No online support for 3rd-party Wii devs until 2007
by Joystiq Staff 
{ Aug 25th 2006 at 9:55AM }
Buried at the bottom of an IGN preview for the Wii's Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam is the news that not only is this game not going to feature any online component, but every 3rd-party game that comes out for the Wii won't support anything online either. Not until 2007 will publishers be able to offer up Wi-Fi gaming to eager players who picked up a Wii.
Gamers hoping for an online component, however, are in for bad news, because one isn't planned. Activision would not say why, but IGN has separately learned from multiple development sources that Nintendo will not release Wii Wi-Fi Connection libraries to third parties until early 2007, which means that no third party launch title will have an online mode.
Well, that's pretty awful. Seems like a pretty dumb move not to allow your third-party developers to offer online play with your launch titles. Online gaming has arguably become essential for most players and considering your system isn't in high-def or truly next-gen graphics wise, what other incentive besides a different control scheme would a gamer have in picking up your product?
Check after the break for the possible launch titles that would certainly be affected by this.
Possible launch titles that could be majorly affected by not having online play:
- Blazing Angels: Squadrons of WWII
- Blitz: The League
- Call of Duty 3
- Dragon Ball Z: Budokai Tenkaichi 2
- Far Cry
- Madden NFL 07
- Marvel: Ultimate Alliance
- Need for Speed: Carbon
- Rayman Raving Rabbids
- Red Steel
- Super Monkey Ball: Banana Blitz
- Tony Hawk's Downhill Jam
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 4)
Paul P. @ Aug 25th 2006 10:03AM
Eh. Stupid move, but whatever. I'm not used to playing these games online anyway. I wouldn't strike it out of the realm of possibility on Red Steel though, considering how closely they in particular have been working with Nintendo on that particular game.
Myself, I buy games for the single player. When I want to play online I use a PC.
Doug @ Aug 25th 2006 10:05AM
I suspect they surely must have a very good reason for this, because otherwise it would obviously be very stupid.
refugee @ Aug 25th 2006 10:06AM
Seeing is believing.... If you want the best on-line experience this Generation their's only one place to go.......
*~**XBOX 360**~*
**~*XBOX LIVE*~**
Derbeste @ Aug 25th 2006 10:06AM
Two failed consoles later and Nintendo STILL hasn't learned how to play nice with 3rd parties......
You know the definition of insanity right? Trying the same thing over and over and expecting different results.
Nintendo is finding great ways to do something different.....but why is it so damn hard for them to play nice with others for a change?
Who do they think they are? Apple?
Daniel @ Aug 25th 2006 10:06AM
I'll admit this is a pretty stupid move by Nintendo if it's true.
That being said, in response to your last question - the other main reason to pick up a Wii game is because, well, they'll probably be simply more fun than a lot of other games out at the time. Like poster #1, I play games more for single player anyways. A good online component is icing on the cake, but far from needed. Most of my favourite games are single player (Resident Evil 4, Chronicles of Riddick, Pikmin, etc).
.ed @ Aug 25th 2006 10:07AM
I'm not concerned.
It takes every system a while to get the online up and running, with one exception (360) so this is actually NORMAL.
Dreamcast - waited - successful online
PS2 - waited - successful online
DS - waited - successful online
PSP - waited - successful online
xbox - waited - successful online
360 - online, successful
PS3 - will wait a few months
Wii - will wait a few months
Dan @ Aug 25th 2006 10:08AM
It's annoying, but I can see why they did it. They first want to see how well their online service performs for their own titles before they let everybody in on it. This way, they will be able to work out all the kinks and perfect the system before they open it up to other developers.
lloyd @ Aug 25th 2006 10:13AM
i wonder how the nintendo faithful are going to defend this as not being a flaw in the wii launch plans...
it's true that online gaming may not be essential to a consoles success and they will eventually get it up and running... but it could effect initial sales by causing some to wait until online gameplay is implemented before they buy.
refugee @ Aug 25th 2006 10:15AM
.ed and Dan. If that's the excuse you want to give them then that fine.
007craft @ Aug 25th 2006 10:16AM
this might be the first nintendo system I dont buy.
After I bought my gamecube, I got really bored with it. I discovered the xbox with online play. Now, All I buy are online games.
I just cant justify the price of a game which is only single player or splitscreen. My friends dont come over to my house and play games anymore now that im older.
If theirs no online for this system, then im going to pass. I play my 360 online everyday. Nowadays, Playing video games without online is like owning a computer without internet. You get bored real fast.
