Top Ten Nintendo DS Games That Need 3DS Sequels

We have a brand-new list for you to peruse. Yesterday we posted a top ten talking about the Nintendo 3DS's best games from its second year on the market. Let's continue our 3DS theme with another list. A good number of Nintendo DS games have already seen sequels arrive on Nintendo's newest handheld hardware. However, there are still a slew of titles that have been cast to the wayside and have been overlooked for new games on the 3DS. This list is comprised of such titles. From Super Princess Peach to Elite Beat Agents, there are some interesting things that could be done to bring some DS favorites to the 3DS.

10) Super Princess Peach

Luigi just got another chance to be the star in his own game, so why limit it to Mario's twin brother? Why not give Mario's main gal another shot at the spotlight with a sequel to the insanely charming (but quite easy) Super Princess Peach? Peach could reunite with Percy for even more parasol action, or how about a new friend to accompany her? What new emotions could have new powers to aid the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom on her new quest? Just the thought of seeing a 2D platformer with parallax scrolling in stereoscopic 3D makes my eyes water. No, those are manly tears.

9) The Legendary Starfy

Another platformer from the Nintendo DS was The Legendary Starfy, a game from a series that is not only handheld-centric, but it's also one that was formerly exclusive to Japan. The little starfish that could finally swam all the way across the Pacific for us Westerners to play. Like Super Princess Peach, The Legendary Starfy was full of platforming peril to show the player's prowess with, and like Peach's first starring game, Starfy possessed a mix of 2D sprites and beautiful backgrounds. The 3D effect on the 3DS would look phenomenal, in my view. Not only that, but we need more Starfy, Nintendo! One game was simply not enough!

8) Custom Robo Arena

Custom Robo is another Nintendo franchise that has been on a bit of a hiatus recently. In fact, the last game that released in the series was indeed the Nintendo DS installment, Custom Robo Arena. The premise is simple: you participate in one-on-one battles with your robotic toys in 3D battle arenas. The first person to lose all of their health is deemed the loser. With a 3DS installment, not only could you battle your robos online with other people, but you could trade parts and robos via StreetPass locally and SpotPass online. The possibilities excite me heavily, and it would be another franchise that Nintendo could return to. They have so many of them, after all!

7) Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure

I am just going to say that the hopes of Henry Hatsworth returning are very slim, but still, I can only wonder what if. Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure was designed by the studio behind Monster Tale and Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion (at least they did well with one of those...). It had a proper, tea-drinking English gentleman running, jumping, slashing, and shooting his way through the game's many levels and bosses. The gameplay element that made it so interesting was that the bottom screen filled up with blocks, and if you let them overflow, they would affect the top screen where the platforming action was. Thus, you had to routinely play Tetris Attack with the blocks to clear rows, and earning helpful items and bonuses because of it. I say a sequel is hopeless is because EA published the game, and they don't seem too interested in Nintendo platforms right now...

6) Soul Bubbles

Soul Bubbles is most likely a title you have never heard of. That's okay as it released with little fanfare, but those who did play it found a relaxing and lovely experience. The game had you using the stylus to blow a bubble through numerous levels, filled with increasingly more challenging obstacles, such as spikes, fire, and strong winds. You could learn skills to break up the bubble to enter smaller, narrower passages to collect special items that unlocked new levels and gave you a high score. No doubt Soul Bubbles wouldn't fly in a retail setting. That's just fine, as I dream of the game getting a sequel on digital, downloadable services, like the Nintendo 3DS eShop, for instance.

5) Drawn to Life

The developers behind Drawn to Life, 5th Cell, just released Scribblenauts Unlimited [basically] worldwide. If you don't know what Drawn to Life is, was a game where you drew what you came in contact with. A missing platform that makes it so you can't cross a gap? Draw a cloud or leaf to serve as the platform. It was a hugely inventive game that gave the player a lot of opportunity for their own creativity. I'd love to see the series return to handheld systems, particularly the 3DS, with the option of sharing drawings, much like you share objects in Scribblenauts Unlimited. I could see myself and many other players losing countless hours coming up with some crazy creations.

