In my last blog "Hacking the NintendoDS" I talk'd about Datel's Games n' Music which goes pretty much hand-in-hand with this blog. In that blog I told you how I got a bunch of Genesis, Nes, Snes, Gameboy/GBC, & a few Neo-Geo games to play on the DS. Since then I've add a few more titles to that list such as Mario Paint for SNES which uses the touch pad, & a few other game titles for the other emulaters. The problem with the ol' skool games is that they're old & I'm sure have either been remade for the DS or is available for download on the other consoles for a little bit of cash. Problem with that is, as many of you know, our economy is crap & that little bit of cash could be use'd for other things like gas for your cars So the free games are cool, but only if it were the new ones, right? R4 is the answer.

I purchase'd the R4 shortly after I post'd the previous blog. I have 2 NintendoDS's. The original, which is my "Guest" DS, & a DSLite for myself, so I wante'd 2 microSD readers for both of them. What I came to find out is that the R4 is much better then the Games n' Music. It does all that the GnM card did, but has faster loading, better menu screens, a reset function(GnM you had to turn off to reset), & supports NDS Wifi Games such as MarioKartDS & Metroid Prime Hunters. It also uses microSD card FAT16 or 32 which has alot more storage then what the GnM uses, but it didn't come with it. I use'd the 2GB one I had in my GnM card & eventually bought a 4GB to replace that one, but I've seen them go up as high as 8GB

So what FREE NDS Games are there? All that I had on my GnM I now I have on my R4, with the exception of the DsOrganize because R4 has a built in organizer & DSPhone cause it was a crappy homebrew which I download'd just to f**k with my roomie when I was bored. What my GnM didn't have, because it was slower, that I now have on R4 is NDS ROMs(a.k.a. games). The NDS ROMs/game list I've download'd so far & have been trie'd & tru are:

1. Dragon Quest IV - The Chapters of the Chosen
2. Brain Buster Puzzle Pak
3. Mario and Luigi - Partners in Time
4. Mario Kart DS(Tested: It plays multi player via Wifi just like origanal)
5. Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2 - March of the Minis
6. Metroid Prime Hunters
7. Metroid Prime Pinball
8. Ninja Gaiden - Dragon Sword
9. Pokémon Pearl(also supports Action Replay codes)
10. Star Fox Command
11. Tetris DS
12. The Legend of Zelda - Phantom Hourglass
13. Tiger Woods PGA Tour 08

As I mention in my last blog this all start'd when I was looking for more NDS games to play on my trip. The R4 is about $32. Cheaper then the GnM which was $40. The 4GB MicroSD card I got for R4 was around another $20, so in total they both equal about the same, but R4 has better features & is faster then GnM. I'm actually planning another trip sometime in the near future, & again my little DS's are going to be the gaming companions but with a game list that now reaches 75+. Thats the largest game library I've own to date & its all on one chip. Not to mention the pictures, mp3s, & videos I also have on it. Our enconomy is crap & everyone is trying to save $$. Free games are cool, but only if it were the new ones, right? R4 is the answer

Before I went ot Amsterdam I want'd to up my game library for my NintendoDS knowing I was gonna get alot of use of it. I was looking over one of the online stores when I came across Game n Music which claim'd it had 25 games & cost'd about $40. Not a bad deal , so I made the purchace. The package arrive'd about 2-3days later. When it did, like a kid with a new toy, I opened it immediatly. Inside the package was PC disk, a game catridge, a 128MB micro sd card, & micro sd USB adapter... & instruction booklet ofcorse . I put the SD card into the game cartridge like instructions suggest'd, & into my DS to check out the 25 games that were include'd on the card. Unfortunately pretty much all 25 games suck'd , but also on the card was an MP3 player & Video viewer, so I decide'd to look over the instructions on how to add more MP3s. Since I didn't have a MP3 player the idea of haveing one for the long flight to Europe was pretty cool . I start'd to read the introduction where I read, Play Homebrew games..."what are Homebrew games?" I wonder'd, so I got online & did some research. I eventually came across this....

Genesis on DS 

What  !? Genesis on DS  !? I love Genesis, & I love my DS. The 2 together would be like cookies & milk. After a bit of DLDI patching & a few ROM downloads I made the dream come true . Now, instead of 25 crappy games that the card origanally came with, I had a list of Genesis games that I knew & love'd. As I was downloading ROM files & getting everything together to play Genesis games on my DS I found more. Not only could I play Genesis games, but Nintendo(NES), Super Nintendo(SNES), Gameboy/Gameboy Color, & Neo-Geo games too... 

