke: Got this from the owner of MPH (see 8.) when he came down to KL.
    
    
11. Winning Eleven DS: Brand new title with a super low price due to some crazy fire sale at Play-Asia. Great value for money.
    
    
12. New Super Mario Bros: Got this for Christmas courtesy of mum who bought it from Sonig Midvalley.
    
    
13. Kanji Sononama: Rakubiki Jiten: Not a game, but a DS title nevertheless. Bought this Jap-English dictionary from Play-Asia.
    
    
14. Atarimix: Happy 10 Games: The first compilation of arcade hits that I bought, and it was during a cheap sale at Play-Asia.
    
    
15. Worms: Open Warfare: Bought this secondhand... didn't like it very much.
    
    
16. Club House Games: Not bad for a secondhand time-waster.
    
    
17. Custom Robo Arena: This second hand title was put into cold storage after the first few tries.
    
    
18. Final Fantasy III: Bidded for this second hand title and won it on a local auction site.
    
    
19. Nintendogs: Bought this second hand just for the fun of it.
    
    
20. Ouendan: Got this from the seller who sold Nintendogs to me.
    
    
21. Yu-Gi-Oh: World Championship 2007 - Bought this new from Play-Asia, and it didn't disappoint.
    
    
22. Konami Classic Series Arcade Hits: Couldn't get enough of arcade compilations, so bought this from Play-Asia.
    
    
23. Planet Puzzle League: My first Nintendo DS puzzle game and worth every cent it was purchased from Play-Asia.
    
    
24. Magic Taizen: This came with a deck of cards, and had a super-low price tag during Play-Asia's sale.
    
    
25. Picross DS: The second game in my collection under the puzzle genre, and like Planet Puzzle League, it was purchased from online retailer Play-Asia.
    
    
26. Elite Beat Agents: The latest edition to my games library, purchased from the previous owner of Club House Games and Custom Robo Arena.

Online retailer Play-Asia has played a big part in the extension of my games library, mostly due to their sales, weekly discounts and their bargain bin titles. Also, a number of my titles are second hand ones, although I do wish that the secondhand market in Malaysia is a little bigger. Too many people are going the way of the flash cart rather than to fuel a second hand market.