With the 3DS already out and finishing up its first holiday, the original DS is fading out fast. It’s seen the last few Nintendo first-party releases this year, and won’t see any new ones down the line. That said, it’s had a fairly strong year, full of games offering experiences unavailable elsewhere. The strength of the DS has always been its unique library, and 2011 exemplified that trend. The DS will continue to live on in the 3DS because of backwards compatibility. The handheld has become legendary, and 2011 was as good of a send-off as you could expect.

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Pokémon White/Black

With each Nintendo handheld comes a new generation of Pokémon. With White and Black, the core game is extremely familiar if you’ve played any previous title. The story is the same as usual; start out from a small town with no Pokémon to your name, conquer Gym Leaders to gain their badges, and beat the Elite 4 to become a Pokémon master. No surprises there, but it’s a formula that works still. The presentation has been massively improved with very animated sprites during battles, along with 3D towns to walk in. You are still restricted to grid-like movement, but it’s a welcome improvement. Battles can now be 3 on 3, adding quite a bit of chaos to fights. The biggest new addition is the Pokemon Dream World, a mechanic which allows players to earn Pokémon with skills you couldn’t normally attain. As expected, online play returns though in classic Nintendo fashion, it’s bare bones but functional. White and Black won’t surprise you with new innovations as it really just adds gameplay tweaks to an already solid formula. If you aren’t burned out on Pokémon already, give this a try.

Kirby: Mass Attack

Similar to how Kirby Canvas Curse showed the world how to make a good stylus-only game, Kirby: Mass Attack demonstrates you can make an awesome platformer using no buttons at all. The gameplay conceit allows you to control up to 10 Kirbys at once. You simply point to where you want them to move, or fling them individually. Holding the screen makes a star appear, where they will all hop on as you drag them wherever your heart desires. The visuals are bright, colorful, and chock-full of well-animated sprites. Like most Nintendo products, its production is top-notch. As this will no doubt be the last Kirby game on the DS, it’s a wonderful send off.

Ghost Trick

This is probably the most niche game on the list, but Ghost Trick is also unlike anything else around. Coming from the developers of the Phoenix Wright series, you can expect lots of dialogue and no twitch-like gameplay. However, the core mechanic of possessing items to prevent murders is just so damn cool. The logic-chain of item manipulation to reach your goal works a part of your brain most games never touch. Coupled with absolutely gorgeous sprite-work, Ghost Trick is really worth a look for those wanting something off the beaten path.

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Other notable releases:

Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation

It’s a Dragon Quest game, so it’s traditional JRPG elements to the max. The remade graphics, sound, and translation are all excellent as expected. Those looking to dig into the JRPG classics will find much to love here.

Okamiden

As a sequel to the wonderful Okami for PS2 and Wii, Okamiden doesn’t cover much new ground. It’s still an extremely solid adventure-RPG in the vein of Zelda. The brush mechanic works better than ever with the DS touch screen to boot. It’s hard to find as meaty of a game on the DS.

Aliens: Infestation

If you like Metroid-vania mechanics, Infestation is right up your alley. WayForward took the game in an unexpected direction and it totally paid off. The sprite-work is amazing and the gameplay is top-notch. This is the definition of a sleeper hit; the game should not be as good as it is.

Sony’s first foray into the portable market was an undeniable success. It may not compare to the utter behemoth that was the Nintendo DS, but the PSP was hugely profitable and sold almost 73 million units worldwide. Unfortunately, the system’s software is another story. PSP games are notorious easy to pirate, and publishers have become increasingly wary of putting their games on the console. The software lineup has become increasingly anemic, consisting of mostly niche, but really fantastic Japanese titles. If that turns you off, the PSP won’t really get your goat this year.

