DS Daily: Too much mic
by Candace Savino 
{ May 3rd 2008 at 10:30AM }
During last week's DS Daily, which asked about games with bad stylus controls, one of our readers gave us an idea: what about games with unnecessary or gratuitous microphone usage? We're all tired of blowing into the mic (or worse -- shouting into it) for no good reason, but which DS titles are the worst offenders?On the other side of the spectrum, and there any games that you think incorporate the mic well?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Verythrax @ May 3rd 2008 10:47AM
Well, the use in Ninja Gaiden was simply idiot. I's a action paced game with a darker mood,but you need to shout at the old man to wake him up out of nothing. You need to do it a couple of times - something that don't add anything to the game.
Lord Bowser @ May 3rd 2008 11:04AM
YOU DON'T NEED TO SHOUT: you could have just as easily blew softly. .
Verythrax @ May 3rd 2008 10:48AM
In other hand, it was used very well in Zelda, but a bit over used in the candle puzzles.
Roto13 @ May 3rd 2008 10:50AM
Nintendogs. But that's just me. The microphone is a big part of the game and I probably shouldn't have bought it because talking to my DS goes against my personal tastes. :P
EBG @ May 3rd 2008 11:03AM
I don't really like blowing away the fingerprinting dust in Phoenix Wright, but that's just because it doesn't pick up my blowing.
SechoDB @ May 3rd 2008 11:04AM
Doraemon Nobita to Midori no Kyojinden had some pretty funny use of the microphone.
From Blowing to make a 4 leaf clove swirl (a la Zelda windmills) to shouting "pow" to make your VS. match player shoot from his finger (finger air gun)
Fortunately though those instances happened in a series of minigames withing the game so it didn't brake the pace.
Lord Bowser @ May 3rd 2008 11:07AM
Nintendogs done a wonderful job with the mic. Calling out your little pup and seeing it instantly react to the sound of your voice is simply magical. It really has that initial WOW moment the first time you see it in action. I don't think any other game has topped it, in terms of mic use.
Duck Amuck sucked with the mic. But I think that's mainly due to the game just sucking.
chill penguin @ May 3rd 2008 12:07PM
Worst mic use, eh? I guess this one goes to Zelda PH as well. Shouting at that guy who sells the grappling hook? Shouting at that Lady behind the door? Shouting at the rabbit enemies? I buy >>portable
chill penguin @ May 3rd 2008 12:11PM
games to play them on the train/bus. That shouting thing is just stupid. (why did my message get cut in half?)
Jacksons @ May 3rd 2008 12:36PM
Zelda used nearly every feature the DS had to offer. I'm surprised they didn't have you launch the DS cart at a target. As far as the mic usage went, it seemed like a punishment. "You're not progressing until you blow on the DS, you hear me!?"
tamriel @ May 3rd 2008 12:56PM
I generally hate how so many games think it necessary to shoehorn the mic in there. Ninja Gaiden, as mentioned by Verythrax, is a nasty offender here (yet, it is SUCH a great game when it does not *try* to use the mic just because it would be "innovative").
Developers, take note: the mic is not a gimmick. It has been put there to allow for voice chat during online games. That is all. Blowing in the mic was cute in Feel the Magic, but this idea is used and old now. Please stop making me blow or scream for any stupid reason.
Oh! and by the way, game reviewers are a guilty party here too. Many games have gotten good reviews, but then get bad marks for "not being innovative" or "not using the whole DS hardware". Really now, what do we care? Do good single-player games get marked down for not using the WiFi? That would just be lame. A game that gets by just great even though it uses a single screen for the main action and just the button controls is *fine* in my book. I will buy it because it is good.
Hey thank you for putting up with the rant. And by the way, DS Fanboy reviews have been great by not dissing games that don't "use the DS hardware fully". Thanks, guys, you're being greatly relevant and informative.
The Theory @ May 3rd 2008 1:25PM
yeah, I'm pretty much anti-mic use. I don't mind if games incorporate it, but they should at least give us the option of doing something else if we prefer... say tapping the B button rapidly.
Tom @ May 3rd 2008 2:23PM
All it's good for is yelling "OBJECTION!". A very good reason to yell, even in public.
algarcia @ May 3rd 2008 2:40PM
the only games i have that justify the use of a microfone are electroplankton and jam sessions. this last one is really nice, since you can plug your DS to a home stereo and youre ready to rock: acousticguitar+pluseffects+dsbuiltinMIC=sonwriter's show!
CPFace @ May 3rd 2008 3:39PM
Best use of mic: The Ace Attorney series. There's something delicious about that split second after you shout out an OBJECTION! and the whole courtroom goes silent, waiting to hear what Nick/Mia/Polly has to say.
Worst use of the mic: Wario Ware Touched. Compared to the GBA Wario Ware games, Touched feels a little tired and uninspired. Did they really need to have an entire character whose games boil down to "blow in the microphone until you win"?
Puddles @ May 3rd 2008 3:59PM
I really liked the mic use in Zelda. Once I was playing at 2am and my girlfriend was sleeping in the next room, and I had to figure out a way to make a loud enough noise without waking her up. I rather enjoyed the challenge.
