I kinda miss having actual dedicated hand helds. The switch *is* portable, but more so in a way that's good for like "oh im gonna bring the switch to a party so we can all play mario party" rather than "yeah, ive got 5 minutes on the bus to finish a level of mario" like the ds or gba
Yeah... sadly even my most favorite handhelds today like the steam deck suffer from this problem. Can't take those out in public like a phone unlike with a ds where I can take it out on the bus to grind pokemon, close it into sleep mode, then go back into it when I wanna play again
My problem is i have all these games fully playable and in many ways improved on my android phone...then i end up playing something for 5 minutes and quitting because maybe one of the other 5000 games on my device might be better. If i only had a few cartridges I'd probably actually enjoy them but you can't ever truly go back to that unless you're just tricking yourself into realizing the option exists...when you add that to a Sega Saturn with hundreds of games on a disk drive emulator, mini classics modded with all their best games and everything pretty much on the PC then lots of cool modern stuff i just can't commit to anything long enough to truly get into it
"it looks like a mini laptop" is exactly what my mom said the first time she saw it on tv. That plus the rechargeable battery sold her on getting an SP for me immediately
Yeah it's like a Scott the Woz episode just done in a more casual style. Which is really cool, I mean of course I love the usual Scott the Woz episode formula, but this is a nice change of pace
As much as I think it's incredible we can play console-quality games on devices like the Switch and Steam Deck... The massive size of those things compared to the GBA, DS, even PSP just make it a nuisance to carry around. I hope we can go back to the sizes of the older handhelds one day.
1:45 The reason why the DS had a GBA slot is *probably* in case it failed, in which case they could still market it as something that played GBA games.
I mean, with how cheap it probably was to make GBA ports (economies of scale), it would be losing money to not give the DS access to what was at the time almost 30 years of a library.
If you think about it, for 2004 the DS hardware was a solid jump for the time. It only pales in comparison to the PSP which was actually cutting edge for the time (and also a lot more expensive than the DS). In comparison to other devices at the time like the N-Gage or mobile devices, the 3D on the DS was far better.
The original n-gage's hardware was actually superior to the DS (almost double the clock speed on an ARM 9 core). The problem was that you were basically writing games for Symbian and if you wanted to capture the biggest market with that, you'd probably write your game to run on a terrible contract feature phone rather than require the full horsepower of the n-gage.
Also, the video mentioned that Nintendo DS was "Nintendo's first foray into non Game Boy handheld territory", ignoring existence of Game & Watch, Nintendo Mini Classics, Pokemon Pikachu and Pokemon Mini (granted, first three may not have counted due to not accepting cartridges, but Pokemon Mini definitely does).
I remember when the gba sp came out with its rechargeable battery, all I could think was, "WHAT IF I RUN OUT OF BATTERY ON THE SCHOOL BUS, I CAN'T SWAP BATTERIES NOW IT'S SO STUPID." I still have massive battery anxiety to this day lol
Same. Even though I probably have more fond memories of my DS, the GBA SP was my first ever proper game system (I say "proper" game system because before it I had the Leapster, which was an edutainment system), so it'll always hold a special place in my heart.
The GBA was so important because it allowed big budget 2D sprite style games to continue existing into the 2000s when they wouldn't have been made otherwise.
DSi doesn’t have the literal GBA hardware as DSs with the slot has, so it must rely on emulation to run it. But since DSi’s hardware is more powerful than the regular DS’s, it runs the emulation quite a bit nicer. I mean I tried it and I had no hiccups or lag.
Only sort of. GBARunner2 isn't emulation, but it isn't the perfect GBA mode with 100% compatibility that the DS had either. It's doing the same sort of thing, putting the DSi's ARM 7 core into a mode that approximates how the GBA's ARM 7 CPU ran. But since the chip isn't built to have an accurate GBA mode, they can only get it so close. Most games do run perfectly though. The 3DS brings back a perfect, hardware-supported GBA mode since Nintendo planned to release a bunch of GBA virtual consoles games on it, but then decided not to, allegedly because they couldn't get lid-shut automatic sleep mode to work properly.
See it’s probably cause I grew up with it but I love the DS style of 3D Cause while the models were super low poly, developers were way smarter with the low detail than earlier gens when the tech was newer. But my favorite part is that the textures weren’t anti aliased and most devs used it to their advantage so instead of the blurry, kinda ugly textures of other early 3D systems, they had full on pixel art for textures most of the time and I just love the look of it
The textures are pretty fine, but while 3D games on the DS look dated, I think the sprites based ones still look good to this day. IMO both the GBA and the DS have the best sprites ever (I call them "the kings of sprites) 😂
7:50 Can absolutely personally confirm as well. A few years ago I bought an OG DS cause I thought it'd be cool, I never had one before. Literally a few days later the hinge on it broke while it was IN MY POCKET. I think I was carrying a shopping bag and it slightly knocked against it with very little force. The plastic on the inside was EXTREMELY yellow. Telltale sign for it becoming brittle over time. I checked the platic pieces to see how weak it was. I could easily pull them apart w/o trying with two fingers. Another issue with the OG DS design vs. the Lite is that if the hinge breaks then your top screen is hanging by a ribbon cable lmao. At least on the Lite it's still structurally intact.
I feel like they actually followed through with that on the Switch/3DS. I remember plenty of people getting angry that Luigi's Mansion and Inside Story were released on 3DS well after the Switch released.
@DiGi my cousins bought both the Switch and a 2DS for both siblings. I saw it as the 2DS being ultra portable and more personal while the Switch was for the whole family.
With both the DS and the Switch, they were trying out something considerably different to what came before. The DS was bulkier and had two screens + touch + mic, with many games trying new control schemes. And for the Switch, a non-folding handheld that doesn't fit in a pocket and doubles as a console with last-gen specs. Seems to me they wanted to keep their successful previous-gen handheld ready in case it proved to be a flop -- a return to the tried-and-true GBA or 3DS would be more of a "welp, 3rd pillar didn't work out" or "it's a fine replacement for the Wii U but the New 3DS is still our handheld" rather than a surprising about-face and admission of failure.
GBA was my first console that was really mine, I remember playing this thing all the time as a kid. I bought a backlit original GBA a few months back and have been loving replaying some old games. But I do think I like the DS more overall, if only for the fact that in addition to all the great things the DS has going for it it also has a GBA slot. So it was easy for me as a kid, and now as an adult, to just carry over my great GBA experiences to this new console.
Would love a time lapse of like a Target game shelf showing what was available at launch, and then how it may have looked as games were phased out and new ones became available.
The GBA was a way to get the SNES experience in your pocket, which was amazing and still is. However the DS was truly it's own system, even now the best way to experience it is on original hardware.
From an outsider's perspective, that's definitely the case. However, if you dig into both libraries, you'll notice so many high-quality exclusive GBA games while the DS was flooded with casual games and later on smartphone games.
Scott arguing that a headphone jack would be better than a link cable slot in the SP is the most “I didn’t play Pokémon growing up” thing he has ever said.
Yeah it's really silly lmao. They obviously excluded it because they figured kids wouldn't even care or use the headphone jack anyway. Still i felt they should have kept it. Micro had one.
