DS Diva

The new GameStop ad lists deals running from Jan. 23-Jan. 29. Mario Kart DS, regularly $39.99, is on sale for $34.99. And many Ubisoft games regularly priced at $29.99 are $19.99, including My Spanish Coach, Petz games, Prince of Persia, Endwar and Shaun White Snowboarding. Some used DS games are also discounted. GameStop is also having a contest where you can win all of the top eight games of 2008. Go to www.gamestop.com/top8 to enter. You can also vote for the year’s best games on each gaming platform, including Nintendo DS.

SimAnimals released

Want to befriend a wild hedgehog? Or perhaps another woodland creature is more your style. SimAnimals for Nintendo DS (and Wii, too) is shipping this week, which means fans of the long-popular Sims series can get their Sim fix. But this new game may be the one that converts non-Sims people, including the casual gamer. The reasons? Cute animals and the interactive nature of the game. Players can extend a “hand” to pet, feed and even pick up bears, deer, rabbits and other animals in the woods.

But the creatures also take on lives of their own, and must contend with predators, forest fires. Players add plant life, move animals to more appropriate habitats, clean polluted areas and solve other challenges to create the best possible forest environment. The Nintendo DS stylus can be used to interact with the animals and blowing into the microphone frees fruit from trees, spreads blossoms and other things.

You can see the official Web site to see screenshots and play minigames at SimAnimals.com.

Before there was Personal Trainer: Math, there was Geometry War Galaxies, and on Jan. 21 the Nintendo DS game is half off, at $9.98. I don’t know if Geometry War Galaxies is any good, but there’s a lot of blasting and you can play multiplayer.

17-in-1 Bundle Pack

Amazon is offering up 25 percent off select Nintendo DS accessories through Jan. 31, and there’s plenty to choose from, as well as accessories for other gaming platforms such as Wii. Most of the DS accessories highlighed, such as the Nintendo DS Lite G-pak Organizer are still 10 percent off, as they were in the a promotion Amazon ran earlier this month. A pink 17-in-1 Bundle Pack for Nintendo DS Lite by DreamGear (pictured) is 10 percent off, making it $17.96, as is a Nintendo DS Lite 20-In-1 Starter Kit in Pink by Icon. Nintendo DS Lite Nerf Armor is 7 percent off in some (not all) colors, making it $13.96. There are definitely some deals to be had, especially if your order totals $25 or more and you get free Super Saver shipping.

SimAnimals (long-awaited)
Jumble Madness
Big Bang Mini
WonderWorld Amusement Park

It’s a short list this week, mainly because Circuit City is closing, there’s no Toys R Us ad and because DS Diva doesn’t post as sales things listed in ads at their regular price.

Best Buy
Namco Museum DS $19.99 (This is the one with Pac-Man, Galaga and more)
Paws & Claws Pampered Pets $19.99

Circuit City announced Jan. 16 that it is going out of business, so there will be no more weekly ads and a liquidator will come in to sell off product—and the prices might not necessarily be great, so be sure to comparison shop. All Circuit City locations in the U.S. are expected to be cleared out by the end of March, while Canadian stores will continue operating.