Over 21 Million Nintendo DS Game Units Sold

By Geoff Duncan Published July 24, 2006

Over 21 Million Nintendo DS Game Units Sold

Nintendo introduced the Nintendo DS handheld gaming system on November 21, 2004, and today the company announced that it has sold more than 21 million of the diminutive handheld gaming devices. Averaged out over time, that’s almost one unit every two seconds since the product was launched.

“We’re thrilled to be announcing this milestone today,” says GeorgeHarrison, Nintendo of America’s senior vice president of marketing andcorporate communications, “especially since Nintendo DS was North America’stop-selling video game system of any type in June. We attribute thissuccess to Nintendo’s overall strategy of offering something for everyone&mdashh;from five-year-olds caring for their Nintendogs to 65-year-olds tuning their mental agility with Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day.”

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Geoff Duncan writes, programs, edits, plays music, and delights in making software misbehave. He's probably the only member…

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5 Nintendo DS games we need on Switch after Another Code: Recollection

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We’re in the middle of a Nintendo DS renaissance on Nintendo Switch, which is fitting as that classic handheld turns 20 in 2014. Coming off the excellent Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective re-release from last year, more DS classics are coming to Nintendo Switch this month. First, Another Code Recollection contains a full-on remake of the cult classic Another Code: Two Memories, and it's out now. In a few days, on January 25, Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney will remastered as part of a trilogy collection that also bears its namesake.

This has all gotten me to think about what other Nintendo DS games I’d like to see make a comeback. According to Moby Games, There were well over 2,000 DS titles, but not all of them matched the notoriety and success of titles like New Super Mario Bros. or Nintendogs. That means the DS library is still full of cult classics primed for a re-release or full-on series comeback. These are the five I’d like to see make a comeback in the wake of Another Code Recollection and Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy.
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I was burnt out on video games until I dusted off my Nintendo DS

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It was mid-December, and I’d just finished my final assignment of 2023. A hectic year full of exciting games capped off with yet another monumental achievement for the medium, the Meta Quest exclusive Asgard’s Wrath 2. No longer locked into playing a never-ending stream of zeitgeist games that I had to keep up with for work, I was finally free to play whatever I wanted.

There was only one problem: The thought of playing a game made me sick. It turns out that playing well over 100 new releases in any given year is a straight path to burnout. Who would have thought?

Gaming

Play these 3DS and Wii U games before Nintendo shutters their online features

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In April 2024, Nintendo will discontinue online services across its Wii U and 3DS consoles. While the eShops for both systems were shut down in March 2023, this will remove the online functionality of many apps and games, making gaming on either of these platforms an almost entirely offline experience. As a result, many games on those systems will lose important features and never be quite the same to play afterward. So, you'll need to get some gaming time in by next April if you want to refresh and preserve the memories of playing online on these two underdog Nintendo platforms.
While the aforementioned eShop closures make it impossible to buy new games digitally, plenty of games that you likely already own physical copies of or already had downloaded have online features that won't work properly come April 2024. As such, we recommend you play the following games online before the discontinuation of those services next year.
Kid Icarus Uprising

Kid Icarus Uprising is mostly remembered for its entertaining story, charismatic characters, and odd controls, but it also features a surprisingly fun multiplayer experience in Together Mode. In multiplayer, up to six players can use powerful weapons and abilities from the main adventure in one of two modes. Free-for-all lets players loose on a map, tasking them with racking up the most kills within a set time limit. Light vs. Dark is more complex, as two teams of three face off until enough players are defeated that one respawns as an angel; when that powered-up angel is killed, the match is over.
While far from balanced, Kid Icarus Uprising's Together Mode is one of the most entertaining competitive multiplayer experiences exclusive to 3DS. It can be played locally, using bots to fill in empty spots, so thankfully it won't stop working entirely. Still, it's not easy in 2023 to come across multiple people near you who have copies of Kid Icarus Uprising and want to play. As such, check out this cult classic 3DS game's hidden gem of a mode before praying that the rumors of a remaster eventually become true.
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