BigNerdGaming’s Top 10 Nintendo DS Games

I’ve said this many times before, but one of my favorite elements of a top 10 list is that it can really tell a story, even if the person making it doesn’t intend to do so.

When I started compiling this list of my top 10 Nintendo DS games of all time, I didn’t think about any narratives that could arise from it. But when I was done, I realized that it really did reveal something about myself. The Nintendo DS signals when I fell out of love with Nintendo as a developer. Somehow, there are no Nintendo-developed games on this list.

I certainly don’t think Nintendo is bad in the slightest; I still like plenty of their games and think many of them are great. But they were no longer a “must-play” developer for me. When the DS came out in the mid-2000s, gaming was becoming a very legitimate medium for storytelling. I was experiencing more and more games with tremendous narratives. But Nintendo was consistently one of the only major developers that was not particularly interested in being on that train. The gameplay was still good to great, but in my view, they weren’t using the medium to its fullest anymore.

Despite this, I was still excited about the Nintendo DS, because playing portable video games is awesome. But instead of using it as a Nintendo games machine, the Nintendo DS became a platform I used to really experiment with genres and games that I hadn’t played before. I had never really played visual novels or dungeon crawlers before the Nintendo DS, but some acclaimed games on the system made me try them out, and that in turn made me realize how much potential this medium truly had.

This is definitely going to be a weird list for many, but it’s mine, damn it. Let’s get to it.

10. Hotel Dusk: Room 215

First off, Hotel Dusk’s sketched characters with more standard backdrops remain one of my favorite art styles in a game ever. It gives the game a unique feel, and the sketches allow for a more detailed and grounded approach with the technology available at the time. It also has an intriguing story with different endings, some great characters, puzzles that utilize the DS in interesting ways, and a vibe that feels unlike much else out there. Hotel Dusk is incredibly captivating throughout. It also might be one of the first games I ever played that made me feel like a detective, and I’ve been chasing that feeling consistently ever since.

9. Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors

I swear I didn’t put this game at #9 as some sort of bit. When I was finalizing my order, this came down here, and all I could do was laugh and embrace it. It’s perfect.

999 has such an intriguing concept, as you are one of nine people abducted and forced to play a game to survive. It blends horror and mystery really well, and has one awesome twist and moment after another all the way to its conclusion (of which there are multiple). There are also just enough gameplay sections to mix things up and keep it fresh. This was a total thrill ride, and I really screwed up by not playing any other games in this series after this.

8. Etrian Odyssey

I was never much of a PC gamer, so I never played any of the old-school first person dungeon crawling RPGs growing up. To this day, I think they look boring as hell. Yet, I have always loved the Etrian Odyssey series. I love the more modern art style, which definitely helps, but most of all, I think this genre works best on the Nintendo DS.

I remember being skeptical about the second screen and the stylus when the DS launched. I didn’t see the value. Etrian Odyssey is one of two games on this list that I really think was greatly enhanced by that second screen and the stylus.

One of the biggest reasons I hate the idea of games like this is that navigation always seemed annoying. Twisting and turning through generic dungeons probably means you are going to get lost a lot. Etrian solves this by letting you draw out the map as you explore. As someone that is a bit of a map sicko, this was an absolutely addictive feature. Literally every step in that game feels like progress, as I slowly built out my map. The turn-based battle system isn’t anything special, but it’s hard enough where it feels rewarding to explore every inch of the map. I’ll always have very fond memories of this entire series, but the original always stood out to me the most for being my first experience with the formula.

7. Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords

RPG elements make everything better. These are just facts. Puzzle Quest is yet another ironclad example of this.

Normally, I don’t care all that much about match-3 puzzle games. It just doesn’t feel like a concept that can stay all that interesting for me. But suddenly, you add a battle system and RPG elements to that same concept, and I’m all in. That’s literally all it takes. Puzzle Quest was a bit of a sensation when it first came out for good reason, as there wasn’t really anything else like it. I was enamored from start to finish.

6. Professor Layton and the Curious Village

I believe this is the only game on the list with Nintendo attached to it in any way, as they are listed as a publisher.

