Platform: Nintendo DS

Platform description

General description

The Nintendo DS, the successor to the Game Boy Advance, is a 32-bit dual-screen (2x 256x192 pixels) handheld game console developed and released by Nintendo. The device went on sale in North America on November 21, 2004. The DS, short for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld gaming: two LCD screens working in tandem (the bottom one featuring a touchscreen), a built-in microphone, and support for wireless connectivity. Both screens are encompassed within a clamshell design similar to the Game Boy Advance SP. The Nintendo DS also features the ability for multiple DS consoles to directly interact with each other over Wi-Fi within a short range without the need to connect to an existing wireless network. Alternatively, they could interact online using the now-closed Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Its main competitor was Sony's PlayStation Portable as part of the seventh generation era.

As of March 31, 2016, all Nintendo DS models combined have sold 154.02 million units, making it the best selling handheld game console to date, and the second best selling video game console of all time. The success of the DS paved the way for its successor, the Nintendo 3DS, a handheld gaming console with a similar dual-screen setup. It can display images on the top screen in a three-dimensional look.

The Nintendo DS is backward compatible with Game Boy Advance (GBA) cartridges. The smaller Nintendo DS game cards fit into a slot on the top of the system, while Game Boy Advance games fit into a slot on the bottom of the system. The Nintendo DS is not backward compatible with games for the Game Boy Color and the original Game Boy. The original Gameboy sound processor is still included because it is necessary for some GBA games that use the older sound hardware.

The handheld does not have a port for the Game Boy Advance Link Cable, so only single-player mode is supported on the Nintendo DS. The Nintendo DS only uses one screen when playing Game Boy Advance games. The user can configure the system to use either the top or bottom screen by default. The games are displayed within a black border on the screen, due to the slightly different screen resolution between the two systems.

With exception of the Chinese version games, The Nintendo DS is region free in the sense that any console will run a Nintendo DS game purchased anywhere in the world.

The Nintendo DS Lite is the first redesign of the Nintendo DS. While retaining the original model's basic characteristics, it features a sleeker appearance, and brighter screens. As of March 31, 2014, shipments of the DS Lite have reached 93.86 million units worldwide, according to Nintendo.
The Nintendo DSi is the second redesign of the Nintendo DS. It is based on the unreleased larger Nintendo DS Lite model. While similar to the previous DS redesign, new features include two inner and outer 0.3 megapixel digital cameras, a larger 3.25 inch display, internal and external content storage, compatibility with WPA wireless encryption, and connectivity to the Nintendo DSi Shop. Backwards compatibility with Game Boy Advance games was removed.
The Nintendo DSi XL (DSi LL in Japan) is a larger design of the Nintendo DSi, featuring larger screens with wider view angles, improved battery life, and a greater overall size than the original DSi.

DS (Original)

NDS Lite

NDSi

NDSi XL

For more information on the Nintendo DS, including models, accessories and technical specifications, see Wikipedia.

Emulating the Nintendo DS

DeSmuME attempts to emulate, as faithfully as possible, the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite handheld game consoles (NDS). It currently runs on Windows, Linux, and Mac OS X. DSi is currently not supported. You can get DeSmuMe for free from the developer's site here. At Sierra Chest we've tried it out and it works very nicely.

Platform: Nintendo DS

Platform description

Games