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Tactics Ogre: Let Us Cling Together

Before there was Final Fantasy Tactics, there was Tactics Ogre. Originally released for the Super Famicom, and later for the Sega Saturn and PSone, Tactics Ogre is quite simply a fantastic strategy RPG. If you’re not into the whole “move on a grid and wait for turns” thing, it won’t change your mind; it’s just one of the best implementations out there. Visually and aurally, this is the definitive version, removing the hiccups from the 32-bit ports, and adding subtle flourishes to the 2D art. This version also tweaks some of the leveling mechanics and skills, removing some of the unnecessary obtuseness from the original. The “Chariot System” has been added which lets you go back up to 50 turns in a battle. It sounds game-breaking, but when there are almost 2 dozen characters on screen, it’s hardly a game-changer. The best addition is the World system, which unlocks once the game is completed. It lets you revisit key decision points in the game and lets you play the other branching path if you wish. Considering that some of the choices are literal game changers, this is an awesome feature. You’re not forced through dozens of play-throughs just to see what would have happened had you done something different. If you haven’t gotten your SRPG fix just yet, Tactics Ogre is a must-buy.

Dissidia 012 [duodecim] Final Fantasy

Do your best to ignore the utterly obstuse and idiotic title, because Dissidia 012 is a keeper. Not only does it bring together several of the iconic heroes and villains from different Final Fantasy games, it wraps it around fresh fighting mechanics. Instead of life bars, characters have Bravery Attacks and HP Attacks. Your Bravery points determine how much damage your HP Attacks will do, thus it’s a constant battle to keep your opponents Bravery meter low. Of course, attacking their Bravery does no damage outright, so it’s an interesting meta-game on keeping your 2 meters in check. Like any good sequel, there are new characters added, 9 in total including Lightning from FFXIII. The character balance has been tweaked, and new mechanics like Assist attacks have been added. With tons of FF fan-service thrown in for good measure, this is one of the best PSP-exclusive fighters out there. Hell, it’s probably the best FF game of 2011.

Persona 2: Innocent Sin

P2: Innocent Sin has become somewhat of a cherished gem for Persona fans. Similar to how Final Fantasy III just never seemed to come to the US (until the DS remake of course), Innocent Sin never got an official US release. The situation was somewhat weird, as Persona 2 was split into 2 games and it came very late in the PSone’s life-cycle, almost ensuring it would never get translated. Thankfully, Atlus picked it up and released it to hungry PSP owners. P2: IS adds one of the most unique features in an RPG; the ability to talk to enemies before you fight them. Depending on their personalities and your conversation choices, they will enter a pact with you, start rumors, or give you tarot cards (used to summon Personas). For a game from the 32-bit era, it’s shockingly still fresh. Something that isn’t so fresh are the visuals, which are mostly straight from the PSone version. Needless to say, the polygonal models don’t make the cut these days. Still, the underlying mechanics are interesting and the story quite intriguing. If you have a mind to deal with the pace of old-school JRPG’s, you’ll find P2:IS extremely rewarding.

The 3rd Birthday

The third title in the Parasite Eve series (although legally it pretends not to be) puts players 10 years after the events of the second game. Aya Brea is still the heroine, even in her 40’s (though she looks easily half that), dealing with a new threat dubbed “Babels,” organic structures that are randomly erupting from the streets of Manhattan. The game combines tactical shooting with RPG elements, though neither of which are extremely deep. The twist in this game is the Overdrive System, which allows Aya to take over the bodies of allies or even enemies. Story explanations for how this works falls into “anime-logic” i.e. super-confusing and wordy. Either way, it adds a very cool tactical element to battle as possessing others gives you access to new weapons and skills. For an action-based RPG on the PSP, you can’t go wrong with The 3^rd Birthday.

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Other notable releases:

Ys 1&2: Chronicles

Ys 1&2 have been remade to death, but the PSP version is one of the best. Retaining the sprite-based visuals, along with updates from earlier remakes, this is the portable version to pick up. Be warned, it’s not the deepest RPG out there.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky

Given the game’s generic title, you’d think this was just another mediocre JRPG. Not so! It’s one of the most solid ones available on the PSP. Superb localization, excellent visuals, a meaty quest – it’s the complete package. Seek this one out.

Monster Hunter: Portable 3rd

It’s more Monster Hunter, for better or worse. It adds in the improvements seen in Tri, along with some of its own new content. If you haven’t been sold on the concept yet, this won’t be the game to convert you. But to the millions of others who love it, this is a worthy update.