BreakmanX.com

Ok didn't know where to post this but this is the "all things handheld" forum, so here it goes.

http://games.slashdot.org/games/04/03/1 ... 86&tid=207

The Nintendo DS will have instant messaging?? Using a stylus?? Looks like they're trying to take what Tapwave is doing with the Zodiac and make it profitable (unlike the Zodiac).
In either case, it does sound sweet, but isn't this something that is standard on cell phones? It makes me wonder if the N-Gage could have been successful if not for the numerous fuck-ups along the way. If not for their terrible engineering design, foot-in-mouth marketing campaign, and the fact that they were ahead of their time, they could have really taken off. See, people like portability, and in this day and age, they also like carrying along less devices. So as I see it, it's inevitable that the cell phone, digital camera, IM machine, organizer and portable game system will all be in one small device. Not to say that all cell phones will be game machines, but if Nintendo really wants to get on the ball, they should team up with a notable cell service provider, like Verizon and Sprint, and for their next system after the DS/GBA generation, make it an all-in-wonder. By that time, the public should be ready for a portable device that can do it all.
/me shivers with delight at the thought of the GBA's clamshell design incorprated into a cellphone
Oh wait. That's already commonplace. See? It's meant to be!

Cell phone technology is not yet standardized enough to make a good device. If they chose only one company, they'd be screwing over many cell phone customers, and would lose tons of sales on that notion. If they made their system incorporate CDMA, TDMA, and GSM technology, well they just can't do that, it'd be too expensive and unwieldy.

Speaking of which, phones and game systems are both two entirely different ergonomic designs. In spite of the GBA's clamshell design, it still does not make a good phone, nor does my cell phone make a good game system (aside from simple things like snake).

And don't say that "the technology will be there when the DS is ready", because it won't. The DS is going to be awesome the way it is, and it wont' be too expensive either.

All the cool features rumored of the DS are there to enhance the gaming experience. IM is there so you can chat with people you are playing games with, which is essential to any networked game. The potential for strategy games on this device, with it's touch screen interface and wireless networking, surpasses even the PC. I really can't wait to see it.

My whole rant was centered on the generation AFTER the GBA/DS. By that time, the technology SHOULD be around, knowing how fast it grows.