Well guys, it's been a nice run, but it seems like the world has just about turned upside down today. Pigs are flying, it's raining cats and dogs, and, strangest of all, Nintendo has announced plans to integrate online functionality heavily into both the 3DS and the Wii U. Yes, this is coming from the same company who infamously stated that "the fans don't want online play" when questioned about next generation consoles after the Gamecube's decline. Moreover, the Japanese games giant will kickstart this initiative by providing the upcoming New Super Mario Bros. 2 for the 3DS as an online download day and date with the physical retail cart. 

The hope is for many 3DS games in the future to be available on the eShop day and date with their retail counterparts. Although only one other game was confirmed to be making use of this promising new directive (a brain training game called Onitore,) Nintendo president Satoru Iwata called out games like Animal Crossing and Nintendogs as games that require "daily communication," and as such would benefit from being installed directly to the console instead of on a cart, where they could get lost or broken.

Iwata also confirmed that the Wii U would make use of this new feature, although to what extent has not been revealed. He did at least say that digital versions of games for the upcoming console should be available at the same time as they are made available in stores, presumably including at least some of the launch lineup.

Now that the world has officially gone insane, I can leave my post here at GameShampoo to pursue my true dream of being the guy who names new crayon colors. Despondency Blue. Just let it marinate for a minute.

In the event that this isn't some sort of harbinger of the apocolypse, stay tuned to GameShampoo, where we will provide further coverage of Nintendo's plans as they are revealed, most likely at this year's E3.