EA readies 32-person online multiplayer for Wii
- September 17, 2007 00:00 AM PST
Medal of Honor: Heroes 2, made by EA for Nintendo Wii, will boast 32-person online multiplayer upon its release this fall; double the standard 16-person games found on Xbox 360.
Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 (Wii)
"We had to make a development time choice between split-screen and online," said producer Matt Tomporowski in an interview with Shack News. "We decided to go for online."
Upon release, Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 will mark the first online multiplayer shooter game for Wii, a genre and game mode that has failed to live up to expectations on Nintendo's newest home console.
In addition to 32-person online battles (the most ever for a Wii game), multiplayer will include "continuous joining" which gives players the ability to drop in and out of a game without having to wait for a new online session. Deathmatch, team deathmatch, and capture the flag will be present, and gamers will not be required to use Nintendo's pesky friend code system; EA proper will host the multiplayer sessions.
Heroes 2 will also support the Wii Zapper, run at 60 frames per second, and include a campaign and on-rails shooter modes.
By comparison, PS3's Resistance: Fall of Man supports 40-person online multiplayer while most Xbox 360 games support 16-person online battles.
Medal of Honor: Heroes 2 launches for both Wii and PSP on November 13.
CORRECTION: I originally reported 32-person as "more than double 16," which is mathematically comical. Arithmetic > Blake. Thanks for the catch, savvy commenters.
It's good to see the little Wii-ster getting an online multiplayer system this robust... and for free (assuming it works). It'll take a lot more than Wii Zapper support to reinvigorate the tired WWII genre, but if EA nails the controls a la Metroid Prime 3, Wii owners could have an unexpected hit on their hands.
