wraggster
November 25th, 2004, 10:16
'Nintendo' and 'online' are rarely two words you'll find together in the same sentence, not unless they contain the phrase 'not going to be', anyway. Well, alas, rejoice ye bored, bedroom-bound lonesters, for the DS looks like breaking the trend.[br]Speaking to respected Japanese games mag Famitsu recently, Nintendo's gaming messiah Shigeru Miyamoto prophetically revealed that the DS could feature online play "sooner than we all think" and that both his company and Japanese publisher Square Enix are currently collaborating on the matter.[br][br]Just think of the possibilities - Mario Kart DS races with your best mate from France; global multiplayer battles in Advance Wars DS; um...online stylus-enabled surgical operations with new-found friends in Finland (you really are taking this surgery obsession too far - Ed)... [br][br]Rumours of the DS's online intentions are not entirely new, but Miyamoto-san's revelation is the most concrete proof yet. The interview also quoted him as saying that "online gaming would become mainstream in the next three to four years, and this is the direction Nintendo would take." Exciting stuff, considering Nintendo's past reluctance to join Microsoft and Sony in the online arena.[br][br]Also disclosed in the interview was that Mario 128 was still definitely in development for the GameCube, and not the code-named Revolution follow-up as some reports had speculated. [br][br]Plus, a new GameCube Pokémon game is also in the works too, apparently with "strong allies" onboard. By that, we're assuming he means name developers as opposed to any major military force. We hope...