Gauntlet is a true arcade classic. Designed by Ed Logg for Atari Games, this Dungeons & Dragons inspired action game released in 1985 was one of the first four-player games that encouraged cooperative play to get through the hundred levels of underground mayhem. It was also one of the first games to pride itself on the idea that it was always meant to suck away players' money, one quarter at a time. Over the past two decades Gauntlet's been made into an arcade sequel and ported to classic consoles, and when Midway acquired Atari Games the company continued the line in spin-off sequels for the arcade and home systems. The latest incarnation comes from Eidos, who will publish a brand new design developed by Backbone Entertainment, this time for the Nintendo DS portable system.

The game, which will simply be titled Gauntlet, will feature the same cooperative action design that the original arcade game has been known for. Players take their pick from four different classes of characters, each with their own strengths, weaknesses, and in-game capabilities. They can hit the realms as the lone hero and try to advance through the 40 different maps, but there are 32 different enemy types out to make this trek as difficult as possible. The classic enemies like skeletons, thieves...and that annoying death guy will make a return, but many of the evil entourage will be completely original to the Nintendo DS game. Players will be able to utilize special abilities, like Bait that'll attract enemies away from the heroes, or Glacier Freeze which will halt enemies in their track.

But obviously Gauntlet has always excelled in its multiplayer, and the Nintendo DS will have a huge focus in this department. Four players be able to link up locally and hit the dungeons as their choice of character, but they won't be restricted to being next to each other: Gauntlet will fully support the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection service. Go online and connect with three other friends to get the job done. And since Gauntlet has always been a social experience, Backbone has included voice over IP support. That's right, you'll be able to talk to your friends during the action using the built-in microphone or the optional DS headset.

Gauntlet for the DS will feature two-screen tall action and Internet play.

The DS version will feature the usual cooperative single player campaign, but it will also feature an assortment of additional multiplayer modes: Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and Treasure Horde game modes. These modes will be playable locally or over the internet as well.

And if you've checked out the screenshots you'll notice that the Nintendo DS version will run both screens as a single display for a vertical view of the dungeon. The game will support a 3D engine running across both screens – hopefully Gauntlet's trademark "throw as many enemies on-screen as the view can fill" will be retained without any slowdown. Original orchestral music will accompany the action…and we hope the classic announcer will reveal when our character is about to die and when he or she will need food, badly.

Eidos will publish Gauntlet for the Nintendo DS this June for a retail price of $29.99.