I mean I love these Stash videos but c'mon man they clearly aren't meant for the main channel what with the lack of a script and a carpet being in view for the entire video
The amount of bangers on the GBA for how short a life span it had is amazing Edit: lots of people saying the GBA library was just remakes so here's a list of amazing original GBA games -Mario + Luigi Superstar saga -Golden Sun series -Pokemon R/S/E -Zelda Minish Cap -Mother 3 -Metroid fusion -Castlevania Aria of Sorrows -Warioware Inc + Twisted -Fire emblem blazing blade(first released in the west) -Advance Wars -wario land 4 -FF tactics -Pokémon pinball -Drill Dozer -Mario Vs DK -Kuru Kuru Kurrin -Sonic Advance series -F-zero Gp legend -Astro Boy -Megaman Zero series -Megaman battle network series Plus a ton of platformer movie/cartoon tie ins that were brilliant Plus a lot of the remakes were vast improvements e.g. Metroid zero mission
the ds lite is incredible. if you can get over its size, its still an awesome way to play ds and gba games, it’s still my go-to as opposed to putting them into my 3ds. especially because the games come up a lot nicer on the smaller screens. the design is super refined, i love how sleek it is, especially the white one. what a great revision
i think the original ds looks cooler, i like the weighty look and feels less like it tried to copy the "smooth" design wave that came from the iphone. the ds lite buttons are also rounded for some reason. also hate how the gameboy cartridge sticks out on lite
What’s hilarious is that I never had a DS to my remembering, I had a GBA, a DS Lite, then an original 3DS. I’d have to look at the specific designs, but I remember my DS Lite (I think it was) was red and black and very thin. I used to play Spyro/Crash Bandicoot in the GBA slot on the bottom since it was a 2 for 1 game cartridge I think. Man, those are old memories haha
The DSi XL was a console I didn't understand until I brought it on a roadtrip at the beginning of this year. I've had one from my cousin for years but I was playing the thing for hours on my way down to Texas from the Midwest and my god, its such a gorgeous system. The buttons, espeically the D-Pad are grade A, love them. And the screens, wow. I dont have a 3DS XL anymore but even just comparing playing DS games on the original 3DS and the DSi XL, its night and day. The DSi XL's screens are sharp and so damn crisp. Especially after modding it, it's become my main driver for anything Gameboy, Gamebody Advance, and DS related. Love it to bits.
22:51 don't worry, Scott, that was every pokémon fan's reaction to the crossover too. it's a good game and well loved, it's just a downright *bizarre* crossover that basically no one even knew what it was crossing over with
Let’s not rewrite history. The “properly backlit” SP didn’t come out till almost a year after the DS, compared to the frontlit SP the DS seemed like a huge upgrade at the time.
@@CassiDS Please read this and learn from it. The BACKLIT Game Boy Advance SP released in 2005. The original 2003 model was FRONT LIT, a difference in tech I specifically mentioned in the reply you are responding to. I’m not out to embarrass you, so if you delete your response attempting to correct me, I’ll delete my response, which actually corrects you. Please learn from this and don’t be so eager to try to show off that you end up making a mistake in public.
On the library part, I do agree that DS has the best library. As a PSP hardcore fan, the games on the DS is so unique that even emulating them doesnt give justice. I forced myself to buy a DS so I can experience the game natively and my mind is blown away. World Ends with you, Prpfessor Layton and that detective game I forgot the title really pushed the 😊creativity of DS controls, dual screen and microphone
Really enjoying the hybrid content, mixing the joking environment with facts and information is really nice! This feels like a late-night version of a normal Scott The Woz video!
I feel like Pokémon really benefited from the DS. 4th and 5thgen really revolutionised the franchise and put forth some of the best games in the franchise, mystery dungeon even as well.
@@AB-sw4kb Pretty much. A big part of the problem is that, like all modern games, the 3D Pokemon games have only gotten more and more complex to make, and that doesn’t really go well with The Pokemon franchise’s psychotic media and merchandising needs. I’d love to see what Game Freak could do if they were given as much time as, say, Nintendo gives themselves to release a Zelda.
@@AB-sw4kb personally, I disagree. While X and Y, the games that came out after it are constantly slandered online, it’s actually not as bad as people make it out to be. And while I did grow up with the game, at an unbiased perspective, it did drop off at some points, but people are failing to see the other points that succeeded them. And yet, some people try to justify a high price point being 100 dollars when it comes to black and white. I don’t care how good those are, I’d rather buy another two copies of X and Y before I bought one singular dinky little cartridge of black and white for 100 dollars.
Really enjoying the hybrid content, mixing the joking environment with facts and information is really nice! This feels like a late-night version of a normal Scott The Woz video!
I think part of the reason that the DS had so many more interesting original titles is because it had so much longer to stretch its legs. If the Gameboy Advance lived a long and prosperous life like the original Gameboy, we could easily have seen a GBA Animal Crossing, a more impressive followup to super circuit, and new original ideas for the platform. The DS's life wasn't short or anything, but it didn't have a true successor for almost 7 years, which was a long time to build an impressive library and for developers to familiarize themselves to the hardware. Food for thought.
I don't think you understand how vast the gba catalog is. Trying to debate which had a better library is silly because it's a wash. Both are legendary libraries
i have very fond memories of playing on my sister's gba as a kid, but my dsi was the first console i actually owned. i love them pretty equally, both of them are fantastic systems. my family lost the gba with moving houses and such, but ive had my dsi for over a decade and my ds lite for around 5 years. i play gba stuff on my lite occasionally still!!
I feel like the original DS was more in line with the GameCube era, as it has that same matte silver that a lot of GameCubes had and still look like the design of something that came out of the first half of the early 2000s. Then the DS lite was more like the Wii era. Very glossy White (I know they came in more colors than just White) and basic shape. The stylus and touch screen were basically the handheld equivalent to the Wii's motion controls. It would make a lot of sense.
Indeed you can clearly see that the Wii and DS Lite share the same design language. They both have aged beautifully in my opinion, still looks like a very fine modern piece of engineering.
I actually really like the aesthetics of DS games, especially titles with heavy use of 2D like Hotel Dusk. Games could still be low-res while presenting realistic materials, creating a unique hybrid-pixel art style that I find really charming.
I actually like the 3D models and textures in the DS, mainly as a vibe. And it was cool that Nintendo was doing full 3D games for the first time in an handheld, even if Sony was doing better with the PSP in that department.
@@okagron yea, and the DS ran circles around the PSP being the 2nd best selling console of all time so goes to show alot of people weren't to concerned about power
I prefer the original GBA form factor, too, and that's exactly why I happily bought a modded one. Recommended! Oh, and I am an old person so I love the DSi XL.
The best GBA version though in my arrogant opinion was the original SP. The AGS-001. Yeah, the screen looked worse compared to the 101, no doubt about that, but in return, you got literally twice the battery life, no ghosting on the screen whatsoever, and instant pixel response times meaning no input lag of any kind. Of course, some people are still gonna prefer the much nicer looking screen of the AGS-101, and that's fair enough, but nevertheless, there is actually a point to owning an AGS-001 over the newer AGS-101.
@@arnox4554 it's okay, that's not an arrogant opinion. I definitely prefer SP for its practical design and lifespan longevity. But for comfortability? The OG GBA design, for sure. It's always better to play long horizontal handheld games
6:56 This has to be a contender for my favourite Scott the Woz joke of all time. And completely improvised too. Fucking magical. Scott, you are an artist.
@6:25 Culturally, Japanese consumers were more likely to use the link cable system than in the US. Their gaming habits are different like that. One of the coolest things I recall seeing in Japan were groups of friends at restaurants or on the trains, all playing something like Monster Hunter together on their PSPs. They're more likely to engage like that.
I feel the DS can be the case kind of like the Vita where if you're into JRPG's, it's got an incredible catalog of quality games. Pokemon, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Chrono Trigger all have multiple main line games that are lauded to be the best in their franchise. The 2D art on the console is beautiful when done right and the use of the bottom touch screen to manage menus for them is a perfect match for the genre.
The GBA and DS are basically tied for my favourite systems of all time. I love the games on the GBA a lot, but the DS holds a place in my heart as my first system and honestly I can look past the dated 3D as a part of the nostalgia and uniqueness of the system.
