Nintendo Creates an Easy, Accessible Video Game Network - and It's Free6 October 2005
On Nov. 14, Nintendo(R) Wi-Fi
Connection will begin a new era of easy, social gaming. For the first time,
characters from the Nintendo universe will be playable online, as part of a
unique wireless community, accessible inside or outside the home. Nintendo
DS(TM) games like Mario Kart(R) DS, Animal Crossing(R): Wild World and
Metroid(R) Prime Hunters will require no additional charge for online play.
Each is scheduled to launch in the coming months, along with the first
third-party title using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, Activision's Tony Hawk's
American SK8Land, developed by Vicarious Visions.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20050516/NINTENDOLOGO )
From home, if the user already has a Wi-Fi network, the Nintendo DS unit
will connect directly to it with minimal setup procedures. Those who have a
high-speed Internet connection such as cable or DSL, but no wireless network,
can use the Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector, sold separately, that will plug into
a computer USB port to create a wireless access point to connect to Nintendo
Wi-Fi Connection.
Outside of the home, players will be able to connect in a variety of ways,
including at thousands of free Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection hotspots nationwide.
More details about these hotspots and how to connect outside of the home will
be announced shortly.
Nintendo DS is just the first Nintendo system to connect via the Nintendo
Wi-Fi Connection. The same service will be incorporated into Nintendo's
next-generation home console, code-named Nintendo Revolution, set for release
in 2006.
"Nintendo has taken the online video gaming model and rewritten the
definition of community," said Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America's
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."
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 Nov. 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 Dec. 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 Nov. 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.
The worldwide leader and innovator in the creation of interactive
entertainment, Nintendo Co., Ltd., of Kyoto, Japan, manufactures and markets
hardware and software for its popular home and portable video game systems.
Each year, hundreds of all-new titles for the best-selling Game Boy(R) Advance
SP, Nintendo DS(TM) and Nintendo GameCube(TM) systems extend Nintendo's vast
game library and continue the tradition of delivering a rich, diverse mix of
quality video games for players of all ages. Since the release of its first
home video game system in 1983, Nintendo has sold more than 2 billion video
games and more than 353 million hardware units globally, creating enduring
industry icons such as Mario(TM) and Donkey Kong(R) and launching popular
culture franchise phenomena such as Metroid(R), Zelda(TM) and Pokemon(R). A
wholly owned subsidiary, Nintendo of America Inc., based in Redmond, Wash.,
serves as headquarters for Nintendo's operations in the Western Hemisphere.
For more information about Nintendo, visit the company's Web site at
http://www.nintendo.com.
Note To Editors: Nintendo press materials are available at
press.nintendo.com. Note that press.nintendo.com is a password-protected
site; to receive a password, please contact Paula Adams at (213) 438-8837 or
padams@golinharris.com.
Source: PR Newswire
All trademarks and copyrighted information contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
Related Articles
|
