Dual Pen Sports is another game in a long list capitalizing on the limited library currently out for your 3DS by throwing some mini games onto a card and hoping you will buy it because you don’t have many other options. Truth be told this game is not worth the full forty dollar price tag of a new 3DS game because its entertainment value will get old pretty fast once you realize it’s the same formula copy and pasted over and over with a different name on it each time.
Story
Dual Pen Sports doesn’t really have a story. You are a random character who is apparently very multi-talented and on a quest to play lot of different sports mini-games against endless numbers of rivals who want nothing more than to see you fail.
Gameplay
To start off, the main selling point of Dual Pen Sports is that it is intended to be played using two styli on the 3DS touch screen, and to facilitate two sports themed styli are included with the game should you buy it brand new. There are just two problems with this. Have you ever wondered why you’ve never seen a game for the 3DS that’s meant to be played with more than one stylus? It’s because the 3DS does not support a multi touch display and therefore cannot support more than one stylus. The other problem with this is that a game requiring two styli leaves you with no free hand, and thus you must put the 3DS down on a flat surface in order to play, thus defeating the purpose of the game being on a handheld.
Obvious oversights aside, the gameplay is pretty fluid overall, everything flows and there are no major speed bumps which make the game unplayable. My only major complaint about the controls is that every mini-game basically boils down to the same repetitive motions on the touch screen. You’re usually making a motion on one side of the screen and then the opposite motion on the opposite side of the screen.
Each sport challenge breaks down to you fighting your rival to see who can get the highest score or you fighting yourself to see if you can beat your previous score in a target challenge. The game also features a “Fingergility” Mode where you are tested to see how skilled you are with your hands with a number of different quick activities a la Brain Age.
Audio & Video
You guessed it: not much good to say here ether. To start, the soundtrack is similar to playing a compilation of “Greatest hits of the Main Menu” throughout the whole game; it’s like listening to different elevator music on a loop. The visuals are on par with the soundtrack; the characters are about as customizable as a Mii, frankly I’m surprised they didn’t try to just use the Mii’s in the 3DS as the characters in the game. It also doesn't help that the same rival characters are recycled for multiple times throughout the game.
Overall
As an overall score I suppose Dual Pen Sports earns a 6/10 just barely. It’s not terrible, but it’s not going to show up on any must have lists anytime soon. The gameplay, which keep in mind is just about the only thing this game has, is tedious, repetitive and a bit awkward unless you are ambidextrous, but it passes time and is mildly entertaining.
"Dual Pen Sports" is on sale June 21, 2011 and is rated E10+. Sim. Developed and published by Namco Bandai Games.
