Best Games for Your (Small) Budget - Nintendo

After our Microsoft and Sony articles demonstrated what these companies have available on their respective platforms, we will end this series of articles by taking a look at the Nintendo Wii and DS. There are plenty of strong RPG titles available, and here we will look at some of the bigger titles!

If you are anything like me, very rarely are you the kind of the person willing to, say, rush out to the midnight launch of a game to spend that $50/$60 to get the newest game on the block. Rather, I like to wait until months later when the game has dropped at least below half-off mark to make that dive. Nowadays, that moment seems to be happening a lot sooner even for the best titles -- even titles like Mass Effect 2 and Final Fantasy XIII dropped to "budget" status rather quickly after everyone who was planning on picking up a copy already did. Stores are starting to be far more competitive with some games even being offered huge gift cards for pre-ordering (for example, you can get a free $20 gaming credit at Amazon for picking up Fable 3). 

Even if you don't consider yourself frugal, it doesn't hurt to be mindful of one's budget in this type of economy. For that reason, I would like to offer you my own personal list of the best games available now at some really incredible prices. The only rule I followed was that all of these games had to be sold at these prices brand new. You may be able to find a lot of these games at even lower prices pre-owned at a store like GameStop, but those can be rather hit and miss in terms of inventory and bundled materials. Just another heads up that any multiplatform games on this list can be found at a comparable price (and sometimes even for cheaper) on the other systems as they tend to stay in line with one another. Please enjoy!

Under $30

Little King's Story

Perhaps the greatest game on the Wii you've never played, Little King's Story is a combination civilization builder with Pikmin-style combat. As a king, you are tasked to rebuild your troubled kingdom from nothing into greatness. Along the way, you will have to please your villagers by taking on quests (using the control pad to maneuver them towards enemies and obstacles), defending the area from marauding monsters and invading nations, and altogether making a name for yourself as the greatest king that ever lived!

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Crystal Bearers

Crystal Bearers came and went and didn't make quite as big a splash as what people thought it would for the Wii. This is because it played out sort of like a tech demo for what Square-Enix wanted to try and accomplish with the Wiimote and the physics engine encased in the game. For fans of the Final Fantasy franchise, however, there is plenty to love and a variety of exciting gameplay elements (such as flying missions) and a huge amount of side quests and a great story that will keep players entertained inside one of the best-looking games on the Wii.

Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love

Despite being the fifth title in the series, the critically-acclaimed Sakura Wars: So Long, My Love is the first SW game to ever be released Stateside, setting up what we hope to be a precedent for future games to make their appearance on this side of the Pacific. With a story set in America (ironically enough), demons have started to appear in the city of New York, and you and your band of performers to take these guys out. The game has an impressive spider web of a karma system where the entire plot to the story can change depending on your actions and conversations, with the player being forced to make a decision in a limited period of time. The gameplay can happen either on ground or in the air, with the ability to switch on the fly so you can get out of danger quickly when the going gets tough. The game was released on both the Wii and PS2, with both versions having the game spread across two disks due to the sheer size of the game itself. I really enjoyed playing this game, so for anyone out there who loves mech games heavy on the anime style focusing on a highly-entertaining cast of characters, this is definitely something for you.

Under $20

Muramasa

Building upon the greatness that was Odin Sphere (without any of the nasty glitches or slowdowns), Muramasa is another drop-dead gorgeous game from developers Vanillaware. Utilizing a hand-drawn style inspired by famous Japanese paintings, you'd be very surprised that this game was released on the Wii if no one else had told you. It is easy to find oneself heavily distracted by the astonishingly-detailed landscapes, but look a little deeper and you will find yourself a highly enjoyable combat system, a robust crafting feature, and one of the most polished creations in gaming. Who knows what Vanillaware is capable of doing once they move to an HD platform like the PS3 or 360? Just imagine... well, might want to hold off so as to not make your head explode.

Rune Factory: Frontier

It's Harvest Moon... all grown up! Rune Factory: Frontier offers up a vibrant and beautifully-designed world where players must work a farm, build relationships, and dungeon-crawl to your heart's extent. Everything is tightly knit together in a simplistic experience that is both highly addictive and a good time killer offering plenty of variety to keep your attention. I would also like to point out that Rune Factory scored an 80% in our review for the game.

