[Spencerr]

Not being able to pick opponents = horrible mistake that needs to be fixed for Metroid Hunters, and I'm going ahead and assuming Nintendo wouln't be dumb enough to do that for Animal Crossing :lol

[GDJustin]

This quote of Kobun's from his impressions has an extra dimension now... The only reason he could easily play Toastyfrog in one-on-one matches is because they were the only people online, period! :lol That very well never be possible again now that more people are online.

I've been getting the same group of people for three evenings in a row now.

[Chrono]

It's great that Nintendo is getting online but seriously 4 players only? Not able to pick who you play against? And I thought it couldn't get worse than Advance Wars DS not being online.

[Smiles and Cries]

where is the best place to buy this online?
(that will charge my card today and not wait until shipping)

[Socreges]

Booooooooo at the crappy online functionality.

[+Aliken+]

I've been getting the same group of people for three evenings in a row now.

Who are you?
(nickname)

[marc^o^]

The reason why they limited this online feature can be found in this sentence taken from the Wired Interview:
"Hideki Konno: The image of trying to play online is that it's complicated, and the Japanese are worried about having to deal with people they don't want to, having people say nasty things over the internet. So the three things we're trying to emphasize with Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection are: easy access, worry-free, and free of charge. Nintendo's goal is to get a high percentage of online gaming. In Japan, only 10% of the people who purchase games with online functionality are taking them online. Our goal is to get 90% of the people who purchase Mario Kart to try the online game."

It seems they first wanted to please japanese players who need to embrace online with something as straightforward as possible.

I don't think that's too bad, for these reasons:
1) playing a lan game automatically gets you your opponents online access
2) playing against random friends gets you faster into the game, no need to wait that everyone is ready to join
3) It will encourage people to play against a wider set of opponents
4) This feature taken from the wired interview is fantastic:
Hideki Konno: As you're playing for a while, maybe if you beat some staff ghosts in the time trial mode, you'll get stars next to your user name. You can get up to three, and you have to do quite a bit to get those three stars. Once you've done that you'll see them online.

For its first online game, Nintendo decided to keep it simple, which can be somehow disappointing for people who compare the service to what xbox live can offer. But think about it: it took Microsoft 4 years and $4 billions to get 2 million people play online. With its strategy, Nintendo expects to have 2 million people play its games online in less than a month. Quite an achievement, and I'm sure Metroïd Prime online mode will be made differently to satisfy a western audience.

[ziran]

've been playing around on Mario Kart DS since this weekend with very few problems. I noticed on the message boards that you snoopy-snoops have been peeking around Nintendo's Wi-Fi website, and yes, my name (CraigIGN) appears showing that I'm blasting through the races against the world. Or at least, the world that's currently connected and having a copy of Mario Kart DS. The problem with Mario Kart is that the online portion is extremely limited. The only way you'll be able to connect with me on a regular basis, outside of randomly connecting to me via "Worldwide Mode" is if you have my 12 digit Friend Code, and I have yours. If you have mine, you still won't be able to connect to me as a friend since I don't have yours. Knowing someone's online name isn't enough. Nintendo's system also forces the group of up to four players -- people can't choose who to play, or even enable a simple two or three player challenge. And even in random Worldwide match-ups, if I enjoyed racing against someone, I have no way of adding that person to my list of friends. There's no way of chatting with that person or finding out his email address to get that information after the fact, either. Get Mario Kart DS because it's the best freakin' kart racer ever, with an incredible focus on single player and local multiplayer. Don't get it solely for its online component because you'll end up wanting way more than what's offered here. -- Craig

i'm not keen on not being able to add someone i play against in random mode to my list of friends. is this correct?

and the multi player isn't clear. is it only 4 player or is it possible to have a 2 or 3 player race online?

[M3wThr33]

The system will work itself out through those surveys they do every so often through email.

I doubt they won't send those out asking what people think of the online system.

[heavenly]

For its first online game, Nintendo decided to keep it simple, which can be somehow disappointing for people who compare the service to what xbox live can offer. But think about it: it took Microsoft 4 years and $4 billions to get 2 million people play online. With its strategy, Nintendo expects to have 2 million people play its games online in less than a month. Quite an achievement, and I'm sure Metroïd Prime online mode will be made differently to satisfy a western audience.

I'm sure it's costing Nintendo a pretty penny to provide free wi-fi gaming on the DS as well. All those deals they made with different companies and food chains weren't free, you know?

[Merlin]

Remember this is their first online game guys. Sega's first was Chu Chu Rocket which was also 4 player only! They'll get better. And I do think they're saving some stuff for Revolution (online battle mode)

[Chibbi Brady]

Don't know how accurate this is butI found a list with the playable online courses. If someone with the game could confirm that'd be great.

