What Wii want to see in 2008

[Momma Bear]

amers are a fickle lot. As good as things are now on the console front, there is definitely room for improvement. With that in mind, we’ve compiled a list of our biggest peeves, potential tweaks and suggestions for each of the three console manufacturers. From interface additions to in-game features, nothing was off limits. It’s not like we have to foot the bill, anyway. Read through them, think it over and then let us know what you’d like to see. Send us your suggestions, and we’ll incorporate them in a future readers’ wish-list feature.

The way that Nintendo seems to have the general public in its white-gloved palm, you’d think they’ve pretty much achieved perfection. Right? Not by a long shot. The system definitely has its quirks—some of which we love, others that could use some serious tweaking. Here are some proposed fixes for some of not-so-lovable quirks.

A much cleaner home

Since it doesn’t currently support any resolutions higher than 480p, the Wii is at a bit of a resolution disadvantage. Sony and Microsoft can get away with smaller text—not always a good thing—but things can get washed out and illegible on Nintendo’s machine once past a certain size threshold. One way of countering the problem has been creating an interface with oversized buttons and equally bold text. In addition to standing out plainly, they’re also perfectly sized targets for the Wii remote’s cursor. Not everyone’s playing their games on a tiny TV, though. While we appreciate keeping things large, the interface is almost too large when viewed on bigger screens. We’d love to see an option for a slightly smaller interface, with smaller buttons and text. An indicator with wi-fi signal strength would be handy, too. While we’re dreaming, let’s see some support for a friends list.

Here's how we imagine an interface with smaller buttons might look.

More channels
You might notice in our above rendering, we’ve taken the liberty of adding a few channels. The current offering is good, giving users access to news, games and Mii popularity contests, but there are definitely a few holes in the current lineup. We’d like to add:

-Virtual Console channel
If you’re a little neurotic about keeping things organized, the Wii’s menu system is a nightmare in the making. If you’re neurotic and nostalgic, you’re in real trouble. Each Virtual Console game creates a new thumbnail on the main menu, which can quickly get out of hand if you play a lot of the classics. Sure, you can scroll left and right and access extra slots for your games, but it’s a pretty clunky solution. With the number of titles available creeping toward the 200-game mark, it’s about time the Virtual Console gets its own channel. With only 48 possible slots—one of which is permanently occupied by the Disc Channel—space is a prime consideration.

-Wii Ware
-Nintendo’s downloadable-software strategy is set to explode in 2008. Rather than keep it hidden in the store, why not give it its own special place on the main screen?

-Previews channel
Nintendo flirted with delivering game previews on the Wii with its special Metroid Prime 3 channel. There, users could view trailers and gawk at a few stills. We’d love to see the idea expanded to show off sneak peeks at upcoming games. In Japan, the recently launched Everybody’s Nintendo lets users check out gameplay videos as well as download DS demos. Rather than cram those two completely different functions together, we’d like to see a Previews channel and…

-A DS channel
We want DS demos, and we want them now.
-Demos channel

Of course, we don’t just want them on our DSs. Let’s see some demos for Wii games, too. Until we see some kind of mass-storage device for the Wii or larger, more affordable SD cards, however, we can keep on dreaming.

-Music channel
Listening to tunes in the Photo channel is a great, but why don’t we have a dedicated music channel? Get on it.

New Mii options

In the rigid world of Mii creation, redheads don’t exist. Neither do people with green or blue hair, or any of the other shades you see on people loitering outside of Hot Topic. Nintendo has done a good job of allowing people to make passable representations of friends, family members or celebrities with a fairly limited palette of options. Sure, there are a handful of noses to pick from, but only one of them belongs on a human being—even a virtual one. The aforementioned hair-color selection is weak, too, leaving a variety of natural hues out entirely. Let’s see some more options! While we’re at it, let’s have some flexibility with our Miis’ wardrobes. Picking a favorite color changes your Mii’s shirt, but you’re still stuck with long-sleeved, monochromatic threads. We want to change our pants, shirt styles and hats. Better yet, let’s see some more flexibility—a decal editor to allow users to make their own customized logos and patterns would be aces. The Check Mii Out faithful will love you forever, Nintendo.

