Game of the Month: March 2008

As much as we'd like it, we know that everyone on the planet can't show up on IGN's Nintendo DS channel on a daily basis. So for those people that can't get here regularly, we certainly sympathize when you're suddenly assaulted on all sides by a massive flood of games during the interim between the last time you showed up here. It makes it difficult to tell just what's the cream of the crop, especially when you're trying to budget for those one or two titles every month. Nintendo DS games aren't expensive ... and too many games can just take up way too much room in one's pocket.

We're here to help. At the end of every month, we'll offer our choice for the Game of the Month for the Nintendo DS system. Sure, you can certainly look through our review scores and read up on all the great games released on the system, but like many readers, maybe you're curious which one we'd choose over the other ... even if one received a higher score. We've received hundreds upon hundreds of emails asking questions like, "If you only had the money for one game, which one would it be?" This is our way of answering this question.

After we've finished evaluating every game to come down the pipeline, we put our heads together and decide on a single "best of" winner that's worthy of the title "IGN Game of the Month." Pretty simple, don't you think?

Now that we have the guidelines out of the way, let's move on and congratulate this month's winner...

Why we picked it: Team Ninja's been wowing console fans for years with its Ninja Gaiden and Dead or Alive series, and when it set out to create its first Nintendo DS game, it's clear that the "wow factor" was the development team's aim as well. Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword is a clever and visually impressive action game that's been designed specifically around the Nintendo DS system's strengths. The experimental touch-screen gameplay in the DS system's vertical "book mode" could have turned out a disaster in the wrong hands, but Team Ninja pulled off one of the finest and most energetic action games seen yet on the system.

Reader's Game of the Month: Ninja Gaiden: Dragon Sword

Publisher: Tecmo

Developer: Team Ninja

Release Date: March 25, 2008

Reader Review quote: Dragon Sword is an abbreviated version of what you would get from its console brethren, and that's fine by me. Team Ninja (the development team) made art on the DS, and that's all that should matter.


read the full review

-- submitted by GeekyDaD

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