Professor Layton is a puzzle game with a wide variety of brainteasers. The puzzles are consistently fun and the perfect level of challenge. I also love how they integrate a hint system within these puzzles that makes it so it never feels cheap to use one, as they are earned.

But beyond the puzzles, Professor Layton really excels in everything else around it. The art style and music are excellent, and Layton is an extremely fun and likable character. This is just a fun series, and my first experience with it will always stand out for me.

5. Castlevania DS Trilogy

I pulled the same gimmick with Castlevania in my top 10 GBA games list. It’s tough for me to separate individual Castlevania games, as they all kind of blend together, especially after all these years.

It’s crazy to think about how there was a time when we were getting quality Castlevania games every two years. These games were almost all considered near the top of the genre as well. They nailed everything that I love about “search action” games, with fun and rewarding exploration, excellent combat, and great boss fights. I always love how this series leans into its RPG elements, as it makes it so you never feel like you are wasting time when you backtrack and have to fight off random enemies.

Safe to say, I am very hyped that the series will finally be returning soon. Hopefully, we can go back to an era of consistent Castlevania releases.

4. Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes

I love when developers go big with combining genres to create something unique, and Might and Magic: Clash of Heroes is one of the coolest possible examples of this. The game combines the puzzle, RPG, and strategy genres for an experience unlike any other out there. It also features a pretty meaty campaign that really gives you a lot of bang for your buck.

I’m shocked that Capybara Games has never completely run it back ever since. They’ve made some games that play off this formula, but never anything 100% like it. It’s a shame, as I’d really like a chance to play a new version of this one. But the original will always be a classic.

3. Elite Beat Agents

As I said before, I was always skeptical about the stylus with the Nintendo DS. Even as a teen, I had some old-school sensibilities with video games. There are a few games that really proved me wrong, and Elite Beat Agents was easily the biggest one to do so.

I loved Guitar Hero and Rock Band, but have never loved rhythm games all that much otherwise. A lot of the rhythm games out there where you just play music with timed button presses get kind of boring. Elite Beat Agents changes things by having you touch buttons in rhythm with the stylus. I think because there’s a bit more “motion” with doing this, you just end up feeling like you are experiencing the music on a deeper level.

But the basic rhythm element being fun wouldn’t be enough to get a game this high, and sure enough, Elite Beat Agents does many other things right. I love the soundtrack, and the covers for the songs are all pretty good. And the cutscenes have a joy that is infectious. They are all mostly a bunch of dudes in suits making the world a brighter place by dancing, and it rules. I had never played anything quite like this game when I first picked it up, and I still haven’t played anything quite like it since.

2. The Phoenix Wright Trilogy

Technically, these were Game Boy Advance games in Japan, but as an American, I can put them on this list.

Much like Castlevania, I’m sure there was a time when I would have had more separated opinions of each game in the Phoenix Wright trilogy, but after a few decades, these games mostly all blend together for me. But these were all a magical time, and this is the series that made me realize that I could fall in love with visual novels.

Phoenix Wright games are just the perfect anime lawyer games. They are over-the-top and goofy, but also hit you with some real gut punches in spots. There are so many awesome characters and one great plot twist after another. Watching Phoenix transform from a rookie to a confident and strong lawyer is really cool to see, and his empathy always shines through as well. This series is an all-timer for me.

1. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective

Funny enough, the main reason Ghost Trick was on my radar was because of the involvement of the people behind Phoenix Wright. Then they went and made a game that blew that series away for me.

This has many of the appeals of Phoenix Wright, but I think its standalone nature and general pacing give it even more power. There’s a lot of urgency throughout the tale, and that serves it very well. The plot builds satisfyingly into an excellent conclusion, and it really does a great job of straddling the line of being goofy and emotional. I also enjoyed the quirky gameplay a fair bit as a way to mix things up. I don’t think the characters quite live up to the Phoenix Wright series, but Sissel is still great, and this is an experience that I will never, ever forget.

Past Lists:

My Top 10 SNES Games

My Top 10 GB/GBC Games

My Top 10 PS1 Games

My Top 10 N64 Games

My Top 10 Original Xbox Games

My Top 10 Playstation 2 Games

My Top 10 Game Boy Advance Games

My Top 10 Xbox Live Arcade Games

My Top 10 Xbox 360 Games