System Flaw for Nintendo DSi: Camera Shooter

System Flaw is a shooter built for the Nintendo DSi, in which alien creatures show up only inside the console’s rear camera view. It went on sale in North America in the last week of October 2009 and was widely described as the first game restricted to DSi hardware.

Overview

Wikipedia places the game with a developer called Visual Impact and a publisher called Storm City Games, though its introduction credits the studio as developer, so the page contradicts itself. Siliconera, writing in November 2009, named Visual Impact as developer and Enjoy Gaming as publisher, and WorthPlaying lists Enjoy Gaming for Europe and Storm City Entertainment for the United States. Nintendo World Report credits Storm City Games for both roles. These records have not been reconciled here.

Sean Buckley of Infendo noted on 22 October 2009 that a very small third-party publisher had beaten Nintendo itself to a DSi-only release in North America. He reported that it appeared to be sold through Amazon at first, and he said he would rather wait for Ghostwire, another augmented-reality title.

How it plays

The player acts as a turret. Hold the DSi, turn and tilt it, and the camera image of your bedroom or garden slides past with aliens called the Flaw layered on top. Siliconera mentions a radar that sends players from room to room or outdoors. Either trigger button fires. Nintendo World Report calls it a first-person shooter and adds that you must turn your body to shoot behind you, with no protection against dizziness.

There are two ways to play. Patrol mode offers short stages with objectives such as clearing every enemy or patrolling for a set time, and Survival sends endless waves for a high score. The publisher’s text speaks of 100 scripted levels and ten creatures, while Common Sense Media counts 99 levels. Ottosen’s WorthPlaying review reports that the core loop hardly changes and that about five minutes of play covers most of it. Common Sense Media warns that other people and pets in the room appear in the game, so players may end up aiming at family members.

Release and credits

North American retail copies appeared on 27 October 2009 according to Wikipedia, Infendo and two reviews, while Common Sense Media prints 2 December 2009. Europe came later: Wikipedia says 21 January 2011, whereas Siliconera had expected February 2010. The ESRB rating, as reported by Common Sense Media, is E for Fantasy Violence. At launch the cartridge cost 30 dollars. A smaller download, System Flaw Recruit, followed on DSiWare in Europe on 16 April 2010 and in North America on 26 April 2010.

Reception

Neal Ronaghan’s Nintendo World Report review of 23 November 2009 scored it 4, calling the idea a neat one and the execution a less than mediocre first step into DSi exclusives. Erik Ottosen gave 5.7 out of 10 at WorthPlaying and found it hard to recommend at 30 dollars, though he thought it would be a pleasant five-dollar download. Common Sense Media’s Christopher Healy was kinder and recommended it for ages 10 and up. Years afterwards, a Cubed3 piece on the 3DS title Face Raiders looked back at System Flaw as the game that first showed what the DSi’s outer camera could do.

Can you still play it?

The boxed card is DSi-only software, so a plain DS or DS Lite will not run it, while a DSi, DSi XL or Nintendo 3DS family console should. DSi-only cards are region-locked, which means a European copy suits a European console. The DSiWare Recruit edition was sold through Nintendo’s download shop, and the 3DS and Wii U eShop closed on 27 March 2023.