In addition to more body and clothing options, why not add accessories?

Redesigned store
The current store manages to spread out a single screen’s worth of content into multiple pages. We propose putting all the info for Virtual Console releases on a single page, which could easily be done without sacrificing legibility or usability. This would also be a perfect time to incorporate video trailers of each of the games on the service, too. It worked for the Metroid Prime channel, why wouldn’t it work for old-school games, too? Being able to see the games in action would be a lifesaver for people who might not have been playing games when some of those classics were introduced.

We'd like to see a redesigned store with everything available at a glance.

Blue-light options

If you don’t use your Wii for messaging or haven’t subscribed to the Check Mii Out update spam bonanza, you might not even know that your Wii is capable of producing a cool blue light. The throbbing reminder is a nifty way to let people know something new is on its way, but it could be so much more. Why not let people turn it on whenever they want, or have it light up while games are being played? It’s a neat effect—why let it be wasted so much of the time?


Cases for all first-party games (seriously)

All right, Nintendo, the jig is up. You managed to find room in your boxes to include those goofy silicon-rubber remote sleeves—why not find a way to include an actual DVD case for Wii Sports? Those cardboard sleeves are murder on games. Sure, adding a case would tack an additional $0.25 to the cost of a game, but we’re willing to pony up. The latest culprit? Link’s Crossbow Training. You’re not peddling GameCubes anymore, Nintendo, so stop throttling your wallets like you are.


Standard online options
It’s no secret that Nintendo has been a—how shall we put this—reluctant player in the world of online gaming. With Super Smash Bros. Brawl on the horizon, this is a perfect time for the company to take a big step toward catching up with the rest of the world. When the system launched, we were told that WiiConnect24 would be a portal into an amazing online world. So far, it’s just another way to get texts from friends. Let’s see some of the features gamers have been taking for granted for years—real-time messaging, alerts and all those other seemingly mundane additions.


Which dovetails into…


Chat/Bluetooth headsets
The Wii supports Bluetooth, a technology synonymous with those annoying headsets you see crammed into the ears of jerks in airports everywhere. While we aren’t huge fans of the jerk aspect, the lack of Bluetooth headset support on the Wii is a bit puzzling. Since we’re all friends in the world of Wii online gaming, why not let people actually chat?
And also includes...
WiiConnect24 downloadable content
WiiConnect24 was supposed to give users new content for their games. New tracks, new levels, and more were supposed to float through the internets and magically appear on your Wii. So far, we’ve seen nothing. C’mon Nintendo!

User profiles
Despite an unrelenting push at positioning itself as a family console, Nintendo’s really missed the boat on this front. Each family member should be able to have individual user accounts, with customizable themes, layouts and other goodies. Say Dad plays a lot of Virtual Console games because he’s a softy who likes to think about the good ol’ days. He’s welcome to rearrange his Wii’s main menu to give those classic games prominent spots on his front page. Little brother couldn’t care less about those games—he’s kind of an oddball, and he enjoys checking the weather and reading news headlines on his Wii. After logging into his profile, those channels are featured on the front page. Mom just likes sending memos to everyone in the house, telling them they play too many games. We envision the option to have multiple user accounts, represented by their respective Miis. Users could check to see if they have new messages or memos on the screen when they first log on, too.

Every member of the family could have their own individual login--here's how we think it could look.

HD support
The PS2 did it. The Xbox did it. The Wii’s more powerful than those last-gen systems, right? Other than being stubborn, there’s no reason why Nintendo isn’t supporting HD visuals for at least its AAA titles. As good as Metroid and Mario looked on the Wii, imagine how much better they would have appeared in 720p. Heck, the Xbox 360 and PS2 had games that ran in 1080i, so there’s no reason why the Wii can’t pump out 720p games.

What about you? What would you like to see?

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