The DS version is, when it comes to gameplay, a bit in between the PSP and the GBA version, but also completely different. The story starts in a way similar to the PSP. You strand in Strangetown because your car breaks down. But you don't meet Oscar to make him fix your car like you do in the PSP version. Instead you just decide to go to the hotel. When you get there, you end up in a dark place - all the lights are out - and the manager has mysteriously disappeared. Time for you to take over. One of the first things you have to do is to get the lights on again, by putting some fuel in the power generator in the basement.

The DS version is full of mini-games, which make a lot of use of the built-in technology of the DS. One of the first you'll encounter is the vacuum cleaner game. The place is a mess, and you can clean it by grabbing the vacuum cleaner and walking around. Then your eyes should focus on the bottom screen, where you drag the garbage through to the bottom of the screen. And once your screen is all dusty, you have to blow in the microphone to make it clean again.

The touch-screen is very important in the game anyway. That's because at the top you always see your Sim. The rest of the interface is completely at the bottom screen. When you walk up to an object, that's where you can pick the actions. It's also where you can go to the options, save the game, see your statistics, and more.

If you're making a painting to hang in the gallery room, which your guests might like or dislike, you can paint it on the touch screen using some very simple tools. You don't have to hang those paintings in the hotel though - if you prefer to keep them, just put them in your inventory. The touch screen is also the place to make some tunes to play in the hotel. Using the microphone you can record your own voice. Then you can play a sample tune, and mix your voice using the keyboard at the bottom. The different keys change the pitch of your recordings.

The Create a Sim mode is more limited than the PSP version. You can't change the shape of your Sim, but naturally there's enough to allow you to personalise them well enough. There are four aspirations to pick from: fortune, popular, romance and party. Depending on what you pick, you'll get a bit extra from the hotel guests. They will pay extra if you choose fortune, to name one.

In the game you'll also need to socialise. There's no Sims game where you don't have to. On the DS the game is again a little different. You'll see your Sims talking on the top screen, but again you need the bottom screen to succeed. There will be three buttons, lighting up in a random order. Press a lit button, and the conversation will proceed successfully. This way you can get further in the story as well.

Although the graphics aren't as good as the PSP version, the game makes excellent use of all the capabilities of the DS. Nevertheless it's again a different game, more adventure like than a simulation. Although your sanity does play a role, the focus is much more on running the hotel and completing the story. If you've never played on a DS before, like me, it might take some time to get used to playing on two screens. Nevertheless you should be fine after a few minutes.