I was a little miffed when Square-Enix announced Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time. More Crystal Chronicles is certainly a good thing, especially when it’s new Crystal Chronicles that promises online and an opportunity to improve on Ring of Fates’ flaws (no story mode co-op is not cool, guys.) I was just sad because this meant the first Crystal Chronicles announced for Wii, The Crystal Bearers, looked even more likely like a candidate for the vaporware hall of fame. I’m getting over the sour grapes though. A game that can be played cooperatively on either a Wii or a DS is the connectivity dream realized, a grand delivery on the promise of Gamecube’s Crystal Chronicles and even Miyamoto and Toru Iwatani’s Pac-man Vs. Graphics be damned, this is the future of co-op.
The news is already racing around the internet that Square-Enix might be giving Dragon Quest IX the Echoes of Time treatment. EGM’s classic rumor monger Quartermann says DQIX might hit both of Nintendo’s consoles, ensuring that it will sell a billion copies instead of just half a billion. If this turns out to be true, and both Echoes of Time and DQIX play well over Nintendo Wi-Fi, Nintendo’s sickly online strategy may finally have its first bonafide hook. One of the biggest factors keeping me away from games like Mario Kart Wii (beyond its dumbed-down play) and Animal Crossing: City Folk (beyond its anemic new-features list) is that I already have perfectly functional, complete versions of both games on my Nintendo DS. If S-E’s new games trigger a broader trend, one that sees networked games coming packaged with both a Wii disc and DS cart, the problem of separate versions of what are essentially identical games will evaporate. How about a Wii/DS New Super Mario Bros. 2 with a meatier version NSMB’s awesome competitive mode? Or a brand new Zelda: Four Swords? That would rule. And Nintendo has to be salivating thinking about a premium priced Mario Party on both systems.
Then again, that’s a whole lot of Friend Codes to wrangle…
Related links:
A Change of Paint For Nintendo
Nintendo Might Just Hate You
WiiWare: Nintendo, Babe, It Just Isn’t Working Out
The 'Bout Time Report: Dragon Quest IX Gets a Release Date
Trailer Review: Dragon Quest IX