Favorite portable system

[guyjin]

stoking the fires of the console wars once again 

[Keranu]

I gotta vote for the Neo Geo Pocket Color. Great games, great design, and great hardware. I remember the first time I read about the system a year or two it came out and I knew from then on I had to get the system and once I did, it totally lived to my expectations and the games only got better as time went by. My only complaint is the lack of a backlit screen, but this isn't too much of a problem considering how visible the screen is in even dim areas and how it only takes two AA batteries. Also it's got the most awesome d-pad you'll ever use.

[TR0N]

Gameboy it had all the games i wanted.

Still i'd place the lynx second on my list where else, could you play the arcade version of rygar on it.

[Joe Redifer]

I do not like how the GameBoy and Advance are grouped in with the DS.  For me it is the DS by itself.  It is the only portable that I have ever found truly acceptable.  Most others simply bore me, but the DS keeps my interest.  I didn't like the GameBoy nor the GB Advance much.  I hated the screen on the Game Gear and the Nomad with a passion.  The Turbo Express was clunky.  The Lynx was pure dogshit on a stick in every regard.  The PSP can lick my hairy balls since it has absolutely nothing that interests me, plus it has a crappy D-pad/analog nub thingy.  I've never played a Game.com, WonderSwan or Supervision, so those things can all burn in hell.  Same goes for the Gizmondo.  The only other portable that I found almost acceptable was the Neo Geo Pocket Color.  It had a few great games like that KOF vs Street Fighter or some such thing, and Metal Slug and Neo Turf Masters and Sonic and something else.  Almost held my interest for 6 months, which is longer than any other portable outside of the DS.  Plus it had that cool clicky stick thingy!

[OldRover]

Gotta go with the GBA, and yeah, GBA should NOT be coupled with the DS, as they are beasts of a different nature. On the same token, GBA shouldn't be coupled with the original Gameboy either for the same reason. I did own a Lynx and I enjoyed playing Shadow Of The Beast on it but that was about it. I owned a Game Gear for about 20 minutes before I got 110% bored of its crap and sold it to a friend of mine. Never owned any of the others.

[termis]

The only ones I owned were the NGPC and Gamegear, though I only used the gamegear to play SMS games... Oh wait, that's a lie - I played GG Phantasy Star games on it... 

Anyway, NGPC wasn't bad, and GG was only acceptable with the SMS adapter.

But what I found out in the end was that I can wait until I get home and play the real thing on a bigger TV screen.  No portable has ever piqued my interest since those two above, and that's not likely to change.

[Tatsujin]

nintendou handhelds of course. there are absolutely no competitive products outta in the market which even nearly can offer a such a huge library of high quality stuff. of course the next to it would be the GT, since it count the whole PCE HuCard library.

[Ninja Spirit]

Though I don't have a PSP, I just want one for emulation. But currently I have Game Gear and NGPC, gave up my GBASP for my PCE Double Dragon II.

I honestly can't stand the Master Gear Converter, with a bright and blurry screen and bad scrolling, games like Astro Warrior and Action Fighter are almost unplayable. You can't see your enemies nor where you're shooting.

[esteban]

The first generation(s) of Gameboy is my fave because there were tons of great games.

I am not considering TE or Nomad in this discussion because I associate the libraries with consoles themselves. TE and Nomad are in a class by themselves.

Lynx had only a handful of good titles, but I really liked it. I wanted to like Game Gear more, and it should be second place, but I got burned on a lot of the games I bought for it.

These days, I'm most excited about Game Gear because there are many games I have yet to try. I picked up the Golden Axe RPG a few years ago, for example, but I still haven't had a chance to play it.

Neo Geo pocket -- sorry, the library of games don't interest me too much. It was fun to play around with it, but it didn't have long-term appeal for me.

GBA -- I only bought a handful of games, but I wanted an illuminated screen for the new century. When I get one of the newer versions, I might try exploring the library some more.

[Nazi NecroPhile]

My vote's for the express, since it's the only portable I own, and second place would go to Nintendo with their giant library of games.  The portable market really doesn't interest me any more, as there's only a handfull of games released in the last few years that look worthwhile.

[torgo]

Turbo Express and PSP. I play my PSP constantly.

