With more than 13 million units sold in its first year, Nintendo is once again king of the handheld gaming market thanks to its acclaimed Nintendo DS ($129) system, ahead of the Sony PlayStation Portable (at just over 10 million units sold). The Nintendo DS succeeds with innovative video games that take advantage of the machine's two LCD screens (one of which is touch-sensitive), built-in microphone for voice commands and free wi-fi for wireless multiplayer gaming over the Net. Never is this innovation more evident than in Nintendo's Electroplankton, a strange new "game" created by renowned Japanese electronic artist Toshio Iwai.

Electroplankton lets players create music by interacting with little "plankton" creatures that each produce a different sound or rhythm when touched with the stylus pen. Players can also speak into the microphone to record their voices and other sounds to create a unique musical composition. Here are some examples of the 10 available modes: Hanenbow lets you toy with the shape of leaves to see and hear how the plankton bounce off of them; in Nanocarp, you help change the shape of the plankton by clapping or speaking into the microphone; Beatnes is made up of dancing plankton that play music from popular Nintendo Entertainment System games and remember the additional melodies you tap onto their heads and bodies; Rec-Rec allows players to record up to four sounds and then layer them over drum loops to create custom electronica tracks.

Each mode also has various stages to play around with. That said, this odd title isn't really a "game" per se, as there's no goal, score or time restrictions, plus all 10 modes are available to the player right away. Consider it a digital sandbox for music lovers on the go. One beef, however: Players cannot save their compositions to play back at a later time. Even still, Electroplankton is a curiously addictive fusion of art and science. Nintendo is thinking outside the box, and the Nintendo DS is the right platform for this experimentation.