32_Footsteps @ Aug 25th 2006 10:16AM
Personally, I think they're just still trying to work out the bugs for the online component. I know the DS wifi could be better, and even that took some time. I'm not terribly happy, but it's about what I expected.
Of course, if they stick with the Friend Code mularkey they have going now, I'll be a bit annoyed.
bouchert @ Aug 25th 2006 10:18AM
It may be that Nintendo has belatedly realized that the per-game friend code system of the DS is too restrictive for a full console like the Wii, and they need some time to retool it to address that. Yes, it will suck for the launch titles, but hopefully the result is something we can live with. Meanwhile, it's crippled launch game news as usual. One-core 360 titles, PS3 games without motion sensitivity, and an onlineless Wii library.
decadeofevil @ Aug 25th 2006 10:18AM
really who cares if you have to wait till 2007 i think that will give us some time to get used to the new controls.. do you really want online play right off the bat with a bunch of people who have no freakin idea what they are doing????
Jake @ Aug 25th 2006 10:19AM
I doubt a lack of online support for a few months will hurt Nintendo at all. How many of you have decided not to get a Wii now that you know about this? I'm guessing very few, and THIS is the "hardcore" crowd - the ones that care the most about things like this.
Nintendo is targeting the casual gamer with this console, and the casual gamer most likely hasn't spent hours gaming online. The novelty of the controller will be enough to sell the system for at least a year, and then it will have to use some alternate weapons to carry the weight. By that time, the online component will be in full swing.
And .ed, your list is mostly correct, but what gave you the idea that the PS3 will wait "a few months" for its online network? Sony has said it will be functional from day one (I understand this comes from Sony, which makes many of you disregard it completely).
OOOOPs @ Aug 25th 2006 10:19AM
Those Wii Tony Hawk screens look like crap (and only at 480p). How is Nintendo going to catch up when PS4/xbox720 launch ... they would be basically two generations behind.
silverSurfer84 @ Aug 25th 2006 10:20AM
Didnt Iwata at E3 say that the network code would be included in hardware and games could ship single player and recieve the multiplayer addition in a relatively small update later?
Anyone remember this? Or was I hallucinating?
Chris Taran @ Aug 25th 2006 10:27AM
Personally, I couldn't care less if they ever have online support because I'm simply not interested in online gaming with the exception of MMO's which I only play on the PC anyway.
However, I do know that there is a large and growing audiance for online play, so to not have these tools available to 3rd party developers from the get go is really not a very smart move.
Nintendo has had more than sufficiant time to work on an online network capable of handling multiplayer games in time for the launch of the Wii. At this stage in the game not having API's for network play is just silly.
fagaymer @ Aug 25th 2006 10:28AM
Most parents won't let their 5 year olds play online anyways. Since this is Nintendo's target age group, this shouldn't be a problem.
DBX00 @ Aug 25th 2006 10:30AM
Amazing how everyone tries to spin not having online support out of the box for launch as not important news. If Sony made this announcement everyone would be screaming for the hills. Online support out of the box is important because launch titles will have the largest audience of players to test the network. It also seems like people are assuming that online support will be available in the first couple months of 2007, but that could definitely end up being further down the line because games being developed now wouldn't be released until the 2nd quarter of 2007. Are people now going to have to shell out more money for controllers to play Red Steel with their friends? This was a HUGE mistake for Nintendo and they need to resolve it quickly.
Designerbradr @ Aug 25th 2006 10:30AM
For a lot of people, I can see this as a downer, because online play has become such a big deal nowadays – and Nintendo has been the slowest in adopting it.
If true, I'm not too concerned. Not just because I'm sorta ambivalent towards online play, but also because I know Nintendo's games will have some sort of initial online support. And (hopefully) the Virtual Console and main network will be functioning as well at launch.
For me specifically, I long for the good ol' days – where two-player or party games were a staple. That type of group experience is something Nintendo's trying to resurrect in a big way, which gets me excited.
Dan @ Aug 25th 2006 10:31AM
".ed and Dan. If that's the excuse you want to give them then that fine."
Fine indeed. I'd rather have a decent online service than a bad one. It's not like they last-minute decided to get rid of online service altogether. It's not even as if there will be no online service at all until 2007.
They just decided to not allow the first generation of 3rd party games online. This is not the end of the world. Think of how crap half of them are going to be with the control scheme anyway. Nintendo doesn't want these games online.
Self Conshus @ Aug 25th 2006 10:31AM
This is the main reason I'm not sold on the Wii. The console itself is great but its all about game variety and 3rd Party support because we all know 1st party titles will be pushed hard. It looks like this is going down the same path the gamecube did and if it is, then count me out.
