Big brother!

Yeah, I was pretty aware of that ... when you sign up, they make you opt in and out of several things. I'm ok with it, though - hopefully they're see that I'm playing only the cool games and not shovelware! :D

I actually like the channel ... I like streaming the videos rather than having to download them like on the 360.

Wow, that's amazingly big brother of them! I was about to sing the praisesd on the Nintendo Channel too - oh well, leave it to them to stuff up any online platforms.

i hope nintendo understands what it means when they see i have

1. landstalker

2. new adventure island (pc engine)

3. dracula x: rondo of blood

and

4. sin and punishment

downloaded,

that i have only one mii,

and that i haven't played any of their "wii" games for more than two hours.

if only there was a way to inform them which of the games with save data on my hard drive have since been sold back to the local used book store for 90% of their original purchase price.

Why is this an issue? I'm sure that Microsoft monitors the games you play etc on live. Why is it evil that a company wants to find out about their customers? Its not like they can accsess any personal or sensitive files or anything.

I'm a tad weary about people seeing my activity, but it's Nintendo, so I'm cool with it.

"Who controls the past" ran the developer's slogan, "controls the future; who controls the present controls the past."

@syl1985:

What does any of this post mean?

I seriously don't get it. It's more of an interactive survey than anything else. They want to see what interests you. Heaven forbid they care about their customers' interests.

Hm. Does this sound like spyware to anyone else besides me? Now all we need is adware (aka game advertisements)...oh wait. I wonder who will sell the first console antivirus system? I vote symantec.

You've been seeing this for years with amazon, automated data mining. It's for the most part, been rather harmless. As long as the information isn't being directly sold to third party companies. I don't have an issue with this at all. I get free demos, you get some basic information on 'me' and I use your servers for downloading.

It could be worse... Honestly. This is rather minor for data mining. It's very basic information that the user often will give up for free if simply asked

Maybe it'll see how I've only played through Zelda, Mario, and Metroid once, spent surprisingly little time with Brawl, and nearly no time at all with Wii Sports. And if it could discover how the 360 sitting two feet away from it is on way, way, way more than the Wii is, it'll send Nintendo a signal that I would prefer "original games with some depth".

But then Nintendo couldn't suggest any upcoming first-party games to me, now could it?

@108: I absolutely agree. I can only hope that by this they'll notice that I've spent far more time on No More Heros than Twilight Princess or any other rehashed Nintendo franchise...

The only sequel I'd welcome at this point would be another Mother/Earthbound game.

Not really a big deal. Remember that GTAIV tracks just about every single step you take in the game, for The Social Club. Now THAT'S Big Brother-y.

@Cogito:

This is nothing like spyware. Spyware hacks your computer and controls it to do whatever it wants. They aren't spying on you. Like I said before, it's like a survey.

who knows maybe the wii would like to play people would come to your house becasue they know you have the game

@Mini-Boss:

Why does everyone here love to nitpick about the Wii? Seriously, everyone that enters a Kotaku post just to bash the Wii should be banned. It's not funny, it's not "cool", and it certainly doesn't make you look any smarter.

DS demos? Are they live right now?

@supertails15:

That would be awesome.

@108: Man, I can't wait for a US release of Rondo of Blood, granted, I already have Dracula X Chronicles, but I feel its the kind of game that should be played on a console.

@Cogito: And I really don't think this is anything like spyware seeing as the channel pretty indescreetly tells you what it wants to do and asks whether or not you want to do it, thus negating the "spy" aspect

All that'll really catch their eyes would be "Hey this guy has spent 320 hours in Medal of Honor and 50 in Brawl."

I'm sorry. :(

@jayntampa: LIVE does do this and does it well but I do have a pet-peeve about one of the more annoying aspects of LIVE since it can clearly stream.

* The Movie previews are full-screen streaming

* The TV previews are full-screen streaming

* Spotlight videos are full-screen streaming

* Inside Xbox videos are full-screen streaming

* SD Game trailers are download and view (hence my pet-peeve annoyance).

* HD Game trailers are download and view but I can understand this as most people don't have the bandwidth. The strange thing is that SD and HD movies are stream-able which allows you to start watching them a few seconds after you buy SD movies and a few minutes after you buy HD movies. The only explanation I have for this is bandwidth demand.

