Since Nintendo’s January 21st announcement officially unveiling the NintendoDS project, the floodgates have opened and the rumour mill has been working overtime. So, in the run-up to the first public showing of the system at E3, May 2004, I’m here to talk about what we know, what we don’t, and what we can have an educated guess at. I’m not professing to know any more than anyone else in my position (i.e. outside of Nintendo itself), but I’ve heard a lot, and I know Nintendo.     

I think we should begin at the start. The title of the system, upon release, is not likely to remain the NintendoDS. This is probably only the working title. Rumours have been bounded about with titles such as Nitro, or Game BoyDS, the latter of which is highly unlikely, as Nintendo have been keen to reiterate at every opportunity that the DS is not the Game Boy Advance’s successor, but a “third pillar” to the gaming market. As with many features of this article, we can expect the answer at E3 in Los Angeles, May 2004.

Before tackling the system’s specifications, possible uses and what the “revolutionary” new gameplay features could be, I’m going to concentrate on this “new market” Nintendo are hoping to create. As, at this time, we can in no way be sure what Nintendo have got up their sleeves, it is currently very hard to understand exactly how Nintendo intend on creating this new market. They may see it as something completely new - but will the gaming public? Consumers only have a limited amount of disposable income, releasing another handheld system in time for Christmas could very much disorientate them, causing belief that their current system is out of date. With the mobile phone market launching new handsets monthly, the public don’t want another entertainment sector forcing them to regularly update. This is again very much a problem with Nokia’s forth-coming N-GageQD. With the N-gage reaching a rather lack-lustre sales peak, and the upgrade released inside a year, will the current owners be dis-heartened and the system be abandoned altogether? It became common industry-opinion that Nintendo were pushing it with the Game Boy AdvanceSP.

The future of the handheld market, in the opinion of a consumer, is likely to be splintered. There will be those who remain faithful to the Game Boy Advance, those who take up the PlayStation Pocket and those who follow the DS. There will, of course, be those with multiple and the hardcore with all three, but it will be a three horse-race, rather than two separate markets.

The features of the system may, of course, put all this in a different light. First, let’s talk about what we know. “NintendoDS features two separate 3" TFT LCD display panels, separate processors, and semiconductor memory of up to 1 Gigabit. It is scheduled to launch worldwide before the end of 2004. In addition to Nintendo developed software, the company is in discussions with third party game developers around the world.” Stated Nintendo’s original press release, 21st January, 2004. This information has since been slightly updated, in a document leaked onto the internet. The publication was a one-page specification summary, completely in Japanese. Although appearing completely authentic, Nintendo has since refused to comment. The industry has taken what was listed for solid-fact, and so, here it is:

Exactly what this information is worth I believe is rather questionable, especially considering the more recent series of information “leaks”. The feature listed here that appears to be most interesting is the wireless LAN technology. We know Nintendo are keen to emphasise this technology, with the first recent evidence being the GameCube's WaveBird control pads (which, if rumour is to be believed, originally were intended to feature Bluetooth technology) and the Wireless Adapter for the Game Boy Advance which has recently been released in the East. We could even trace these roots back to the wireless pads that Nintendo released for the NES, and the SNES Scope light-gun. Perrin Kaplan, Nintendo of America’s Vice President of Corporate Affairs, recently stated Nintendo’s position in this field indirectly when talking about taking the GameCube online, “I think from where we stand it looks to us that it’s going to be fairly niche for a long time.” She continued, “I think some of our interests instead lie in building community on the wireless play front as opposed to the online one.” This leads me onto the first rumour I wish to discuss. A very interesting rumour…

Very reliable sources (including one Hirokazu Hamamura of Sega) have gone on record and stated that the DS, "will be a product unlike anything available right now and it will come with a touch panel” and also a Stylus input-device. This, compiled with recent patents by Nintendo and their respective partnered companies, would lead me to believe that Nintendo are very much planning some kind of short-range SMS. I’m sure that at this point, you’ll have very many questions, and be very interested in what evidence I have to back-up this rather outlandish statement. Well, to be honest, all the evidence I have for the feature has been stated and, as every other person who’s taken it upon themselves to put pen to paper and has come to the same conclusion, I have made an educated guess based on the facts, the myths and the history. But, what I do have for you is an explanation of a rather simple way this could actually work.

Of course, the system would be designed so that children and adults would be able to get the most out of it. The interface would be incredibly simple and, as the technology works on radio frequency, phone numbers mean nothing. So, how does your DS know which DS to send your message to? Simple. Upon connecting your DS with a friends' for the first time, the LAN name of your friends system (presumably chosen by the user the first time they turn the system on) will be stored in your system’s internal memory. Included within your friend’s system name will be the information relative to their DS, i.e. serial number etc. To determine each DS as an individual, they would need to contain a specifically individual code of some-sort, similar to a SIM-card; this information would also be stored. Upon typing a message, you will simply be asked to select which of your friend’s DS’s to send the message to from a list of all those you’ve connected with. The feature would obviously be very similar to that of PDA’s and mobile phones. However, the really interesting part comes now. You may think that this is relatively pointless in the UK due to the now widespread nature of mobile phones, however, as the system will use radio frequencies, similar to the WaveBird control pads, the SMS’s could very well be free! The range is touted as to be somewhere in the region of seven to ten miles. This may appear very limited, but would indeed be able to reach someone else in your town. No more paying 10p to say you’re going to be ten minutes late!