4) Advance Wars: Dual Strike

Some may wonder why Advance Wars: Days of Ruin (as it's known in North America) or Dark Conflict (as it's known in PAL regions) is not the game listed here, but instead it's Dual Strike. Dual Strike has a much more lighthearted feel to it, with humor, charm, and color. I'd love to see a 3DS sequel with glorious sprites or even 3D models (as Fire Emblem: Awakening proved that also works) as players assume the roles of one of the many commanding officers the series contains. The idea of sharing custom maps and battling friends and total strangers online excites me totally. Intelligent Systems staff stated they were interested in going back to the Advance Wars series, and off the heels of Paper Mario: Sticker Star and Fire Emblem: Awakening, isn't now the best time to do so?

3) Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time

There are not too many loot RPGs on handhelds. Final Fantasy: Crystal Chronicles: Ring of Fates and then later on Echoes of Time brought tons of loot, action-RPG mayhem, four player cooperative play, savage bosses, and simple puzzles to create one unforgettable handheld experience. The Wii's Crystal Bearers game was a totally different beast than what most fans expected, and while it was good, it was not what a lot of us were looking for. No, we want to gather online to participate in quests, tackle bringing down behemoths and marlboros, and equip ourselves with the best armor and weapons possible. Echoes of Time gave us that, and I wish that a 3DS sequel would do it again.

2) Elite Beat Agents

Agents are go. They solve your everyday problems, and they do it while keeping in time with the music being played. Of course, you would get cover versions of the popular songs, but you take what you can get. Elite Beat Agents was based heavily off of Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan, except instead of a Japanese cheering squad, North Americans got a group of funky agents. Theatrhythm Final Fantasy had similar but not quite identical gameplay to Elite Beat Agents, and scratched my itch for a rhythm game on the 3DS, but I'd love Nintendo to return to their cheering squad/musically inclined agents for a 3DS-exclusive grand return.

1) The World Ends With You

Perhaps it's no surprise that The World Ends With You is number one on this list, and perhaps you were very much expecting it. It's no wonder as it is one of Square Enix's most original games in a decade. The dual screened battles using unique touch gestures for different attacks, modern world story, and sensational soundtrack made for a game that many players thought about long after they turned off their DS systems. We saw the characters in last year's Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, but what about a new game?  A 3DS sequel could allow for pin trading via StreetPass and new pins distributed via SpotPass. The more powerful hardware of the 3DS would grant the developers more room for better visuals, sound, and more content. It is a lot of people's wishes (mine included) that Square Enix delivers a fresh and fun sequel.

Drawn to Life (DS) Review

Today is the North American release date of Scribblenauts, the next game by 5th Cell, the team behind this reviewed game. The original Drawn to Life was a creative if not easy platformer for the Nintendo DS. Expect a review of Scribblenauts in the coming weeks. As for now, here's a classic review of Drawn to Life.

The Stylus is Mightier Than the Sword.

Drawn to Life is an interesting experiment crafted by the folks at THQ. Wait. What? THQ? The company that produces those average Nickolodeon games and other shovelware? Hold it right there! Don't leave this review yet! Their latest game, developed by 5th Cell, is one of most refreshing handheld titles to come out in awhile, and it possesses its own unique charm.

Your role in Drawn to Life is as The Creator-- a deity who watches over a village (which you can later name) full of cute characters called Roposa. However, an evil Roposa named Wilfre concocted an army of dark shadows to turn the once happy land into a foreboding realm of darkness. Not fulfilled with just doing that, Wilfre tore numerous pages out of the Book of Life-- the book containing the Roposa village's assets such as the moon, the stars, several important buildings, and much more. The pages were scattered throughout many worlds. With little hope for the village left, many of the Roposa abandoned the town. This is where you come in. The three Raposa remaining beg to you to create a hero to help them turn their village back to its former glory by designing a hero over the body of a mannequin. Players can design up to three heroes to play as.

Create a character from scratch...

The game flow is rather simple. The mayor will ask you to gather the four page segments of one platforming level, so he can return them back to the Book of Life. After retrieving the segments and placing the page into the Book of Life, the Creator must then draw the object needed using a template for guidance. The object drawn will then return to the village in tangible form.