* = Online

Figure-8 Circuit (*)
Yoshi Falls (*)
Cheep Cheep Beach (*)
Luigi's Mansion (*)
Desert Hills (*)
Delfino Square (*)
Waluigi Pinball
Shroom Ridge
DK Pass (*)
Tick-Tock Clock
Mario Circuit (*)
Airship Fortress
Wario Stadium (*)
Peach Gardens
Bowser Castle
Rainbow Road (*)
SNES Mario Circuit 1 (*)
N64 Moo Moo Farm (*)
GBA Peach Circuit (*)
GCN Luigi Circuit (*)
SNES Donut Plains 1
N64 Frappe Snowland (*)
GBA Bowser Castle 2
GCN Baby Park (*)
SNES Koopa Beach 2
N64 Choco Mountain (*)
GBA Luigi Circuit
GCN Mushroom Bridge
SNES Choco Island 2 (*)
N64 Banshee Boardwalk
GBA Sky Garden (*)
GCN Yoshi Circuit (*)

If true that's a fairly good line up, 10 new and 10 old. I had a bad feeling that most of the new ones wouldn't be playable so I'm quite relieved.

[ziran]

movies:
http://media.gba.gamespy.com/media/6...77/vids_1.html

game informer impressions:
http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Sto...2017.48867.htm

game informer (billy berghammer) says:

Once you’ve logged in you have the option to play against friends in your friend list, rivals, regional opponents, or players worldwide. Then your DS searches for online players and will grab one to three other players for you to race against depending on your criteria chosen for the match. Course selection is done by voting for the courses you want to race, and much like Circuit, each race nets each player points which are tallied up at the end of the race. The games that we played were virtually lag free. Only once or twice in my numerous games did I see a hiccup, but for the most part everything was smooth. The only thing that’s missing for me is a central lobby, and voice or text chat option to talk to people before or after races.

so you can have 2-4 player matches, not just 4 player ones. ign craig's comments are confusing.

[Rlan]

SNES Donut Plains 1 GBA Bowser Castle 2 SNES Koopa Beach 2 GBA Luigi Circuit GCN Mushroom Bridge N64 Banshee Boardwalk

See, there is NO Reason for those SNES and GBA levels to be taken out of the online play. oNLY possible REASON might be Bowser Castle 2 has Thwomps, but even then, if Luigi's Mansion can have a tree moving, they should be able ot have this version. Koopa Beach probably has little Cheep Cheeps, but that's a lame excuse for it not being in. I can understand Mushroom Bridge and Banshee Boardwalk [Traffic and being hit by Coconuts], but the others don't have much of a reason other than it being a bit more balanced.

I'm a bit dissapointed that they're using the SNES versions of the tracks. IMO, The GBA version of the original tracks are better.

[:Motorbass]

Just for the record: the gamespy Videos are NOT WiFi Races (cause they are quite old and he's racing Shy Guy).

Ppl should realize that for Nintendo WiFi = online and WLAN = local...

[TurtleSnatcher]

See, there is NO Reason for those SNES and GBA levels to be taken out of the online play. oNLY possible REASON might be Bowser Castle 2 has Thwomps, but even then, if Luigi's Mansion can have a tree moving, they should be able ot have this version. Koopa Beach probably has little Cheep Cheeps, but that's a lame excuse for it not being in. I can understand Mushroom Bridge and Banshee Boardwalk [Traffic and being hit by Coconuts], but the others don't have much of a reason other than it being a bit more balanced. I'm a bit dissapointed that they're using the SNES versions of the tracks. IMO, The GBA version of the original tracks are better.

Probably the carts too small or some gay bs ;p


More hidden chars revealed.. Full Lineup posted spoilers

Main Characters

Mario

Luigi

Peach

Donkey Kong

Bowser

Wario

Toad

Yoshi

Unlockable Characters

Daisy

Koopa Troopa

Toadette

Waluigi

Shy Guy

Dry Bones

Petey Piranha

R.O.B - NES - Robotic Operating Buddy


Source: http://ds.**********.com/article.php?artid=2897

[ziran]

have you seen the waluigi pinball track? it looks awesome!!! :D

it's at game informer, in the media mkds section:
http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Med...-3461C2C65860}

(i don't know why gi encodes to mpeg, they're too big and the quality sucks)

[TurtleSnatcher]

have you seen the waluigi pinball track? it looks awesome!!! :D it's at game informer, in the media mkds section: http://www.gameinformer.com/News/Med...-3461C2C65860} (i don't know why gi encodes to mpeg, they're too big and the quality sucks)

feels like playing in a 70's disco.. now i know why that shit wasnt supported online.. so many trippy colors and the bouncers and the balls.. so many desynchs i bet haha

[marc^o^]

The more, the better. 20 tracks online is highly enough though. What about mirror courses, do we know about it?

