Mario Kart DS
(Nintendo, 2005, Metacritic Score: 91)

While the DS has plenty of great multiplayer titles, none are as feature-packed as Mario Kart DS. The game includes 8-player local wireless play and also lets you hop on Nintendo Wi-Fi connection to battle up to 3 other players online. MK DS also includes a full single-player Championship mode as well as a Mission mode that contains dozens of tricky challenges that will test your karting skills. Add in new weapons, tracks, and characters for you to use and you have one of the best values in gaming.

New Super Mario Bros.
(Nintendo, 2006, Metacritic Score: 89)

An adventure that fans had been waiting over a decade for, Mario finally returned to his 2D side-scrolling roots in New Super Mario Bros. Taking the best elements from the NES games, Mario has to run, bounce, swim, and even wall-jump his way through a ton of all-new levels. Awesome power-ups like the Super Mushroom -- which makes Mario gigantic and lets you crash through everything in sight -- keep everything feeling fresh and make NSMB a fantastic purchase for fans of the iconic plumber.