This video doesn't work without the green IPad and Australian voice Just kidding 😅, I think it's cool that Scott made a video with the style of Dankpods
Quick point for the GBA & GBA SP: they were $99 vs the DS’s $150 and DSLite’s $130. That’s a massive price hike percentage wise. Both consoles would steadily drop in price. For example, the Game Boy Advance SP was $79 by the time the $150 DS came out. I also have to split a point for each console’s game packaging. The DS’s plastic boxes were way better than the GBA’s cardboard. They were actually reusable. However, GBA games always had intricately made paper manuals with tons of custom artwork, story, concept art, and stuff. Sometimes it’d have a tiny guide for parts of the game. They were always my favorite part of getting a new game. Unfortunately, the DS was the console that started phasing intricate manuals out over its lifetime. The Wireless & Download Play stuff eventually ended up taking over 50% of the manual.
The pricing is also the main reason the GB Micro flopped. It debuted at $100 a year after the DS had already been out. Made no sense to most people to get it when you could save up $50 and get the new next gen handheld that can play all the same GBA games anyway alongside completely new ones. Or get the GBA SP that was the same price as the Micro or less and be able to play the entire GB/GBC library.
@@VexAcervery true. I wanted the Micro because it looked awesome, but I held off once I heard about the DS Lite and got that. Glad I did, amazing unit.
I so agree with loving the visual style of GBA games. In one of your vids you used footage from a GBA game I had never seen and I couldn't believe it was a GBA game because the visual style was so well crafted, I thought it looked like a modern pixel art indie game.
I am really weird but I really liked the original design of the DS. And not so much now but around the time it was out. I liked the lite too but i remember kind of admiring the orginal DS when it came out, it felt mature. Every handheld before it always felt like kids toy. Let me tell you, 14 year old me felt pre-tty grown up playing Kirby Canvas Curse on the train.
Kirby Canvas Curse, wow. I think that and mariokart were my first original DS games. Mariokart was especially fun because you can play with 8 people on a single cartridge. Did that on a field trip to Canada with my classmates.
I remember getting my first Gameboy Pocket, GBC, GBA, and NDS. Honestly, I was most excited for the DS. It was such a leap in terms of graphical prowess that I was so impressed. Metroid Prime Hunters, Mario 64, Pokemon DPP, Lunar Dragon Song, Lost in Blue, etc. It had such a great lineup of games that it's tough to beat. And come on, we all loved Nintendogs haha
Me and my friends from summer camp used our DS and DSi’s to play Mario kart on the way to field trips to pass time, that’s what was special about the DS and GBA, they were simply easy to carry everywhere and pull out and get a little progress done and or play a few rounds with friends with limited time, the switch is great and all but still
I really miss the clamshell design, it's the pinacle of handheld design in my opinion. It's the perfect way of protecting the screens without needing added protections.
I actually loved using the touch screen to look around for Metroid Prime on DS, I thought it was so smooth & intuitive. The only problem for me is that the DS d-pad hurts my finger when playing 3D games.
@@joshentertainment2 I actually have been! I haven't gotten too far since I've been busy with other games but it is 100× better playing with the circle pad
Everyone is for pro GBA, well I’m pro Ds. It’s the reason of how I got into gaming in the first place. The first Ds I ever had was the Ds Lite yellow edition, which looked so Good and felt Good. And also the Ds i was also really cool too with the cameras and Flip note studies. And also it had a ass load of great games that sometimes are 3d, (I oddly like the very low poly models, it just had its odd charm).
My childhood handheld consoles. Never had a home console and I never felt like I missed a thing. I still have them today and still turn it on once in a while too :)
15:40 the only thing i disagree with here is that the mainline pokemon games specifically look a lot better on ds; the gba games absolutely have their own charm but the gen 4 and especially the gen 5 games are a huge upgrade visually
I’ll definitely agree with you that the DS has a lot more variety than the gba. While it is mainly due to the touchscreen, that still allows for an added dimension of gameplay. Sure, there’s stuff like 64 DS and the top-down Zelda games, but there’s also games like the Drawn to Life series, Pokémon Ranger, Mario Party DS, Kirby Mass Attack, Picross 3D, et freaking cetera.
I think a part of why Gameboy games generally look better to me than DS games (despite me “gaining consciousness” the day the DS was released so I only grew up with the latter) today is that most DS games tried to look “realistic” or more high def whereas the Gameboy games I’ve had the pleasure to play all had a pixel design (like Minish Cap) which is more a timeless design. DS games that didn’t try to look as “realistic” like Yoshi’s Island DS or my older sister’s game Super Princess Peach aged better than say Mario Kart or NSMB. The same can be said for Wii games in my opinion, Wario Land Shake Dimension looks better today than the original Super Mario Galaxy or Brawl because one goes for a cartoony art style whereas the others go for a more realistic (Brawl went overkill on that one) artstyle which inevitably will look “bad” one day because of constant improvements in terms of hardware
You're right on the money. More cartooney DS games look absolutely gorgeous even by today's standards. That's why I reckon the DS has aged less badly than the 3ds in some regards. It has a huge library of 2d games that still look good, but the 3ds has way less 2d games, and almost all its 3d games looked bad on release and still look bad today... I think super smash bros 3ds is never going to be played again.
You nailed it on the DS variety. That’s really what sells it for me. There were so many amazing and unique experience that never happened before or since.
I personally had a very different experience with the fat DS and DS lite. Everyone at school's DS lites would have broken hinges and shoulder buttons, though everyone with a fat DS had little to no issues
I feel bad for NSMB 1 because the stink of other NSMB games have made it hard for me to look back on it fondly. When you had Zero Mission and NSMB on the screen at the same time, all I could think was "this is the most uneven matchup in history" but that really isn't fair. It's not NSMB 1's fault that Nintendo killed the "New" Super Mario Bros. brand dead
If you ask me, you really can't get much better than the DSi XL. The screen is absolutely gorgeous! It's absolutely the best way to play DS games. Also, if you softmod your DSi (which is pretty easy if you aren't Scott) or get a DS flashcart, you can launch emulators and even play Game Boy Advance games, which look so good on that screen. There's actually no slowdown or emulation glitches at all, because it's actually able to run Game Boy Advance games natively as a leftover from the DSes which had a cartridge slot. You can also play mods and homebrew of DS games, Pokémon Blaze Black 2 Redux and Newer Super Mario Bros. DS are really well made. Honestly, I think my DSi XL might be one of my favorite portable game systems at the moment.
DSi is the best version of the DS for softmodding, however isn't it better to softmod a 3ds at that stage, even if it's a bit harder? The DSi XL also mostly had shitty looking colours u_u the original blue DSi looks the nicest of the lot. If you're not softmodding, while the XL is the best way to play original DS games, it's an otherwise far inferior console to the DS Lite. One of the main reasons I got a DS Lite is because the GBA slot can transfer games from Pokemon generation 3 (GBA) to generation 4 and up.
I hope Konami is somehow able to figure out how to do a Castlevania DS collection like they did with GBA collection. I really enjoyed those ds castlevania games. Also love all the Atlus SMT games and one of my favorite games ever was ds game 999. Pokémon Conquest also one of my fave Pokémon games. The GBA is def amazing tho. I had my first experience with a lot of old games on gba like final fantasy 1-6 or breath of fire 1 &2 for example
The DSi XL is probably the best handheld Nintendo has produced. Extremely high quality overall, down to the stylus. And more importantly the dual IPS screens look amazing
Maybe not the best, but it is pretty much the ultimate DS (one of the best and most iconic handhelds ever), just finished playing with it a few minutes ago. So elegant too and it makes the camera seem to be much better than what it actually is 😂😂
The problem with ds games is that everyone wanted to use the fancy new 3d ds graphics but didn`t want to make an actual 3d game so they put low quality models in a low quality 2d game instead of using sprites so it justs end up feeling tacky.
I'd definitely recommend modding your GBA to add a backlit screen, the form factor of the original GBA is just so great, you can add a cool custom shell too
The original GBA is such a great device... other than the lack of a backlight. It's a simple device, but a good form factor and more powerful than you might expect. A headphone jack is a refreshing thing to see in a device these days. Screens you can actually see are the greatest thing since banning smoking on planes.
