If you're a Nintendo DS owner, it just might happen that it's collecting dust. Because it's this early in the life-cycle for this handheld, there just aren't many games that are noteworthy. Thus far, Super Mario 64 DS, Feel The Magic, and Yoshi Touch & Go are the only worth while DS games. Touched! is also one of them, but is it enough to keep the dust off your DS?
Wario was, is, and always will be a greedy fellow. And when he stumbles across a dual-screened handheld, he gets an idea to make a game for it. Of course, he knows he can't go at it alone. So, he brings in old friends to help, and new one's, too.
These characters are a varied bunch, each with their own unique "microgames." These microgames last around five seconds, and you're never going to know which game will come up next. The type of microgame depends on which characters level you play on. However, you have a limit on how many times you can lose a microgame, so be aware.
Like I said, the type of microgame depends on the character. For example, 9-Volt and 18-Volt's games are based on Nintendo classics, which are probably fan favorites by now. Another example would be Mona's microgames. These games have quirky themes such as extending an elephant trunk or milking a cow. The most noteable of these characters is Mike, as all of his microgames require you to use the Nintendo DS's microphone in some way.
You progress through these levels by completing anywhere from 10-20 microgames. At the end of every level, you must complete a boss stage, which is just an extended version of something you might see in the normal mircogames. These boss stages range anywhere from swatting flies to bowling. Once that boss stage is completed, a new character is unlocked for you to play with. Also, you can go back to previously completed characters and try to best your high score.
Achieving high scores can be beneficial to replay value since almost everywhere you decide to play can unlock various bonuses. These bonuses range from sub-games (Which can be played to unlock even more stuff) to simple toys.
The amount of sub-games has been downgraded since the last offering, but it's almost made up for in the amount of toys. To my surprise, most of them were pretty amusing. I won't spoil it all for you, but there are a few of them that I can't help but mentioning. The first is the harmonica toy. You blow into the microphone to make noise and hit different buttons to make different notes. The other toy I have a soft spot for is the parrot, which repeats what you decide to say into the microphone. It's great rainy day fun to hear your voice in a sped-up, high-pitched manner.
Graphically, Touched! is all over the board in terms of art style and quality. Some games can take great advantage of the DS hardware through pretty 3D visuals, while others rank just above Atari 2600 standards. It may sound irritating, but this is why Touched! keeps you playing. You get addicted to seeing what the next microgame looks like.
The sound effects and music are quite simple like most of the game. You'll either be humming to the music, or it will be so forgettable that it will just fade into the background. The familiar menu music from the first makes a return as well, and the only change it has is that it has the superior DS speakers spewing out its tune.
As much as I've sung the praises of Touched!, it's not without flaws. First, I feel that more could have been done to take advantage of the DS hardware, such as using wireless play. Second, I wish there were more two-player games. Last, I felt at times that some of the unlockables were just mere, gimmicky filler.
Despite these complaints, this is the best DS title out right now, and is a must for any DS owner. You'd be crazy not to pick it up.
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