The Rom Report - Part 2: NES Games on the DS

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As promised, this is Part 2 of the Rom Report, this time featuring NES games run on the Nintendo DS with the help of a Slot-1 Flashcart and a piece of homebrew software called nesDS.

Before I begin, I'll need to clarify that running SNES and NES games on the Nintendo DS are two separate things and you'll require two different homebrew emulator software, SNemulDS for SNES games and nesDS for NES games. The first part of the Rom Report has got the SNES part covered and if you interested in running SNES games, please refer to my guide here.

The NES games I've tried so far are:

• Mappy - This is a really fun game from Namco, where you run about a house as a rat named Mappy, avoiding, if possible, a gang of thieving cats. Don't know who Mappy is? Well I've a 8-bit Dots puzzle depicting him right here.
• Ice Climber - This really is a classic in my book. I used to play this game on my cousin's Micro Genius (a NES clone). On the emulator running on the Nintendo DS, the game is smooth and fast, retaining the sense of excitement and challenge as you try to get your eskimo up the ice mountain.
• Super Mario Bros 3 - If you don't like the SNES make over of Super Mario Bros 3 in Super Mario All-Stars, this is the game for you. The game runs smooth on the emulator but there's just a slight quirkiness with the buttons. I still don't know how progress is saved though, and the emulator (nesDS) lacks a save state function.
• Metroid - Despite having played one of the more recent Metroid games, I can't seem to put a finger on the original Metroid. It is a little boring. But if you were to ask me whether it runs fine, the answer is a definite yes.
  

Overall, the fun factor is there when it comes to these old school games. The only problem is while the emulator, nesDS, can adequately run the games, it is not up to scratch feature wise, lacking the ability to save and load states. Those features are not missing from SNemulDS when it come to running SNES games.

Classic NES Series a.k.a Famicom Mini Series for the GBA

If you are not content with playing old NES roms on emulators and want a piece of history to call your own, there's the Famicom Mini Series for the Gameboy Advance.

The Famicom Mini Series are direct ports of Famicom/NES games in order that they run on the Gameboy Advance (GBA). Some of the games in this series are old favourites such Super Mario Bros., The Legend of Zelda, Pacman, and Ice Climber.

The packaging is really cool and comes shape like a NES cartridge, sure to evoke nostalgia among NES fans. The entire list of Famicom Mini Series games for sale is available here.

Those of you who are content on playing with old SNES and NES ROMs on your emulators, especially on the Nintendo DS, stay tuned for Part 2 of the ROM Report. Part 1 is available here.