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Is A "DSi Speak" Channel Coming To Nintendo DSi?
An accidental leak on Nintendo's website may have revealed a brand-new voice addition for the Nintendo DSi. Gamasutra reports that numerous sources noticed a strange bit of text popping up on Nintendo's customer support site for a brief time earlier this week:
"To redeem a Nintendo DSi Download Ticket number, such as for the Nintendo DSi Speak Channel, enter the number off the Nintendo DSi Download Ticket in 'Settings and Features' off of the main Nintendo DSi Shop page, then select 'Nintendo DSi Download Ticket."
Nintendo pulled the questionable mention of the DSi Speak Channel once various websites and forums began picking up on it. There has been no further information released on what this potential future channel might be nor when it would launch. Nintendo's official line is that this is just a rumor and that they have nothing to announce at this time.
If I had to guess, I would assume that the DSi Speak Channel could operate similarly to the original DS's Pictochat feature, allowing you to hook up and voice chat with nearby DSi users. Presumably it would also allow for online wi-fi talking, although I'd guess Nintendo wouldn't allow that without friend codes. Again, though, this is all speculation.
The name DSi Speak is clearly inspired by the Wii Speak device that was released for Nintendo's home console last year. The room-wide microphone was bundled with Animal Crossing: City Folk but hasn't been used with very many games since then. In fact, it's been so thoroughly ignored that GI's Andrew Reiner recently wrote up an obituary for that short-lived product. Let's hope that DSi Speak doesn't suffer the same fate if it turns out to be legit.
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