Monday, August 14, 2006

Nintendo Online



Nintendo, albeit is still new to online play, has a huge opportunity with the Wii. One of the biggest reasons the Gamecube didn't do as well as people hoped was because it lacked online play which its chief competitors both had.

Online play is a very important part of Nintendo Wii because of the 1st party games Nintendo has which are excellent for online play (Super Smash Bros, anyone?). Although Nintendo is going in the right direction of online play with the DS's WiFi capabilities, Nintendo still has a lot of learn. The online integration Microsoft is doing with the Xbox 360 is just brilliant, and I hope Nintendo follows that. I know Nintendo's online with the Wii won't be as complex and hardcore as Xbox 360, but Wii will correct some of the problems with online that DS had.


Friend Codes
- Nintendo DS WiFi is notorious for this feature. Having a different friend code for each online game is a very tedious process especially when you have to dump each friend code for each game. It'd it much better if they'd have a friend code for each system, and when you do that, you'd see the player's games, stats, and information.

Rooms - Another feature the DS lacked were rooms you could join. This way you can choose which mode/feature you want just by browsing through the rooms.

Chat - Voice chat or atleast IM is a staple feature for all online games. Although it's voice chat and instant messaging is an inevitable part of smack-talking and profanity, it's still a needed interaction and fun. DS WiFi is going the right direction in having voicechat in Metroid Hunters and future games like Tony Hawk Downhill Jam and Pokemon Diamond/Pearl.

Stats -
Having stats for your profile is an essential part for most hardcore gamers. Seeing player profiles that show the games you have, last time you logged on, and most of the stuff you'd see on Xbox Live would be another great feature.

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