WiiHD

Great Job man. Keep it updated.

Don't see why friend codes are under the 'really really bad' heading, they really fall on the 'meh' side. they'll never be a plus, but if devs aren't lazy they won't be that detrimental to the experience. the 'really really bad' comes in when you have bare bones friends/random with no ability to add opponents you meet online. and using the address book for a universal roster should be(and should have been) standard from the start if nintendo really believes FC's are necessary.

Friend Codes are Friend Codes. Maybe, maybe I should put NWC instead of FCs there. But really, the NWC was designed around FCs. None of it really makes sense. And FCs don't actually protect kids.

I believe FCs are the heart of the problem, and are the reason we don't have a decent lobby system. As such, I'm going to continue to rail against them.

If someday, FCs still "technically" exist but are never really experienced by the end user, (that is if they've been eliminated in reality if not in name), I'll refocus my criticism. Until then, I think I'm on the right track.

I'm a developer on an unannounced Wii title. I can assure you that NO dev outside of Nintendo wants friend codes anywhere near their game, but they don't have a choice. If/how to use friend codes is not a developer decision, it's not a publisher decision, it's a Nintendo decision. Your game does not get released without Nintendo's stamp of approval on it, and they will not approve an online game that doesn't use friend codes. This is a hard rule. Somehow EA got a free pass last year, but Nintendo has made it very clear that this was a one-time thing. And these guys think that friend codes are just about the greatest thing they ever came out with - they're not going anywhere.

I'm not sure how you can fault the game for not having voice chat when the Wii voice chat peripheral doesn't even exist yet. But don't get your hopes up for it - Nintendo is only going to allow voice chat with people on your friends list. They are huge on privacy, and free communication with "strangers" is not allowed under any circumstances.

For what it's worth, I got a chance to play COD:WW on the Wii, and it rocks.

"developer on an unannounced wii game"

That's completely believable. not at all vague and possibly bs.

Riddle me this mr. dev: if every single ea game on wii is allowed to bypass NWC, then why not non ea games? If nintendo keeps making this exception for electronic arts then surely doing the same for other companies shouldn't be a problem.

@david: The first step towards what you're describing has been done in mkwii already; if you find an opponent you like over wi-fi and decide to add them the codes are added for you.

the invites system sees the biggest problem solved, allowing wii friends to automatically add each other in the game.

and finally, wii speak(animal crossing, the conduit) will at least enable friends to communicate.

of course, even with all that implemented there would still be a few problems, but they can be addressed with or without FCs in the mix.

I'm not saying you're definitely a liar, but anyone can claim to be 'a developer on a unannounced title' and not show proof because they then can say 'oh, I signed a non-disclosure agreement'

as of now, I don't know your name or what company you supposedly work for(can't verify your employment) or which upcoming game you work on(to be fair, ndas would definitely prevent you from talking about this)

I also notice you merely parrot the 'one time exception' line despite all online ea titles getting a 'free pass' (my own ea sports collection is a testament to that)

Until such time as you're able to provide proof only ea is allowed to bypass friend codes, I'm going to assume someone is lying.(if not you, your publisher/high voltage)

as for the vast majority of developers perferring a FC-less online environment, I do not doubt that, if only because the end user hates dealing with them.

I don't care if you think I'm lying or not. But do you REALLY think that games that use friend codes use them because the developer or the publisher thought it was a good idea? You must really think we are all idiots. We're all gamers like any of you, we've all played xbox live and know how gimped Nintendo's online service is, and we recognize shitty ideas like friend codes.

I don't know why EA gets a break, there is a lot of politics and shady deals behind this sometimes. But our publisher offered Nintendo a huge amount of money if we could just bypass the god damn friend codes, and Nintendo wouldn't take it. They are dead set on having everyone use these things. But you had better believe we f#$%ing tried.

It's not just the FC's either. Ask anyone who has worked on a Nintendo platform about Lotcheck, and they'll tell you just how many cool ideas Nintendo made them take out of their game because it wasn't "safe" and "simple."

Even if there was some 'shady deal' going on, then nintendo would have to realise that forcing friend codes for third party games loses any possible point if even one company is allowed to bypass them.

Also, doesn't Electronic Arts have to use their own servers to host ea nation? If so then it may just be that nintendo only forces friend codes/NWC for games using the NWC servers. you should look into that if you haven't already.

And I see you didn't read the part where I say that developer don't want friend codes in their games. (or the majority at least, some may feel the same as nintendo does them)

Even if there was some 'shady deal' going on, then nintendo would have to realise that forcing friend codes for third party games loses any possible point if even one company is allowed to bypass them.

Also, doesn't Electronic Arts have to use their own servers to host ea nation? If so then it may just be that nintendo only forces friend codes/NWC for games using the NWC servers. you should look into that if you haven't already.

And I see you didn't read the part where I say that developer don't want friend codes in their games. (or the majority at least, some may feel the same as nintendo does them)

@david: The first step towards what you're describing has been done in mkwii already; if you find an opponent you like over wi-fi and decide to add them the codes are added for you.

I've been unable to find this option since it was last mentioned to me—possibly by you. I've asked other people who played it online more often, and they were clueless as well. Mind describing where the ability to add a recent MKWii opponent appears step-by-step?

If no one knows the option exists, and the other person doesn't get a Friend Request that that they can accept or reject, it doesn't really solve much.

I don't know why EA gets a break, there is a lot of politics and shady deals behind this sometimes.

For the purposes of WiiHD's coverage of WaWii, Activision is every bit the 800lb gorilla EA is.