One of the more eyebrow-raising inclusions on Nintendo's Japanese launch list for the DS was Aruze's strangely titled Cool 104 Joker and Setline. Although the combination of two of the publisher's touch-screen gambling games for the portable system might not have been gamers' most anticipated DS release, many were intrigued to see what the pachinko manufacturer and one-time owner of SNK would bring to the launch day lineup.

　　Today, Aruze updated its official Web site with screens and information concerning Cool 104 Joker and Setline, which will be the first in a puzzle-game series whose title roughly translates to "Make Your Brain Sweat." The title is aimed directly at the adult market, the types of gamers who will want to practice the games on the DS, then apply their skills to win money and prizes in arcades.

　　Cool 104 Joker is a game played using two card decks (hence the "104" of the title). The player has five cards at all times, and one card is placed in the discard pile faceup. The player must add all the cards to the pile, but to discard any card in the hand, that card must be of the same suit or value as the card at the top of the discard pile. Since the player can see five cards at once, it becomes a game of strategy, of determining the order that will allow the player to discard as many cards as possible before getting stuck.

　　Setline is an original puzzle game in which the player fits small hexagonal pieces into a large grid. Each piece has three differently colored lines that run across it. Points are scored by placing down the pieces in such a way that the player creates a solid line from one edge of the grid to another, filling up the grid to create as many lines as possible once all the pieces are down. Certain spots on the grid earn bonus points if the player can complete a line that touches them.

　　Cool 104 Joker is a one-player game only, but Setline will feature a two-player mode. Aruze has not announced how many cartridges will be required, but the game's simple nature suggests that only one copy of the game will be needed for multiplayer gameplay. Of course, the touch-screen input is used to play both games. An options mode will let players select from a variety of different backgrounds to look at while they play.

　　Since the games are based on amusement machines, they are by design the type of accessible titles that Nintendo hoped to attract to the DS. Of course, this should not infer by any means that the games are easily solved or are aimed at children; indeed the publisher promises that they will be difficult and deep, even though the rules and control methods are ostensibly simple.

　　Cool 104 Joker and Setline will be released on December 2 alongside the Nintendo DS in Japan. The price has not yet been determined, but given the nature of the game, it may fall into the less-expensive 3,800 yen ($35) price structure along with Nintendo's first-party puzzle game One-Line Puzzle.