There's two parts of Drawn to Life's gamplay. There's the village where you'll on an overhead map, scurrying to and from, talking to Raposas to gather information to continue to the next level, and then there's the platforming stages. What does one do in these stages, you ask? Well, a variety of things. For one, there's three Raposa hidden in each level to gather. These were Raposas who abandoned the village in its hour of need but were later captured in shadow cages by Wilfre. Additionally, there's templates or page segments that need to be gathered which are also strewn about the level. Players must collect all of the Rapos and templates in an area to continue on in the level. Finally, there's three hidden secrets in each level. These range from patterns for drawing to stamps to new abilities. Wilfre's stretch of dominance is present in each area of the game. By rubbing the stylus over the icky black goo you'll come across, you can scrub and clean the goo from the level.

...Or use a pre-made template.

The controls of the platforming sections are responsive as well as fluid. There's enemies to leap on as well as shoot with your custom-designed shooter Tokens are the currency which come in various colors and values to be used at a village shop. When your character gets hit, it reveals part of its mannequin base. Get hit as bare mannequin, and you lose a life. Platforming won't win any rewards for originality, but that's okay. The main "draw"-- pun intended-- of Drawn to Life is the creation aspect. Not only can you create you own characters, but in all of the levels you'll come across dotted-line shapes that need The Creator to fill them in. For instance, there's platforms that need to be drawn to advance, so all you need to do is let your creativity run wild and draw any form of platform within the perimeter of the dotted lines. I drew a colorful horizontal carrot for platforms. There's A LOT of customization in Drawn to Life. You'll draw new shooters for your character, springs that bounce you to and fro, tiki heads (I designed mine to resemble Mario) that leap from one position to another, a rocket ship, submarine, hang glider, snowboard, surfboard, wings for your character, a sword to wield, and so much more. There's really nothing like seeing your own drawing creations in action to put a smile on your face.

The Raposa village of whatever you wish to call it.

The first three worlds each have five levels in them including the boss battle level.
There's four big boss battles in the game. These are the most difficult part of Drawn to Life, and even then they're quite formulaic and easy to beat. However, they could give a young child a run for the money. The platforming and boss levels in Drawn to Life are split up by play-time in the village itself, going to speak with various Rapos to progress in the game, drawing new items for the village from the pages of the Book of Life collected in each of the levels, and buying goodies from the secret items you collected in the levels. The Rapos in the village each have their own personalities, and even though it's a kids game basically there's still humor that adults like myself will laugh at.

So what about the drawing? Well, it's pretty easy and intuitive to get into. You get the perimeter of the shape, and you must draw an object within those lines. It's perfect for beginners who can just color in the shape with the fill-in tool, and it's nice for advanced drawers to be able to have a sense of freedom in what they want to draw. Character creation is fair for any skill of artist. There's pre-made templates that you can simply base your character off of, or you can just draw whatever is in your mind's eye instead. There's a decent amount of colors to choose from to give any drawing an extra dimension if desired. Furthermore on the graphics, the backgrounds are rich and vibrant. Enemy models are well done, and the character designs are apt also. The music is quite good. There's a number of notable pieces, and even a touching vocal piece that runs before the credits.

A main problem that Drawn to Life has is its difficulty. It's clearly made for the younger crowd, and with that comes an easy difficulty. Skilled gamers will have no problems plowing through this game within ten hours-- drawing time excluded. However, does this mean that Drawn to Life won't appeal to adults? Of course not, and only the insecure would say otherwise. Drawing gives the game a lot of depth, but without that this title would just seem like just another average THQ platformer in the line of Jimmy Neutron or Spongebob Squarepants. You needn't be an artist to enjoy this game. All you need is a little creativity. If making stick figures or wangs (I know there's some of you out there) is your thing, great. You'll like Drawn to Life. If you're more into high-detailed art, hey, you'll like Drawn to Life as well. It's a solid purchase, and I would best describe it as an Eastern game from a Western developer. It's a nice combination, and for all intents and purposes it works wonderfully regardless of its ease of difficulty and brevity.

[SuperPhillip Says: 8.0/10]