So Nintendo wants to join the army of publishers and devs in the war against "used" games and equipment. This is a major dick move on Nintendo's part but some how I am not surprised in the slightest. I predict an ever increasing tide of companies pulling these dick moves to screw the used games industry as a whole.

I got "Animal Crossing City Folk" for Wii in the mail from Nintendo yesterday, along with a separate box containing the Wii Speak peripheral.

As is so often the case, I discovered something interesting in the fine print. Here's a tip: if you're buying Wii Speak, don't buy it used.

The Wii Speak peripheral is a microphone that is made to be placed above or below your TV, enabling group Internet-connected voice chat with other people who also own the peripheral. I can't tell how useful that's going to be until Multiplayer's own Tracey John and I try some "Animal Crossing" chat.

The peripheral can also be used without "Animal Crossing," just for game-free voice chat, but that requires used of the Wii Speak Channel, which will be released in December.

But there's a catch, a fine print surprise. There is a pamphlet packaged with the peripheral that includes a 16-character code, a "Wii Download Ticket Number," to be used for downloading the Wii Speak Channel. According to the pamphlet, this code "cannot be replaced by Nintendo or your retailer if it is lost or stolen."

A Nintendo rep further clarified to me that the channel won't be able to be downloaded through any other means. You won't be able to get it off the Wii Shopping Channel manually, nor would you be able to buy it. Essentially, the Wii Speak Channel will be available to new purchasers of the Wii Speak mic and that's it.

I'd imagine that anyone who gets a Wii Speak in anything other than its original packaging - buys it used on eBay, for example - isn't going to get a fresh code. And without the code, they won't be able to get the channel. So if you're shopping for Wii Speak, you'd best buy it new. I don't think use of a used Wii Speak mic would limit its functionality with "Animal Crossing," but I can't confirm that. Still, this isn't how most gaming peripherals like, say the "Rock Band" drums or the Wii Balance Board are restricted, so I thought it best to pass on.

And is the peripheral worth it? We'll let you know once we test it out.

http://multiplayerblog.mtv.com/2008/11/12/wii-speak-channel-only-for-wii-speak-purchasers/

Wow...well, that blows

I wish i had something more in depth to say, but I don't own a Wii...and really, I think I summed it up.

Failure.

... thats very EAish.
i think the nintendo fangirl in me just died.

Game companies are starting to suck:(

Make your game, sell it, do your best to keep it from getting pirated and move on. This mentality that you have to pay for everything is going to come back to haunt them later.

Meh, me thinks i shall use Skype when talking to my mates :D

Im still a Nintendo Fanboy no matter what ^^

They've been doing it to other online things for years, I'm just waiting for them to put an activation code on a console (that one might get challenged in court though.)

If someone buys a wii speak and dosn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

I... find myself not caring about this. It's just a chat application, right, so it doesn't have anything to do with voice chat within the actual games that support the accessory?

As long as you can chat in-game without the channel, I really don't care. Out of game, there's something called a phone. And another thing called the internet.

Richard Groovy Pants:
Why can't developers get trough their thick skulls that if the game is awesome no on will pirate it?

Seriously!
Want examples? Sins of a solar Empire, any game made by Valve, Civilization Series and many many others.

You start fucking up with the games and the consumers then you have screw ups like Spore.

STOP IT ALREADY!

Fix'd. /endnitpick

I don't really see how this is such a bad thing, the old cd key thing has been going on with PC games for years. It's not really any different.

...overreact much?

I mean basically you're getting pissed off that they have what amounts to a software key for it.

I'm so sorry you didn't want to pay full price for something. Wait no I'm not.

Sombra Negra:

Richard Groovy Pants:
Why can't developers get trough their thick skulls that if the game is awesome no on will pirate it?

Seriously!
Want examples? Sins of a solar Empire, any game made by Valve, Civilization Series and many many others.

You start fucking up with the games and the consumers then you have screw ups like Spore.

STOP IT ALREADY!