I love them both, first got the GBA in 2003 in high school and the DS in 2006 while in college. Been collecting games from each off and on, really got obsessed with collecting games around 2015-ish. Lately, I've been obsessed with collecting hidden gems from both.
Basically an irrelevant observation, but I had a coughing fit at the same time you were talking about the Game Boy Micro, so I thought you called it the "fuckable" one of the bunch. Had to rewind to confirm. "Fashionable," eh? :P
When it comes to Capcom games the GBA has it. The GBA introduced the world to Phoenix wright, Megaman Zero and Megaman Battle network. The DS had Ace Attorney investigations Megaman ZX and Star force. The GBA's lineup here is superior lol
I swear, the given nintendo history of "the ds is not the sucessor of the gba" and "the switch is not the sucessor of the 3ds" they BETTER PULL ONE UP LIKE "the Swap is not the sucessor of the switch"
Great arguments and food for thought. I thought it was going to be a GBA win at the start. I played my DS waaaay more than my Gameboy Advance, my Gameboy, and my PSP. When I hacked it, it became my first eBook reader too. My GF and I played it on train journeys to work in the city, level-level life-life and I still got it.
I really get you with the graphics part. My introduction to Nintendo was Pokemon and I thought Diamond and Pearl looked so static and dull compared to Ruby and Sapphire which were so vibrant and alive. And not just because GBA game's region looks nicer, the battle UI is a little odd on DS imo. Probably the text thing you mentioned.
I mean Diamond and Pearl are static and dull because they are really badly coded. Platinum actually took away 90% of all the lag and made areas prettier, including a entire island full of volcanic black sand.
@@oof5992 okay, I could change my comment to say Emerald instead of Ruby and Sapphire and Platinum instead of Diamond and Pearl. Wouldn't change a thing to be honest
@@bvd_vlvd It kind of Would, though yes all of Hoenn is more vibrant than Inland Sinnoh. Though Platinum Fight Area Island is much more vibrant than all of hoenn.
@@oof5992 Intelligent systems games look blander on DS. Phantom Hourglass looks blander than Minish Cap Please stop playing the devil's advocate since this is a subjective opinion and you're just messing with me
@@bvd_vlvd >IS games look blander on the DS >Dual Strike Pick one. FE11, FE12 and Days of ruin all look bland since it was a stylistic choice, since IS showed themselves capable of outdoing themselves in color with AW Dual strike. Now i agree with the Zelda part. But i never made this be about GBA VS DS, just saying that Diamond and Pearl are dogshit games in general, including the visuals department, something that platinum fixed, especially in the fight area island, and im a huge fan of Hoenn itself. Now you could disagree but from what you said it doesnt seem that you have seen platinum's improvements to the visuals.
I feel like Scott made this video as an excuse just to show off his target Game Boy Advance
That GBA had rizz though tbf
he's hoping we'll start calling him "the guy that owns a Target GBA" instead of "the guy that owns Sonic Jam"
When I was a kid there was a sick blue variant of the GBA that was Toys R Us exclusive.
I thought you were joking about the target Gameboy advance, but it's actually a target gameboy!
It's no Target Purple GBA.
I kinda miss having actual dedicated hand helds.
The switch *is* portable, but more so in a way that's good for like "oh im gonna bring the switch to a party so we can all play mario party" rather than "yeah, ive got 5 minutes on the bus to finish a level of mario" like the ds or gba
Yeah... sadly even my most favorite handhelds today like the steam deck suffer from this problem. Can't take those out in public like a phone unlike with a ds where I can take it out on the bus to grind pokemon, close it into sleep mode, then go back into it when I wanna play again
I think a lot of that also stems from a lack of small simple games that are easy to pick up and put down whenever you want.
yeah, thats why I still carry around my 3DS
@@TheEPICMarioBros2same
My problem is i have all these games fully playable and in many ways improved on my android phone...then i end up playing something for 5 minutes and quitting because maybe one of the other 5000 games on my device might be better. If i only had a few cartridges I'd probably actually enjoy them but you can't ever truly go back to that unless you're just tricking yourself into realizing the option exists...when you add that to a Sega Saturn with hundreds of games on a disk drive emulator, mini classics modded with all their best games and everything pretty much on the PC then lots of cool modern stuff i just can't commit to anything long enough to truly get into it
I like how Scott’s idea of getting footage for Metroid games is just standing there shooting missiles while getting hit
Its crazy that the Game Boy Micro is an official product. It just feels like a fan made mod of the system to see how small they could get it.
Facts 😂💯
"it looks like a mini laptop" is exactly what my mom said the first time she saw it on tv. That plus the rechargeable battery sold her on getting an SP for me immediately
It’s cool to see more of these types of episodes on Scott’s Stash, like this is basically a whole Scott the Woz episode
It really is a early Scott the woz episode, like the ps3 vs 360 ep
14:48 Background Music?
What is it?
I think it's weird, but I prefer these videos to the ones in the main channel
What music is in 14:48
Yeah it's like a Scott the Woz episode just done in a more casual style. Which is really cool, I mean of course I love the usual Scott the Woz episode formula, but this is a nice change of pace
Man this just reminds me how great handheld gaming was between like 2002-2007, having full 3d games on the go for the first time was an insane leap
Affordable too, $150 for the DS.
Economy was way nicer back then
@@KeiTh0r I love the economy
What I also love is the game design back then. It was just like: Put the game in and just into the action. It was pretty awesome
As much as I think it's incredible we can play console-quality games on devices like the Switch and Steam Deck... The massive size of those things compared to the GBA, DS, even PSP just make it a nuisance to carry around. I hope we can go back to the sizes of the older handhelds one day.
I love this sentence "The DS Lite is the Gameboy Advance SP of the DS line" that's such a perfect way of putting it, and it's so accurate
I mean the DS Lite does share very similar screens to the 2nd revision of the GBA SP (AGS-101), with a bit less ghosting 😄
Not really, the DS Lite has a headphone jack!
1:45 The reason why the DS had a GBA slot is *probably* in case it failed, in which case they could still market it as something that played GBA games.
I mean, with how cheap it probably was to make GBA ports (economies of scale), it would be losing money to not give the DS access to what was at the time almost 30 years of a library.
@@dankbonkripper2845 But the DS couldn't play OG Game Boy or Game Boy Color games.
It makes sense, better play it safe than sorry
they just didn't want to cannibalize their own healthy GBA market and scare away devs.
@@duscarasheddinn8033the gba library was already massive and encompassed ports of many snes games.
The ds having the port helps it alot
If you think about it, for 2004 the DS hardware was a solid jump for the time. It only pales in comparison to the PSP which was actually cutting edge for the time (and also a lot more expensive than the DS).
In comparison to other devices at the time like the N-Gage or mobile devices, the 3D on the DS was far better.
The original n-gage's hardware was actually superior to the DS (almost double the clock speed on an ARM 9 core). The problem was that you were basically writing games for Symbian and if you wanted to capture the biggest market with that, you'd probably write your game to run on a terrible contract feature phone rather than require the full horsepower of the n-gage.
a wiwi
except the DS came out in 2005
@@chl_ca 2004, not 2005
“why did they add a link cable but not a headphone jack??” you can really tell how much scott hates pokemon thru these semi-unrelated complaints
Yeah lol
Also, the video mentioned that Nintendo DS was "Nintendo's first foray into non Game Boy handheld territory", ignoring existence of Game & Watch, Nintendo Mini Classics, Pokemon Pikachu and Pokemon Mini (granted, first three may not have counted due to not accepting cartridges, but Pokemon Mini definitely does).
the Pokémon mini was just a tomagachi sized bullshit nugget with a cartridge slot for some reason
@@sugar_700 ok but nobody has heard of the pokemon mini so it doesnt count it's not a main nintendo handheld it's just a weird pokemania product
I remember when the gba sp came out with its rechargeable battery, all I could think was, "WHAT IF I RUN OUT OF BATTERY ON THE SCHOOL BUS, I CAN'T SWAP BATTERIES NOW IT'S SO STUPID." I still have massive battery anxiety to this day lol
Just replace the rechargeable battery with a backup rechargeable battery
So true. I sometimes prefer only having to use a couple aa's instead of carrying a charger everywhere.
