Well, there wasn't a topic on this (at least at this venue), so here goes.

Nintendo has stated that each individual online game would make use of Friend Codes. (For those of you who don't know, Friend Codes are irritating little 16 digit numbers that come on DS online games; you exchange them with friends to be able to play online with them.) We thought that the singular Wii Code would be good enough (and I don't see why it shouldn't be), but it's not. It's not like it's easy to remember these numbers, and all it manages to accomplish is making people annoyed and what some would consider a diminished online experience.

Now, of course there are good things about this. Nintendo is obviously covering itself from allegations of allowing child molesters and other such unsavory characters contact with children. It also has the potential to keep unnecessary drama out of the video games. And besides, it's not like you CAN'T play against anyone not on your list. You just can't play them at will.

Enough out of me, though. What are your thoughts?

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Wait a second.. Which games on the Wii can you currently play online?

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Slightly off topic, but has this actually been brought up as an issue for some people on Xbox Live, or is it more of an "in theory" subject? I barely keep up with gaming news.

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Actually, the DS was somewhat recently accused of letting child molesters interact with children.

No such accuasation was made for Xbox live, or any other online service.

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X-Box Live came under fire for it about a year ago. The problem with the DS was that in theory, a child molester can talk to children over Pictochat, an app that creates a chat room accessible to everyone in a certain area.

In Mario Kart DS, you can face off against random people and I'm pretty sure you can add them to your friends or rivals list. However, you won't get their friend code, and some of the interaction is cut short. I'm not sure if any other games support this.

It's still a very much "in theory" issue, as I don't think much has happened yet over console video game services.

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Pretty much...

Seriously, by protecting themselves, they're just giving a shitty online service. In the beginning, I thought it wasn't that bad, but quite frankly, now, I just think it's at best a bad idea, and at worst, a nail in the coffin of Nintendo.

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I dunno, Nintendo seems to have made that coffin explode. A few splinters in its toenail isn't gonna hurt it too much.

I don't like the friend codes, but really, I'm just glad they're providing awesome content.

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It's not the content I've got something against. It's the service. Otherwise, I wouldn't have a Wii and DS, and wouldn't think they're going to be the best consoles coming out of this clusterfuck we call a console war.

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