Wednesday, February 15, 2006

Nintendo DS gets Opera Browser - New hope for independent developers?

(via academic gamers) The Nintendo DS will get its own version of the Opera Browser, allowing the handheld owners to surf the internet. Here is the press release from Opera.

This could be not only a functionality everyone expected on the Wi-fi enabled console but - if Flash and Shockwave plugins get support - a chance of independent designers to develop demos, games and even a new distribution model.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Nintendo ceases to amaze me with the prospective innovation they facilitate. Its almost like they saved the industry in 85, and now they're doing it again over 20 years later. Or not, who knows how much the browsing capability will be explored. However Storytron is played through a browser, I wonder if maybe storytronics could bleed onto the DS platform.

Chico Queiroz said...

I hope so. I think Opera's 'gesture navigation' combined with the DS stylus could be a very good interface for games and interactive storytelling. Plus, handhelds could be a natural media for a system like Storytron - the user relates to it in a more individual fashion. In away, it is closer to books than PCs...

Copyright, Chico Queiroz