@@sNintendoFan nah, having to constantly pay for new batteries is whack. Just charge up before you head out.
@@rainydaygirlz Have you heard of rechargeable AA batteries?
Rip replaceable batteries ;(
As much as I loved my DS, the GBA will always hold a special place in my heart
Same. Even though I probably have more fond memories of my DS, the GBA SP was my first ever proper game system (I say "proper" game system because before it I had the Leapster, which was an edutainment system), so it'll always hold a special place in my heart.
It's games have the best music, Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga, Pokemon RSE, Mario kart Super Circuit and Minnish Cap
As someone who grew up on Gameboy lol....the ds imo just outshines the gba. It was very innovative. But both are great.
@@packers12to80 did you play superstar saga?
i spent over 400 hrs on emerald as a kid XD i still have my gba too
The GBA was so important because it allowed big budget 2D sprite style games to continue existing into the 2000s when they wouldn't have been made otherwise.
With Homebrew on the DSi it loses it's flaw of missing the GBA slot because it actually has the hardware inside to run GBA games natively.
thats funny that they still let the hardware inside but just decided they werent gonna let people use it anymore
Compatibility isn't *that* great though. I mean, it works, and it's playable, but it's definitely not the same...
@@sangan3202I think it’s more because of the size of the dsi, it’s too slim to fit a gba cartridge
DSi doesn’t have the literal GBA hardware as DSs with the slot has, so it must rely on emulation to run it. But since DSi’s hardware is more powerful than the regular DS’s, it runs the emulation quite a bit nicer. I mean I tried it and I had no hiccups or lag.
Only sort of. GBARunner2 isn't emulation, but it isn't the perfect GBA mode with 100% compatibility that the DS had either. It's doing the same sort of thing, putting the DSi's ARM 7 core into a mode that approximates how the GBA's ARM 7 CPU ran. But since the chip isn't built to have an accurate GBA mode, they can only get it so close. Most games do run perfectly though.
The 3DS brings back a perfect, hardware-supported GBA mode since Nintendo planned to release a bunch of GBA virtual consoles games on it, but then decided not to, allegedly because they couldn't get lid-shut automatic sleep mode to work properly.
See it’s probably cause I grew up with it but I love the DS style of 3D
Cause while the models were super low poly, developers were way smarter with the low detail than earlier gens when the tech was newer.
But my favorite part is that the textures weren’t anti aliased and most devs used it to their advantage so instead of the blurry, kinda ugly textures of other early 3D systems, they had full on pixel art for textures most of the time and I just love the look of it
The textures are pretty fine, but while 3D games on the DS look dated, I think the sprites based ones still look good to this day.
IMO both the GBA and the DS have the best sprites ever (I call them "the kings of sprites) 😂
@@vittosphonecollection57289 What about Saturn and Neo Geo?
7:50 Can absolutely personally confirm as well. A few years ago I bought an OG DS cause I thought it'd be cool, I never had one before.
Literally a few days later the hinge on it broke while it was IN MY POCKET. I think I was carrying a shopping bag and it slightly knocked against it with very little force.
The plastic on the inside was EXTREMELY yellow. Telltale sign for it becoming brittle over time. I checked the platic pieces to see how weak it was. I could easily pull them apart w/o trying with two fingers.
Another issue with the OG DS design vs. the Lite is that if the hinge breaks then your top screen is hanging by a ribbon cable lmao. At least on the Lite it's still structurally intact.
Mistake one buying the og Nintendo DS
Scott was basically rambling about the same thing over and over again for the last half of the video but I absolutely loved it
Nintendo calling the DS and GBA two pillars of the company is when I learned that companies lie
Best part is they did the exact same lie years later with the switch and 3ds.
I feel like they actually followed through with that on the Switch/3DS. I remember plenty of people getting angry that Luigi's Mansion and Inside Story were released on 3DS well after the Switch released.
Successor to the GameBoy and N64 is more like it.
@DiGi my cousins bought both the Switch and a 2DS for both siblings. I saw it as the 2DS being ultra portable and more personal while the Switch was for the whole family.
With both the DS and the Switch, they were trying out something considerably different to what came before. The DS was bulkier and had two screens + touch + mic, with many games trying new control schemes. And for the Switch, a non-folding handheld that doesn't fit in a pocket and doubles as a console with last-gen specs. Seems to me they wanted to keep their successful previous-gen handheld ready in case it proved to be a flop -- a return to the tried-and-true GBA or 3DS would be more of a "welp, 3rd pillar didn't work out" or "it's a fine replacement for the Wii U but the New 3DS is still our handheld" rather than a surprising about-face and admission of failure.
"Wouldn't more people use headphones than the link cable?"
*screeches in Pokemon*
yes
I never used the link cable lol
GBA was my first console that was really mine, I remember playing this thing all the time as a kid. I bought a backlit original GBA a few months back and have been loving replaying some old games. But I do think I like the DS more overall, if only for the fact that in addition to all the great things the DS has going for it it also has a GBA slot. So it was easy for me as a kid, and now as an adult, to just carry over my great GBA experiences to this new console.
9:58 "And if you think size really does matter... there's always surgery"
Dying of laughter.
Would love a time lapse of like a Target game shelf showing what was available at launch, and then how it may have looked as games were phased out and new ones became available.
The GBA was a way to get the SNES experience in your pocket, which was amazing and still is. However the DS was truly it's own system, even now the best way to experience it is on original hardware.
There is a SNES emulator for GBA :P
@@repeekyraidcero but at the time these were ports
Nah, 2DS is the best way to play DS games.
@@Gggrrrrrrrr23 Or get a New 3DS
From an outsider's perspective, that's definitely the case. However, if you dig into both libraries, you'll notice so many high-quality exclusive GBA games while the DS was flooded with casual games and later on smartphone games.
Scott arguing that a headphone jack would be better than a link cable slot in the SP is the most “I didn’t play Pokémon growing up” thing he has ever said.
Yeah it's really silly lmao. They obviously excluded it because they figured kids wouldn't even care or use the headphone jack anyway. Still i felt they should have kept it. Micro had one.
Scott said a lot of dumb stuff this episode.
I unironically don't understand why you didn't release this on your main channel, it's a fantastic video bro.
Main for skits, 1000% energy
I would have love to see a video like this similar to the Ps3 vs Xbox 360 video
I mean I love these Stash videos but c'mon man they clearly aren't meant for the main channel what with the lack of a script and a carpet being in view for the entire video
Love these scott's videos related game boy 👍
The amount of bangers on the GBA for how short a life span it had is amazing
Edit: lots of people saying the GBA library was just remakes so here's a list of amazing original GBA games
-Mario + Luigi Superstar saga
-Golden Sun series
-Pokemon R/S/E
-Zelda Minish Cap
-Mother 3
-Metroid fusion
-Castlevania Aria of Sorrows
-Warioware Inc + Twisted
-Fire emblem blazing blade(first released in the west)
-Advance Wars
-wario land 4
-FF tactics
-Pokémon pinball
-Drill Dozer
-Mario Vs DK
-Kuru Kuru Kurrin
-Sonic Advance series
-F-zero Gp legend
-Astro Boy
-Megaman Zero series
-Megaman battle network series
Plus a ton of platformer movie/cartoon tie ins that were brilliant
Plus a lot of the remakes were vast improvements e.g. Metroid zero mission
The last game for GBA was released in 2008....
@@wishbonefan and the gba came out in like 2003 and 99% of the games were remakes or had better versions on the ds
@@Raddish-IS-Radd No the GBA came out in 2001 (at least in Japan I believe)
@@morayfrye so that's 2 more years which was only about 7 years on the market and half the major games were remakes
@@Raddish-IS-Radd Even if they were remakes that didn't take away from the fact that they were still bangers.