These emulaters run very well, but not all the ROMs are compatable. Here's a list of the ROMs that I found that work with no or very little problems. If you can find more problems or games please post comments or links & I'll add them to the library  

• Genesis (jEnesisDS 0.6):

1. 1. Arrow Flash
   2. Ecco
   3. Castle of Illusion: Mickey Mouse
   4. Phelios
   5. Quack Shot: Donald Duck
   6. The Revenge of Shinobi
   7. Shadow Dancer: The Secret of Shinobi
   8. Shadow Run
   9. Shining in the Darkness
   10. Sonic the Hedgehog
   11. Splatter House 2
   12. Splatter House 3
   13. Strider
   14. Sword of Vermillion

• NES (NesDS):

1. 1. Adventure Island 
   2. Adventure Island 2
   3. Adventures of Lolo
   4. Bionic Commando
   5. Blaster Master
   6. Burger Time
   7. Castlevania
   8. Castlevania 2
   9. Castlevania 3
   10. Contra (the 30man code works too  )
   11. Dr. Mario
   12. Elevator Action
   13. Mega Man
   14. Mega Man 2
   15. Mega Man 3
   16. Metroid
   17. Paper Boy
   18. Spy Hunter
   19. T&C Surf
   20. Wizards & Warriors

• SNES (SNEmulDS 0.6):

1. 1. Act Raiser
   2. Chrono Trigger
   3. Earthworm Jim
   4. Ninja Gaiden Trilogy
   5. Q-Bert

• Gameboy/GBC (Lameboy 0.11):

1. 1. The Castlevania Adventure
   2. Ducktales
   3. Final Fantasy Adventure
   4. Final Fantasy Legend
   5. Frogger
   6. Metroid 2 - Return of Samus
   7. Motorcross Maniacs
   8. Pokemon Pinball
   9. R-Type DX
   10. Super Mario Land
   11. TMNT - Fall of the Foot Clan

• Neo-Geo (NeoDS 0.2):

1. 1. Appha Mission 2
   2. Magical Drop 3
   3. Metal Slug
   4. Ninja Combat
   5. Strikers 1945

I soon came to relize that the 128MB SD card that origanilly came with Games n' Music wasn't gonna hold everthing I had found, so I went out & found a 2GB card for about $15 & replace'd it. Now, with more storage space to put everthing on, I wonder'd what else I could add for my Ultimate NintendoDS. I then thought back to how I would like a MP3 player & did some more research. What I found was a duel zip file containing DSOrganizev3.2; a homebrew organizer application, & Moonshell; a media player for DS.

The all-in-one suite DSOrganize is packed; and the closest thing to an OS the DS has. It organizes all the files & roms I've download'd, but it also has some PDA features like:   

 

A Dayplanner with Calender

An address book for someone like me who always forgets his friends addresses & phone numbers

Todo list - a simple grocery-list styled application that allows you to sort simple tasks by importance and completion level

Calculator - a simple scientific calculator featuring a few useful functions, but not like your TI-86

A Scribble Pad - a msPaint styled doodle pad with support for saving to bitmap or png formats

 

...There's also a Web Browser, IRC Client, & the Online Homebrew Database. A few other features that I dont really bother with because I hafta be near a Wifi hotspot in order for them to work, & in my opinion, they really aren't that cool . Now Moonshell, on the other hand, is probably my fav Homebrew app that I have on my DS so far. Like I said before, it's a Media app for the DS that plays MP3's & with a DPG patcher, it plays videos too. All though the background that came with Moonshell I didn't find too sexy, I did some web research & found a GREAT site with a crap load of Moonshell skins.

After I got home from Amsterdam I had a BUNCH of pictures & a few videos of the trip that people want'd to see. Moonshell was the app I use'd to view the videos I took, but now I need'd a picture viewer. Image Viewer v0.6 soon solved that problem.

 

 

So now I have a NintendoDS that can keep a grocery list , plays MP3s & Videos, a number Games for a number of consoles, & a Picture Viewer. What else can I make my little DS do? How about Free International Phone calls  ?