I actually think this channel is brilliant, especially Miyamoto's little "fireside chat" about Wii Fit. It clarified a few things about the game to me and obviously made him look like an even bigger genius than before.
I'm still not buying it, of course, but because the channel is free, as long as you have free time it's just pure, organized information- which is a nice little insight into the once iron cage that was Nintendo.
The recommendation service is similarly brilliant, making sure they ask you your age and "core level". This will actually be helpful for some who aren't too into games but know what they like.

And then there are the DS Demos, which is the single greatest Wii Channel option Nintendo's offered since they let you watch porn on the Internet Channel XD

Obviously this channel doesn't bring Nintendo's online up to the level of the PS3's or 360's (they're not even in distant view), but it brings a lot of things together nicely in the best channel in awhile (**** you, Check Mii Out)

isn't this getting close to the live experince i hear so many raving about? they can see what you've been playing and how you use their extras.

Doesn't seem much different from all the information Amazon.com collects from you while you browse around. I don't see how this info could be used against me. I played the Wii version of Godfather for 20 hours a day? Oh well. Sorry that I'm a fan.

I only see Nintendo using this to say that wii fit is loved by everyone and excuses them from making more titles for the long-time gamers instead of their newer bigger market of family members.

If this truly caters to a specific customer, they'd have answered requests of people wanting sequels for certain titles and better VC titles.

That's a bit scary, but I doubt they're selling information or anything :P

Most importantly, the available blocks in the Wii. [www.nintendo.com]

@超外人: Oh ****... They should totally ask what VC titles we want...

It would be...

BaRiLlInAnT!!!!!

@OneManFreakShow: I just miss the Nintendo of old that really pushed the boundaries of its games. Nowadays they either throw a new coat of paint on one of their ancient IP's and release it, or create a "casual" game that can be summed up as either a collection of very simple arcade games or tech demos.

The Wii is a platform of great potential for some very fantastic games with unique gameplay elements, but outside of making a fitness "game", Nintendo doesn't seem too interested in really bringing out that potential. The fact of the matter is that I bought a Wii two months after launch, and I have been very disappointed thus far. Zelda was ok, Mario Galaxy was fun and very imaginative for a while, I played the death out of Melee, so Brawl hasn't exactly enraptured me, and Retro's Prime 3 was great times, but I didn't do a second playthrough cause of the massive 360 holiday release list headlined by Halo 3. Oh, and didn't I mention that its basically universally agreed that the Wii's online service is total, lagtastic crap, even for a free service?

All that, and I still have a grudge against Nintendo cause they refuse to release/translate Mother 3 outside of Japan. So yes, until Nintendo does something new along the lines of Pikmin, I'll bash the Wii.

But I will admit, I forgot to mention that me and my friends played the total hell out of Mario Strikers. That game is a blast.

@Mini-Boss:
I'm sorry, did you say Halo 3? you talk about throwing a new coat of paint on an IP, and go on to mention Halo 3. You fail at this thread.

@DarkLinkinfinite: I was trying to be facetious. I've worked as a PC Technician for about five years. I know what spyware is ;). This, to me, is something along the lines of the infamous "tracking cookie," something innocuous and irrelevant until you begin to value your privacy. No, Nintendo, I don't want you watching what I do. I realize that to you it's nothing more than market research, but to me it's invasive. And it doesn't matter to me that I'm not doing anything illegal with my console (like mod chips, etc.); I still don't approve, and as a paying customer that should be my right. Granted, you give the option of disabling the service, but in return I lose out on a bunch of features you offer. A better way to garner this sort of data is through voluntary polls...perhaps through the "everybody votes" thingy...but I just really, really can't stand when software does things almost behind your back. It's the same reason I don't like symantec software (hence why I suggested them as the antivirus maker).

Nintendo is going to use your play clock to steal your identity! Run for your lives!

@Spacehog85: Eh, good point on Halo 3... but it seems to me that for every decent game that the Wii gets, the 360 gets like, 4. That, and Halo 3's online is at least playable, and the IP isn't that old yet...

...and I happen to really like Halo. I know it isn't the cool thing to do, but that's what I like. Halo still seems great to me, but I feel like i've been playing the same Zelda game for the last 15 years.

Question: will they know you had a modchip and know you are running homebrew? That is MY concern...

Does anyone else find this... Arousing?

@TheManator:

I hate to say this BUT...

I think you can turn this feature off the telling Nitnedo about you. You have to give your consent to this, and if you don't want it turn it off.