Sean DL @ Aug 25th 2006 10:31AM
"Those Wii Tony Hawk screens look like crap (and only at 480p). How is Nintendo going to catch up when PS4/xbox720 launch ... they would be basically two generations behind."
By buying the same parts that Sony and Microsoft wil lbuy fro mthe SAME FREAKING COMPANY: IBM.
Jeeze, you think Nintnedo makes the parts in there systems? NO they get them form the same place everyone else does, so when the NEXT NEXT generation comes out not only will Nintendo have the advantage if the Wii control takes off, they will alos be able to take advantage of new tech 5 years fro mnow that should be cheap enough for Nintendo to keep the system price under 2350 once again....
For example wait for the next Game Boy(DS) that will have GC graphics for the same price as the DS.....
When everone sees the price of the Wii, eveyone will understand why Nintnedo choose the parts they choose for this system and how they will take less LOSS the first year of this Next gen war....
jason @ Aug 25th 2006 10:32AM
But when is the wii coming out? november? so people have two months of games not having online capabilities... horrors...
refugee @ Aug 25th 2006 10:32AM
Jake you really got that right when you used the word "novelty" to describe the Wii's new controls!!
Pit @ Aug 25th 2006 10:34AM
The Wii-mote's D-pad is utilized for trick selection. Maneuvers are mapped almost identically to other Hawk endeavors so, for example, left and right on the D-Pad enable kick-flip and heel-flip options respectively. Activision says that a few characters will have a couple different moves here and there, but for the most part everything is very similar. The large A button can be pressed and held around corners for a speed boost, but players will want to practice this maneuver before they use it in races, as it can also backfire and cause boarders to slow down.
Designerbradr @ Aug 25th 2006 10:35AM
DBX00 wrote: "Amazing how everyone tries to spin not having online support out of the box for launch as not important news. If Sony made this announcement everyone would be screaming for the hills. Online support out of the box is important because launch titles will have the largest audience of players to test the network. It also seems like people are assuming that online support will be available in the first couple months of 2007, but that could definitely end up being further down the line because games being developed now wouldn't be released until the 2nd quarter of 2007. Are people now going to have to shell out more money for controllers to play Red Steel with their friends? This was a HUGE mistake for Nintendo and they need to resolve it quickly."
I don't know what blog post you were reading, DBX00, but you completely misunderstood this one. Nintendo (as far as we can tell if true) will not have online support from third parties until 2007. Nintendo could still push it's first-party titles into the online realm though.
And your last comment (about Red Steel) has nothing to do with online play. You're confusing it with co-op play. Co-op play is a given and confirmed by many of the game developers.
Phranctoast @ Aug 25th 2006 10:42AM
didnt the DS have to wait a bit before it was wifi ready.
so...who cares. its not that big of a deal. Itll give people to get their sword play down in single player red steel before they bring it online.lol.
Jake @ Aug 25th 2006 10:43AM
If they are offering online on 1st party titles, this will irritate 3rd party devs. Developing for Nintendo, your biggest competitor is Nintendo. If they offer online, and you can't, that sucks. But, if it is EARLY 2007, this isn't too big of a deal. 4 months
Jay @ Aug 25th 2006 10:43AM
Twilight Princess and Metroid Prime 3 as launch titles? I won't be playing anything else until 2007 guaranteed.
For a system offering a free online system I'm not fussed. Just like the DS I'll get to get used to the system first before jumping online. Hold up, I just said "just like the DS", which pretty much is the portable Wii. If the DS's success is anything to go off, w00ts.
Subnet6 @ Aug 25th 2006 10:48AM
There are alot of good comments on this post, and I agree with many of them.
First of all, I would like to simply state that this was neither confirmed by Nintendo nor by any third party and should be treated as a rumor.
That being said, this is not good if true. I personally don't place alot of importance on online gaming on my consoles, HOWEVER, this is just one more negative advertising possibility when it comes to the consoles wars that will not be good for nintendo. I am a big Nintendo fan, but I try not to be a Nintendo apologist. I see this as a mistake plain and simple. I think it can only hurt them. Worse yet is that it may indicate they are still treating third parties poorly which is horrible and nearly makes me angry.
The nintendo hardcore may say this doesn't matter because casual gamers don't care about online yet, or whatever, but the truth is the casual gamers will not be buying this console at launch. The hardcore nintendophiles are going to be standing in line to snatch up nearly every unit until christmas and those are the gamers who can get the most out of online really.
Some people have mentioned possible retooling as a reason for the delay. Its possible I suppose, but doesn't seem very likely to me.
