ive been debating about getting a ds for a few months now, but since the 3ds was released, idk whether i should simply get that instead.  i mainly want a ds to play some rpgs, namely golden sun, dragon quest 9 (i think its 9), and radiant historia.  would it be better to get a 3ds since it will be able to play all the ds games plus the new ones, or should i just save about a 100 bucks or so and get a regular ds?

EDIT: i dont care about 3d that much, but having the extra analog stick would be nice

Just get the 3DS. It is bound to get some good jrpg support like the DS did, and you will want to play those,no? 

I would get a 3DS unless you haven't got a GBA and wish to play those games, in which case I would recommend a DSlite.

Also, some other good non port/remake RPG recommendations would be The World Ends With You, Pokemon Black/Whiteand the Mario&Luigi games.

3DS plays DS games.  I don't know why anyone would get anything else anymore.  Plus, the 3DS has the option to download GB and GBA games coming soon.

But mostly I'd suggest a 3DS because it has a huge lineup of games coming.  Even more than the DS had in its first year.  And since you can play DS games on it as well...

Get the 3DS because it actually keeps a record of how long and how many times you've played a game even old DS games. It's just a cool little extra, it's similar to achievements because it'll give you a ranking depending on how long you've played e.g. Silver, Gold etc.  Plus with the 3DS you'll be getting 2 consoles.

3DS

Alright, that would make sense as to why I wasn't getting a gold crown in SSFIV even though I've played it 63 times. It's still a neat feature though.