Jacob Aron, technology reporter
(Image: AP Photo/Nintendo)
Nintendo has announced that the tablet-like controller of its next console, the Wii U,
will come equipped with a near-field communications (NFC) chip, opening
up the possibility of new kinds of games and new ways to pay for them.
"By installing this functionality, it will become possible to create
cards and figurines that can electronically read and write data via
non-contact NFC and to expand the new play format in the video game
world," said Nintendo president Satoru Iwata.
A game released last year called Skylanders
used NFC technology to bring toy models into its virtual environment,
but that required a special hardware add-on - the new controller will
allow any game on the Wii U to do the same.
Iwata also suggested the chips could be used to pay for new in-game content via an NFC-enabled phone system, such as the recently launched Google Wallet. "Adoption of this functionality will enable various other
possibilities, such as using it as a means of making micropayments," he said.
The
company plans to announce the final details of the Wii U in June at E3,
the video game industry's biggest annual gathering, and will release
the console later this year.
http://www.newscientist.com/
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