Wii Online Petition -- Help draft it and be heard

[Wiinter]

You want something to change, you've got to make your voice heard. I keep reading a sense of resignation when people talk about friend codes and comm restrictions--and I get it, since Nintendo is raking in cash bigtime, why do they need to cater to adults, or listen to any complaints? Indeed, they have done well, but they could do better. We can help them see how.

The focus of this petition, yet unposted, is to convince Nintendo that the Wii's online experience needs to be substantially different from that of the DS. It should be unhampered by the cumbersome requirements and restrictions that will have us all punching in loads of 12 digit codes for every individual online game we buy. This is not about asking them to remove protections, but to reform them. Either by allowing adults to opt out of the restrictions with age verification, or making it an opt-in system so that parents can choose the level of restriction to place on their own children. If I had children, I'd make use of those tools to keep them safe, but I wouldn't expect an entire adult gaming community to jump through hoop after hoop in lieu of my doing my job of parenting.

Communication is vital to the now-gen online experience. Perhaps not in every title, but in a great many. It allows for organization and teamplay, more in-your-face competition, easier learning curves and all around more fun. The more streamlined the communication, and the easier it is to access, the better.

Will Nintendo listen? Probably not. Will people even take the time to sign the petition? Maybe, maybe not. But doing nothing is always a greater guarantee of changing nothing than making your voice heard. Below is a first draft of the petition. Refinement will follow. Suggestions are solicited.

Wii users represent a variety of age groups, both young and old. Nintendo's current practices of restricting communications in Wii games, both through a cumbersome game-by-game friend code system or complete restriction of communications, create unnecessary inconvenience for adult players and hamper the online experience.

We request that Nintendo reform the system so that it works for all ages. Child protection can still a part of the system without interfering with the online experience for adult players. Either through an opt-out system that unlocks all communication with an Age Verification system, or by making the restrictions console based and giving parents the option of opting in to restrictions. We support any reforms that provide the full online gaming experience that a 7th generation console should have.

The Wii is an extraordinary console with great potential to deliver new and exciting games, and to deliver past concepts in new ways. However communication is vital to the online experience, and adult owners of the Wii expect the option.

Sincerely, The Undersigned

Signers will be given the opportunity to comment, and required to say how long they've owned their Wii.