[Rlan]

Petey Piranha

Oh FFS! I hate this damn character! Yet they seem to want to include him in every single game possible, from Mario Golf, Tennis, Baseball, Super Princess Peach, Mario Pinball. They should have chucked a Hammer Brother in there. He'd be a good additional middleweight, or chuck in a character from Paper Mario or something!

Ah well, otherwise, good line up :)

[ziran]

Probably the carts too small or some gay bs ;p More hidden chars revealed.. Full Lineup posted spoilers Main Characters Mario Luigi Peach Donkey Kong Bowser Wario Toad Yoshi Unlockable Characters Daisy Koopa Troopa Toadette Waluigi Shy Guy Dry Bones Petey Piranha R.O.B - NES - Robotic Operating Buddy Source: http://ds.**********.com/article.php?artid=2897

yeah, the lineup is great! :)

[Rlan]

Watched the Waluigi Pinball course. Looks awesome!

And they've replaced DK's Walrus sounds with the DK: Jungle Beat sound bytes! Great!

[borghe]

after having slept on it (well, not really.. actually gave it very little thought) I have decided there could be worse things in this world.. mind you I still think at minimum it should have been available in friend mode, but really implementing this system instead of the standard "room" based system will probably get a lot more people to try it.. hell.. by making o9nline free and available at mcdonalds (and advertising it) they could very well reach their 90% online penetration which would, console OR handheld, be the highest online penetration of any system ever (halo 2 didn't even hit anywhere near 90%)

still miffed, but have no doubt online will still be incredibly fun.

[+Aliken+]

I'm sorry but there are too many hidden characters in that list, way too many.

[:Motorbass]

I'm sorry but there are too many hidden characters in that list, way too many.

You unlock the first eight by switching on your DS with a copy of Mario Kart DS in the slot, but psssh!

[vitaflo]

Has anyone tried the game with the Rumble pack from Metroid Pinball? Does it work?

[marc^o^]

I'm sure it won't but you're right, all Nintendo game should use it from now on.

[dock]

If I get a friend-code from people I know in advance, can I choose to race against them?

[Ninja Dom]

Official Staff Interview On the Nintendo Online Magazine (Japanese)

http://www.nintendo.co.jp/nom/0511/22/index.html

[ziran]

If I get a friend-code from people I know in advance, can I choose to race against them?

yes, as long as you give them your code aswell. you have to exchange codes according to ign.

[sprsk]

when does the rumordongle go on sale

[Teddman]

I'm sure it's costing Nintendo a pretty penny to provide free wi-fi gaming on the DS as well. All those deals they made with different companies and food chains weren't free, you know?

I'd bet the McDonald's deal didn't cost Nintendo much, if anything. McD's stands to do a big spike in business from all the DS-toting kids who come to play wi-fi and order a few happy meals while they're at it.

[MiketheBSG]

Man, Nintendo needs to hurry up with that USB adapter, or else I won't be playing Mario Kart online when I pick it up next week....at least at my apartment (and no, it makes no sense for me to get a router in my cable internet setup).

[GDJustin]

Who are you? (nickname)

GD Justin ;)

[SantaC]

I Am getting this router

http://www.webhallen.com/prod.php?id=40156

[marc^o^]

When are the first reviews coming? What scores do you predict?

[MiketheBSG]

"It sounds like you are excited about going online at launch, and since the
Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector will not be available at that time, the best
suggestion I can make is to get a wireless router to do so."

This is part of the e-mail Nintendo sent me...why must Nintendo force me to buy something completely unnecessary for me to have?

[Xrenity]

When are the first reviews coming? What scores do you predict?

Dutch Ngamer gave it a nine.

[Christberg]

I'd bet the McDonald's deal didn't cost Nintendo much, if anything. McD's stands to do a big spike in business from all the DS-toting kids who come to play wi-fi and order a few happy meals while they're at it.

I'd imagine all it cost was some flyers in the game packaging saying "Now you can play online at Wayport powered McDonalds hotspots for free! I'm lovin' it!" EG essentially nothing.

The beauty of cross promotion is that it's cheap.

[borghe]

"It sounds like you are excited about going online at launch, and since the Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector will not be available at that time, the best suggestion I can make is to get a wireless router to do so." This is part of the e-mail Nintendo sent me...why must Nintendo force me to buy something completely unnecessary for me to have?

umm... a wireless connection is completely unnecessary for wireless connectivity for your DS??? am I missing something here?

[GDJustin]

When are the first reviews coming? What scores do you predict?

I'm extremely confident that this will be the best-reviewed DS game.

[MiketheBSG]

umm... a wireless connection is completely unnecessary for wireless connectivity for your DS??? am I missing something here?

The only thing in my home that requires a wireless router is the DS...my desktop doesn't move, neither does my Vonage phone. This is the reason why I wanted a USB adapter.

And does Nintendo realize that, the MAJORITY of people with broadband have regular cable modems?!? They are asking everyone with a cable modem to go out and buy a wireless router now.

[borghe]

The only thing in my home that requires a wireless router is the DS...my desktop doesn't move, neither does my Vonage phone. This is the reason why I wanted a USB adapter. And does Nintendo realize that, the MAJORITY of people with broadband have regular cable modems?!? They are asking everyone with a cable modem to go out and buy a wireless router now.

while your majority statement is in fact probably true, based on the simple fact that wireless router sales have outpaced wired router sales for quite some time now (well over a year) and the fact that there are no less than 15 networks viewable from my house (some encrypted, some wideopen), I really think someone complaining about going wireless will definitely be in the minority. especially considering that setting up a wireless router is even easier than setting up the dongle and costs just as much (actually cheaper when someone runs a router on sale for $30).

there are very few instances I see where the dongle is the only logical option. protected/authenticated hotspots, a non-wireless college, eh.. that might be it.. if you have access to your internet line though, I guess it just baffles me that someone is complaining about needing a wireless network to play wireless online games. especially when for $30 and 5 minutes of setup you can get a router up and going even easier than the dongle.

[MiketheBSG]

while your majority statement is in fact probably true, based on the simple fact that wireless router sales have outpaced wired router sales for quite some time now (well over a year) and the fact that there are no less than 15 networks viewable from my house (some encrypted, some wideopen), I really think someone complaining about going wireless will definitely be in the minority. especially considering that setting up a wireless router is even easier than setting up the dongle and costs just as much (actually cheaper when someone runs a router on sale for $30). there are very few instances I see where the dongle is the only logical option. protected/authenticated hotspots, a non-wireless college, eh.. that might be it.. if you have access to your internet line though, I guess it just baffles me that someone is complaining about needing a wireless network to play wireless online games. especially when for $30 and 5 minutes of setup you can get a router up and going even easier than the dongle.

I've been taking the time to research some routers. Could you point out some good cheap wireless routers for me?

[Teddman]

The D-Link 524 is probably your cheapest and best-rated for Nintendo wi-fi.

[borghe]

The D-Link 524 is probably your cheapest and best-rated for Nintendo wi-fi.

what he said.. the WRGT54 is one of the most rock solid ones I've come across through will usually run you qa few dollars more.. the d-link seems to be the most economically priced while at the same time fully compatible. I have the Netgear WGR614v6 which hasn't given me any problems (and I picked up for $30 on sale). we'll have to see how it works with WRC.

[TurtleSnatcher]

hearing reports that dsadvanced article is a sham and theres only 4 unlockable not 8.. dun dun dun! Drama in the mario kart

[MiketheBSG]

what he said.. the WRGT54 is one of the most rock solid ones I've come across through will usually run you qa few dollars more.. the d-link seems to be the most economically priced while at the same time fully compatible. I have the Netgear WGR614v6 which hasn't given me any problems (and I picked up for $30 on sale). we'll have to see how it works with WRC.

Ok, last and final question...it looks lik eI would most likely go with the D-Link 524...NOW...I have a Vonage phone adapter (which is a router I need to have to allow my phone to work). Is it possible to connect two routers together...meaning, have the Vonage Router go through the D-Link or the D-Link to the Vonage Phone out to my Road Runner cable modem? If so, then Nintendo's laziness would make this a go for me.

[borghe]

Ok, last and final question...it looks lik eI would most likely go with the D-Link 524...NOW...I have a Vonage phone adapter (which is a router I need to have to allow my phone to work). Is it possible to connect two routers together...meaning, have the Vonage Router go through the D-Link or the D-Link to the Vonage Phone out to my Road Runner cable modem? If so, then Nintendo's laziness would make this a go for me.

how is it connected right now? is it a vonage capable router (i.e. a router with network ports AND a phone port on it)?

[GDJustin]

hearing reports that dsadvanced article is a sham and theres only 4 unlockable not 8.. dun dun dun! Drama in the mario kart

I haven't completed everything in MKDS, but I've done a lot, and I don't see what I could still have left to do to recieve 5 more characters.

Not saying DSA is full of shit... but they weren't at the N event, so...