UPDATED: Stare in Awe at Nintendo’s Beautiful Dongle – Revolution Bombshell Inside!
DS goes online – full details.
The DS is finally, actually, really going to go online in just a few months thanks to a rather clever dongle that will plug into your current PC set-up. Great news, eh?
Have a look at the blurry picture to the right. We’re not sure why it’s blurry as we stole it from another website. Thing is, that website stole it from another website and so on… We’ll update this piece with a proper photograph soon having been assured by our friends at Nintendo Europe that hi-res assets are available.
Now onto details. The dongle plugs into your PC’s USB port and creates a bespoke Wi-Fi connection for your DS. You’ll need broadband to get the thing up and running and unfortunately Mac is not supported at this time, though we do expect an announcement regarding support for the platform in the near future.
Hotspots will also be set up across the world, though Nintendo has remained suspiciously quiet about this rollout to date. Expect in-store booths to be blended with coffee-shop access in the larger towns and cities across Europe and North America. The UK is expected to have the best coverage in Europe.
Perhaps the most exciting news is that the dongle, going on sale in the UK alongside Mario Kart DS on November 25, will also create the wireless environment for the upcoming Revolution next-generation console. “Nintendo DS is just the first Nintendo system to connect via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection,” said Nintendo today. “The same service will be incorporated into Nintendo's next-generation home console, code-named Nintendo Revolution, set for release in 2006.”
Now for a corporate statement from Reggie ‘Where’s His Tailor?’ Fils-Aime!
"Nintendo has taken the online video gaming model and rewritten the definition of community," said the shiny suited executive vice president of sales & marketing. "With easy setup and no added service fees, players far and wide will log in and play with one another as easily as if they were sitting in the same room."
Here Reggie makes a good point. You just pick up the dongle, likely to cost about £10 as a stand-alone item, or free with many first-generation DS online games, and that’s all you’ll have to pay to Nintendo to access its online universe – same for the Revolution. Of course, both machines (and possible future, as yet unannounced hardware) will have downloadable premium content, but to play first-party games online will always be free. Neat.
Nintendo also released a breakdown of launch online DS title functionality, outlined below in full:
Nintendo also outlined again how online match-ups will work. Rather than having usernames in a lounge-setting, you’ll each be assigned a unique 12 digit number known as a ‘Friend Code’. You give this to your friends and they are added to your list.
SPOnG believes that the stalking of Nintendo and related agencies by the paedophile-obsessed British press had a lot to do with the clampdown in easy access communal gaming. Which is a shame really as most people aren’t paedophiles…
We’ll bring you hands-on with DS Wi-Fi real soon.
UPDATE:
High-res dongle now included. (First in the world don't you know...)
Have a look at the blurry picture to the right. We’re not sure why it’s blurry as we stole it from another website. Thing is, that website stole it from another website and so on… We’ll update this piece with a proper photograph soon having been assured by our friends at Nintendo Europe that hi-res assets are available.
Now onto details. The dongle plugs into your PC’s USB port and creates a bespoke Wi-Fi connection for your DS. You’ll need broadband to get the thing up and running and unfortunately Mac is not supported at this time, though we do expect an announcement regarding support for the platform in the near future.
Hotspots will also be set up across the world, though Nintendo has remained suspiciously quiet about this rollout to date. Expect in-store booths to be blended with coffee-shop access in the larger towns and cities across Europe and North America. The UK is expected to have the best coverage in Europe.
Perhaps the most exciting news is that the dongle, going on sale in the UK alongside Mario Kart DS on November 25, will also create the wireless environment for the upcoming Revolution next-generation console. “Nintendo DS is just the first Nintendo system to connect via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection,” said Nintendo today. “The same service will be incorporated into Nintendo's next-generation home console, code-named Nintendo Revolution, set for release in 2006.”
Now for a corporate statement from Reggie ‘Where’s His Tailor?’ Fils-Aime!
"Nintendo has taken the online video gaming model and rewritten the definition of community," said the shiny suited executive vice president of sales & marketing. "With easy setup and no added service fees, players far and wide will log in and play with one another as easily as if they were sitting in the same room."
Here Reggie makes a good point. You just pick up the dongle, likely to cost about £10 as a stand-alone item, or free with many first-generation DS online games, and that’s all you’ll have to pay to Nintendo to access its online universe – same for the Revolution. Of course, both machines (and possible future, as yet unannounced hardware) will have downloadable premium content, but to play first-party games online will always be free. Neat.
Nintendo also released a breakdown of launch online DS title functionality, outlined below in full:
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection will create a welcome, inviting atmosphere where video game players of all kinds can log on wirelessly and begin playing. The service will be used in different ways for different games. In Mario Kart DS, four players at a time can race over Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. Racers can pick opponents from their roster of friends, match up randomly against strangers of comparable skill levels or simply choose to race against anyone in the world. Mario Kart DS launches November 14.
