Up until recently, I didn’t play many portable games. Even when I did, I liked to play them on a TV screen, which is why I used the Game Boy Player for my GameCube to play many of my favorite GBA games like Metroid Fusion, Astro Boy: Omega Factor, The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap, Oracle of Seasons, Oracle of Ages, Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, and Golden Sun. But as there hasn’t been an official TV adaptor for the DS (at least none that are just plug and play like the Game Boy Player), I’ve missed out on Nintendo’s latest portable system. That was until I got a new 2DS
I’ve spent a lot more time playing on the dual screens and it’s been fantastic. From games like Radiant Historia, The World Ends With You, Bravely Default, Ghost Trick (which I’ll be writing about tomorrow), and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds, I’ve honestly been unable to stop playing whenever I have a chance. Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime was especially fun with its blend of quirky DQ humor and action adventure strategy against the big Plob tanks.
Each of these games incorporates mechanics that would be a lot harder on a traditional console and work so well because of their portable nature. As I wrote about earlier in the day, I loved how Hotel Dusk has you flipping the DS and playing it like a book. The experience was uniquely haunting and I loved playing it over the duration of several airplane flights.
This has made me realize I’ve missed out on a whole lot of games from the PS Vita, PSP, and a slew of other portable systems.
So Kotaku, what is your favorite game on a portable system?