Are the small buttons putting anyone else off buying a DS?

[boatofcar]

I was dead set on buying a DS today. Today is the launch of the Mario Kart DS bundle. However, one of my cousins brought his DS with him on Thanksgiving, and I found Mario Kart to be-well, unplayable is the wrong word, more like not much fun to play, simply because the DS buttons are so small. I have pretty big hands, but I'm sure my thumbs are of pretty average size, and it was hard for me to not hit unwanted buttons while playing.

After being pumped about getting a DS, I find myself not wanting to get one at all anymore because of this. It's sad too, because I really wanted to play Animal Crossing, but I'm not going to buy a system for just one game.

[Drexel923]

Nope.

I have pretty big hands too and I don't have a problem at all. Maybe you just need to get used to them.

[tmc]

well, not just the buttons but the whole ds design in general really.

i would dearly like to get one but just can't see myself ever caring about it because of it's design. i never thought i would be so shallow and it'd all be about the games.. etc....etc...blar...blar - but the truth is that until there is a redesign i'm gonna be watchin from the sidelines.

[ty896]

The buttons are small. I have gotten used to them, but they could easily be improved.

Kinda ironic that the GB micro has bigger buttons :roll: .

[hydr0x]

the button size is not a problem for me, but somehow my left thumb hurts after playing Mario Kart for a while (only Mario Kart though). I have no idea why that is, but it sucks...

[Tritoch]

To be honest, my only hang up with the system right now is the touch pad. For some reason I'm still worried that I'll never get comfortable while gaming with a stylus.

Regarding Mario Kart, I had a lot of soreness in my trigger fingers from having to hold down the buttons while sliding in Super Circuit on GBA. Getting a Game Boy Player and playing it on a Wavebird made it a totally different experience though, and I've easily played it more on TV than I did on my actual GBA.

[philosophyst]

No problems here. The buttons may be small but I don't find it to be an issue, maybe I just got used to it. I love my DS and for someone to pass up a new Animal Crossing game is a sin. LOL

Just kidding....hey, if it's not for you then so be it. I'm just saying, I wouldn't let something like small buttons stand in the way of me and a new Animal Crossing. ;)

Get the Target catalog and take it to the store so you can get one for $99.

[oesiii]

I have big hands and I just got a DS last week. It certainly not well designed for big hands and could stand to be improved but I've found playing Mario Kart no problem if you only play it for an hour or so at one time.

The buttons are too small and overall the unit doesn't feel as comfortable as the SP because it's too wide to be held comfortably when you're laying down on the couch (if that makes any sense :) ) There's just no sweet spot for holding the thing unless you are seated upright and holding it around your lap, at least for me.

But all that didn't stop me from buying it for the great games.

[heyricochet]

Hate the buttons and d-pad with a passion, most uncomfortable buttons ever, d-pad is only beaten by the gamecubes d-pad. Games are amazing though, thats why I still love it.

[s1lence]

The buttons kinda suck, but it doesn't stop me from loving it.

[boatofcar]

You guys....gosh darnit, maybe I should buy one... LOL

[DarkStraw]

i like everything about the DS except where the L+R buttons are, i think i liked the regular GBA better in that respect.

[icbrkr]

No problems here.. and I have a long... hand.

[Joker T]

Not a big problem for me at all you get used to it after about a minute. Plus alot of games use the touch screen for gameplay.

[stuffedmonkey]

I didn't like the button placement at first... but I got used to it quickly. The only hard button for me to do is the l-trigger.

At any rate it is a wonderful system and recommended highly!

[njiska]

Big hands, small buttons, no problem. The buttons are small but they're spaced far enough apart that they don't create a problem.

[Lothars]

I got a ds earlier this month and I've been playing Mario Kart for the last couple days straight

I don't find the buttons bug me at all actually they are really comfortable

They could be bigger but all in all it's alright.

[unwinddesign]

I didn't like the button placement either. The way the thing is designed, the buttons are almost flush against the system body. This makes it a bitch to control games properly. =(

That's probably why I didn't buy any more games for it when I owned one, other than Feel the Magic and Super Mario 64. Feel the Magic was GREAT because it didn't use the D-Pad at all, and just utilized the system's unique features. No pain in the fingers, and a kick ass game to boot.

[Gamereviewgod]

My only problem is that they're so close to the edge of the system. The PSP has a similar issue. Your thumb needs to be almost vertical to hit the buttons closest to the end. That's painful after a long period.

[Vectorman0]

It's one of the reason's I haven't gotten one yet for sure. With all of the DS lovin' that's been going around I have had a mighty hard time from not getting one. I think I will wait for nintendo's next upgrade to get one. They seem to be on a spree with new handhelds, at least they were, and since the revolution seems a ways off I am counting on a DS revision to come out in a few months.

I honestly don't know why companies seem to be afraid to make portables bigger. I'd rather be able to play it comfortably for twenty hours between charges than be able to fit it in my wallet. The last portable that I found to "work" without cramping my hands or anything was the Neo Geo Pocket Color. Who knows, maybe I will have to bust out the tools and mod a DS myself.

[exit]

I just got my DS lastnight and I already have 3 games for it. I was surprised on how extremely easy it was to set up the WiFi. I kind of winged it when setting up the IP address, but it gets a better connection than my computer.

My only gripe is that the screen could be a little bigger, especially for games like Dawn of Sorrows. It's not a big deal, but it would be nice being able to fully sit back in my bed to play without my hands getting tired after awhile.

