Wii Speak accessory launches

Speak to friends across the world through your Wii

5 December 2008 15:26 GMT / By Verity Burns

Today sees the official launch of Nintendo's Wii Speak accessory and its linked-in communications portal, the Wii Speak Channel.

The Wii Speak accessory is placed on top or in front of your TV and enables users to talk directly with each other through their Wii console.

However to involve more people in the fun, the Wii Speak Channel will act as a portal to allow up to four different people to log on, chat and share images.

As we've heard in recent weeks, the Wii Speak accessory will come with a unique ticket number which will allow users to download the Wii Speak Channel from the Wii Shop for free.

Although it was once though this was a ploy to prevent second-hand sales of the accessory, Nintendo has now cleared up that if you do "lose" your code, you will be able to get another one from Nintendo customer services.

Also launched today is Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City, which is the first game to utilise the Wii Speak functionality. As you can imagine, it allows you to chat with other gamers when playing via the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection.

The Wii Speak accessory can be purchased on its own or bundled with the game from today. You'll be looking at around £29.99 for it singularly or £59.99 for the game-accessory combo. Search around some online retailers though and you'll be able to find it for less than the RRP.