Legit Reviews

More details about Nintendo's online plans for the DS have emerged as they have selected IGN's GameSpy technology to help create the handheld's online infrastructure. Nintendo will not charge anything extra for the online service, which is slated to launch later this year. Animal Crossing DS and other online DS titles are currently in development. More within... [Update: we speak with IGN]


Update: Following the announcement, we caught up with IGN Entertainment's Vice President of Marketing, David Tokheim. The brief Q&A follows below.

GameDAILY BIZ: So how did this partnership come together? Did Nintendo come to you or did you guys propose the service to them?

David Tokheim: We've been working together with the shared vision of a new portable gaming network. We're honored to have the opportunity to move into the handheld space with a partner like Nintendo.

BIZ: Why do you think they partnered with IGN Entertainment instead of just creating a network on their own?

DT: By partnering with IGN Entertainment for their in-game technology, Nintendo can do what they do best - make great games. As you know, we are seeing a major change in the game industry when it comes to middleware. All software used to be custom created for every game. Today, the increasing move to middleware is allowing developers and publishers to focus on creativity and gameplay. Additionally, as development costs spiral, anything that can help save money and speed up time to market is a good thing!

BIZ: How much input do you have in Nintendo's online plans when it comes to features like friends lists, etc.? What can you tell us about the matchmaking, anti-cheating measures or any other possible features the DS online network will offer?

DT: I'll let Nintendo comment on their online plans. Our role is simply to provide and host the enabling technology that will empower Nintendo to create a seamless online gaming experience where gamers can find friends to play with and compete against.

BIZ: Some would argue that IGN's partnering with Nintendo presents a conflict of interest for editorial. What do you say to that?

DT: IGN Entertainment is involved in the videogame industry in many ways. Although gamers best know us for our editorial content and services, we have other areas of business that we are involved in -- one being our publisher services group that creates amazing In Game Technology Solutions for publishers. Most online gamers will recognize this by the "powered by GameSpy" brand that they see on the back of their online games. In fact our technology is currently in over 300 games on both the console and PC. What is significant is that we are now using our technology for the first time on a handheld device.

IGN Entertainment and Nintendo announced today that they have partnered to create the portable gaming network for the Nintendo DS handheld that president Satoru Iwata talked about during his keynote address at the Game Developers Conference. Nintendo and IGN say that the online service, which will launch before the end of the year, will be "extremely easy" to set up and use and that it will allow for a "seamless transition to wireless Wi-Fi gaming."

Powered by GameSpy
According to the agreement, Nintendo will utilize IGN's GameSpy technology to enable Nintendo DS gamers across the globe to link up and play one another, whether using a wireless connection at home or a hotspot at any public venue. This also marks the first time that IGN/GameSpy will be working with portable games, as the technology up to this point has largely been used to power online PC titles and also some console games.

[ "Accessing the service will require no added Nintendo subscription charges, whether users hook up using a home broadband Wi-Fi connection or access a Wi-Fi hotspot at a coffee shop, library or elsewhere," Reggie Fils-Aime, executive vice president of sales & marketing, Nintendo of America ]


"We're excited to bring the technology that powers more than 300 PC and console video games to Nintendo's innovative wireless platform. Now developers can easily and confidently add advanced matchmaking, community and other multiplayer services to their Nintendo DS games," commented Mark Stieglitz, general manager of IGN Entertainment's GameSpy Technology Group. "We're honored that Nintendo is choosing IGN's GameSpy as their middleware partner, and look forward to a very long relationship."

A number of DS games will be playable online when the service launches later this year. The only title confirmed so far, however, is Animal Crossing DS, which is scheduled to ship on November 21. Nintendo said that several other titles will be unveiled in the next few weeks, and the company undoubtedly will go into much greater detail on those games and the DS's online plans in general at E3 next week.

Play DS online anywhere at no charge
Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales & marketing, says that Nintendo DS gamers will feel just "as if they were playing with their friends in the same room." And DS owners won't have to pay anything extra in order to play online.

"To realize this simple and seamless transition to Wi-Fi gaming, we're partnering with one of the leaders in the multiplayer gaming world. Accessing the service will require no added Nintendo subscription charges, whether users hook up using a home broadband Wi-Fi connection or access a Wi-Fi hotspot at a coffee shop, library or elsewhere. It doesn't get any easier than that," adds Reggie.

Although Nintendo won't charge anything, it's possible that certain titles from third-party publishers could come with nominal fees, particularly for online RPGs or for downloading extra content. At the moment, though, no third parties have discussed their online plans for the DS.

Nintendo thus far has sold over 5 million DS units worldwide, and with a solid online strategy and an attractive price point of only $150 they hope to remain at the top of the portable games market. Sony's PSP, which is also capable of Wi-Fi play, has shipped (but not necessarily sold through) close to 3 million units.