I suppose its possible that with this network being free, they want to bring it up slowly and under a more controlled environment, rather than just letting every single developer on from day one, but even that seems a bit odd. And if that were the case, I would think they would announce it pretty soon. If they were honest about it, most gamers would be understanding of such an issue with a free service.
So, in closing, I really look forward to the launch lineup and while I might not go online with most titles, I recognize that an online strategy is of the utmost importance, even from day 1. With what we know now (which is very little) this is bad news no matter how you spin it.
Stu L Tissimus @ Aug 26th 2006 3:05PM
And to top it off, it's still just WFC - 'Wheeee, Friend Codes!' The online component of the DS games is acceptable, but having such limited online capabilities in the console is gonna really **** Nintendo over.
herman @ Aug 25th 2006 10:55AM
This is typical Nintendo. Remember that 3rd parties have always said that Nintendo is their biggest competition on the Nintendo platforms. This uneven approach is why their home consoles usually do not do well. Nintendo's own games can go online, but you 3rd paties, you'll have to wait a while, and when you do get online you will be so far behind us it won't be funny. And as for the waiting approach that #6 mentioned, that was when online play was still being worked out. The 360 has done it great, and Sony will be there on day one. Not that online play is everything, but it is a nice feature that many of us are starting to think of as a standard feature. Now, how much will Nintendo's downloads cost?
Evan @ Aug 25th 2006 10:57AM
Nintendo multi-player is all about being shoulder-to-shoulder with your buddies. 007craft - I'm sorry you're such a loser, but I'm 31 and I still get together with the guys once a week to watch a game on tv and play a video game. Socializing is about letting loose with your friends, and maybe getting a little drunk.
AlloyNES @ Aug 25th 2006 11:05AM
In my experience in watching Nintendo very closely in my 24 and 1/2 years of being on this earth, I can say with utter confidence that it's moronic to believe a statement of that nature from a 3rd Party developer just because it was quoted in an IGN article. Remember when someone said "Zelda:TP will be GameCube exclusive, we have no plans to change it to the new system." That's just one example of many.
Prez Reggie himself and countless other Nintendo Reps have been saying for the past year that we will have Online out of the box. Ubisoft has all but been straightforward about Red Steel online. They're "wink-wink-nudge" about it. This is because Nintendo is holding back their Online plans til the last minute. In otherwords, only key developers know about it right now. Just because Tony Hawk devs don't know about it or were told they wouldn't get access to it til 2007 does NOT mean there will be no 3rd party online Wii games in 2006. However, I do expect most of the lauch Wii games to be void of Online features in an X-Box live fashion. With WiiConnect24, we'll get updates and such, but for true online play, games like Red Steel, Call of Duty 3, and others are almost no-brainers in having online.
But, the bottom line is that we don't know the truth til we hear it from the horse's mouth. I say to not believe any statements like this UNTIL the Big N says it themself. And I say this because I know Nintendo. Trust me.
The Intangible Fact @ Aug 25th 2006 11:05AM
Most third party games are crappy anyways. Im buying for first party games anyway. As long as they hold true to their orginals im sold.
McWeen @ Aug 25th 2006 11:09AM
Who cares? Online is not the future of gaming, it's the death of it. Screw micropayments and monthly fees. If I wanted constant bills I would go buy a house.
Zero_ @ Aug 25th 2006 11:10AM
"Most third party games are crappy anyways. Im buying for first party games anyway. As long as they hold true to their orginals im sold."
Care to explain then why Gamecube didn't do so well?
Martin @ Aug 25th 2006 11:13AM
Another peice of news for the Anti-Wii Joystiq!!! God you guys are such Sony Fanboys it makes me sick!!!!
HAHAHAHA.. ok obviously that is a joke.
I am a big Wii supporter and find this very very bad news!!! They better make it worth the wait though. I am upset at no online madden or online red steel though.. I know I won't be picking up Madden for Wii now,,, also Ultimate Alliance kinda hurts too unless it comes out in 2007....
This really affects the choice of games I get!!!
AlloyNES @ Aug 25th 2006 11:16AM
"Care to explain then why Gamecube didn't do so well?"
Gamecube DID do well. It may have not sold as many systems as the PS2, but it made more profit.
I wouldn't say the Gamecube failed. It had an enjoyable library. Sure it had some flaws, but no reason the say it "didnt do well."
Sean DL @ Aug 25th 2006 11:17AM
"Care to explain then why Gamecube didn't do so well?"
Becasue most third party games are crap. lol
The Intangible Fact @ Aug 25th 2006 11:17AM
Yes, the G-cube didn't sell well because of the lack of third party support, but the only reason to buy a Wii is for the first party titles.
