HDN

Oh, man. The DS and 3DS were my JAM back in the day! I’ve got a lot of good recommendations for both, but I’ll narrow it down a bit for you:
For the DS, I highly recommend Mario Kart DS. It’s still (in my opinion) the best Mario Kart game. Once you get good at snaking and what have you, it becomes incredibly satisfying and your racing looks wicked cool. Another game that I’ve put more than enough time into is Animal Crossing: Wild World. I picked it up again a few days ago and I’m having a blast with it all over. It’s worth playing over the newer games because the NPCs have less of a filter and they do things like roast you and the other villagers. My favorite DS game, though, is Super Mario 64 DS. In fact, it’s my favorite Mario game ever made.
On the 3DS, you can’t go wrong with Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon. It’s really fun and I played it a TON as a kid. Another good game is Metroid: Samus Returns, though with Dread out the controls feel kind of stiff now. And of course, Animal Crossing: New Leaf is quite possibly the best game on the system. I played the $#!+ out of it and it’s super nostalgic. For years I didn’t have a copy because I lost it in Chicago, but in 2019 I got myself another copy and the nostalgia hit me like a TRUCK. It’s so good.

Oh, man. The DS and 3DS were my JAM back in the day! I’ve got a lot of good recommendations for both, but I’ll narrow it down a bit for you:
For the DS, I highly recommend Mario Kart DS. It’s still (in my opinion) the best Mario Kart game. Once you get good at snaking and what have you, it becomes incredibly satisfying and your racing looks wicked cool. Another game that I’ve put more than enough time into is Animal Crossing: Wild World. I picked it up again a few days ago and I’m having a blast with it all over. It’s worth playing over the newer games because the NPCs have less of a filter and they do things like roast you and the other villagers. My favorite DS game, though, is Super Mario 64 DS. In fact, it’s my favorite Mario game ever made.
On the 3DS, you can’t go wrong with Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon. It’s really fun and I played it a TON as a kid. Another good game is Metroid: Samus Returns, though with Dread out the controls feel kind of stiff now. And of course, Animal Crossing: New Leaf is quite possibly the best game on the system. I played the $#!+ out of it and it’s super nostalgic. For years I didn’t have a copy because I lost it in Chicago, but in 2019 I got myself another copy and the nostalgia hit me like a TRUCK. It’s so good.

I love this guy! I’ve been watching him for years. He did videos on Zelda and Metroid too. These new “declassified” videos are really intriguing. Even mega Nintendo nerds like me can learn new stuff from them.

This sounds fun! I might be able to participate as well, but I can’t promise anything yet. Let me get my ducks in a row, and if all works out, I’ll follow this up within a few days if I’m able to join you guys.

I love this guy! I’ve been watching him for years. He did videos on Zelda and Metroid too. These new “declassified” videos are really intriguing. Even mega Nintendo nerds like me can learn new stuff from them.

That game is awesome but it ruined my life in several ways. I both love and hate it. But it’s so hard! And I passed up a super game boy to get it and the next day I found a bunch of game boy games in the basement with no game boy!

It’s marvelous! It’s magnificent! It’s the Game Boy Pocket! Thanks, @RickR!

Thanks! I'm not a 5200 owner myself, but I bet this would be very useful to those here on the site.

It’s marvelous! It’s magnificent! It’s the Game Boy Pocket! Thanks, @RickR!

It’s marvelous! It’s magnificent! It’s the Game Boy Pocket! Thanks, @RickR!

I am not an older classic gamer, but I sure do have the music taste of one.
This video is a classic. The hair says it all.
Edit: I know this technically doesn't meet the criteria, BUT... it does have hair. That should count for something.
 

I'm not sure which came out first, but the shields work differently.  On Asteroids Deluxe, your shields cause you to bounce off the rocks (and it's pretty hard to control your ship).  On the 2600, the rocks pass right through you (much easier).  I agree that the flip is a choice no one made -- pointless. 

The VCS version of Asteroids was astounding when it came out.  I think it was the first game that was 8k (with bank switching).  It has every feature that the arcade game had (including similar sights and sounds).  We all accepted the solid rocks due to not having vector graphics at home.  Game #8 showcases something special - dozens of rocks flying fast around the screen smoothly with little flicker.  This was the Atari home division at it's very finest. 

I remember that moment I bought the game vividly, and that first play at home.  Truly one of my favorite childhood memories. 

It's really just a competition between Hyperspace and Shields. Who uses flip? It's really kind of pointless.
That's a good point. But, didn't Asteroids Deluxe have the Shields instead? I don't remember if that came out before or after the 2600 port, but if it came before, that's pretty neat. Two arcade ports in one cart! That's ambitious for such an early 2600 game.

It's really just a competition between Hyperspace and Shields. Who uses flip? It's really kind of pointless.
That's a good point. But, didn't Asteroids Deluxe have the Shields instead? I don't remember if that came out before or after the 2600 port, but if it came before, that's pretty neat. Two arcade ports in one cart! That's ambitious for such an early 2600 game.

I’m so flipping happy right now. I’ve been looking for this game for years and years. I finally found a copy of it! I got this from a different game store than the one I usually go to. The save battery is dead (I wish the store told me that beforehand but no biggie), but at least I have a copy of it. I now own physical copies of every 2D Metroid game! Now I just have to wait for Dread to come out…

22,630

New PB: 23260
 
 

4420. Tricky! Hoping to improve 😬

Always love seeing your game room 👍 ❤️

It was actually their idea haha 😉

Road trips during the 80s was a lot of reading as Rick mentioned and playing games like I Spy... and just goofing around and talking. I had some battery powered portable games but don't recall taking them.
Yes, we live in a golden age where content/games are plentiful and you can play games of all generations with relative ease. But there is such a thing as too much. Just like people browse Netflix looking for something to watch and end up not watching anything, I think the same thing happens with games for some of us (namely me) who have a lot of games available to play. Community high score challenges are really beneficial in that regard where someone has made the choice for you.

I know it is the exception and not the rule, but my Entex LED soccer game does include a headphone jack. I believe AstroThunder also has a mute option.

So, tomorrow I’m going on a week long fishing trip with my grandparents. Now, on vacation I’ll have my modded DSi with almost every game I could possibly want loaded on it and my GBA. Plus, my phone as well. But that got me thinking: this is a bit spoiled, isn’t it? I mean, having endless entertainment at my fingertips seems a bit crazy, doesn’t it?
I thought about what people did in the old days for road trip entertainment. Sure, you had the Game Boy and Game Gear and the like, but what about before then? What about in the second generation during the Atari era?
Well, back then your only option was a dedicated handheld unless you had the microvision. As you know, I really dig these old handheld games. I though I would ask you guys here today to look back on your childhoods and try to remember what video games you played (if any) to pass the time away during those long, boring drives. Was it Coleco Quarterback? Maybe a Game and Watch? Perhaps even a Coleco Tabletop? All three? I’d really like to hear about what you guys did back then.

There is additional info too.  Back then, portable gaming was barely a thing.  Really, most destinations had arcades in the 80's.  Literally every vacation I can recall there was a full on arcade or at least a few arcade machines in the hotel lobby or 7/11 store or whatever. 
 

WOW THANK YOU GUYS!!