According to Reuters, Nintendo Japan said that it plans early next year to offer a device that allows Game Boy Advance users to play games together without the use of cables. The device will be included free of charge with the purchase of one of the new Pokemon games being released in Japan early next year, Pokemon Fire Red and Pokemon Leaf Green. Nintendo said it planned to develop other titles for the GBA compatible with the device in the future as well.

"We've had a lot of discussions about how to extend the networking capabilities for games such as 'Pokemon', to enhance head-to-head battles, exchange of information and communication with others," said Nintendo President Satoru Iwata.

Iwata also commented on the technology being similar to Bluetooth, which allows devices to communicate with each other without a physical wire connection. The wireless network extends for "several meters," Iwata said.

Motorola Inc is the company responsible for designing the chip that powers the device's wireless functions. The 2.4GHz radio frequency chipset enables up to five players to play each other.

"It was designed primarily with the gaming experience in mind," said Bridgette Cosentino, director of wireless connectivity at Motorola's semiconductor products group.

We'll have more information here at Nintendojo about Pokemon Fire Red and Pokemon Leaf Green as soon as it breaks.

Source: Yahoo! News