An interesting arguement. I agree with some of the things the Author from GameFan writes in this editorial. The N64 still has serious legs left. Do I want to see a delay of Dolphin? Not really. But there's enough N64 games left to be released in Nintendo's arsenal. Unfortunately this author forgot Excitebike. C'mon! Anyhoo...here's what was said...

Could a Dolphin delay help Nintendo in the long run? It's well-known that a delay's coming, but when Nintendo finally announces that their next-generation console won’t see the light of day 'til the year 2001, should we be disappointed? Personally, I’ll be rejoicing for one reason--it'll give the Nintendo 64, one of my favorite systems of all time, one more year of life.

I’ve been playing video games for a long time (heck, I got an Atari 2600 for Christmas at the age of two!), and besides the NES, there’s only been one system I’ve logged uncountable hours on--the Nintendo 64. From the revolutionary beginnings of Super Mario 64 to the epic Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, I’ve been hooked on my Fun Machine; the Nintendo 64 has arguably one of the greatest game libraries of all time, and I’ve been there for every minute of it.

But it’s not the Nintendo 64’s past that would make a Dolphin delay acceptable--it’s the system’s future. It may seem like third parties are already digging the system’s grave, but when you look at this year’s release list, the Dreamcast and PlayStation 2 combined can't even compare. Let’s see, this month you have Ridge Racer 64--one of the best darn racers ever to hit a Nintendo system; next month, the addictive Pokemon Stadium; April will bring Perfect Dark; and the list goes on and on... Don’t believe me? Check out this line of potential N64 cartridges: a new Zelda, Banjo-Tooie, Conker, Mickey’s Speedway, Mini Racers, Kirby 64… It never seems to end, and that’s only the list of games to be released in 2000!

In fact, even as I go over this list of games scheduled to hit our shores within the next year, there seems to be a plethora of cartridges aimed for the year 2001 as well; low-profile titles like Super Mario Adventures, the mysterious Eternal Darkness, and Mother 3 all scream "2001 fodder," and are yet more reasons to hold onto your N64s for just one more year.

What about the Dolphin’s launch itself? Well, Sony’s next-generation PlayStation 2 will ship in just a few short weeks, and it hasn’t got me sold for one reason: its starting lineup. A new Ridge Racer isn’t enough, Sony, and all the mediocre rehashes that are coming within the next six months won’t do it, either. Wouldn’t it be great if Nintendo could ship the Dolphin with a handful of grade-A titles, other than just a new Mario and a few Mahjong games? That’s what I thought--and the truth is that if Nintendo launches with anything less than a full house of kings and aces, history will be forced to repeat itself.

Believe me, a repeat of what happened in Japan just four years ago is exactly what Nintendo doesn’t want. Could a business-savvy company like Nintendo make the same mistake twice? I don’t think so--and by ditching the cartridge format, the Big N's already proved that it wants to be a competitor in the next round. Let Sony sell the shovelware, Nintendo--take your time, and give us gamers what we want: good games!

The last benefit of a Dolphin delay: the Pokemon phenomenon. As much as we hate to admit it, launching without a Pokemon title would be absolute suicide for Nintendo. And since Pokemon Gold and Silver will begin shipping here in the U.S. this September, it would be darned silly to release the Game Boy Advance and Dolphin just a few short months apart, with even more Pokemon titles. Franchise overkill is something Nintendo's never been guilty of, and if Nintendo plans its releases just right, its business will continue to grow. Of course, don’t be surprised if you see a Game Boy Advance delay within the coming months; there’s only so much the Big N can handle.

My suggested timeline for Nintendo: Release a few scorching screen shots of the Dolphin at E3, just to get us gamers excited again; then unleash it officially at the Autumn Space World. Take your time, and release the Dolphin when you're darned well ready to. Don’t rush it--show Sega and Sony how the game's really played!