[GUTS]

I personally hate handhelds, but I'd go with the original Gameboy since it had all the classics like Super Mario Land 2 & 3, Kirby, Gargoyle's Quest, and tons of other original titles that ruled.  That was back when Nintendo was in TOP form and nearly every game they made was a classic.

[CrackTiger]

I have no problem counting my favorite portable the Turbo Express as a handheld and not just an extension of the home system.

I bought mine when it first came out, at a time when my TG-16 was unplayable because of an RF out problem(from the dildo plug). So I played many TG-16 games (like Bonk's Revenge) for the first time on the TE and will always remember them that way.

The TE is the perfect size for my man hands and most moderner portables are too tiny.

Plus the TE is my favorite looking video game system of all time.

I also enjoy playing Turbo/PCE games on 'real' hardware.

[ParanoiaDragon]

Yeah, DS has been rocking my world in the last year or so since I bought it.  But Lynx, believe it or not, is a close 2nd.  I have a hell of alot of games for it, & I enjoy almost all of them!

[guyjin]

Honestly, if I went by what I was playing the most, I would've voted for DS, followed by Wonderswan, but I voted Game Gear out of nostalgia.

I think if I had separate options for Game boy, color, advance and DS, everyone whould have voted DS anyway. (am I wrong?)

For those of you who picked the Express, what would you have picked if I had left the portable consoles out?

Last but not least, I figured there would be more love for the Swan & NGPC here. That said, from what I've seen of toneman's NGPC videos, I can't really say I'm impressed; the Game Gear looks better, despite being almost a decade older. (then again, the NGPC is probably a power sipper compared to the chuging Gear)

[Seldane]

PSP, easily.

I generally hate portable gaming, but the PSP made that bareable with its awesome screen. Great games too, and homebrew (NES rules).

I have a DS too, and a GBA and some other old portable systems. I never ever use them. I love the original Game Boy, though. Awesome games and more importantly: awesome music! I can't stand GBA though, terrible system with terrible games.

[ParanoiaDragon]

I've only played a little emulated Wonderswan, but one of these days, I should take more time to play it.

[GUTS]

Wow the first PSP fan I've ever encountered who actually plays PSP games and doesn't use it for movies/emulation exclusively, awesome.  I thought they all died out.

[CrackTiger]

For those of you who picked the Express, what would you have picked if I had left the portable consoles out?

I'd have to choose the Nomad. I'd rather play the Genesis/MD's library on the Nomad screen and controls than any other non-TE portable. Plus, when I get to where I'm going, I can hook it up to a real TV.

[Dark Fact]

Mine is the DS.  I have to admit, no other portable gaming system had me this addicted than the DS.  I thought when the system first came out that it was a lousy concept (two screens? Touch control? WTF???) but after playing it for a bit and trying out such titles like Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, Trauma Center, and Cooking Mama, I now think it's the best system I ever played portably.

Oh and I have to give props to the PSP with its absolute GORGEOUS screen that really makes it look like you're playing a portable version of the Playstation.

The Neo-Geo Pocket Colour also deserves special mention for one game that I always play for it: Magical Drop.  Incredible fun!

Wow the first PSP fan I've ever encountered who actually plays PSP games and doesn't use it for movies/emulation exclusively, awesome.  I thought they all died out.

Which is why Sony needs to get their ass in gear and start releasing some more games for the system.  Nintendo is killing it in terms of software.  If the PSP doesn't have any more games to add to its library in the next year, I don't see it lasting very long.

I do not like how the GameBoy and Advance are grouped in with the DS.  For me it is the DS by itself.  It is the only portable that I have ever found truly acceptable.  Most others simply bore me, but the DS keeps my interest.  I didn't like the GameBoy nor the GB Advance much.  I hated the screen on the Game Gear and the Nomad with a passion.  The Turbo Express was clunky.  The Lynx was pure dogshit on a stick in every regard.  The PSP can lick my hairy balls since it has absolutely nothing that interests me, plus it has a crappy D-pad/analog nub thingy.  I've never played a Game.com, WonderSwan or Supervision, so those things can all burn in hell.  Same goes for the Gizmondo.  The only other portable that I found almost acceptable was the Neo Geo Pocket Color.  It had a few great games like that KOF vs Street Fighter or some such thing, and Metal Slug and Neo Turf Masters and Sonic and something else.  Almost held my interest for 6 months, which is longer than any other portable outside of the DS.  Plus it had that cool clicky stick thingy!

