DS Going Online for Free This Year
And it's not just Nintendo that will be taking the dual-screen portable system on to the Internet.
When it comes to taking the DS online, Nintendo is concerned with one thing: simplicity. And to make things as easy as possible for gamers, the company has announced that it will have 1,000 WiFi hotspots in place in Japan by the end of the year, giving DS owners free access to online play.
Animal Crossing will be one of Nintendo's firstfranchises to go online on DS
Nintendo has already said that it will have two titles - Animal Crossing DS and Mario Kart DS - ready for online play by the end of the year, and, speaking at a press conference this week, company president Satoru Iwata confirmed that 25 third-party companies are already working on other online DS games.
The free access points are part of Nintendo's goal of getting 90 per cent of its audience online, as opposed to the single-digit percentages of console gamers currently playing online games on Xbox and PlayStation 2.
Nintendo has also said it will not charge any fees for gamers to play DS (or Revolution, for that matter) games online, but third parties will be able to choose whether to charge or not.
Gamers outside of Japan will have to wait and see, though, as Nintendo has not yet announced plans for introducing a similar network of free hotspots in Europe.
Alex Wollenschlaeger
Editor, Kikizo Games
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