Enhancing the DS experience
Those of you who read FWA on a semi-regular basis would recall that, a couple of weeks back I wrote an article about where I felt Nintendo could/should go next with the DS. Quick recap: Primarily focusing on the hardware aspect of things, the article mentioned features like a larger (possibly 16:9) topscreen, a button on the stylus and USB support among other things.
Next Generation has a similar article up on their site, this one focusing a bit more on the software aspect of the system. Here's something I found particularly interesting:
4) A Virtual Console. I keep hearing grunts over the lack of Game Boy games on the Wii Virtual Console. That's a kind of a strange thing to mope about, as the Game Boy is a portable system; the Wii isn't. Portable games and home console games are kind of different. Considering that, like the Wii, the DS is only backward-compatible by one generation (another source of minor annoyance), it makes sense to expand the system's range, transforming it into the handheld of all handhelds. Surely the DS is punchy enough to drive a Game Boy / Game Boy Color emulator.
The writer -- Eric-Jon Rössel Waugh -- goes on to mention other neat features such as a better OS (one that doesn't require you to reboot the system so often), making use of the GBA slot for providing firmware upgrades (nice one!) and allowing for a far more customizable interface. Very good points all, and an extremely interesting read. Be sure to give it a look.
3 comments:
I'd really push back on this one and just go with the open the OS to homebrew and get a flashmemory storage built in.
VC would be cool and might happen in a new DS (I wonder if they will kill off Gameboy now that DS is becoming as strong a trademark). Again it will depend on some form of perminant online component or local storage, not beyond possibility but would they add that cost to the unit? Would they dip a toe in subsidising it with the VC profit?
Still, homebrew will bring a lot of the other improvements that Nintendo will never touch out of principle. If everyone pushed in that direction they may listen or look like hypocrites.
Well, I don't think adding a USB port and around 512MB of in-built flash memory would increase the cost by much. I mean, their primary competition is the PSP and that goes for $200+.
What they should be aiming at, is trying to provide some sort of service with which amateur developers could make games for the system. Hell, that's what the DS and Wii aim to achieve in the long run anyway, isn't it? The transition from casual to hardcore.
512mb and USB probably wouldn't add that much cost. However the viability of 512mb as the one and only storage medium would worry me a little I'd like to see a 4gig flash chip and SD card support if they could squeeze that into the budget, otherwise give me the SD card support.
Again I don't see Nintendo wanting to compete directly with Sony or MS at any level. Look at it this way, granted Nintendo should be given credit for the DS and Wii but if say a PSP2 came out with flash storage instead of UMD, touch screen, 10+ hour battery life and oh lets throw in homebrew support. Well I think the DS would be seeing a much harder time. When MS and Sony start to actually compete we're going to see if Nintendo has the muscle to fight back on its chosen turf.
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