People who hang out in Animal Crossing: Wild World can travel to other players' towns or invite up to three other players to visit their own towns, simply by opening the town gate. The four players then can interact and play together simultaneously in one town. Players must know one another and register to their respective friend rosters before they can connect. Animal Crossing: Wild World is set to launch on December 5.
Activision's Tony Hawk's American Sk8land will let players compete head-to-head in multiplayer games in a variety of modes. Players also can create custom skateboard art and graffiti tags, and share them with other players via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. The service will track global high scores and stats. Tony Hawk's American SK8Land will launch on November 14.
Games in development include Metroid Prime Hunters, slated to launch in the first quarter of 2006. Players can hook up for play with registered friends, automatch with other players based on a skill-level match or play with anyone; Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection quickly finds the best match with other players online.
People who hang out in Animal Crossing: Wild World can travel to other players' towns or invite up to three other players to visit their own towns, simply by opening the town gate. The four players then can interact and play together simultaneously in one town. Players must know one another and register to their respective friend rosters before they can connect. Animal Crossing: Wild World is set to launch on December 5.
Activision's Tony Hawk's American Sk8land will let players compete head-to-head in multiplayer games in a variety of modes. Players also can create custom skateboard art and graffiti tags, and share them with other players via Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. The service will track global high scores and stats. Tony Hawk's American SK8Land will launch on November 14.
Games in development include Metroid Prime Hunters, slated to launch in the first quarter of 2006. Players can hook up for play with registered friends, automatch with other players based on a skill-level match or play with anyone; Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection quickly finds the best match with other players online.
Nintendo also outlined again how online match-ups will work. Rather than having usernames in a lounge-setting, you’ll each be assigned a unique 12 digit number known as a ‘Friend Code’. You give this to your friends and they are added to your list.
SPOnG believes that the stalking of Nintendo and related agencies by the paedophile-obsessed British press had a lot to do with the clampdown in easy access communal gaming. Which is a shame really as most people aren’t paedophiles…
We’ll bring you hands-on with DS Wi-Fi real soon.
UPDATE:
High-res dongle now included. (First in the world don't you know...)
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Comments
YenRug 6 Oct 2005 12:53
1/15
Pssst, guys, the dongle is priced (exorbitantly) at £30!
http://www.nintendo-europe.com/NOE/en/GB/news/article.do?elementId=xFc7fEo-5Rpq5GFwYo7OW8ocdlzquQi2
http://www.nintendo-europe.com/NOE/en/GB/news/article.do?elementId=xFc7fEo-5Rpq5GFwYo7OW8ocdlzquQi2
The Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector will be priced at around £30.
BustyKrusty 6 Oct 2005 14:22
2/15
ha! suckers i won't have to be paying that as i'm living on a farm,well...sort of. They're doing great so far Reggie&Co,and Lara's gotta take full advantage of the new Revolution controller as i wanna game where the importance of vegetable rubing and good old exploring isn't forgotten!
What i suggest is, nintendo has to point to all devs out there Revo's 2-way playability.It's the abundance of genres,after all that made DS a dominant handheld.
What i suggest is, nintendo has to point to all devs out there Revo's 2-way playability.It's the abundance of genres,after all that made DS a dominant handheld.
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locke 6 Oct 2005 17:09
3/15
they better release this for the mac!
tyrion 6 Oct 2005 17:33
4/15
locke wrote:
they better release this for the mac!
And Linux!
I've already had my PSP online through my home network of Linux machines. I'd be upset if Nintendo only supported Windows users.
fluffstardx 6 Oct 2005 18:08
5/15
But if you have wireless networking, you don't need one, right?
Right?
Right?
Radiant 6 Oct 2005 18:14
6/15
Correct you don't need one if you already have a wireless network.
You would need one if you have a modem connected to your pc (rather then a modem connected to/part of your wireless router) which is why my PSP doesn't go online on my home network and why baby jesus cries.
You would need one if you have a modem connected to your pc (rather then a modem connected to/part of your wireless router) which is why my PSP doesn't go online on my home network and why baby jesus cries.
locke 6 Oct 2005 19:25
7/15
so if i get a wireless router i dont need this thing?
and if i get this wireless router i can connect my psp and ds to it?
and if i get this wireless router i can connect my psp and ds to it?
LordVader717 6 Oct 2005 19:48
8/15
I think the freind code thing is specificly for Animal Crossing, because anyone in your game can steel your stuff, so you would want to be extra careful.
For other titles, like Mario Kart you are supposed to be able to select how to list potential players, either by skill, region or specific freinds you already know from somewhere.