I'm all in favor of incorporating mic use into games. It gives developers the chance to try new things, which, it itself, is a good thing.
Jonathan Bloom @ May 3rd 2008 7:01PM
I think Zelda has the best use of the mic. I liked the blowing out of the candles and even blowing on the seachart.
Phil @ May 3rd 2008 11:44PM
I'm surprised nobody mentioned Mariokart DS. Took me some getting used to, but now I love blowing into the mic to inflate my balloons. (I've actually blown into my Wii remote a few times trying to add some more balloons...but don't tell anybody!)
nintendolover @ May 4th 2008 11:26AM
You could also hold down Select.
Pink Rabbit @ May 4th 2008 5:52AM
Another Code was a fine game with funny mic-usage.
It really added something to the game!
Pizza Pasta @ May 4th 2008 10:47AM
I don't think mine has a mic.
Puddles @ May 4th 2008 12:17PM
Maybe's it's just hard of hearing. Try sign language.
christian birmo @ May 4th 2008 7:52PM
No mention of World Ends With You? Blowing in the mic to activate pins is fun and frees up your hands for other pins... and if you don't want to use Vortex Saber or the other mic pins you can just ignore them
J.K. @ May 4th 2008 8:44PM
I'm re-nominating with the others Ninja Gaiden, Zelda, and Nintendogs.
1) Yelling or blowing...whatever to wake up old men or find hidden birds really breaks away from the normalicy and fun of the game.
2) Well basically same gripe here and certain things just were too often to the point of overkill.
3) The voice recognition along with the touch parts were hit and miss bordering on terrible. It was fun when you'd ask for something and get the opposite 1/2 the time...oh boy. Made me want to roll up a newspaper and beat the crap out of my DS.
In general any of the games (insert name) that do it just out of place with the mic is annoying. Also any game that does something overkill to where you're looking like a puffer fish is a problem too. Some games have used it ingeniously throughout while others (zelda) are hit and miss.
Simon @ May 4th 2008 11:02PM
I used to hate it when games wanted me to yell in the mic, then i figured out that blowing into the mic does the same thing.
blowing for those birds on ninja gaiden gets annoying, and any game that says "yell into the mic" can suck my balls; im not yelling into my mic on a train full of sleeping people coming from/going to work - its just rude.
Maya @ May 5th 2008 2:51AM
I hate using the mic too... so I always "rub" it with my finger, it gives more or less the same effect as blowing into it, just... you dont look weird :D
thedicemaster @ May 5th 2008 7:31AM
ugh.
bomberman
i hate getting one of those "voice activated" maps when choosing random map.
you can't play those maps normally in a crowded place, you're either stuck with a shield out(voice shield map)
placing bombs like crazy(voice bomb map)
or insta-detonating bombs(voice detonation map)
Zeke @ May 5th 2008 7:17PM
Say, I'm the "one of our readers" in question. I win!
As I said in the other thread, my vote goes to Lunar: Dragon Song. It's not so much a bad game as one with some annoying problems, and this is one of them. You can only run from battles by blowing into the mic; how hard you blow doesn't matter, so there was no reason not to provide an alternative. Attempting to run is one of the basic options you should have easy access to in an RPG. Even worse, you run by accident sometimes because there's noise nearby.
My guess is that they just wanted to play with all the DS's features -- this was one of the earliest games (as you can tell by the "DS" title, which everybody was doing for the first year or so). Same goes for MegaMan Battle Network 5 DS. It was basically a port of the GBA game with a few extra features; one was a new status for MegaMan where you could "cheer him on" to increase his attack power. I never bother.
Phantom Hourglass? Yeah, I'll go along with that. I think the control system was brilliant, but the mic was a weak point. "Blowing out" candles is cute... but it's only used a couple of times, leaving me blowing like an idiot all the other times I found lit candles. But it was truly satisfying to FINALLY kill a Pols Voice the way we were always supposed to. And the mic wasn't the worst gimmick... don't get me started on that close-the-DS puzzle.
- Z
Ryan @ May 5th 2008 7:45PM
I actually liked the ds-closing puzzle in Phantom Hourglass. I felt so clever when I figured it out, and even giggled a little.
I agree that DS fanboy does an incredible job of judging games. The reviewers seem to be the few people to understand how to properly review a game for being a game, not just a piece of software.
Amanda Senior @ May 6th 2008 5:44PM
Bomberman Land Touch...I forget if it was the 1st or 2nd, or both, but one of the games requires so much intense blowing at one time that I literally became dizzy and almost feinted.
I don't mind bits of blowing here and there, but that much, at once, that requires such a strong ammount? I hate hate hate it.
Zeke @ May 7th 2008 11:06PM
GRRRR. I have a new nominee: Lunar Knights. The original Boktai games had a cool stealth system where, among other things, you can flatten yourself against any wall and press A to knock on it, getting nearby enemies' attention. Then you hide, they come to check out the noise, and you slip past them. Lunar Knights completely defeated the purpose by turning this into a "whistle" feature where you blow into the mic. You can't go hide or even see if it worked until the stupid DS is out of your face.