Nintendo Announces 1 Million Wi-Fi Users

Nintendo has announced that its Nintendo DS wireless gaming service has hit an all-time gaming record of 1 million unique users, in less than four months in operation, following the last milestone of 200,000 unique worldwide visitors in late December 2005. The company's Wi-Fi Connection lets Nintendo DS owners log on cost-free to compete or interact in a variety of games, from racing in Mario Kart DS to community-building in Animal Crossing: Wild World. The 1 millionth user was a player in Japan, who logged on to play Animal Crossing: Wild World. "Players are embracing our model of a compelling, safe, easy-to-use wireless gaming service," says Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales & marketing. "Those 1 million users represent more than 27 million game sessions." On March 20, two new Wi-Fi-enabled games arrive in North America which sport compatibility with the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection. These are Tetris DS , which brings a twist to the addictive classic puzzle game, and Metroid Prime Hunters, which features competition using Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection, and the ability to chat with one another before and after battles, using VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol).