dsi-enhanced
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Rumor: DSi-only games coming this fall
Some DSi-enhanced games are out or on the way soon, mostly from Ubisoft. But nothing yet, aside from DSiWare, that requires the latest version of Nintendo's handheld, despite an announcement at GDC that such games would be on the way.According to a "retail source" who spoke to Kotaku, the first DSi-exclusive games will be out sometime this fall, which seems rather abrupt, since those games would have to be announced and then released in just a couple of months. Kotaku says that both the cases and the actual cartridges for DSi games will be white, to distinguish them from normal DS software.
Ubisoft's My Healthy Cooking Coach is DSi Enhanced
Ubisoft just announced its first game to take advantage of the DSi's camera feature, and it's, uh, My Healthy Cooking Coach (or simply My Cooking Coach in the UK). The game will work on both DS and DSi, but DSi owners will have access to ten extra recipes for some reason (mostly just to make DSi owners feel special, probably), and will be able to use pictures taken with the DSi camera in their own chef profiles. The press release mentions DS and DSi versions, so we've contacted Ubisoft to clarify, in case there are separate cartridges for each system [Update: it's just one DSi-enhanced cartridge].My Cooking Coach contains 240 healthy recipes, along with "tips and tricks to create healthy and delicious meals that will delight friends and family." My Cooking Coach will arrive in June.%Gallery-49392%
Reggie: No plans to reveal DSi-enhanced software until after launch
NOA president Reggie Fils-Aime spoke with MTV Multiplayer about the DSi and the GDC announcement of DSi-exclusive and DSi-enhanced software. Though Nintendo isn't making specific announcements about hybrid games until after the system is in stores -- "It would be reasonable to talk about that after we've launched" -- Reggie believes that the majority of DS software will either not take advantage of the DSi's features or be hybrid. "Why? One hundred-million installed base of DS. Developers are going to want to leverage that installed base and yet they'll want to provide extra content via the features of the DSi, like the camera. That's my expectation as to how it will play out."Reggie also offered impressions of his hands-on time with The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks, providing a slight gameplay detail: "You do more in tracking and outlining. We showed it in the trailer. You move [an extra] character to a spot in order to unlock puzzles. I really like that." He responded only "Wouldn't that be nice?" when asked if Spirit Tracks would be DSi-enhanced.%Gallery-48535%
Nintendo announces DSi-only and "DSi Enhanced" software
While Nintendo has been pretty good so far with the Game Boys of yore and the DS / DS Lite at keeping backwards compatibility pretty much at a maximum, the DSi's added functionality and processing power is going to test that a bit. Nintendo has confirmed that there will be two new types of DS software, "DSi Cards" and "DSi Enhanced Cards." The former will only work with the DSi (and with the current DS install base, we're guessing they won't be incredibly common, but the DSi's off to a strong start) and the latter will offer expanded functionality on the DSi (like mapping a photo onto a character) but will still downgrade gracefully to regular DS handhelds. This could certainly cause some confusion, but hopefully anything DSi specific will be very obviously DSi-centric, like a camera app or something to automatically spend thousands of Nintendo Points on classic titles in a flailing attempt to relive your childhood.
GDC09: DSi-only and DSi Enhanced cards announced
At Nintendo's GDC panel on the DSi's design, Project Leader Masato Kuwahara revealed a bit of news regarding DSi software. that will either terrify or thrill you based on the status of your DSi preorder. Two new types of DS cartridges are on the way: "DSi Cards," which will only work on the DSi, and "DSi Enhanced Cards," which work on all DS systems, but will have extra features when played on a DSi.We knew that Gameloft was planning to use some kind of hybrid DS/DSi card. But we didn't think that Nintendo would make DSi-only cards! And to be clear, by "didn't think" we mean "saw it coming a damn mile away." Confirmed: you're buying another DS.