For other titles, like Mario Kart you are supposed to be able to select how to list potential players, either by skill, region or specific freinds you already know from somewhere.
TigerUppercut 6 Oct 2005 20:20
9/15
Whatever happens:
Let's put all our numbers in here. You didn't hear this from me but we might be getting access sooner than published - Stick around for updates on this. Again, if at all possible, I'll try and get some of you in on the act. Animal Crossing everywhere is the greatest thing I personally can think of. I hope there's a way of importing your GC data across. Nintendo should do this. I'll find out if there are any plans. My wife has a three story house will completed everything, every fruit tree, the works...
Let's put all our numbers in here. You didn't hear this from me but we might be getting access sooner than published - Stick around for updates on this. Again, if at all possible, I'll try and get some of you in on the act. Animal Crossing everywhere is the greatest thing I personally can think of. I hope there's a way of importing your GC data across. Nintendo should do this. I'll find out if there are any plans. My wife has a three story house will completed everything, every fruit tree, the works...
LUPOS 6 Oct 2005 21:58
10/15
TigerUppercut wrote:
Whatever happens:
Let's put all our numbers in here....
Let's put all our numbers in here....
i'm number 1!!
i'm number 1!!
wait... thats not what we are talkign about.
how would we get access early? dont you have to have the game to play... and don't the games not come out till the service launches... or have i not been keeping up on my DS launch dates... *checks*... no... US release for mario kart is nov14 so i suppose there is a bit of a dead zone...
hey, does the misses have the statue in the center of town? or did she decide to stiff mr nook?
___
andal 6 Oct 2005 21:58
11/15
WHAT!!!!!!!!!!! no mac, WWWWWWWHHHYYYYY
WWWWHHY. whay nintendo why. why did my stupid computer have to break why did my dad buy a mac. why!!!!
looks awesome though
WWWWHHY. whay nintendo why. why did my stupid computer have to break why did my dad buy a mac. why!!!!
looks awesome though
Ditto 6 Oct 2005 22:17
12/15
TigerUppercut wrote:
Whatever happens:
Let's put all our numbers in here. You didn't hear this from me but we might be getting access sooner than published - Stick around for updates on this. Again, if at all possible, I'll try and get some of you in on the act. Animal Crossing everywhere is the greatest thing I personally can think of. I hope there's a way of importing your GC data across. Nintendo should do this. I'll find out if there are any plans. My wife has a three story house will completed everything, every fruit tree, the works...
Let's put all our numbers in here. You didn't hear this from me but we might be getting access sooner than published - Stick around for updates on this. Again, if at all possible, I'll try and get some of you in on the act. Animal Crossing everywhere is the greatest thing I personally can think of. I hope there's a way of importing your GC data across. Nintendo should do this. I'll find out if there are any plans. My wife has a three story house will completed everything, every fruit tree, the works...
My brother hates videogames. He doesn't play them at all. Yet at the moment he has my Gamecube and is playing Animal Crossing every day. No other games mind due, just Animal Crossing.
So if you get access, drop me and him a line. He'd be an ideal playtester.
majin dboy 7 Oct 2005 00:39
13/15
would be cool if we all posted are numbers.i will soon rise to legendary status as me and my mate rob(currently studying medicine in scotland) will kick most of ur asses at mk.
Joji 7 Oct 2005 02:21
14/15
Don't worry Majin, we'll see who's who at MK soon enough.
Personally I think this Wifi USB biz for the DS is good news and for £30 it's better. Don't forget for Xbox Live you pay £40 for a year of online play. Nintendo only want you to buy this device and all their online games are free to play.
As for 2nd and 3rd party stuff,time will tell whether they will be free too or not. All in all things are looking up for DS owners this chrimbo. Trauma Center, Phoenix Wright, Metroid Pinball and Nintendogs off line (I'm counting imports into the equation too) and Mario Kart online will keep me happy if I don't get a 360 for xmas.
Personally I think this Wifi USB biz for the DS is good news and for £30 it's better. Don't forget for Xbox Live you pay £40 for a year of online play. Nintendo only want you to buy this device and all their online games are free to play.
As for 2nd and 3rd party stuff,time will tell whether they will be free too or not. All in all things are looking up for DS owners this chrimbo. Trauma Center, Phoenix Wright, Metroid Pinball and Nintendogs off line (I'm counting imports into the equation too) and Mario Kart online will keep me happy if I don't get a 360 for xmas.
LUPOS 7 Oct 2005 04:57
15/15
majin dboy wrote:
would be cool if we all posted are numbers.i will soon rise to legendary status as me and my mate rob(currently studying medicine in scotland) will kick most of ur asses at mk.
in the words of our lord jesus christ... "s**t yeah, ladies. I bring those blue sparks."
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