Wii to lack four-player support?

Since the launch of the Nintendo 64, Nintendo’s consoles have come with four-player support as standard, and games have been expected to utilise this.

In the past, gamers have been more than satisfied. Now, there is concern that Wii will not follow the trend.

Of the nine first-party titles in the launch line-up, only two (Wii Sports and Mario Strikers Charged) are confirmed to have four-player support. Other games such as Excite Truck are reportedly limited to two players only.

WarioWare boasts multiplayer support for 2 – 5 players, though this may well be using a ‘take-it-in-turns’ system, similar to that 8-player modes found in the EyeToy series.

There is also a worrying reluctance to embrace online play. Of the first-party launch titles, only Mario Strikers Charged and Battalion Wars II will feature online multiplayer.

While this is early days for the Wii’s life, it is still a noticeable step back from Nintendo’s tradition of maximised multiplayer functionality, not to mention their promise of including more people and their families in gaming.