      Touch panels and short-range SMS is one thing, but this is a games console, and if one of the screens does feature a touch-screen during play, the next rumour I’d like to talk about is dead before I start. Two recent entrants into the patent office hold what would seem to be of some significance, if not for the DS, then definitely for either its successor or the GameCube’s. The first to be registered was Nintendo’s holograph-projector, which apparently currently stands 10’ tall. This project is quite inventive, with a flat metallic base and a curved metal lid each containing several small projectors, and the unit itself is a Perspex cylinder, which allows the projected light to “bounce” into the centre and create the image, very, very Star Wars… The second patent of interest is one by both Nintendo and Sharp. If rumour is to be believed, it was with Sharp that Nintendo has created their “dust-free” screen (also yet to be unveiled). This new system, however, sounds as if it’ll be something quite spectacular. The system integrates two screens (hmm…) each of which display a slightly different image. The left screen would display light that only the left eye will react to, and the right screen work the same way with the right eye. By having a different image available through each eye it is possible to achieve to illusion of a third dimension in graphics. We all know that when we use each of ours eyes independently we get a slightly different view, and that these views collate when looking through both eyes to achieve depth-perception.

You may be reading all this thinking, “so? We’ve already got 3D graphics on our home consoles.” But I’m not talking about polygons. It’s this depth-perception that’s vital. The two screens would create what would appear to be a simulation of three dimensions, when you look at the screens, an image would appear to be all around your field of vision, rather than just a corridor ahead of you, but upon looking at the screens from an angle they would look like two regular screens featuring slightly different images. Sound freaky? Yup. Sound cool? Definitely!

The system’s graphics are likely to be inferior to the PlayStation Pocket’s efforts, but superior to the N-Gage and Nintendo64. At least, that’s what the specifications we know lend themselves towards, but, of course, Nintendo could be doing something completely different with these processors, rather than establishing graphics horsepower. As I stated previously, an in-game touch screen panel would instantly defeat the idea of a true third dimension, but it would be possible to make both features software dependant, so a Phantasy Star title may feature the touch-screen for speech input, whereas the almost guaranteed instalment in the Super Mario series would be more likely to allow the two screens to work together.

A further comment by Hirokazu Hamamura has been taken as gospel, stating that the DS will have thirty titles on show at E3 in May, 2004. This is, surprisingly, highly feasible. Japanese developers have reportedly had development kits from early last year, with many game developers of high repute such as Electronic Arts, Koei, Kuju, Sega, HAL, Konami and Capcom having already pledged their support and confirmed that they already have titles in development, showing great confidence in the product. What has been confirmed, again, indirectly, at the GDC last month is that there is a new The Legend of Zelda title in development for the system, which will definitely be one of Nintendo’s front runners for the system at E3 this year, following the deftly-high opinion the industry has on The Legend Of Zelda: The Four Swords+ on the GameCube. Also, a Mario game of some variety is expected, possibly a Super Smash Bros. update, and a new Metroid adventure. Nintendo is rumoured to be using a conversion of Super Mario 64 to demonstrate the system to possible developers.

There are many rumours surrounding exactly which type of media the system’s titles will ship on. Nintendo have confirmed that the system will not use the 1.5GB proprietary discs that the GameCube utilises, nor the 6-10MB cartridges used for the Game Boy Advance. It is most likely that the system will use Nintendo’s new best buddies’ storage medium, the Panasonic FLASH Memory cards. These are currently rumoured to have a fully functioning capacity of over 1GB in development, far more than originally expected. An article on IGN, 9^th February, 2004, claimed that “insiders” (whatever that means…) apparently stated that the NintendoDS would be fully compatible with Game Boy Advance software. Although this would be far from impossible, given the resolution of the DS’s screen compared to that of the Advance’s, however I feel that this would greatly undermine Nintendo’s “third pillar” strategy, and would be a great mistake if they wish to continue the Game Boy series alongside the new system. Video playback and MP3 software is also likely to be included.

There are plenty more rumours being bounded around currently, most of which I’ve disregarded as fantasy from an over-imaginative Nintendo goblin’s head, as it seems completely implausible when plotted alongside what Nintendo have already stated. True to my convictions, I do believe that the new system may feature some kind of SMS-type service, but the feasibility of the feature being supported outside Nintendo’s homeland it debateable. If it ends up being some kind of infra-red “class-room antics” device, I’ll be very, very annoyed. I believe that we’ll only know the true story on how these two screens “revolutionise” gaming when we see the software running, and not before. Until E3 in May, all we can do is guess.