Fix'd. /endnitpick

I don't really see how this is such a bad thing, the old cd key thing has been going on with PC games for years. It's not really any different.

What if the key can only be synced once?

Nimbus:
If someone buys a wii speak and dosn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

I agree.

Acting like this is a new evil in Wii is over-reacting. There have always been some form of activation key out there. Remember the original Sim City for the Atari or have you ever gotten your hands on a copy of 1830? Back then people were required to get random words out of the manual to start every game. If you didn't have the manual, you could not play the game. Being forced to imput an activation code to play something or use something is being used everywhere, especially with computer games.

If someone still chooses to complain, you do know that there will be websites out there with an activation code, right? Certainly there would be a way to work around it even if you were screwed from a used online purchase. If not, then next time ask the seller.

Quaidis:
Acting like this is a new evil in Wii is over-reacting. There have always been some form of activation key out there. Remember the original Sim City for the Atari or have you ever gotten your hands on a copy of 1830? Back then people were required to get random words out of the manual to start every game. If you didn't have the manual, you could not play the game. Being forced to input an activation code to play something or use something is being used everything, especially with computer games.

The difference with those, however, is that you could still buy them pre-owned and play them, provided they came with the manual (or spinner - anybody remember those?). This single-use code is preventing people from using the product unless they buy it brand-new, which is a huge issue.

The thing that really annoys me is that, as far as I can tell, the only reason for this is to make Nintendo money by forcing people to buy brand new rather then pre-owned. Piracy doesn't enter into this, because what's to pirate? You need the microphone to use the channel - the latter is useless without the former. If the channel and the mike were two separate purchases, then maybe they have a case for doing this, but since the two come together, the whole thing is ridiculous.

blood77:

Sombra Negra:

Richard Groovy Pants:
Why can't developers get trough their thick skulls that if the game is awesome no on will pirate it?

Seriously!
Want examples? Sins of a solar Empire, any game made by Valve, Civilization Series and many many others.

You start fucking up with the games and the consumers then you have screw ups like Spore.

STOP IT ALREADY!

Fix'd. /endnitpick

I don't really see how this is such a bad thing, the old cd key thing has been going on with PC games for years. It's not really any different.

What if the key can only be synced once?

That would be the only problem with it and we don't even know if that's the case. They could just be doing what PC games are doing and not changing it at all. If they were to just keep it the way it is then there would be no problem.

Nimbus:
If someone buys a wii speak and dosn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

That's right, blame the customers, not the company.

AceDiamond:
...overreact much?

I mean basically you're getting pissed off that they have what amounts to a software key for it.

I'm so sorry you didn't want to pay full price for something. Wait no I'm not.

You are missing the ENTIRE point.

gigastrike:

blood77:

Sombra Negra:

Richard Groovy Pants:
Why can't developers get trough their thick skulls that if the game is awesome no on will pirate it?

Seriously!
Want examples? Sins of a solar Empire, any game made by Valve, Civilization Series and many many others.

You start fucking up with the games and the consumers then you have screw ups like Spore.

STOP IT ALREADY!

Fix'd. /endnitpick

I don't really see how this is such a bad thing, the old cd key thing has been going on with PC games for years. It's not really any different.

What if the key can only be synced once?

That would be the only problem with it and we don't even know if that's the case. They could just be doing what PC games are doing and not changing it at all. If they were to just keep it the way it is then there would be no problem.

Yes, it is the case. Once you use the code it is gone. It is a one time deal. That way it can never be sold used. Because if a person COULD use the code more than once they would be able to sell the used Wii Speak.

axia777:

Nimbus:
If someone buys a wii speak and dosn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

That's right, blame the customers, not the company.

Bull. There is no company involved in used-game sales.

Nimbus:

axia777:

Nimbus:
If someone buys a Wii speak and doesn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

That's right, blame the customers, not the company.

Bull. There is no company involved in used-game sales.

