Nintendo and Gamespy join up for online multiplayer middleware

[Teppo Holmqvist]

Friend codes are really bulky considering with xbox live you add one person and you can choose to play a game with them. Or in certain instances one click and they are added.

 

The thing here is that we don't know how adding new buddies to game specific list is implemented. It could be just one click from the address book, meeting your friend in lobby and clicking his name, or inputting secret hebrew code that recites names of 10 members of angelic host. From information we have gathered so far, any of these options is possible.

[ZeldaFreak]

The thing here is that we don't know how adding new buddies to game specific list is implemented. It could be just one click from the address book, meeting your friend in lobby and clicking his name, or inputting secret hebrew code that recites names of 10 members of angelic host. From information we have gathered so far, any of these options is possible.

 

Gamespy helped nintedno in the basics of getting the ds online. So it will be an option to input a friend code thats creates one game specific.

 

Nintendo say yes to their lawyers a bit too much.

[Fierce_LiNk]

I'm not sure if I'm reading this right, and it's late so I probably ain't.

 

Does this mean there's no unified system?

Does this just mean you'll have seperate game lists for each friend, however you will only ever need one Wii code?

 

Can't say I really care, but just want to get my facts right.

[Teppo Holmqvist]

Does this just mean you'll have seperate game lists for each friend, however you will only ever need one Wii code?

 

From data we gathered so far, it would this one. Of course, it is damn hard to say as Fale asked specificially about friend lists, not friend codes.

[Cookyman]

Hmmmm it doesn't sound great but then again I'm not gonna pass judgement yet until we get more details about this but as Han Solo said "I've got a bad feeling about this"

[LazyBoy]

If this is true, and there is not a unified code system, then I say we petition it, because this is just f**king rediculous. I can accept it on the DS because online games aren't great in number and there are technical limitations, but there are no excuses for the Wii. I know petitions never work, but if we spread it across a few boards, its at least worth a try.

[ZeldaFreak]

I'm not sure if I'm reading this right, and it's late so I probably ain't.

 

Does this mean there's no unified system?

Does this just mean you'll have seperate game lists for each friend, however you will only ever need one Wii code?

 

Can't say I really care, but just want to get my facts right.

 

1)You are correct no unified system

2)No you will need multiple friend codes for each game. Gamespy helped get the ds online sorted out.

[Excelle]

2)No you will need multiple friend codes for each game. Gamespy helped get the ds online sorted out.

 

I don't see why this is definitely going to be the case. Just because Gamespy helped with the DS, doesn't mean they'll adopt the same strategy for Wii. Indeed, they're writing new middleware for the Wii, not reusing code from the DS.

 

Besides, Ninty have said on several occasions that friend codes were a DS thing, not a Wii thing.

 

Wait and see is all I say

[christophicus]

^^^ yeah and then they go and use friend codes on the first Wii wifi game which is not very encouraging. And as far as i know they have also eluded to the Wii using friend codes on other occaisions.

[Aimless]

^^^ yeah and then they go and use friend codes on the first Wii wifi game which is not very encouraging. And as far as i know they have also eluded to the Wii using friend codes on other occaisions.

Pokémon Battle Revolution uses game specific Friend Codes due to the way it links up to the DS game, I believe; who knows, Nintendo might be able to work around that come the Western release. The only other online title at the moment is Elebits (Eledees in Europe), and that only uses the Wii Code for its level sharing.

 

To be honest I'm not too bothered about having to reform a Friends List for each online game as, quite frankly, I don't expect there to be that many games I'm interested in taking online. Actually, I'll be more specific than that: I don't expect there to be that many game I want to play online. Sharing user-created content is something I'm more interested in, and I'd like to see games that use the passive nature of WiiConnect24 for content syndication, like the Mii Parade.

 

The Wii is very much an online console, but I don't really expect it play host to that much online gaming. Nintendo are aiming to broaden the market with Wii, and the reality is that most people don't care about playing gaming.

 

Don't believe me? Well, around half of Xbox 360 owners, a console that is practically built around Live, haven't even connected to the internet with it. True that means about 5 million owners do have their 360s connected, but how many of those have a Gold subscription that allows them to play online? Microsoft are tellingly quiet on that.

 

Now I'm not saying that Live is a failure — I'm a Gold subscriber myself — but how big a percentage of the prospective Wii crowd are going to want to go online to shoot whiny Texan teenagers? Mums and wives the world over are enjoying using the Everybody Votes Channel — which is, lest we forget, one of the Wii's online components — but are these same users, the new demographic Nintendo are trying to draw in, are they going to want to lay down the global smack down in Smash Bros. Brawl? I'd wager probably not.

 

Anyway I've gone off on a bit of a tangent here; guess that's what I get for posting near 5AM.

[Eddage]

Pokémon Battle Revolution uses game specific Friend Codes due to the way it links up to the DS game, I believe; who knows, Nintendo might be able to work around that come the Western release. The only other online title at the moment is Elebits (Eledees in Europe), and that only uses the Wii Code for its level sharing.

 

To be honest I'm not too bothered about having to reform a Friends List for each online game as, quite frankly, I don't expect there to be that many games I'm interested in taking online. Actually, I'll be more specific than that: I don't expect there to be that many game I want to play online. Sharing user-created content is something I'm more interested in, and I'd like to see games that use the passive nature of WiiConnect24 for content syndication, like the Mii Parade.

 

The Wii is very much an online console, but I don't really expect it play host to that much online gaming. Nintendo are aiming to broaden the market with Wii, and the reality is that most people don't care about playing gaming.

 

Don't believe me? Well, around half of Xbox 360 owners, a console that is practically built around Live, haven't even connected to the internet with it. True that means about 5 million owners do have their 360s connected, but how many of those have a Gold subscription that allows them to play online? Microsoft are tellingly quiet on that.

