Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection is Nintendo's designated online service for Nintendo Wii and Nintendo DS games.
About
While the NES, SNES, and N64 all featured some variation of connecting online and the Gamecube allowed online interaction with other users for an extremely limited number of games, Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection is when Nintendo started taking online gaming a little more seriously. It began in November 2005 with the launch of Mario Kart DS. Players can only connect online through a wireless router. Those without one must use a Nintendo Wi-Fi USB Connector, however Nintendo has since discontinued selling the product.
Instead of using designated usernames like other platforms, players can only add each other to the Friends Lists by trading a 12 or 16 digit Friend Code. The Friend Code, much to the chagrin of players everywhere, is only tied to the game or system it was generated from. Even if it's the same friend, the Friend Code must be entered again if it's for a different game. While players can set up random matches with strangers, interaction is typically more limited and trying to obtain stranger's friend codes is near impossible. Nintendo sticks by it's Friend Code mantra as a means to keep children safe from dangerous stranger.
List of Nintendo Games that support Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection
- Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
- Animal Crossing: City Folk
- Animal Crossing: Wild World
- Battalion Wars 2
- Clubhouse Games
- Custom Robo Arena
- Daigasso! Band Brothers DX
- Diddy Kong Racing DS
- Dr. Mario Online RX
- Endless Ocean
- Endless Ocean: Blue World
- Excitebike: World Rally
- Excitebots: Trick Racing
- Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon
- Jet Impulse
- Jump Ultimate Stars
- Kenkou Ouen Recipe 1000: DS Kondate Zenshuu
- Kousoku Card Battle: Card Hero
- Magical Starsign
- Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
- Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games
- Mario Kart DS
- Mario Kart Wii
- Mario Strikers Charged
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis
- Mawashite Tsunageru Touch Panic
- Metroid Prime Hunters
- Minna no Joushiki Ryoku TV
- My Pokémon Ranch
- Number Battle
- Otona no Joushikiryoku Training DS
- Personal Trainer: Walking
- Picross 3D
- Picross DS
- Planet Puzzle League
- Pokémon Battle Revolution
- Pokémon Diamond and Pearl
- Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver
- Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
- Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time and Darkness
- Pokémon Platinum
- Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia
- Sekai no Gohan Shaberu! DS Oryouri Navi
- Sin & Punishment 2
- Star Fox Command
- Style Savvy
- Super Smash Bros. Brawl
- Suujin Taisen
- Takt of Magic
- Tetris DS
- The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
- WarioWare D.I.Y.
- Wi-Fi Taiou Yakuman DS
- Wii Chess
Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection Pay & Play
To support the recent trend of Downloadable Content, Nintendo introduced the Pay & Play Logo, a red version of the Wi-Fi Connection Logo. This is intended for games where the user must pay for additional content online. So far, only Wii games have taken advantage of it. Because there is no way to access Downloadable Content through the Wii Shop, it can only be downloaded in the supported game. Although Nintendo introduced the option, the only game under their name that uses it is Lonpos for WiiWare.