I think you are missing the point. Nintendo is limiting the ability of the consumer to sell an item that they legally bought to be sold used. They are doing this by making it impossible to get a code to use Wii speak by any other means other than buying it brand new. This is ALL on Nintendo. Just like the DRM mess for Spore is ALL on EA.

axia777:

Nimbus:

axia777:

Nimbus:
If someone buys a Wii speak and doesn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

That's right, blame the customers, not the company.

Bull. There is no company involved in used-game sales.

I think you are missing the point. Nintendo is limiting the ability of the consumer to sell an item that they legally bought to be sold used. They are doing this by making it impossible to get a code to use Wii speak by any other means other than buying it brand new. This is ALL on Nintendo. Just like the DRM mess for Spore is ALL on EA.

No, you are missing the point. Nintendo are providing a free service (Wii speak channel) to people who buy the peripheral first-hand. They have no reason to provide it free for everyone with a USB Mic.

Nimbus:

axia777:

Nimbus:

axia777:

Nimbus:
If someone buys a Wii speak and doesn't check if the code is in the box, it's their own fault.

That's right, blame the customers, not the company.

Bull. There is no company involved in used-game sales.

I think you are missing the point. Nintendo is limiting the ability of the consumer to sell an item that they legally bought to be sold used. They are doing this by making it impossible to get a code to use Wii speak by any other means other than buying it brand new. This is ALL on Nintendo. Just like the DRM mess for Spore is ALL on EA.

No, you are missing the point. Nintendo are providing a free service (Wii speak channel) to people who buy the peripheral first-hand. They have no reason to provide it free for everyone with a USB Mic.

Man, you are sooo lost.

axia777:

Nimbus:

No, you are missing the point. Nintendo are providing a free service (Wii speak channel) to people who buy the peripheral first-hand. They have no reason to provide it free for everyone with a USB Mic.

Man, you are sooo lost.

No, he's... Not? That's exactly how the situation seems to be. You buy a new mic, and it comes with a code for Wii Speak. Which would appear to be a application allowing you to talk to other Wiis outside chat-supporting games. This is the more likely case, since the guy in the article has a copy of AC, mic and all, ready to find out how well the voice chat works, but the channel is released next month. You could interpret it as Nintendo saying "fuck you" to the second-hand market, or you could interpret it as Nintendo trying to give consumers a reason to buy it new. Niether is more correct, and niether is less irrelevent.

Sure, it's kind of annoying, but who even cares? You people own phones, don't you? If you're so desperate for internet voice-chat, IM programs are probably more reliable. And cheaper. And ready to download now.

Richard Groovy Pants:
Sin of a Solar Empire any game made by Valve, Civilization Series and many many others.

Actually, both of those games, and literally every single game available on Steam has been pirated more than precious gold. Sorry to burst your bubble.

Break:
You could interpret it as Nintendo saying "fuck you" to the second-hand market, or you could interpret it as Nintendo trying to give consumers a reason to buy it new.

That is an interesting way of looking at it to say the least. I guess Nintendo and other companies have the right to be assholes that is true.

axia777:

Break:
You could interpret it as Nintendo saying "fuck you" to the second-hand market, or you could interpret it as Nintendo trying to give consumers a reason to buy it new.

That is an interesting way of looking at it to say the least. I guess Nintendo and other companies have the right to be assholes that is true.

It's the same thing. It's not a different way to look at it, it means the same damn thing. This is exactly my point. People are distorting the situation to fit their rampant paranoia.

Richard Groovy Pants:

I'm inside private/semi-private and free trackers, I know the numbers.

Coming from the man who started a hissy fit because I was planning on pirating a game (which I've actually reconsidered).

Screw you Nintendo...screw you.

*cries*

This for me just adds another red 'X' next to Nintendo for me.
But these 'dick moves' are becoming more frequent. Great.

With all the free services you can use, it's kind of odd nintendo would do something like this, but, I guess less wires and junk getting in my way looking for my used games at Gamestop.

I think though, if you bought the thing used, maybe they can give you the option to buy an activation code or something online at some point.