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Nintendo Channel Impressions: Nintendo’s Ever-Watching Eye of Sauron

by Beau Rosser on May 13, 2008 at 6:17 pm

It’s always interesting to see what new Wii Channel the big N will come up with while sailing through their blue ocean. So far, Nintendo has given user updates for various casual gamer-specific channels like Check Mii Out and Everybody Votes.

Earlier this month, Nintendo once again sprang a new channel for the masses to gobble up and enjoy: The Nintendo Channel.

The name itself describes exactly what this channel was made to achieve, which is to provide information on everything Nintendo. When the user first boots up the channel, they’re presented with a variety of questions regarding usage of the channel as well as a brief introduction as to what the channel is all about.

The Nintendo Channel is a unique experience on the Wii because it directly provides the company with information about the user’s Wii and how they take advantage of its features. Of course, the decision to provide them with said information is completely up to the user, so for people scared of Nintendo playing Big Brother, there is no need to fret. However, if a user does decide to share their information with Nintendo, only non-personal settings are shared.

Information is sent in regarding what games are played the most, how the user has their TV and Wii settings configured, and the amount of flash memory space currently being occupied on the system. The latter two are intriguing because they could lead Nintendo to release a hard-drive if they notice a majority of their users have filled memory, or a high-definition Wii model if many people are using component cables for their set-up.

In addition to the aforementioned data sharing, the Nintendo Channel is broken up into three other main parts: the video section (which includes press release videos and trailers), game recommendations, and DS demo downloads.

The video section is worthy of note because it has the potential to cut out the middleman (i.e. me) in regard to the passing of information to the public. With this video function, Nintendo could choose to release all new information straight to the public instead of going through media outlets. I don’t think we’re quite there yet, but it is still a scary thought for video game journalists.

The game recommendations part of the channel is exactly what it sounds like. Users have the ability to browse all the titles they have played on their Wii and then recommend them anonymously to other players involved with the Nintendo Channel.

The last section of the Nintendo Channel feels like a slightly tacked-on addition, but is still noteworthy. The DS demo downloads let Wii owners wirelessly transmit first and third party demos to their DS for play. We’ve seen this technology in a variety of retailers for a few years now, but it’s nice to be able to use this feature in the comfort of your home instead of a smelly game store.

The Nintendo Channel is a welcome addition to the ever-growing library of casual activities on the Wii, but at a whopping 252 memory blocks of required space to run it, let’s hope Nintendo has an upgradeable hard drive around the corner.

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