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Counterintuitive Design Choices in Gaming: Wii Friend Codes
Because One Wasn't Enough
by Coop
There have been many times this generation where we’ve gone to do something, be it charging a controller, installing software, or simply playing a game, and been met by horrid and counterintuitive design. These moments are incredibly frustrating not because the product isn't working, but because it is working precisely as intended. At one point, someone thought that these ideas were completely acceptable, sensible, and downright good choices to make. Looking back, this obviously isn’t a new phenomenon, and people have been making terrible choices for a while now, dating back to the earliest days of gaming.
Counterintuitive Design Choices in Gaming: Wii Friend Codes
Friend Codes, in and of themselves, aren’t a terrible idea. They aren’t much different than an Xbox Live Gamertag or PSN Name, just a little longer and more cumbersome. It’s understandable that Nintendo would be skeptical of the online gaming market, and they do have a kid-friendly image to defend, so requiring some more security in order to add a friend makes sense in a way. We get it, they fear the Internet, whatever, it’s fine. When the Wii first came out it was a hassle, but before long most gamers had swapped Friend Codes, had their friends lists populated, and it was done with. The crisis was averted. All was well. Sort of.
That was until the first Wii game came out that allowed for online play and required yet another friend code. See, each game on the Wii needs its own individual 12-digit code, creating a barrier between gamers and their friends for every single game. It ruined any chances the Wii had of being a successful online system, all in favor of needless security. The most confusing bit is that Nintendo doesn’t seem to force developers to use them, as some games don’t. It’s a shame, too, because the Nintendo 64 and Gamecube did a great job at keeping Nintendo ahead in the multiplayer race, and their complete and utter ignorance to the workings of the internet stopped them short. All of this can be traced back to the stupid, redundant friend codes.
Some Wii Game Might Be Ditching Friend Codes
Comments
AGREED! One universal friend code would be fine, but for every game? That's just ridiculous.
i never much cared for the friend code period.. i understand why they did it, so that there are no offensive usernames, but there is nothing worse than remembering a number, its ICQ all over again.
And this is why the Wii sucks!
So much about the Wii feels like a half-idea. Like Nintendo somehow decided to make this a mid-generation system rather than next-gen. Friend codes are just the most obvious place for this to appear.
no Q, there are more pressing reasons why the wii sucks, this is just like icing on the top
I originally thought FCs were not a big deal but yeah, the game-specific ones made it a horrible nightmare.
I don't know what the big deal is. My gamertag is 463720129837 and my psn id is 530283330498.
It's just adding it once, so, IMO, it is nothing more but a slight hinderance. Still, one code should equal one friend.