Joe, I'll be honest.  Your post started off like any other and got more and more entertaining as it went on.   Thanks for a good laugh.

[guyjin]

Are the fighting games on the NGPC really that good? I'm not a fan of fighting games, but the few I've had the misfortune of playing on portables are always awful.

[Tatsujin]

I can't stand GBA though, terrible system with terrible games.

which are for example?

[Keranu]

Are the fighting games on the NGPC really that good? I'm not a fan of fighting games, but the few I've had the misfortune of playing on portables are always awful.

They're amazing for a portable game, just as fun as the consoles really. It's amazing how they managed to fight a lot of the control mechanics of KoF'97 and '98 into KoF'R1 and 'R2.  But not it's not just KoF'R1 and R2 that are good, they are all excellent games, especially SNK vs Capcom.

[Hobo Xiphas]

especially SNK vs Capcom.

Just don't take SNK vs Capcom seriously, it has some real balance issues like its arcade cousin.

[Ninja Spirit]

Ehh any of the SD portable adaptations of the popular fighter series (i.e. Guilty Gear Petit, Fatal Fury: 1st Contact, SvC:MOTM)  on handhelds are to me not necessarily bad, they just have a kind of novelty vibe.

Speaking of that SvC:MOTM, here's a video I made of a pretty good strategy RPG for Neo Geo Pocket Color called "Faselei". It's also one of the hardest titles to search out a real copy because it was a short run production in which half of the quantity got recalled by SNK when they dropped the bankruptcy bomb.

And since I'm a Mega/Rockman junkie, I am searching for Rockman Battle and Fighters.

[KungFuKid]

Ok, I voted NGPC, it has some really great games for it - especially as some people have mentioned SNK v Capcom (although it's far too easy), Turf Masters and a great version of Cotton! Metal Slug is really good too. Shame it didn't last longer. Wonderswan is a very good little system, problem being there are only around 10-15 games you can actually play without speaking fluent Japanese!

As for the earlier mentioned GG with SMS convertor - problem is that the SMS games are obviously designed for a TV screen, and when converted the main character and enemy sprites in most games are just far too small! Playing games like Robocop Vs Terminator and the like are almost impossible as you simply can't see the bullets being fired at you! GG and Lynx are just too bulky to really be 'portable' in the true sense of the word in my opinion.

Also, a special mention for one which some people might argue doesn't count - the Nokia N-gage - because officially it is NOTa phone, it is a game deck with phone capabilities. Although there are only 56 official games for it, most are excellent, especially the Sims Busting out, Fifa 2005, Tiger Woods, Ghost Recon, Bomberman and quite a few more!

[Dark Fact]

The Nokia N-Gage.  I've heard about it.  Unfortunately, the system was badly lampooned (mostly due to its taco shape and how ridiculous you would've looked if you tried to use it as a phone) and had chunky performances to its 3D games which turned off gamers...not to mention the shitty controls.

Nokia even admits that they're portable system is a failure.

No offense to any of you who do like the system, just gave my own personal views on it.

[KungFuKid]

Yeah, the original N-Gage was terrible, really badly designed. To be fair though, for anyone that has never tried / seen it, the 2nd one released - the N-Gage QD is a much better effort, it's smaller and much more user friendly, and the controls are actually pretty good (and on the plus side it doesn't look like a taco! lol!) . I know what you meant about the 3-D graphics in some of their earlier efforts, especially in games like WWE which is just terrible, the players actually shuffle around the ring, no joke! But later games like Ghost Recon, Red Faction & Fifa 05 really are very good. Apparently Nokia are going to be releasing a new Gaming Deck in mid-07 at some point in follow up to the QD, which as you said has now had support withdrawn.

[ParanoiaDragon]

The N-gage is alright, I have the QD, mainly got it for Xanadu Next, since it's a Falcom game........though I eventually got the PC version.  It does have some good games on it though, no doubt!

[Dark Fact]

I'd like to see how the QD will match up against the PSP and the DS.  Nokia would have to pull off something spectacular with the QD for it to be a formidable force against the PSP and DS.

[KungFuKid]

QD has been discontinued already! They released it in 2004 and released the QD limited silver edition in 2005, but stopped production in early 2006. Nokia are developing a new game deck for the S-60 technology stuff, due for release sometime in mid 2007. Shame, because the QD is actually a great little system...

