The chinese gamer who killed another guys over a sword in LoM III, has been [sentenced to death](http://www.pcadvisor.co.uk/index.cfm?go=news.view&news=4801). Critics of gaming have predictably taken this as an opportinuity to once again decry video games. Really though, the guy freaked out and it could just have easily been because his buddy sold his favorite watch. The thing that makes this newsworthy though is the whole virtual property aspect. Was this a case of personal property being sold, or was it just bits on a server? I worked my ass off for my jboots and was very proud of them, and I’ve spent our since getting other valuable virtual gear. If one of those items was stolen would I want compensation, hell yeah! Of course KILLING someone over it is more then a bit insane.

For Christmas Sue bought me a Nintendo DS. She decided faily late that it was what she wanted to get me, and since it was a hot item this year it was almost completely sold out in the US (the one place I found that had some wanted $250 for it, it lists for $150). Of course since she has Japanese connections this proved not to be a problem, a quick visit to a .co.jp website and a phone call later and one Japanese Nintendo DS was on it’s way to the states. Good thing Nintendo decided to make it a region free device.

So far I really like it. Yes, the Sony PSP may be a more powerfull device. Yes, the PSP lauch lineup looks more attractive (although we don’t really know yet how the titles will play). But the DS has one major feature that makes it a much better device for my usage… the lid. It seems pretty stupid, but my initial thought have been confirmed by my usage so far. Being able to play on the train and just close it, and throw it in my bag or pocket without worrying about it makes all the difference. I have a Gameboy Advance as well, and the biggest problem I had was scratches on the screen from doing just that. I suppose I could get a case for it, but that’s just not as easy.

Other then that, I think it’s a good little system. So far I only have Super Mario 64 DS and my collection of GBA games to play on it, so I don’t realy know how the touch will complety play out. For Mario however it’s great. Control is not a problem (although there is a slight learning curve), and the mini-games make some pretty novel and fun use of it. One thing I really don’t like, closing the lid does not pause GBA games, it seems like that would be a fairly simple feature to implement that would be both intuitive and useful.

One accessory which I view as essential is the Pelican screen protectors, you really do punish the screen when the action get’s hot. Without any protection I’m just to afraid of scratches to really let go. I tried using a cut down Palm protector, but it wasn’t durable enough to handle the abuse. The Pelican has held up outstandingly.