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Nintendo DS to Feature Wireless Connectivity?

Posted by simoniker on from the big-and-n dept.

Decaffeinated Jedi writes "As reported by GameSpot, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata indicated in a recent interview (Japanese-language) that the company's upcoming dual-screen portable (previously covered on Slashdot) will feature wireless Bluetooth-esque connectivity for multiplayer gaming. Iwata goes on in the interview to describe the Nintendo DS as a 'unique' machine, noting that 'not everybody will understand it right away. There might only be 10 to 15 people applauding during its unveiling at the E3, but they'll understand it once they touch it. At the least, it should serve as a hint towards [our] next-generation console.'" Although we've covered Iwata interviews recently, this now makes a little more sense given the context of the DS announcement.

9 of 45 comments (clear)

  1. Thats the ticket by redune45 · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I just read an interview on IGN yesterday with Nintendo of America's vice president of corporate affairs Perrin Kaplan.
    He hinted that the DS would have some fancy features other than just the dual screens. Good to see that there may actually be meat behind this little handheld.

    --
    redune.com: The World 3.2 Megapixels at a time
    1. Re:Thats the ticket by The+Detriment · · Score: 2, Interesting

      It will have to have some "meat behind it" in order to compete with the Sony PSP.

      I'm very interested to see the philosophies that drive both the DS and the PSP.

  2. As I predicted by Apreche · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I knew it would have wireless to be awesome. However, to be even more awesome both screens have to seperate from each other. If two people can play one game with one system and one cartridge and the two halves of the system connect wirelessly it will be the king of handhelds. Imagine the possibilities that before were difficult. Like battleship for instance.

    I'm definitely buying one. At best it rules and I get my moneys worth. At worst its another Virtual Boy and I can be that one guy who still has a working Virtual boy. It's a win/win situation.

    --
    The GeekNights podcast is going strong. Listen!
    1. Re:As I predicted by Babbster · · Score: 3, Interesting
      If the rumor is true that the second screen is a touchscreen, then two people on one console isn't even close to the goal. Of course, IMO, two players on a single handheld console is a just plain silly thing to attempt, unless it involves passing the handheld to the next player - RF wireless and decent prices should take care of multiplayer.

      As far as imagining the possibilities, I can't bring myself to care much about wireless multiplayer (I don't play multiplayer-friendly games on GBA), but I'm pretty excited about the idea of two-screen games, assuming they've got developers on board. There are many functions, like maps, inventories, text dialogs, etc. that would be much improved being shunted off to a second screen. RPGs, in particular, can gain huge benefits from a second screen. Since GBA has become the main RPG machine for many, I would think improvements in that area would be well received.

  3. So many handheld from same company by superpulpsicle · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Is it me or is nintendo seriously lacking competition in the handheld arena... to the point where they now release a new system just to fight among themselves. As if regular gameboy, gameboy color, gameboy advance isn't enough.

    Don't worry Sony will come by and clean up this mess.

    1. Re:So many handheld from same company by MMaestro · · Score: 5, Interesting
      I've said it in a previous post but heres the short form...

      The Gameboy's biggest competitors in the handheld gaming history (lite) :

      Game Gear : Color screen. Nuff said.
      Wonderswan : Received Final Fantasy remakes (basicly selling an instant 5000+ units just for that). Again, had color screen and better resolution.
      NeoGeo Pocket Color : The little system that should've but didn't. A little joystick instead of a D-pad (FINALLY, lets see this happen some more), top notch SNK games like Metal Slug, and a battery life which outdid the Gameboy Advance's (not the SP's though.)

      Just because Sony is trying its hand at the handheld business doesn't mean they'll succeed either. So far the score is something like 5+ wins - 0 losses - 1 tie with Game Gear which did "fairly" well (debatable).

      Unless Sony can fit powerful hardware (a la Xbox sans the size), a SERIOUS gaming library (having all the third-party developer support in the world is useless if all the games are crappy and come out late), and a good launch success (the PS2 launch(es) couldn't have gotten worse) while fitting everything in a slick, cool handheld (ie. not N-Gage looking) yeah they have a CHANCE. Oh and, don't forget Tetris.

    2. Re:So many handheld from same company by PainKilleR-CE · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Sony has proven before that they can sell an expensive piece of hardware on the strength of VERY (VERY) few decent games.

      Sony hasn't proven anything in this market. Everyone that's tried to compete against Nintendo with a more expensive product (usually technically superior), in this market, has failed.

      That being said, it will only take a couple of games to get me to buy one, I know myself too well to think otherwise. Will it replace my GBA-SP? That's unlikely, at least for a while, since I have a decent library of games for the system at this point, but it is likely that it will sit beside it if Sony can bring together a decent library of their own.

      No one can hold a market forever, but this market in particular has been tricky for anyone to enter, and we're at a point now where there are a fair number of poor competitors that just didn't understand the market before they entered. Whether Sony will put themselves among them remains to be seen. The DS from Nintendo is in the same position for different reasons. The primary feature of the DS is unproven, and most people won't understand it until they see the real thing in action.

      --
      -PainKilleR-[CE]
    3. Re:So many handheld from same company by PainKilleR-CE · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Sony still sold out on the damn thing with every early shipment. It's easy to forget that while gamers measure such things based on how much fun they had, Sony (and any other company) measures them based on how much money they make. :)

      and how do you think the shareholders at Sony were feeling when they saw PS2s going for $500 on eBay? If supply is so bad that a buyer can resell for a $200 mark-up, and you've got people on a waiting list all across the country for 6 months, what you see is not money coming in, but instead money going down the drain.

      That being said, at this point the only reason they care about the PS2 launch is to avoid making the same mistake again.

      --
      -PainKilleR-[CE]
  4. shutter glasses by Bastian · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I have no idea what the screen layout is going to be like, but if they're side by side it would be neat if they had a lightweight shutter glasses peripheral or polarized screen covers along with polarized glasses so you could have Virtual Boy the way it should have been.