The Gba was my first ever console as kid, so I’m pretty biased towards it .
GBA is the greatest handheld console of all time
@@ThomastheDankEngine8900nope 3ds is
the ds lite is incredible. if you can get over its size, its still an awesome way to play ds and gba games, it’s still my go-to as opposed to putting them into my 3ds. especially because the games come up a lot nicer on the smaller screens. the design is super refined, i love how sleek it is, especially the white one. what a great revision
i think the original ds looks cooler, i like the weighty look and feels less like it tried to copy the "smooth" design wave that came from the iphone. the ds lite buttons are also rounded for some reason. also hate how the gameboy cartridge sticks out on lite
DS games definitely look prettier on the Lite than on the 3DS, but the DSi is better imo, it even plays GBA games if you hack it
@@MilkJugA_ the ds lite came out a year before the first iphone
@@oRyner didnt know that, still the point stands that it was part of that wave, and i dont really like the aesthetic
What’s hilarious is that I never had a DS to my remembering, I had a GBA, a DS Lite, then an original 3DS. I’d have to look at the specific designs, but I remember my DS Lite (I think it was) was red and black and very thin. I used to play Spyro/Crash Bandicoot in the GBA slot on the bottom since it was a 2 for 1 game cartridge I think. Man, those are old memories haha
I love this kind of content. It’s the stuff I’ve been looking for to fill in the hole that Classic Game Room left. Thanks Scott!
I really like these kinds of videos, feels like a scott the woz episode but really chill
The DSi XL was a console I didn't understand until I brought it on a roadtrip at the beginning of this year. I've had one from my cousin for years but I was playing the thing for hours on my way down to Texas from the Midwest and my god, its such a gorgeous system. The buttons, espeically the D-Pad are grade A, love them. And the screens, wow. I dont have a 3DS XL anymore but even just comparing playing DS games on the original 3DS and the DSi XL, its night and day. The DSi XL's screens are sharp and so damn crisp. Especially after modding it, it's become my main driver for anything Gameboy, Gamebody Advance, and DS related. Love it to bits.
Should I get a dsi xl or a ds lite?
@@SwitchAddictdsi xl If you haven't made your choice yet but make sure to mod it
@@NatetheNintendofan Thanks! I have been looking for a DSi Xl but they are readily available in my area:/
22:51 don't worry, Scott, that was every pokémon fan's reaction to the crossover too. it's a good game and well loved, it's just a downright *bizarre* crossover that basically no one even knew what it was crossing over with
Hell, I'd argue that most people didn't even know it was supposed to be a crossover!
I’m reminded of why I loved handheld devices that had me hooked for years.
Let’s not rewrite history. The “properly backlit” SP didn’t come out till almost a year after the DS, compared to the frontlit SP the DS seemed like a huge upgrade at the time.
That's right. The backlit sp came around the time they were already preparing the DS Lite...
If you want people to not rewrite history, you can start with yourself; the GBA SP released in 2003, the DS in 04.
@@CassiDS Please read this and learn from it. The BACKLIT Game Boy Advance SP released in 2005. The original 2003 model was FRONT LIT, a difference in tech I specifically mentioned in the reply you are responding to. I’m not out to embarrass you, so if you delete your response attempting to correct me, I’ll delete my response, which actually corrects you. Please learn from this and don’t be so eager to try to show off that you end up making a mistake in public.
On the library part, I do agree that DS has the best library. As a PSP hardcore fan, the games on the DS is so unique that even emulating them doesnt give justice. I forced myself to buy a DS so I can experience the game natively and my mind is blown away. World Ends with you, Prpfessor Layton and that detective game I forgot the title really pushed the 😊creativity of DS controls, dual screen and microphone
Really enjoying the hybrid content, mixing the joking environment with facts and information is really nice! This feels like a late-night version of a normal Scott The Woz video!
I feel like Pokémon really benefited from the DS. 4th and 5thgen really revolutionised the franchise and put forth some of the best games in the franchise, mystery dungeon even as well.
Gen 3 is not mid, it has the best Music, Gen 5 has the 2nd best Music
Gen 5 was the peak of the pokemon franchise
@@AB-sw4kb Pretty much. A big part of the problem is that, like all modern games, the 3D Pokemon games have only gotten more and more complex to make, and that doesn’t really go well with The Pokemon franchise’s psychotic media and merchandising needs. I’d love to see what Game Freak could do if they were given as much time as, say, Nintendo gives themselves to release a Zelda.
@@AB-sw4kb personally, I disagree. While X and Y, the games that came out after it are constantly slandered online, it’s actually not as bad as people make it out to be. And while I did grow up with the game, at an unbiased perspective, it did drop off at some points, but people are failing to see the other points that succeeded them. And yet, some people try to justify a high price point being 100 dollars when it comes to black and white. I don’t care how good those are, I’d rather buy another two copies of X and Y before I bought one singular dinky little cartridge of black and white for 100 dollars.
pokemon peaked at the DS, it had the 2 best mystery dungeon games and the 2 best main games as well
I like the 3:2 screen on the GBA. It's my favorite aspect ratio for any handheld.
Really enjoying the hybrid content, mixing the joking environment with facts and information is really nice! This feels like a late-night version of a normal Scott The Woz video!
Only a Scott's Stash video to go along with the Mario movie!
I think part of the reason that the DS had so many more interesting original titles is because it had so much longer to stretch its legs. If the Gameboy Advance lived a long and prosperous life like the original Gameboy, we could easily have seen a GBA Animal Crossing, a more impressive followup to super circuit, and new original ideas for the platform. The DS's life wasn't short or anything, but it didn't have a true successor for almost 7 years, which was a long time to build an impressive library and for developers to familiarize themselves to the hardware. Food for thought.
I don't think you understand how vast the gba catalog is. Trying to debate which had a better library is silly because it's a wash. Both are legendary libraries
i have very fond memories of playing on my sister's gba as a kid, but my dsi was the first console i actually owned. i love them pretty equally, both of them are fantastic systems.
my family lost the gba with moving houses and such, but ive had my dsi for over a decade and my ds lite for around 5 years. i play gba stuff on my lite occasionally still!!
I feel like the original DS was more in line with the GameCube era, as it has that same matte silver that a lot of GameCubes had and still look like the design of something that came out of the first half of the early 2000s. Then the DS lite was more like the Wii era. Very glossy White (I know they came in more colors than just White) and basic shape. The stylus and touch screen were basically the handheld equivalent to the Wii's motion controls. It would make a lot of sense.
Indeed you can clearly see that the Wii and DS Lite share the same design language. They both have aged beautifully in my opinion, still looks like a very fine modern piece of engineering.
Flipnote studio saved my life as a kid since i couldnt pay practically nothing for cheap gba games anymore.
Fun fact: The S in the DS originally stood for 'Boy'
No-
Ah yes, the Duel Boy.
the dual soyboy
@@BrianIsWatching ITS TIME TO- D- D- D- D- DDDDDDDDD- DUEEELLL
It's Da Boy
I actually really like the aesthetics of DS games, especially titles with heavy use of 2D like Hotel Dusk. Games could still be low-res while presenting realistic materials, creating a unique hybrid-pixel art style that I find really charming.
It felt like the PS1 in a way
I actually like the 3D models and textures in the DS, mainly as a vibe. And it was cool that Nintendo was doing full 3D games for the first time in an handheld, even if Sony was doing better with the PSP in that department.
@@okagron yea, and the DS ran circles around the PSP being the 2nd best selling console of all time so goes to show alot of people weren't to concerned about power
I prefer the original GBA form factor, too, and that's exactly why I happily bought a modded one. Recommended! Oh, and I am an old person so I love the DSi XL.