I really don't get it. I opted in so I could use the demos, and the idea doesn't bother me. My Wii has no data on it that I particularly care about Nintendo seeing.

Also, I wish people would stop bashing the Wii library, because the Wii has plenty of awesome games and I play with it a lot.

@Mini-Boss:

I like Halo as well, I have all three, and would really like for bungie to update 1 and 2 for 360. And I with your thoughts on Zelda. ever since LTTP it's beat bosses, crossover into another world/time travel beat more bosses, rinse, repeat.

Just the thought of Halo 3 not being a rehash made my head hurt.

And I can certainly agree with you on the Mother 3 issue as well. I can only replay Earthbound so many times.

@Sailorcancer: But I love the demos...so, kind of torn about this...

@jayntampa:

actually u can stream while you are downloading the movie

@Mini-Boss: Ah, Mario Strikers Charged. Such an underrated, underappreciated joy of a game on so many levels.

@Rocci1212: Agreed. And nobody brings it up even in online discussions, when that game was a joy to play online. Never experienced lag when I played.

I'm not at all concerned about this. I don't mind Amazon checking my shopping habits and suggesting things to me, and I don't mind when Google does it either. It actually makes my experience nicer.

I hope that Nintendo gets the message when they see how many times I send the "Should Nintendo release Mother 3 in America" question with two "yes" responses to the Everybody Votes channel.

[www.nintendo.com]

details what is tracked and mentions what is not tracked. It's a hell of a lot better then what numerous agencies do such as Tivo which thought a number of users were gay or Hitler fanatics based on one or two viewing choices.

@Mini-Boss:

Then you need to look harder. Also Halo an original IP? Only console gamers think that. PC gamers have played Halo hundreds of times before the game even came out.

At least Zelda does add some new elements and refines others.

Who seriously gives a shit? It's not like it has your home address, phone number, SSN, driver's license, and credit car numbers. If Nintendo wants to know how often I play SSBB or if I own MKWii, who cares? I think people make noise about these things only because they have a functioning keyboard and nobody else to talk to.

@Cogito:

This is a poll since you agree to it. Several times on this page the website that lists what is tracked has been linked to. It's just effing system specs and some gameplay time.

Downloading demos is neat an all, but the Nintendo Channel is really nothing more than a way to get market research for free. I filled out one "Recommend Game" survey and swore to never do it again.

The least Nintendo could do is throw me some Wii Points for filling out surveys. Would it really be that much of a loss to them to throw me 10 points a survey and let me have a free SNES game after I give them SIXTY surveys worth of information?

here's what I like about this: it might get nintnedo to realize just how to make wifi work better, and show proof that they need some sort of memory solution for the wii.

I realize I'm popably supposed to be outraged or something, but what's Nintendo going to do with my internet specs and entertainment setup information? They can have it, long as they ask nicely.

Also, maybe they will see how extremely seldom I play my Wii. Now if only Nintendo could see the data on, by comparison, how often I'm using my 360...

Sorry Nintendo. Dem's the Breaks.

@Mini-Boss: If you've been playing the same Zelda for 15 years, maybe you should turn off Link to the Past for a while and try one of the newer ones.

Yeah, I think I'll pass on this. I don't want Nintendo doing any sort of bans when they found out I have quite a few hours of the Japanese version of SSBB in an US Wii.

I wonder if they even care?

Oh noes! Big Brother knows how many Miis I have! What's next, my Social Security number??

Please. Does anyone honestly have any problem with any of this?

It's called the Nintendo Channel for a good reason.

Honestly, I have no problem with this. I downloaded the channel earlier today and they aren't hiding what they're doing. There are big messages asking if you want to send information to them. And I can't see any harm in sending the information they're asking for. If they actually use this information, it might actually help improve the platform.

It is kind of shitty that you can't get the DS demos w/out opting in, but it still seems harmless to me.

I have the same feeling towards some other collection things, like Steam gathering hardware specs. It's really nothing sensitive, and actually can potentially improve the service/platform.

Data mining is quite common, and as most other commenters I don't have a problem with it. It's not like you have any privacy on what you do online anyway. For companies: data equals money.

And if you are using google, gmail, hotmail or any free service on the internet, you may be sure that your information is going to be used. So nitpicking about this while they give you a choice is quite pointless.

@Yetanotheruninspiredscreename, Roto13: Exactly. Aside from the basic story being similar in many of the numerous Zelda games, it's changed WAY more than probably any other series that's been around this long