14 DAY TRIAL // It seems that the “Demo Play” feature, which allows players to go through tough areas of Nintendo games easily, will be available not only on the Wii home gaming console but also on the DS and DSi handhelds. This means that, in the near future, players could be just laying back and waiting while games solve themselves as they watch.
A piece in newspaper Nikkei, which was spotted by Kotaku, is saying that “high speed action games” are especially suitable for Demo Play on the Nintendo DS.
When it comes to the Wii, the remake of New Super Mario Bros. Wii is set to be the first title to use the new feature, with Shigeru Miyamoto saying that “In New Super Mario Bros Wii, if a player is experiencing an area of difficulty, this will allow them to clear troubled areas and take over when they're ready.”
What's not clear right now is exactly how the system will work. Some are saying that the game will simply play itself with the gamer being able to jump in at any moment and take over.
Some are saying that levels and sections that are particularly hard can simply be skipped if they get too frustrating. Whole games might be completed using the feature. The entire Demo Play concept is aimed at making sure that videogames are accessible to a wide array of potential players, an idea that Nintendo seems to be determined to push to the limit.
Demo Play has sparked a debate about what videogames are and how difficulty is part of their structure. After all, most of the mainstream gamers might frown upon the idea of a game being completed by simply looking at it. The fun is in making Mario jump and not in watching where he might go next. It will be interesting to see how Nintendo balances accessibility and challenge.