One day we will all be as smart as Rip Torn in Albert Brooks' classic film, Defending Your Life.  His afterlife character was able to use 48% forty eight percent of his brain, while the unfortunate earthbound souls were maxed out at 5% and doomed to repeat existence until they got smarter and less fearful. 

Thus, like a digital prophet born of an analog cry, the Nintendo DS Lite has appeared, offering humanity a chance at cranial redemption on-the-go, an opportunity to battle otherworldly creatures in your pocket, and quite possibly the key to eternal happiness.

The Nintendo DS, introduced in 2004 and redesigned in 2006, is a hand held gaming console the size of a pencil case, that contains more sophisticated technology than what NASA probably used to launch the first man to the moon. 

With 2 LCD screens, touch technology, built in microphone, enabled Wi-Fi for multi-console action, voice chat, and calendar, the Lite model (referring to newest body shape, weight, and screen brightness), puts the fun in functionality with button controls, voice recognition, and a perfectly pointy stylus. 

The combination of creative gameplay and enriched entertainment makes this system a fanatic favorite for kids, parents, teens, couples, singles, men, women, boys, girls, college students, dogs and unicorns.  It is not uncommon to find multiple units in a single home, in part because the system seems to know the user.  The interface requires a sign-in for many games, and it’s sensitive to personal progress, time of day, frequency of use, etc.

Because of the bond people have with their systems, Nintendo’s marketing machine takes seriously the word of mouth phenomenon that helped sell millions of units, and grass roots efforts are continuing on a community level to reach even farther into non-traditional gaming audiences. 

That’s how I ended up at a Pokemon party of 5th grade girls.  Spa pedicures, veggie platters, glitter hairdos, and massage chairs were rolled out for moms and daughters to enjoy; however, the dozen Pokemon playing darlings gripping their new *pink* DS units were the proof in the convert pudding.  Each little girl with a headset who learned how to train her Pokemon is now one more person in the world who can’t wait to tell you all the amazing things about the Nintendo DS. 

And did I mention the Nintendo DS comes in PINK!?  Sure on one hand it’s insulting they’d pander to girls by making it pink, but on the other hand it’s PIIINK!  So, how dare you!  And thank you.  And if that isn’t truly a female response, then I just don’t know.  Nintendo, you understand me so well.

After losing repeatedly to a spiky monster in a beauty pageant -- a sorry state of affairs -- it was time to move on from the Pokemon Pearl/Diamond journey, and test a few of the other Nintendo-published and 3rd party best sellers. 

Brain Age 2 has been terrible for my ego, but outstanding for my brain function & fun quota.  A variety of comprehensive exercises aimed to sharpen the flabby cortex have been designed to firm up, and bring down, one's "brain age" to a level in the high functioning 20s.  Additional exercises unlock if I return to the game everyday and collect stamps for a job well done.

Flash Focus, a visual training game, is similarly designed to improve eye control and awareness through puzzles and customized workouts.  Both games offer tracking graphs and reports to chart progress. 

Of course if you are looking to travel in time and battle garden gnomes with killer guitar licks, there are games for that too (see: Puffy Ami Yumi "The Genie & The Amp"). 

Extraordinary like a Wii and portable like a Game Boy, the Nintendo DS is yet another pioneering member of the Nintendo revolution, now appearing in purses, backpacks, briefcases, buses, and stairwells across the globe. 

What color is yours?