Nintendo hints at location-free Wii

Could Ninty's next-gen console follow the DS in shunning region codes?

The DS's region-free games are great – it means we can import titles from the Far East and side-step the short changing we usually get here in Europe.

Now Nintendo's hinted that the Wii could follow suit, with Perrin Kaplan, vice president of marketing and corporate communications in America, dropping some clues that games won't care where they were bought, or where you play them.

[wakkiwakko]

That's great! :D

[ArchChef]

But what is the point of current DVD and game region encoding? Why does it matter to the DVD makers or the Console makers where you ultimatley purchase your game from?

I suppose there has to be a reason, but what is it?

[wakkiwakko]

Different TV formats. In North America you got NTSC ruling the broadcasting world and in elseworlds you got PAL. Diff regions diff formats. Try running a PAL signal on NTSC tv. You get flickers like no other.

Only prob is that you may not have a tv that can support it. Or hardware for that matter. Some DVD players allow both formats and just simulate NTSC format for PAL media and Vice Versa. You may not get a better image quality (shrunken image or stretched ETC.) But it’ll play well.

Games like carts (DS/GBA/N64 etc) and the new wii format. It's good. Cause it don't matter where it's from. Only flaw will be the language or summin for that matter (pick up a Jap version of POkemon [months before US relase] and you’ll enjoy it. Half the time. Other half you’ll be reading FAQs to find out what that squiggly line means. I'm guessing the wii will be able to play PAL formats on a for NTSC. And vice versa. :D Something for which you need a modchip for either xbox or playstation. Which is very cool for Nintendo to do. :D