Under $10

Opoona

Opoona tells the story of a young boy that, while going on vacation with his family, gets separated from his brother and sister through mysteriously circumstances and wakes up in the hospital. Your goal is to find out the circumstances of their disappearance and where they ended up. The game has a very colorful art design and wonderful music, with an all-star production team with veterans behind the Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy series. The game is controlled via the nunchuk accessory -- the menus, the combat, everything, and can be played entirely with on. With little to no attention given to this neat traditional game with a freaky art design, you may find something to love in Opoona.

Virtual Console

Well, duh, we also have the Virtual Console to play with. There are a ton of nostalgic classics to be had here, like Super Mario RPG and Secret of Mana. Have your pick! Here is to hoping Nintendo gets off their butts and brings us Chrono Trigger and Earthbound already.

Nintendo DS

Same as the PSP, we will start at the $15 mark due to the common $30 price point (made all the more beneficial because there are some great DS RPGs for under $15!)

Under $15

The World Ends With You

Wait, you haven't bought TWEWY yet? What in the world is wrong with you? This is what happens when you let Square-Enix attempt something fresh and exciting for a change instead of pumping out another Dragon Quest or Final Fantasy game to the masses. Featuring art design by famed producer Tetsuya Nomura, The World Ends With You tells a story about Neku Sakuraba and his friends that are caught inside the "Reaper's Game", a life-threatening ordeal that spans over three weeks where he must complete missions or face deadly repercussions. Players must engage in pacts in order to survive their encounters. Using a pin-based combat system that takes place on both of the system's screens, with certain attacks that can only be used by either the stylus or by yelling into the microphone. Everything about this game is great: the story, the characters, the art design, and especially the music. So... buy it already!

Sonic Chronicles: Dark Brotherhood

What happens when you take one of the biggest RPG companies in the world with a blue beast that you normally wouldn't associate anywhere close to this genre? No, they didn't make an Avatar RPG. This is Sonic Chronicles: Dark Brotherhood, a game developed by our pals at BioWare dish up a highly-engaging title that finally puts Sonic where he belongs -- back in capable hands! Using the stylus, players control the direction Sonic goes, as well as helping to clear the obstacles that stand in his way such as wide gaps, loop-de-loops, and flying and climbing segments. All of the characters from previous Sonic games make an appearance here, including... *shudder*... Big The Cat, a character Bioware promised that they would help us to love. Despite a heavily crowded market, there are plenty of things to like about Sonic Chronicles.

Under $10

Contact

From the creators of Killer7 and No More Heroes comes Contact, a wonderfully nerdy and hilarious adventure that is pretty much par for the course from these guys. A professor has crash landed on a planet while trying to escape the Klaxon Army and lost "cells", which are basically the fuel that keeps his ship flying. He calls upon a young boy named Terry to help him recover these cells. Breaking the fourth wall frequently, you are actually a separate embodiment controlling Terry on the top screen with the professor giving you tips and instructions on the bottom screen. There is plenty to do here, where you even have the ability to attack the different NPCs in the towns. Become too violent, however, and the town will turn hostile and start attacking Terry. There is plenty of replayability and plenty of entertainment to be found.

Dragonball Origins

I know, I know. Really, Dragonball? Never fear, my friends! Dragonball Origins is actually a very solid RPG that became critically acclaimed for its rather impressive gameplay and surprisingly detailed graphics for the handheld title. Using an overhead camera view and a character that is controlled by the stylus much like the Zelda DS games, players control Son Goku as he travels with Bulma to find the seven magical Dragon Balls and  get to Master Roshi in order to train for the next Tenkaichi Budokai martial arts tournament. Fans of the series will no doubt buy this game, but there is also plenty of excitement to be had with RPG fans in general to warrant a purchase.

Obviously, I have not listed every RPG that is available at these pricepoints. There are plenty other games out there. If you don't see it on this list, please feel free to post the deals you have found below in the comments section!

We hope you all have enjoyed these articles! As I mentioned before, later today we will be making available the entire piece for you all to use as a guide in case you own more than just one of these consoles. Thanks for reading!