[Seldane]

I disagree. N-Gage is a terrible system. I have one (QD), and I've used it extensively. I've tried to like it, I really have - but it isn't possible.

- It is actually painful to play on it. The buttons are your standard cellphone buttons, designed to push once (i e holding them/pushing them rapidly is hard!). The d-pad is hopeless to use, and you need to use it all the time in order to actually play something.

- The screen is too small. And in the wrong direction. And the backlight is just weak.

- The system is weak. Extremely weak. It cannot handle 3d, and yet almost every N-Gage game is in 3d. 3d so primitive it hurts your eyes to look at, and the frame rate never exceeds 10 FPS.

- The games are crap. Sure, there are some fairly decent games on it, but they are unplayable because of what I just listed. One of the weakest software libraries ever.

Asphalt was decent, though.

I hate the N-Gage with a passion. Even NES emulation, etc is horrible on it. I've wasted so much time on that junk.

[CrackTiger]

I love the original Game Boy, though. Awesome games and more importantly: awesome music! I can't stand GBA though, terrible system with terrible games.

Wow, you must really hate the SNES then. 

[KungFuKid]

Well like I said, that was just my opinion, and of course you're entitled to yours. A lot of people think the same as you do about the N-Gage. What I would add though is that I get what you say about the dimensions of the screen being the wrong way - but unless they wanted to make the phone even bigger (what the QD tried to improve), I don't see what else they could do, and I honestly see it as irrelevant because it simply doesn't affect any of the gameply... Also, like I said, you're right about the 3-D graphic capabilities which showed to be terrible in most of the early games, but honestly it is not bad in some of the later titles (I have every game released for it), and the non-3D games are all pretty decent such as Virtua Tennis (Excellent), FIFA (Excellent), Tiger Woods (Unbelievably addictave), Colin McRae Rally (Even Better than Asphalt and Asphalt II). Also, I know what you mean about the buttons BUT there are covers you can get for the system that have the 5 & 7 buttons (the main gaming buttons) raised and rounded, this does make a big difference. Just my opinion of course!

[CrackTiger]

Well like I said, that was just my opinion, and of course you're entitled to yours. A lot of people think the same as you do about the N-Gage. What I would add though is that I get what you say about the dimensions of the screen being the wrong way - but unless they wanted to make the phone even bigger (what the QD tried to improve), I don't see what else they could do, and I honestly see it as irrelevant because it simply doesn't affect any of the gameply... Also, like I said, you're right about the 3-D graphic capabilities which showed to be terrible in most of the early games, but honestly it is not bad in some of the later titles (I have every game released for it), and the non-3D games are all pretty decent such as Virtua Tennis (Excellent), FIFA (Excellent), Tiger Woods (Unbelievably addictave), Colin McRae Rally (Even Better than Asphalt and Asphalt II). Also, I know what you mean about the buttons BUT there are covers you can get for the system that have the 5 & 7 buttons (the main gaming buttons) raised and rounded, this does make a big difference. Just my opinion of course!

Its like knocking the Game Gear or Nomad because of the blurry screens. It doesn't affect the Shining Force or Phantasy Star games for me and that's enough of a reason to justify the systems. Of course, I've never played an N-Gage, but if it really does have some good games, then thats good enough for me.

[Joe Redifer]

The Game Gear and Nomad's screens are more than just blurry.  They are poorly lit, teeny weeny tiny, have about 2 degrees of decent viewing angle and have really low resolution.  I bet both the Game Gear and the Nomad were responsible for many suicides.

[Seldane]

Its like knocking the Game Gear or Nomad because of the blurry screens. It doesn't affect the Shining Force or Phantasy Star games for me and that's enough of a reason to justify the systems. Of course, I've never played an N-Gage, but if it really does have some good games, then thats good enough for me.

You can't compare the Nomad or the Game Gear to the N-Gage. These systems feature good games, the N-Gage feature mostly junk, and some decent titles - that are available on other, better systems.

[KungFuKid]

like I said, that's your opinion and you're entitled to it. I personally think there are more good games than bad. Bomberman is my personal favourite right now!

[grahf]

I loved my N-gage. Didnt play to many 3d games on it though. Pathway to Glory is one of the best strategy games EVER, on any system. I still own that game, and plan on picking up another ngage in the future just to play it. I always thought the dpad was excellent, though i'll agree the action buttons suck.