The best GBA version though in my arrogant opinion was the original SP. The AGS-001. Yeah, the screen looked worse compared to the 101, no doubt about that, but in return, you got literally twice the battery life, no ghosting on the screen whatsoever, and instant pixel response times meaning no input lag of any kind. Of course, some people are still gonna prefer the much nicer looking screen of the AGS-101, and that's fair enough, but nevertheless, there is actually a point to owning an AGS-001 over the newer AGS-101.
@@arnox4554 it's okay, that's not an arrogant opinion. I definitely prefer SP for its practical design and lifespan longevity. But for comfortability? The OG GBA design, for sure. It's always better to play long horizontal handheld games
6:56
This has to be a contender for my favourite Scott the Woz joke of all time. And completely improvised too. Fucking magical. Scott, you are an artist.
"To to- ..I..I- It doesn't even turn on!"
Idk 0:00 Is Pretty Good
Dick’s Sporting Goods though
That one and 10:00 are both my top 10 Scott lines now lol
Mine was at 2:59
I love this kind of content. It’s the stuff I’ve been looking for to fill in the hole that Classic Game Room left. Thanks Scott 👍
I feel like Scott isn’t even really trying to make Retro games content, he’s just helping us relive our childhoods
@6:25 Culturally, Japanese consumers were more likely to use the link cable system than in the US. Their gaming habits are different like that. One of the coolest things I recall seeing in Japan were groups of friends at restaurants or on the trains, all playing something like Monster Hunter together on their PSPs. They're more likely to engage like that.
Also pokemon exists
GBA SP was LIGHTYEARS ahead of it’s time!… abolishing the headphone jack WAY before Apple nerfed the iPhone!
I feel the DS can be the case kind of like the Vita where if you're into JRPG's, it's got an incredible catalog of quality games. Pokemon, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, and Chrono Trigger all have multiple main line games that are lauded to be the best in their franchise. The 2D art on the console is beautiful when done right and the use of the bottom touch screen to manage menus for them is a perfect match for the genre.
Finally some appreciation for the DS Final Fantasy games.
I have literally never noticed the SP didn’t have a headphone jack…
Comparing the DS XL to an old person's remote and the 3DS XL as a "power user's" model is a hilarious insight.
The GBA and DS are basically tied for my favourite systems of all time. I love the games on the GBA a lot, but the DS holds a place in my heart as my first system and honestly I can look past the dated 3D as a part of the nostalgia and uniqueness of the system.
This video doesn't work without the green IPad and Australian voice
Just kidding 😅, I think it's cool that Scott made a video with the style of Dankpods
Quick point for the GBA & GBA SP: they were $99 vs the DS’s $150 and DSLite’s $130. That’s a massive price hike percentage wise.
Both consoles would steadily drop in price. For example, the Game Boy Advance SP was $79 by the time the $150 DS came out.
I also have to split a point for each console’s game packaging. The DS’s plastic boxes were way better than the GBA’s cardboard. They were actually reusable.
However, GBA games always had intricately made paper manuals with tons of custom artwork, story, concept art, and stuff. Sometimes it’d have a tiny guide for parts of the game. They were always my favorite part of getting a new game. Unfortunately, the DS was the console that started phasing intricate manuals out over its lifetime. The Wireless & Download Play stuff eventually ended up taking over 50% of the manual.
The pricing is also the main reason the GB Micro flopped. It debuted at $100 a year after the DS had already been out.
Made no sense to most people to get it when you could save up $50 and get the new next gen handheld that can play all the same GBA games anyway alongside completely new ones. Or get the GBA SP that was the same price as the Micro or less and be able to play the entire GB/GBC library.
@@VexAcervery true. I wanted the Micro because it looked awesome, but I held off once I heard about the DS Lite and got that. Glad I did, amazing unit.
I so agree with loving the visual style of GBA games. In one of your vids you used footage from a GBA game I had never seen and I couldn't believe it was a GBA game because the visual style was so well crafted, I thought it looked like a modern pixel art indie game.
This has to be a contender for my favourite Scott the Woz joke of all time. And completely improvised too. Fucking magical. Scott, you are an artist.
I remember getting my GBA Christmas 2003 as a 6 year old and getting Lego Island II on it. Miss that grey see through original model.
I am really weird but I really liked the original design of the DS. And not so much now but around the time it was out. I liked the lite too but i remember kind of admiring the orginal DS when it came out, it felt mature. Every handheld before it always felt like kids toy. Let me tell you, 14 year old me felt pre-tty grown up playing Kirby Canvas Curse on the train.
people like to shittalk the OG DS' design but it was fine, I like the Lite and i but they definitely look a lot more generic
Kirby Canvas Curse, wow. I think that and mariokart were my first original DS games. Mariokart was especially fun because you can play with 8 people on a single cartridge. Did that on a field trip to Canada with my classmates.
I remember getting my first Gameboy Pocket, GBC, GBA, and NDS. Honestly, I was most excited for the DS. It was such a leap in terms of graphical prowess that I was so impressed. Metroid Prime Hunters, Mario 64, Pokemon DPP, Lunar Dragon Song, Lost in Blue, etc. It had such a great lineup of games that it's tough to beat. And come on, we all loved Nintendogs haha
Yeah, I saw Mario 64 running on the DS and I was like "HOLY CRAP, I WANT IT!" And the game lived up to the hype.
Me and my friends from summer camp used our DS and DSi’s to play Mario kart on the way to field trips to pass time,
that’s what was special about the DS and GBA, they were simply easy to carry everywhere and pull out and get a little progress done and or play a few rounds with friends with limited time, the switch is great and all but still
I really miss the clamshell design, it's the pinacle of handheld design in my opinion. It's the perfect way of protecting the screens without needing added protections.
Original GBA with a screen mod + DSi XL is the ideal combo for the best possible way to experience these two libraries.
I don’t know why, but I really like the design of the OG DS. Something about it just hits my brain just right
The last gasp of cassette futurism.
Before Apple came and changed everything.
Yes, i liked it as well. Didn't even grow up with it.
I actually loved using the touch screen to look around for Metroid Prime on DS, I thought it was so smooth & intuitive. The only problem for me is that the DS d-pad hurts my finger when playing 3D games.
Oh maybe try to play it on the 3ds
@@joshentertainment2 I actually have been! I haven't gotten too far since I've been busy with other games but it is 100× better playing with the circle pad
Everyone is for pro GBA, well I’m pro Ds. It’s the reason of how I got into gaming in the first place. The first Ds I ever had was the Ds Lite yellow edition, which looked so Good and felt Good. And also the Ds i was also really cool too with the cameras and Flip note studies. And also it had a ass load of great games that sometimes are 3d, (I oddly like the very low poly models, it just had its odd charm).
Revenge of the Flying Dutchman for gba was the first video game I ever played. I remember not being able to see the screen at night on long drives.
I love this type of content 🙂
My childhood handheld consoles. Never had a home console and I never felt like I missed a thing. I still have them today and still turn it on once in a while too :)
15:40 the only thing i disagree with here is that the mainline pokemon games specifically look a lot better on ds; the gba games absolutely have their own charm but the gen 4 and especially the gen 5 games are a huge upgrade visually
I’ll definitely agree with you that the DS has a lot more variety than the gba. While it is mainly due to the touchscreen, that still allows for an added dimension of gameplay. Sure, there’s stuff like 64 DS and the top-down Zelda games, but there’s also games like the Drawn to Life series, Pokémon Ranger, Mario Party DS, Kirby Mass Attack, Picross 3D, et freaking cetera.
I think a part of why Gameboy games generally look better to me than DS games (despite me “gaining consciousness” the day the DS was released so I only grew up with the latter) today is that most DS games tried to look “realistic” or more high def whereas the Gameboy games I’ve had the pleasure to play all had a pixel design (like Minish Cap) which is more a timeless design. DS games that didn’t try to look as “realistic” like Yoshi’s Island DS or my older sister’s game Super Princess Peach aged better than say Mario Kart or NSMB. The same can be said for Wii games in my opinion, Wario Land Shake Dimension looks better today than the original Super Mario Galaxy or Brawl because one goes for a cartoony art style whereas the others go for a more realistic (Brawl went overkill on that one) artstyle which inevitably will look “bad” one day because of constant improvements in terms of hardware
You're right on the money. More cartooney DS games look absolutely gorgeous even by today's standards.