 

Well, kinda.... If I'm ina Wifi hotspot then I can make the phone call, but I hafta have a free VIOP account. Also the DS microphone doesn't really transfer my voice to the person I'm calling very well. I haven't trie'd the DS earphone/microphone accessory as of yet to see if it might work better, but it's a maybe ....

These are just a few of the many Homebrew I've found. Most from GBAtemp.net or The Best DS Homebrew, but I'm sure theres a World Wide Web for me to find more . I have more Homebrew, such as DOOM DS, that I could post about, but I'm sure everyone gets the idea. I purchace'd Games n' Music for $40 expecting to get 25 games, but instead I have all this & for under $60. Again I say, Not a bad deal ...

A koala was sitting in a gum tree...... smoking a joint

When a little lizard walked past, looked up and said, "Hey Koala ....What are you Doing?"

The koala said, "Smoking a joint, come up and have some.
"
So the little lizard climbed up and sat next to the koala where they enjoyed a few joints.

After a while the little lizard said that his mouth was dry and that he was going to get a drink from the river. While he drank, the little lizard was so stoned that he leaned too far over and fell into the river. A crocodile saw this and swam over to the little lizard and helped him to the side.
Then he asked the little lizard, "What's the matter with you?"
The little lizard explained to the crocodile that he was sitting smoking a joint with the koala in the tree, got too stoned and then fell into the river while taking a drink.

The crocodile said that he had to check this out and walked into the rain forest, found the tree where the koala was sitting finishing a joint.
The crocodile looked up and said, "Hey you!"

So the koala looked down at him and said,

"Shiiiiiit Duuuuuude..... How much Water did you Drink!?!!"

As I open'd the fridge, I saw my unemployed roomate dressed in a full Royal Canadian Mounted Police uniform preparing to stop cars on our street at random & strip searching the occupants. I went back to my room & begain playing my Beatles albums backwards. At the end of "Rovolution 9" on the White album, I heard John Lennon mumble "Paul is Alive." He is attempting to ressurrect his career by playing hideous Broadway show tune pop music & being a militant vegetarin. I flipp'd on MTV & stumble'd on an episode of a Sing-A-Long with Sesame St. which feature'd Big Bird hunch'd over chopping out lines of Cocaine on a 2way mirrior with an oversize'd rubber razor blade. As Big Bird count'd out the lines of coke, a huge #8 ball flash'd on the screen. Enough TV for 1 day. I went looking for a place to eat. I saw Dave Thomas in front of Wendy's slaughtering a cow, but went to Pizza Hut where the waitress has a head like Florence Henderson & the body like Danny Devito. She kept coughing up chunks of lung & intestine into a dirty handkerchief. I order'd a small pepperioni. While scopping up lettuce onto my plate at the salad bar, I notice'd that the crutons seem'd to be alive. Upon closer inspection, I saw a 6inch Teri Garr wearing a clown outfit, climbing around chanting, "THE HORROR!! THE HORROR!!" I went back to my seat & finish'd my salad just as the meal arrive'd. Instead of pepperioni, though, the pizza was topp'd with the contents of a Monopoly Game. Rather then complain, I attempted to eat it. After 5 bites, I begain choking. Suddenly I felt someone applying the Heimlich Maneuver. Out from my mouth flew a Green House, Red Hotels, & a Get-Out-of-Jail Free Card. I turn'd around to thank my rescuer & saw Richard Simmons in my backyard, naked & bleeding profusely from the head. "Too much Polyurethane is bad for the tummy," he lisp'd as he begain to do jumping jacks while holding gristly, dripping slabs of raw pork in each hand. "2,3,5,7,11,13,..." he bark'd as he count'd in prime numbers. He stopp'd at 997 & threw the meat to the ground. "STOP THE KILLING!!" he scream'd. Now on his hands & knees, he begain grabbing clumps of the lawn & stuffing it into his mouth. "The only thing we have to fear," he gurgl'd dripping bits of soil & grass down his chin, " is pelvic inflammatory disease itself."

I post'd this about a year ago on one of my other blog pages from an article I found on the web. Thought it'd be a funny post here on GamerNook because, ....well read & see =D

Article:
Where to begin...

I've been in retail for five, almost six years, this April will mark my sixth year in retail (yay!), and I've got plenty of stories to share.. but I think I'll start out with one of my absolute favorite stories.


Electronics Boutique is such a fun place to work for. Especially when your customers don't know what the hell they're talking about.