 

Now I'm not saying that Live is a failure — I'm a Gold subscriber myself — but how big a percentage of the prospective Wii crowd are going to want to go online to shoot whiny Texan teenagers? Mums and wives the world over are enjoying using the Everybody Votes Channel — which is, lest we forget, one of the Wii's online components — but are these same users, the new demographic Nintendo are trying to draw in, are they going to want to lay down the global smack down in Smash Bros. Brawl? I'd wager probably not.

 

Anyway I've gone off on a bit of a tangent here; guess that's what I get for posting near 5AM.

 

I think you're spot on there Aimless!

 

I for one am not particularly interested in online play - if I was then I would have got my 360 online by now and actually bought a game for it!

[ZeldaFreak]

Well then aimless you don't want to play the brawl online, ok then! However for the millions of people who want online play. Nintendo stop using the crappy friend codes if you don't want us to talk online - then why even bother with friend codes.

 

Seems a bit dumb to me.

[Aimless]

Well then aimless you don't want to play the brawl online, ok then! However for the millions of people who want online play. Nintendo stop using the crappy friend codes if you don't want us to talk online - then why even bother with friend codes.

 

Seems a bit dumb to me.

If you're not going to read what others write, please keep your opinion to yourself. Ta.

[ZeldaFreak]

If you're not going to read what others write, please keep your opinion to yourself. Ta.

 

Oh yeah and its 6 million that are connected to xbox live now. Anywho they make a sleek gui for the main console and drop the ball for online gaming making it slow and cumbersome.

 

And I only played one game on the the ds online, it was mk ds, and boy was that messed up online playing it through my mates 2mb broadband it felt really quite laggy.

 

Shame, please god nintendos next console kill them all if they add friends codes again.

[Konfucius]

I hate the friends-code system, it's so troublesome to put the codes in all the time.

 

At least Ninty should give us an instant messenger then with the option to send friend codes with a few simple clicks as well as adding them.

I mean with the DS you can at least sit at your PC and chat over MSN Messenger or whatever but unless you have the PC and Wii in the same room it will be a bit more awkward.

[flameboy]

I mean with the DS you can at least sit at your PC and chat over MSN Messenger or whatever but unless you have the PC and Wii in the same room it will be a bit more awkward.

 

This really is the crux of the matter, with the friend code system, you first have to go on a forum such as this, get people to swap codes, and then either through the forums or msn contact people to make sure you are all searching at the right time (as this can be a massive issue trying to get some games to work), although I know this has been improved upon on more recent online games like Metroid and Diddy Kong. Even swapping with friends is a pain in the arse, you can't just say hey my gamertag is flameboy, you've gotta go hmmm not sure don't know my code for that, wait till I get home and I'll text you it, or store them in my phone or something, I shouldn't have to use other devices.

 

It still makes for a very frustrating experience. you compare this Xbox Live ease of use, and then even further what Playstation Home plans to bring to the table, whereby you can freely move and talk to anyone within the community, take them back to your lobby play mini games and then even get round to playing some proper games.

 

It's just annoying that whilst the friend code system works fine enough it is a flawed system. It shouldn't have to rely on other applications for it's community to function.

 

Nintendo out of the big three arguably have the biggest experience in online consoles (note I said online consoles and not online gaming) as well, the Famicom had a modem for checking the stock exchange, the SNES had that Satallieview thing, where you could download expansions for games, the zelda one springs to mind, the N64 via it's 64DD add on could go online, the gamecube had online although it's support was laughable. So they should be able to create a system far more accessible than the friend code system.

[ZeldaFreak]

Mind you the tellivison thing for the snes was that you could play certain games for two half hour dosses a day on the lttp

[Mr. Bananagrabber]

I really wasn't expecting anything else from Nintendo. It was never going to be as good as XBL, and I was never really going to play on it when I had a better online system sitting right next to it. Online play is really important to me, I honestly think it's the next logical step in console gaming.

So I guess my 360 will always get more playtime that my Wii.

[ZeldaFreak]

We cold still get voip in games seen as pokemon: D&P have it

[DiemetriX]

This is really bad news. I could live with Friend codes and that both persons had to enter them individually instead of a friend invite. But this is just plains stupid.

But then again.. how many Wii games will be worth playing online?

Brawl, Mario Kart, Mario Strikers, Battalion Wars.

[ZeldaFreak]

This is really bad news. I could live with Friend codes and that both persons had to enter them individually instead of a friend invite. But this is just plains stupid.

But then again.. how many Wii games will be worth playing online?

Brawl, Mario Kart, Mario Strikers, Battalion Wars.

 

don't forget forever blue - that game will only work online with voip

[christophicus]

Whats that game ?? I have not heard of it.

[Tyson]

What a pile of horse wank. I'm not going through the shitty friend code system again, Nintendo can stick their pedo-phobia up their ass.

[Teppo Holmqvist]

What a pile of horse wank. I'm not going through the shitty friend code system again, Nintendo can stick their pedo-phobia up their ass.

 

Well, Nintendo has been targeted most with pedo- related controversy and trials. One of the classics was how Fox TV told that pedophile can get your address from children by using pictochat. In their scenario, pedophile is driving on the highway, and he quickly uses pictochat to communicate with children that is on the car on the opposite lane.

 

It's horrible really. I mean, the pedophile is driving about 120 km/h, and his hands don't leave the wheel. So only realistic conclusion is that he is writing to pictochat with his erect phallus! That's scary. I also didn't know that Wi-Fi has reach of 300 metres.

[ZeldaFreak]

No thats fox being dumb they also said youtube would groom children when it came out. Plus they don't give a rats arse about Clinton News Network otherwise known as CNN or FOX.