Wired compares Avatars to Miis


I’m not going to tell you that the NXE is out, you know that… you know that better than I do while I’m out of town away from my console! But you don’t come to this site to read things you already know, so here’s a fun article comparing Nintendo’s Mii to the new Xbox 360 Avatars. I just wish Wired blogger “Z” was also involved in the Playstation Home beta, and had a little mre to talk about. Still, the comparison isn’t just “which one I like more” – but “Z” actually gets in to a fair comparison as to why he likes specific features. Enjoy the read!

Nintendo unveiled the new DSi, and more!


In a recent press conference, Nintendo confirmed the rumors of the new Nintendo DSi, along with plans to price it at a low $179. They have intentions of releasing it as early as November 1st in Japan (it is implied that it will make it to the U.S. just as early, and debut in Europe Spring 2009).

My favorite announced feature so far? A built-in web browser. Other features include a new online DSi Shop, a .3 mega pixel camera (seen on the hinge above), 12% thinner than existing models (as partially demonstrated above), 3.25 inch screen and “better audio capabilities.” Sadly, to facilitate this slimming down process, they will remove the Game Boy cartridge slot.

In additional news, Nintendo has been considering the lack of storage on the Wii for quite a while. How do they combat this? Sure, there is a model of Xbox 360 sold without a hard drive, but if you want it bad enough, you can buy a new hard drive and fix the problem yourself. No such option exists on the Wii. With the recent announcement of the Marriott In-Room Entertainment allows users to select multiple games without swapping discs – suggesting the storage problem was solved.

According to Kotaku, users will be able to save their downloads directly to an SD card, without having to make the stop on the console in the middle. It will only apply to content downloaded from the Wii Shop channel and other similiarly designed channels in the future, but it’s a step in the right direction. Keep in mind, however, that the biggest downloaders still may have to swap out their CD-Cards, as the console is not officially compatible with SDCards over 2 GB.

Wii: Still no Hard Drive, but something in the works?


Club Nintendo had an article, and the fans over at GoNintendo.com just had to get it picked apart and translated. The article was an interview with Shigeru Miyamoto ad Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo’s top dogs. Based on the efforts of the community, one of the more interesting questions asked had to do with re-designing the console to include a hard drive. Miyamoto responded that something was in the works, but not to expect it any time soon. Clarification in why not to expect it came with Fils-Aime’s response, when he noted that console redesigns often happen when sales are in a slump.

A notable question also came when they were asked about Xbox 360’s upcoming Avatars. The Nintendo rep’s happily replied that imitation was the highest form of flattery!

Re: GamePro: Wii's features "starting to match" others…


“Graphics aside,” it begins, the Wii will finish off 2008 “with a roar that includes features once only thought possible on the PS3 and Xbox 360.” So says a GamePro article. The big reason for this article is highlighting that the recently announced “Call of Duty: World at War” will also be available on the Wii. Exciting? Yes – but is that suggesting that there is some sort of magical “feature” of the Wii, allowing this to happen? No, it just means the developers are willing to take the time to produce lower quality models and textures to port the game to the Wii.

The Wii is, indeed, expanding it’s online support, with more and more multiplayer games (the future CoD:WaW included) slated for release on the system. And yes, even future access to downloadable song packs for games like Guitar Hero World Tour (using the in-game store) are in the works, other DLC for Wii-Ware games, all of this is great news for the Wii.

But is all of this showing that the Wii is really starting to come up to par with the “features” of the other consoles? It all sounds like some heavily dedicated developers not wanting to miss out on a large install-base.

For the Wii to truly “start to match” the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360, they are going to need an easier way to manage your contacts and friends, real time voice communication, and a host of other features that Nintendo themselves has no interest in adding to this generation of their product.