GoNintendo Pukes; Forbes/GameSpot Rebukes: DS-Cell not worst idea ever

Now, I’m not one to say I told you so… until after I’m proven right. Has that time come yet? Nope. Not quite. “What on earth are you talking about,” you ask?!  Oh, just this little concept called the “DS Mobile” I dreamed up over a month ago that our friends over at GoNintendo soundly rejected after pangs of nausea. No, no announcements as of yet, but this little known publication *cough*Forbes*cough* happens to agree with me.

*cough* Sorry *cough*Forbes*cough* I’m a little under the weather… must be that Nintendo-mobile-stomach flu going around… okay, so I shouldn’t throw the gauntlet down quite so hard at GoNintendo. After all, Forbes didn’t cite my article directly, but we all know genius when we see it.

In fact, they didn’t even hint that Nintendo would come out with a mobile-enabled gaming device. Rather, Forbes writer, Brian Caulfield, points out that “the Nintendo DS is looking a little weary,” and “if you want to see the future of Nintendo’s handheld gaming devices, pick up an iPhone or iPod Touch.” In essence, the only way that Nintendo will be able to compete in the future of portable consoles will be to have a mobile component.  I’m not talking Wi-Fi here! I mean the real deal.

Among the reasons business analysts are postulating the iPhone as the next portable gaming platform: wireless digital gaming digital distribution model, “GPS on board that can be used for location-based gaming,” and social gaming that will always be with you on the go.  And if you’re a regular reader of GotGame News, you should recognize those concepts from the article by yours truly.  These are all the “would-be-nice” game components for developers of the App Store.  But if Nintendo wants to keep being treated as the belle of the ball from game developers, they’re going to have to come up with a device that trounces the iPhone… or else they’ll end up being the red-headed stepchild in the portable market.

GoNintendo: You know I love you guys

So, though the results of technological progress may want to make traditional gamers “throw up,” the casual gaming market may be directing Nintendo toward a more diverse platform.  With the recent news that the new DS will have a camera and a music player built in, the DSi is only one antenna away from being the iPhone. And since Nintendo isn’t locked down to AT&T like the iPhone, maybe the rest of us will be able to have a cooler-than-the-iPhone toy sooner than we think.