Nintendo Network to Launch with the Wii U
One of the main features of the Xbox and PlayStation lines have been the ability to play online, download additional content, and even digitally download games directly to the console from the Internet. These services have mostly been used by more hardcore gamers because that is the type of gamer these consoles target. Nintendo marketed the Wii, on the other hand, as a console for social gamers of all ages – basically a family gaming console. With that in mind, it did not appear to need the same services as Xbox Live and the PlayStation network provided.
. Alongside the release of the Wii U console, Nintendo is preparing to release the Nintendo Network in order to take advantage of the popularity of mobile gaming on smartphones and social network gaming. This service will function similarly to the Xbox and PlayStation networks in that it will provide extra downloadable content. Digital downloads of full games will be available in the future, but Nintendo was hesitant to say when. There were also hints that the Nintendo Network will support micropayments.
Nintendo says that its new network will enabled more gaming options on the 3DS as well. The company stated that Mario Kart 7 and the next Final Fantasy game will both have additional features available on the Nintendo Network.
One major feature of the Wii U will be Near Field Communication (NFC), which allows two NFC devices to connect and interact when brought close to one another. NFC is the technology that Google Wallet uses to enable your smartphone to make payments at stores. Google Wallet, a service similar to PayPal, provides added Internet security protection by allowing users to pay for online transactions without having to enter their credit card information on every website. Google Wallet uses NFC on smartphones to pay for purchases at real-world stores instead of having to swipe a credit card. By incorporating NFC into the Wii U, Nintendo could put NFC chips into cards or figurines that will enable new content for the Wii U simply by being near the console.
With the ability to use NFC to buy content from the network, it is likely that the Nintendo Network will draw in the more hesitant gamers who do not trust giving out their credit card information to Xbox and PlayStation. NFC would allow people to continue to maintain a high level of Internet security and still buy add-ons for their favorite Wii U and 3DS games.
The Nintendo Network and the Wii U are still forthcoming. Nintendo is not shipping the Wii U until close to the winter holidays and is saving the launch of the full network for the Wii U. Nevertheless, perhaps Nintendo’s competitors Sony and Microsoft will use the time as an opportunity to increase the features available in their networks, as well as consider adding NFC technology to their next products.
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