I wouldn't have minded if the buttons were more like the ones on SNES, they always felt comftorable even after several hours of play. The stylus works a lot better than I originaly expected and I can't wait until more stylus based games come out.

[jdc]

I should be getting my Mario Kart bundle DS any day now. Just waiting for it to arrive at the shop.

The DS is a welcome relief from the pain I go through with my PSP. Fuckin' stupid thumbnub placement. Whoever the idiot was who saw fit to place it at the very bottom of the PSP should be shot. I have mild arthritis in my hands and playing any game that uses the nub gets to be very uncomfortable after 15 minutes. I bought the much-looked-forward-to GTA on release day, managed 2 missions....and haven't played it since. At least with Burnout, I got to use the D-pad, which positions my thumbs in the same manner as a DS.

I tried a DS.....my hands are relaxed in a more natural position and the small buttons take far less effort to press. My PSP has got to go. Awesome system, but from an anatomic viewpoint I should have gone with the DS from the get-go.

[goatdan]

To be honest, my only hang up with the system right now is the touch pad. For some reason I'm still worried that I'll never get comfortable while gaming with a stylus.

I felt the same way, although now having had the DS for two weeks and playing it an absolute ton, I can tell you from experience that the stylus is well used. It is almost always exclusively used as a control device where you only have to focus on it (Feel the Magic and Zoo Keeper, for instance) or it isn't necessary at all (Mario Kart, Mario DS, Rayman).

Now, a bit of an in-depth review on the buttons from a fellow who has rather large hands himself.

First off, I have to make the disclaimer that I really like the D-pad on the GameCube. I don't understand why there is a huge issue about it. So maybe I'm just crazy.

Now, about the DS's buttons... Quite frankly, this is the most comfortable portable I have ever held. I have played extensively at one time or another all of the following --Game Boys, Game Boy Colors, Atari Lynxes (both models), Sega Game Gear, Nomad, Game Boy Advance (both models, not Pocket) and Neo Geo Pocket. Out of all of them, the DS, in my opinion, has the best of all worlds.

It isn't heavy. The Lynx would win for best lay out if the thing wasn't such a heavy, large beast. The reason companies don't want to make game systems larger is so that when people want to cart them around with them, they can. My DS has tagged along with me to work lately (I was showing some of my co-workers Mario Kart, which they all wanted to see) and I have greatly enjoyed sticking it in a pocket and having it fit. The weight of it is just right for holding. You don't feel like you need to rest your arms somewhere after fifteen minutes.

The fact that it closes up means that you don't have to worry about scratching up the screens. I am looking for a new Neo Geo Pocket Color because the one that I have has slowly received more and more scratches to the screen from normal use. I don't have to worry about the screens on the DS, and I really appreciate that.

Now, I said that I would talk about the buttons, so here goes -- the buttons are laid out in a way that I think works best for people like me who have large hands. Why? Because I can rest my thumb in the middle of the four buttons and I have perfect control over all four of them. I can press three at the same time if I want. Or just one. Or two. Or all four. I can't do that with my Xbox. I can't do that with my GameCube. It makes control MUCH more intuitive for me at least.

I've been playing Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga a lot on it. That game requires a lot of the use of the A & B buttons at the same time or at different times. I tried it on my Game Boy Player, and I couldn't do it. I didn't have as precise control, so it went right back into the DS and has stayed there ever since. I believe I'm already about halfway through the game, and I've only owned it for a week and a day now. For me, that's like a new record.

Mario Kart is an odd one as the buttons aren't laid out in what I would've considered to be the best layout for the game. Having said that, I've never even looked to see if I could change it. However, the trigger buttons fall right into place for me, and I can't really complain.

I was really concerned about the size of the stylus too. I actually got a kit so I would have a carrying case for my DS, and in it I got a larger stylus, which I thought would really work well for me. Well, it doesn't. For some reason, even though I'm used to using a Pocket PC with a larger stylus, that short little thing that Nintendo gave me seems to work better than a longer one.

--

All in all, I bought my system with great reservations. I knew there were some games I really wanted to play on it, and I was really interested by the stylus gimmick, but even though I love Mario Kart and that was the tipping point, I was very nervous that I wouldn't be able to control the darn thing with my big hands. Seeing my friend who bought one before me play (he also has big hands), although he said that it was great it just looked uncomfortable.

After two weeks with the system, I can honestly say that I don't think that the layout could be done better, at least for me. Everything works, and works well. The stylus stuff is integrated nicely so I am not forced to use it -- I haven't used stylus control for Mario DS at all, and I'm probably 25-50% of the way through with that game now too (I really have no idea, as I've never played Mario 64 for long before *gasp*). Thanks to how well it controls, I have been toying with the fact of trying to collect for it. As of this moment, that won't be happening, but it is definitely worth looking at.

See if you can sit down and try one out for a while longer, with games other than just Mario Kart. I think that it grows on you, especially when you have a game like Mario & Luigi...

Hmmm.... maybe I'll have to pick up the sequel a little later today ;) Ah, I want to finish this one first :)

[Cmtz]

You guys....gosh darnit, maybe I should buy one... LOL

But... I had already made plans to visit your animal crossing town. :(

[Rogmeister]

I've only had mine for 2-3 weeks but have had no real issues with the buttons. I do find I've accidentally hit the shoulder buttons a couple of times when I didn't mean to but apart from that, I'm fine with the design.

[zektor]

I really warmed up to the design of the unit myself. Then again, I have never really had any issues with Nintendo's control design...even the original NES controllers. It works very well for me, actually not even being a thought until I read this thread! :)