It is safe to say that a large portion of our enjoyment of video games exists completely independent of all else; games have universally awesome traits that we can appreciate without any outside influence. I get personal satisfaction of out completing games; hell, out of just playing them.

Another large portion of our enjoyment of video games, however, is fueled by competition. Most of the time when I beat a game, I am compelled by forces unseen to brag about my accomplishments, or to at least tell someone about my seemingly amazing exploits. If I spend 100+ hours on a Disgaea file, you bet your ass that someone is going to at least hear about it, if not see it. If no one cared to talk about their gaming experiences, then Dtoid would be bereft of all its godly content. If no one cared to read about them, then you wouldn't be here now.

The next generation of gaming has taken this into account and have integrated online networks into their new consoles. We no longer have to wait until we see our friends in person to assault them with our ornate tales of game-dom. We have gamertags that track achievements across all games on the console in addition to comprehensive online services that help one search for and connect with gamers all across the world. We have constantly updated leaderboards that prove as an impetus for pushing the envelope in almost every aspect of every game. We can accrue titles for our library without ever leaving home through brand-specific stores and we can talk or send messages to anyone.

I say "We," but do not really mean it.

Whenever I am visiting a friend with either a PS3 or 360, I am enthralled with how much interaction there is between gamers across the respective networks. My jealousy knows no bounds. XBL is the more streamlined of the two, but they are both sufficient at what they do - once the console is turned on you are instantly connected with everyone else on the network.

Whenever I turn on my Wii, something happening more and more infrequently as of late, I am not connected instantly to a network of my peers, rather quite the opposite; I am just sitting in my room alone playing Nintendo. Sure, I can download a WiiWare title (yea, right) or read the news, but am I instantly connected to ALL of my big N brethren? Of course not. If I sit in a waiting room for long enough I might be able to play in a Brawl against some randoms, but God knows I wont be able to speak with them or communicate with them in any way. The online play features of the Wii suck so dismally when compared with either competitor, it actually hurts.

Much of my recent apathy towards gaming originates as online-envy towards both PSN and XBL; how can the Wii afford to be such an isolating gaming experience while its competitors simply keep improving their connectivity and interactivity between players?