Lucas @ Aug 25th 2006 8:55PM
"Online gaming...essential for most gamers"
You really think so? I thought I read recently that 60% of 360 owners are on xbox live, including both silver and gold subscribers. And that silver still had more than gold, meaning at most 29% of xbox 360 owners are actually playing games online. That hardly sounds like a majority, or "most" gamers...
Steve @ Aug 25th 2006 11:18AM
This isn't a rumour, it's true indeed, as of the March revision of their SDK. There is a June revision, and I'm not sure what is contained in it since I don't have it, but I don't think the Wifi libraries are there. RVL_Overview.PDF - if you're a developer or publisher, check out that document for more info.
The other thing Nintendo hasn't released is specs on how to use the speaker on the remote (much like Sony hasn't told devs what to do with motion sensing). While this may all seem typical protectionist Nintendo, do remember that Nintendo is the one paying for the bandwidth and the servers, even for third parties. They do indeed want to play it safe and careful with the Wii's more robust online setup (much more to it than the DS). Iwata is far different from Yamauchi in this regard. Aside from those 2 quips, Nintendo has been extremely good to most developers - helpful and always a call away. We had to wait a year for XBox to be online, and that was good - why can't we give Nintendo the benefit of the doubt? Online to the masses isn't anywhere NEAR as important as it is for us hardcore. We can all wait a few months for those wifi libraries. Far Cry isn't a launch title, btw... that's 2007. This will suck for CoD3, but all other games, I'd honestly rather play on the couch with friends. What happened to those days, anyway?
dave @ Aug 25th 2006 11:20AM
If I want online, i'll use xbox live. I want Wii for the awesome games coming out for it, not for the rich online experience that it won't provide. I'm not happy about having to wait, but it doesn't sour me on the system at all. They'll have online in Time for Smash Bros. and that is the game I want it for. Until then, playing metroid Prime, and a new 100 hour long zelda will somehow have to keep me busy.
stafford @ Aug 25th 2006 11:20AM
i won't be getting a WII now, well not until online-play is fully operationally supporting all party party. This is terrible news.
Sinnix @ Aug 25th 2006 11:24AM
It's unfortunate, but really isn't that surprising. Firstly, in Nintendo's long history they've always put 3rd parties after themselves and secondly a lot of consoles don't have online modes when they first launch.
If I had to take a random guess, their online code is probably still in alpha. Good enough for the in-house guys to work with but still not ready to be given to the third party guys.
I'm just hoping they don't include a similar service to DS WiFi... because that would be a travesty.
jason cruz @ Aug 25th 2006 11:24AM
If they are making a rayman game for the wii then please have both of his enemys team up because I was concerned about the piret's after ray man 2 what happened to razer beard and andre the black lum so many questions need to be answerd it should have a cool name like rayman 4 the great hoodlum escape or something like that.
DJ Nutz @ Aug 25th 2006 11:24AM
Nintendo is simply out of touch with the hardcore gamer. Dragging their feet on online support, no HDTV support and decidedly last generation visuals aren't getting anyone but the die hard Nintendo fanboys interested.
I own a DS Lite, which is pretty fun, but the Gamecube's great releases were too far between to keep me interested. If they don't support the 3rd parties this time around, they lost the race at the starting line.
BritPod @ Aug 25th 2006 11:24AM
Why this sucks (if true)
1) Getting Libraries in "early 2007" doesn't mean you'll be playing third party games in early 07... it means developers will be able to start coding online support.. depending on what libraries they're waiting on it means that probably Summer 07 will see the first online games from third parties... if they are waiting on more complex libs, then look for the tail end of 07.
We're looking at a year from now before we can play third party games online.
2) Sure, some games are better with your mates.. but call me crazy, when I'm playing FPS' I dont like having my enemy sat right next to me looking at my screen (all players squished onto the same display also sucks).
Online play is nice for some games, but essential for others.. First Person (insert genre here) games for instance, suck having to share screen.
3) Finally... this is Nintendo. The company that completely blew it on Gamecube by missing online play (driving away alot of customers who went to XBox), and who have brought to the DS, let's face it, a far from intuitive online experience.
They have been telling us for 2 years that Revolution would be different. Not having your online capabilities ready for third parties is not what I was expecting to see.
I just hope if this is true, its a general omission from dev kits, and certain third parties (ubisoft) have been worked with specially to offer online play... It's the flagship non-Nintendo launch title... one that millions of non-fanboys are interested in, please don't blow it Nintendo.