The Saga Of The Ultra-Rare McDonald’s DS Game Comes To An End After 11 Long Years

A group made up of Forest of Illusion and other generous benefactors was eventually able to secure a copy of eSMART 2.0 for a whopping ¥300,000 (or around $2,600 USD). After ensuring the game’s preservation by backing up the cartridge’s data, Forest of Illusion sent eSMART 2.0 to Trentuit, who shared a lengthy video detailing its contents for folks not able to download and play it themselves.

As you can see, this software isn’t going to be making any “Best Nintendo DS Games of All Time” lists. eSMART 2.0 is pretty much what it says on the tin: a way to teach McDonald’s employees of the era best practices for putting together orders of Quarter Pounders and Chicken McNuggets for hungry customers via demonstrations and interactive scenarios.

It’s basically a sterilized training video, without awkward acting or nonsensical music numbers.

All that said, this is still an important moment for video game preservation. While it may not seem as momentous as, say, releasing hundreds of PlayStation 2 prototypes and demos, eSMART 2.0’s archival is a small step toward ensuring the entire Nintendo DS catalog is maintained for future use. And hey, you never know, maybe the secret to making an authentic Big Mac sauce is hidden somewhere in its code.