MarkMarini

We’re less than three weeks away from the US launch of the new Nintendo DSi and there seems to be little excitement from both enthusiast press and consumers. I found this odd considering the huge potential that this device brings to the handheld market. The new digital download store can and will make a big splash. One only needs to look to the Apple’s App Store to understand this. The community of game and assorted app developers is as expansive as they are creative. Surely we’ll see a nice spillover into DSi development as well as an even larger uprising of new talent. These indie devs coupled with some larger name studios might rival Apple’s App Store in no time. There are several exciting factors of this new DS and its distribution model.

First, of course, would be the delivery and storage method. No longer must we trudge down to our local brick & mortar in order to access some good old gaming (this also makes impulse buying easier of course…). Also, one could have several games all on a single SD card rather than carrying around multiple carts (the DSi’s SDHC slot supports up to 32GB cards !!). Another benefit is pricing flexibility. The big draw to Apple’s App store is the low, often $0.99 price point on titles as well as the frequent sales developers have on their games. Giving this power to the developers allows them to have control over how their game is sold, including the ability to slash prices. As with the PC community, XBLA, PSN, WiiWare, and the App Store, the innovative gems will come from the independent developers and if the DSi follows in the footsteps of its two older brothers, these devs will have a huge install base to deliver to. Against the iPhone and iTouch, the DSi is a more traditional game system (read: it has buttons) and because of this, the DSi has even more potential to be a hugely successful platform for digital downloads. The two 0.3 megapixel cameras may provide for some unique entertainment as well ( these days, we all have camera-phones if we need to actually take a picture of something right?).

Another big addition is the ability to listen to music. Lately, I’ve been consistently using my iTouch to play some pool, word, tower defense, and other neat games while I catch up on podcasts during my morning and evening commutes. The ability to play some of my favorite DS games while listening to my podcasts and playlists is very appealing to me and of course, like the iTouch, I’ll be able to boot into any downloaded games I have on the SD card as well. For myself, it seems the DSi will replace the iTouch as my main entertainment device for commuting as well as extra free time. If I do have more than a few moments of time, I’ll still be able to grind away in my rpg of choice (something sorely lacking in the App Store). Of course the DSi comes with one major drawback, the axing of the GBA slot in favor of a slightly slimmer system with slightly larger screens. While this may be the aspect that turns people away from the DSi, I wouldn’t put it past Nintendo to offer some classic GameBoy games for purchase on their new digital store.

I understand one’s reluctance to be excited for something that has yet to be proven, as well as the hesitation to purchase until a few exclusive “killer apps” arrive but if Nintendo’s past successes with the DS, Wii, and other endeavors ( as well as Apple’s recent success) is any indication, then we’ve got a monster coming our way April 3rd 2009.

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