Game & Watch Collection

"Worth collecting all those coins for three games?"

Long before the Gameboy, Nintendo created its first handheld known as the Game and Watch. The games available for this were very basic and reminiscent of the handheld games that may come as the toy for a McDonald's happy meal. Simple and basic, but good for its time in the early 80's, and introduced a much loved Smash Bros character, Mr. Game and Watch. Now, for the Nintendo DS, if you are a Club Nintendo member and collect 800 coins, you can purchase this little collectable with 3 Game and Watch games. This isn't much of a game, but a collection, and will be reviewed as such.

What's in this collection are three classic Game and Watch games: Old Panic, Donkey Kong and Green House. They're playable and very nostalgic if you've ever played the original Game and Watch games. Oil Panic has you collecting dripping oil and releasing it at a gas station. Donkey Kong is a very basic handheld port of the arcade classic. Green House has you spraying bugs with pesticide to protect plants. Each are basic, but offer simple quick fun. That's it though. There's no special features, no extra games to unlock, nothing. It's just three little games that by today's standards can barely be considered games.

While this game is technically free (purchased using an online currency on Club Nintendo that is based off enter PIN numbers for first party Nintendo games), it really should be much more. Considering that Nintendo has already made 4 iterations of the Game and Watch Gallery series for its other handhelds, something of that nature would be expected here. The Game and Watch Gallery games for the Gameboy Color and GBA contained not just 3 Game and Watch games, but dozens. On top of that the GaWG collections had their own remixed versions of the game that played a little differently and had actual Nintendo characters in it. On top of that there were more games to unlock, trivia and other bonuses as well. Compared to just getting 3 games on this DS collection, Nintendo has done much better at representing the Game and Watch.

So is this game really worth it? Well it is free and the only redeemable game for the Club Nintendo rewards, so there isn't much else to compare it to. Still, I'd suggest getting a case that holds some DS games and styli or a Wii Remote holder over this.

Reviewer's Score: 5/10, Originally Posted: 07/06/09

Game Release: Game & Watch Collection (US, 12/15/08)