Nintendo Announce DS Demo service + Metroid Voice Chat News

Stories of the Nintendo DS success have become so frequent recently that it seems hardly a day passes without the handheld doing something. Nintendo aren't ones to sit on that success however, as today Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales and marketing, Reggie Fils-Aime announced new initiatives for the popular handheld at the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences' DICE Summit.

Starting next month gamers across North America at least will be able to download free game demos and other content at thousands of participating retail locations throughout the United States. An in-store kiosk, previously introduced across Japan, will beam the content, with users simply having to select "DS Download Play" from the console. The demos will remain on the DS until the unit is switched off, allowing gamers to take themaway from the store for a temporary period.

The first titles to make use of the service will include Tetris DS, Brain Age: Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day, Mario Kart DS, Meteos, True Swing Golf and Pokemon Trozei along with a video of Metroid Prime Hunters.

Further to that Nintendo will also allow gamers to chat with each other for the first time via Metroid Prime Hunters. Simply by clicking a Chat icon gamers can talk before and after a game via the packaged microphone that ships with the game.

Finally Reggie talked about the success of the DS to date, selling more than 14.4 million units worldwide through December. Those expecting further details on the Nintendo DS Lite, particularly when we can expect it in Europe, were left disappointed as it looks like we'll have a little while yet before a release date becomes apparent.