Case in point, people who don't know what games are for what system.

Why do I say this?

I walked into my previous place of retail enjoyment in the mall in which it was situated, punched in and had a normal day until she arrived.

Mother of three or four, two of them tagging along with, and completely certian she knew what she was after was the correct item.

What was she after?

A Mario game for the X-Box. Let me say that again. A Mario (as in Super Mario Brothers) game for the X-Box.

I know what your thinking, "Mario games are for Nintendo systems.", well, when I casually explained "Mam, Mario games aren't avalable for the Microsoft X-Box.. I can happily show you where they're at, if you'd like." The lady looked at me as if I'd castrated her favorite animal with a rusty knife.

"What do you mean, they're not avalable for the X-Box?" she asked with a glare that could be mistaken for daggers directly into the heart of the retail associate. At this point I'm thinking "Oh ____. She's dense as ____ and her (more than likely) son has told her that his favorite game has come on the wrong system." I slowly, and carefully explain "Mam, Mario games are a licensed item under the Nintendo brand name, until Nintendo sells the Mario name to Microsoft, the owners of the X-Box, there will never be a Mario game on the X-Box or X-Box 360," at this point she looked at me and told me "You don't know anything about these games, my 11 year old son told me he wanted Super Mario -Whatever- for his XBox 360." I was extremely offended by this, because I've been collecting a gaming magazine since 1989, the first year of their publication, and I pride myself on being a walking encyclopedia of games, knowledge, and trivia about games. However, the wonderful world of retail's unwritten rule states that "you must remain calm at all times when dealing with customers" what it doesn't say is "you must remain calm at all times when dealing with customers, dispite how stupid they may be." Again, I casually remarked "Mam, if you'll follow me to the Nintendo section I will be happy to show you where you can find any Mario game your heart, or your son's heart so desires, maybe you'll even recognise the one he's after by the name. I can't promise you anything though," emphasis on the Nintendo portion. At this point the lady started bubbling up and looked the color of freshly billowing lava.

"Look you stupid ___ing retail peon, I don't need you to show me the ____ing Nintendo section, I need to know where the ____ I can find the God ____ Mario XBox 360." I said "Alright mam, I'll show you where you can find all of the Xbox 360 games, and if you locate it, I'll ring you up and you can be on your way." the lady stared at me like she was looking at an on-coming train. and said "About ____ing time." I slowly guided her to the X-Box 360 section and let her go about her means in her persuit of the elusive Mario 360 game.

Ten to thirty minutes later, she came up to me, and proceeded to tell me that she couldn't find it. I wonder why...

At this point I loaded up the search engine for our stock, and pulled her around when I searched for "Mario", and searched in the X-Box and X-Box 360 sections, knowing that I'd find nothing. A few seconds passed and nothing turned up. Again, I wasn't suprised. I turned to her, and I admit, probably said the wrong thing, but I said "Mam, I told you, there are no games for the X-Box systems, however if we look under all known Nintendo related systems, you can see that there are plenty to choose from, if you would like to pick from those I'm sure you could find the one you're looking for." She turned to me and screamed, about then, the manager got back from lunch and asked me what was going on, and I carefully, and quickly explained the situation. At this point, the manager carefully explained to her (again) that Mario was not avalable for the X-Box systems. She got extremely angry at this point, and asked for our district number, of course, being the associate who'd taken (so far) two hours with her, I happily complied and gave it to her.

She pulled out her cell (why didn't she pull it out in the first place and ask her son what system the game is for is beyond me.. and unfortunately for me I couldn't ask her to do that), and called district. District, for the third time, told her that she was SOL when trying to find a Mario X-Box game. She got so angry she threw her Motorola Razr on the ground and stormed out of the store. I quickly gathered the parts and put it behind the counter, and ten minutes later she came back for it, and screamed at both myself, and the manager that she was going to go to another store in search of the game.

I bid her a wonderful day, and wished her luck in her search.

I never saw her again, athough, I will mention she tried going to another EB, which promptly called us to ask if I'd assisted her (because apparently she'd told them she'd had "horrible" service from us), and I acknowledged that I had, the associate on the other side of the phone said "Okay" with a tinge of laughter in their voice.. and hung up. Thirty minutes later they called back, and let me know that she couldn't find it in their store either, which, frankly didn't suprise either of us, but we still get a laugh out of it to this day.

Makes me wonder if she ever found it...