That's why I reckon the DS has aged less badly than the 3ds in some regards. It has a huge library of 2d games that still look good, but the 3ds has way less 2d games, and almost all its 3d games looked bad on release and still look bad today... I think super smash bros 3ds is never going to be played again.
You nailed it on the DS variety. That’s really what sells it for me. There were so many amazing and unique experience that never happened before or since.
I personally had a very different experience with the fat DS and DS lite. Everyone at school's DS lites would have broken hinges and shoulder buttons, though everyone with a fat DS had little to no issues
The DSi XL is the pinnacle for DS games, such a bright and crisp screen and comfortable to play, just a shame it didn’t have slot 2 for GBA 😢
if you mod it, you can add GBA games and they run natively on the hardware, no emulation
I feel bad for NSMB 1 because the stink of other NSMB games have made it hard for me to look back on it fondly. When you had Zero Mission and NSMB on the screen at the same time, all I could think was "this is the most uneven matchup in history" but that really isn't fair. It's not NSMB 1's fault that Nintendo killed the "New" Super Mario Bros. brand dead
Fun fact: the DSi Sound and 3DS Sound apps are both able to play back AAC files, which makes them natively able to replace iPods as well.
GBA Color was my first handheld, SP was a great one too but my all time favorite was PSP
If you ask me, you really can't get much better than the DSi XL. The screen is absolutely gorgeous! It's absolutely the best way to play DS games. Also, if you softmod your DSi (which is pretty easy if you aren't Scott) or get a DS flashcart, you can launch emulators and even play Game Boy Advance games, which look so good on that screen. There's actually no slowdown or emulation glitches at all, because it's actually able to run Game Boy Advance games natively as a leftover from the DSes which had a cartridge slot. You can also play mods and homebrew of DS games, Pokémon Blaze Black 2 Redux and Newer Super Mario Bros. DS are really well made. Honestly, I think my DSi XL might be one of my favorite portable game systems at the moment.
14:02 14:03
DSi is the best version of the DS for softmodding, however isn't it better to softmod a 3ds at that stage, even if it's a bit harder? The DSi XL also mostly had shitty looking colours u_u the original blue DSi looks the nicest of the lot.
If you're not softmodding, while the XL is the best way to play original DS games, it's an otherwise far inferior console to the DS Lite. One of the main reasons I got a DS Lite is because the GBA slot can transfer games from Pokemon generation 3 (GBA) to generation 4 and up.
@@tipsy634 The main appeal of the XL to me is the screens. You can also softmod it to load games off the SD card slot, including GBA games.
I hope Konami is somehow able to figure out how to do a Castlevania DS collection like they did with GBA collection. I really enjoyed those ds castlevania games. Also love all the Atlus SMT games and one of my favorite games ever was ds game 999. Pokémon Conquest also one of my fave Pokémon games. The GBA is def amazing tho. I had my first experience with a lot of old games on gba like final fantasy 1-6 or breath of fire 1 &2 for example
As much as I would love that, I don't trust Konami anymore after what happened with the Metal Gear Solid Vol. 1 Collection.
The DSi XL is probably the best handheld Nintendo has produced. Extremely high quality overall, down to the stylus. And more importantly the dual IPS screens look amazing
Maybe not the best, but it is pretty much the ultimate DS (one of the best and most iconic handhelds ever), just finished playing with it a few minutes ago.
So elegant too and it makes the camera seem to be much better than what it actually is 😂😂
Man this just reminds me how great handheld gaming was between like 2002-2007, having full 3d games on the go for the first time was an insane leap
Tons of SNES ports on the GBA worked for me because I never had a SNES.
The problem with ds games is that everyone wanted to use the fancy new 3d ds graphics but didn`t want to make an actual 3d game so they put low quality models in a low quality 2d game instead of using sprites so it justs end up feeling tacky.
And the games that did use the 3d for its true potential still felt kinda tacky but with their own personality In a good way
I'd definitely recommend modding your GBA to add a backlit screen, the form factor of the original GBA is just so great, you can add a cool custom shell too
No
You people are weird
@@jakedematteo2172 wdym no?
@@somerandomguy8541 no maam
@@godisjihyo3615 do you guys not like mods?
The original GBA is such a great device... other than the lack of a backlight. It's a simple device, but a good form factor and more powerful than you might expect. A headphone jack is a refreshing thing to see in a device these days.
Screens you can actually see are the greatest thing since banning smoking on planes.
I love them both, first got the GBA in 2003 in high school and the DS in 2006 while in college. Been collecting games from each off and on, really got obsessed with collecting games around 2015-ish.
Lately, I've been obsessed with collecting hidden gems from both.
Basically an irrelevant observation, but I had a coughing fit at the same time you were talking about the Game Boy Micro, so I thought you called it the "fuckable" one of the bunch. Had to rewind to confirm. "Fashionable," eh? :P
I still will die on the hill that the original DS looks beautiful
Hey Scott, are you filming this on the floor? Or do you have a carpeted table? Thanks.
If it's the latter, can I come over for dinner? Thanks.
Hey Scott, does your table match the drapes?
When it comes to Capcom games the GBA has it.
The GBA introduced the world to Phoenix wright, Megaman Zero and Megaman Battle network.
The DS had Ace Attorney investigations Megaman ZX and Star force.
The GBA's lineup here is superior lol
I swear, the given nintendo history of "the ds is not the sucessor of the gba" and "the switch is not the sucessor of the 3ds"
they BETTER PULL ONE UP LIKE "the Swap is not the sucessor of the switch"
Great arguments and food for thought. I thought it was going to be a GBA win at the start.
I played my DS waaaay more than my Gameboy Advance, my Gameboy, and my PSP. When I hacked it, it became my first eBook reader too. My GF and I played it on train journeys to work in the city, level-level life-life and I still got it.
I really get you with the graphics part. My introduction to Nintendo was Pokemon and I thought Diamond and Pearl looked so static and dull compared to Ruby and Sapphire which were so vibrant and alive. And not just because GBA game's region looks nicer, the battle UI is a little odd on DS imo. Probably the text thing you mentioned.
I mean Diamond and Pearl are static and dull because they are really badly coded.
Platinum actually took away 90% of all the lag and made areas prettier, including a entire island full of volcanic black sand.
@@oof5992 okay, I could change my comment to say Emerald instead of Ruby and Sapphire and Platinum instead of Diamond and Pearl. Wouldn't change a thing to be honest
@@bvd_vlvd It kind of Would, though yes all of Hoenn is more vibrant than Inland Sinnoh. Though Platinum Fight Area Island is much more vibrant than all of hoenn.
@@oof5992 Intelligent systems games look blander on DS. Phantom Hourglass looks blander than Minish Cap
Please stop playing the devil's advocate since this is a subjective opinion and you're just messing with me
@@bvd_vlvd >IS games look blander on the DS
>Dual Strike
Pick one.
FE11, FE12 and Days of ruin all look bland since it was a stylistic choice, since IS showed themselves capable of outdoing themselves in color with AW Dual strike.
Now i agree with the Zelda part. But i never made this be about GBA VS DS, just saying that Diamond and Pearl are dogshit games in general, including the visuals department, something that platinum fixed, especially in the fight area island, and im a huge fan of Hoenn itself. Now you could disagree but from what you said it doesnt seem that you have seen platinum's improvements to the visuals.
Finally, I always wanted to know which of these two would win the twerk off
Original model DS kinda got a dumptruck, you know it's up there
The original DS had a better D Pad and button feel :) But otherwise, yeah, DS lite wins.
I really like the DSi dpad over the other previous DS iterations, but that's mostly a preference thing
@@toriitoraa it is!