Nintendo Wii and DSi accessory help

[debnmark]

My DD7 is getting both of these soon between Christmas and her January b-day. I'm new to all this video game stuff. My question is what accessories are truly "needed" for the Wii and DSi versus which ones are nice to haves and which ones are not at all necessary?

I imagine for the Wii extra controllers are a good idea, but is there anything else I should invest in?

For the DSi I know I want to get a carry case that will hold it and games. I see 20-in-1 and 18-in-1 kits that come with screen protectors, styluses, aluminum cases, etc... Do we need all that stuff, if not, what do I need?

 

Thanks in advance for any guidance with this as I am clueless when it comes to video gaming! Heck, I barely even touched my Atari back in the good old days!

[emilygracesmom]

We have a Wii and the only "accessory" we have are extra controllers. I also bought the rechargeable battery packs and the charging station, but those aren't necessarily accessories as much as they are convenience items. It mostly depends on the games you will be playing. If you'll be playing a lot of the sports type games (i.e. tennis, baseball, etc.) the sports pack might be nice to have, or if you play the racing games, the steering wheel might be necessary.

 

As for the DS, my DD is getting a DSi this year as well. I looked at the 20-in-1 and 18-in-1 kits and I didn't think all those things were necessary. So I just bought her the aluminum case and some extra styluses. I have read that the screen protectors can actually decrease the functionality of the touch screen and that the screen is made to withstand use.

 

Anyway, I hope your DD enjoys hers as much as mine does. HTH

[MandaJo111]

You might want to check radio shack for accessories. When I bought my DS there they had all kinds of DS lite, DSi and DSXL accessories for really cheap. I got one of the all in one packs for $2.97 and a hard shell cover (nerf-like) for $1.97. They had lots of other kits too.

[racerfan]

I recommend a car charger for the DSi XL. When on long trips or just out and about, if the DSi dies it makes for one unhappy kid. The carry bag I have for the DSi holds all the games, (up to 40), car charger, house charger, dsi, extra styluses (even though I would not put all in there since you child may lose some) I found that I preferred this bag compared to the skins, or hard cases or the smaller bag since I had everything in one place. Below is similar to what we have except ours is more square, but it has the slots to hold the games.

http://www.amazon.com/DS-Lite-Universal-Transporter-Carrying-Nintendo/dp/B002NILRUY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1291407286&sr=8-2

 

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51si2BckgCL._AA300_.jpg

 

I second the need for more remotes and nunchuks so that everyone can play. I also recommend the rechargeable battery packs and charger. We have has our Wii since launch day in 2006 and got the rechargeable batteries immediately since we were going thru alot of batteries. I just ordered the lightening deal energizer charger from Amazon last week, since it was time to get new rechargeable batteries, ours looked like they were getting corroded. One way to get an additional remote is to get the game FlingSmash it comes with remote plus and a game and I think it is $32.00 on Amazon.

[debnmark]

Thanks for all the great feedback. I really appreciate it.