The Wii was capable of offering downloadable content through Nintendo’s Play and Play service however it was rarely utilised by developers and the service was never a big drawcard for the system. Nintendo’s Satoru Iwata recognises in this digital era that DLC is a big market and he wants to make the service more prosperous for Nintendo and third-parties on both the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U.

Nintendo 3DS developers by the end of this year will have the option to begin working on downloadable content for their games, whether these add-ons will be available directly in-game like on the Wii or through the online store isn’t exactly known.

On the Wii U side of things Satoru Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto have been discussing possible ways to take advantage of DLC and are interested in offering content which will expand gameplay. One thing Nintendo wants to avoid is forcing customers to pay in order to unlock content already on the disc; Iwata feels moves like this tarnish the relationship between consumers and the developer in the long run.

What’s your opinion on downloadable content?