SharkWire Online is a specialized GameShark device with a serial port and modem added, accompanied by a now-defunct dialup Internet portal service. Launched in January 2000, it was sold only in the US, by InterAct which is most famous for its

GameShark GameShark is the brand name of a line of video game cheat cartridges and other products for a variety of console video game systems and Windows-based computers. Currently, the brand name is owned by Mad Catz, which marketed GameShark products for ...

and

Dexdrive DexDrive is a line of home video game console memory card readers released in 1998, allowing data transfer to a PC. It was made by now-defunct InterAct for use with PlayStation and Nintendo 64 memory cards. Overview The DexDrive provides PC o ...

. This unlicensed platform was the only Nintendo 64 online service to have been released other than Nintendo's official

Randnet The is a magnetic floppy disk drive peripheral for the Nintendo 64 game console developed by Nintendo. It was announced in 1995, prior to the Nintendo 64's 1996 launch, and after numerous delays was released in Japan on December 13, 1999. The "6 ...

service which had already been released only in Japan in December 1999.

History

The SharkWire Online's Nintendo 64 accessories were developed by Datel in the UK, for InterAct to sell in the US. The now-defunct dialup portal system was developed between InterAct and its communications partners:

Spyglass, Inc. Spyglass, Inc. was an Internet software company. It was founded in 1990, in Champaign, Illinois, as an offshoot of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, and later moved to Naperville, Illinois. Spyglass was created to commercialize an ...

for its

Mosaic A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...

web browser A web browser is application software for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's screen. Browsers are used on ...

application; D3 Networks, an

Internet Service Provider An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...

(ISP) for game devices, which built and operated the SharkWire Online dialup network and content portal; and GTE Internetworking for its local dial-up access via its DiaLinx network and Global Network Infrastructure (GNI) backbone. The SharkWire Online was presented to the public at the

Electronic Entertainment Expo E3 (short for Electronic Entertainment Expo or Electronic Entertainment Experience in 2021) is a trade event for the video game industry. The Entertainment Software Association (ESA) organizes and presents E3, which many developers, publisher ...

(E3) in Los Angeles on May 13–15, 1999. A

PlayStation is a video gaming brand that consists of five home video game consoles, two handhelds, a media center, and a smartphone, as well as an online service and multiple magazines. The brand is produced by Sony Interactive Entertainment, a divisi ...

version was preannounced but canceled in development. Later in 1999, it was test marketed in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

Minneapolis, Minnesota Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, but not released to the rest of the US until January 1, 2000. The company considered the possibility of eventually supporting online multiplayer gaming, and opening up access to the wider Internet beyond their proprietary portal. The company ran a $5–10 million advertising campaign created by advertising agency

J. Walter Thompson J. Walter Thompson (JWT) was an advertisement holding company incorporated in 1896 by American advertising pioneer James Walter Thompson. The company was acquired in 1987 by multinational holding company WPP plc, and in November 2018, WPP merge ...

across TV, print, radio, direct, and interactive media. It portrayed an aggressive image of teenaged "hacking" versus the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...

, which "gives kids a feeling of control and power over the establishment". In 2003, SharkWire Online and all other

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...

s of GameShark were sold to

Mad Catz Mad Catz Global Limited (formerly Mad Catz Interactive, Inc.) is an American Chinese-based company that provides interactive entertainment products marketed under Mad Catz, GameShark (gaming products) and TRITTON (audio products). Mad Catz distr ...

, and InterAct ceased operations.

Usage

The SharkWire Online product is based on a Nintendo 64 cartridge, which contains a

modem A modulator-demodulator or modem is a computer hardware device that converts data from a digital format into a format suitable for an analog transmission medium such as telephone or radio. A modem transmits data by Modulation#Digital modulati ...

and the Mosaic web browser licensed by Spyglass, Inc. The product's operation requires Nintendo's

Expansion Pak Nintendo 64 accessories are first-party Nintendo hardwareand third-party hardware, licensed and unlicensed. Nintendo's first-party accessories are mainly transformative system expansions: the 64DD Internet multimedia platform, with a floppy drive ...

for RAM. Because the SharkWire Online cartridge is unlicensed by Nintendo, a security workaround is achieved when the user inserts a Nintendo 64 video game cartridge into the SharkWire's rear slot, with the label facing up. The keyboard and telephone cords are plugged directly into the SharkWire Online cartridge. To navigate the menus, Controller 1 must be attached to the

Nintendo 64 The (N64) is a home video game console developed by Nintendo. The successor to the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, it was released on June 23, 1996, in Japan, on September 29, 1996, in North America, and on March 1, 1997, in Europe and Au ...

console. The accompanying dialup service was intended as a safely proxied and customized Internet access method for children aged 7 to 14 years. The service allowed the player to upload and download game save data via their

Controller Pak Nintendo 64 accessories are first-party Nintendo hardwareand third-party hardware, licensed and unlicensed. Nintendo's first-party accessories are mainly transformative system expansions: the 64DD Internet multimedia platform, with a floppy drive ...

, and to download cheat codes directly into the SharkWire cartridge. The portal contained copies of articles which had already been published on the Internet by InterAct's content partners. These partners included

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...

Electronics Boutique EB Games (formerly known as Electronics Boutique and EB World) is an American computer and video games retailer. First established as an American company in 1977 by James Kim with a single electronics-focused location in the King of Prussia mall ...

GamePro Gamepro.com is an international multiplatform video game magazine media company that covers the video game industry, video game hardware and video game software in countries such as Germany and France. The publication, GamePro, was originally la ...

, Prima,

Eidos Eidos may refer to: * Eidos (philosophy), a Greek term meaning "form" "essence", "type" or "species". See Plato's theory of forms and Aristotle's theory of universals * Eidos plc, a British software company, which created video game publisher Eido ...

, Capcom USA,

Jones Soda Jones Soda Co. is a beverage company based in Seattle, Washington, United States. It bottles and distributes soft drinks, non-carbonated beverages, energy drinks, and candy. History The 1990s The company was founded by Peter Van Stolk in 1995 ...

, Airwalk,

UPN The United Paramount Network (UPN) was an American broadcast television network that launched on January 16, 1995. It was originally owned by Chris-Craft Industries' United Television. Viacom (through its Paramount Television unit, which prod ...

, and Arnette Sunglasses. However, due to the continual updating of Nintendo's security chips to lock out unlicensed products, even since the time of the product's release, it is incompatible with the following games: * '' The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time'' * ''

Yoshi's Story Yoshi's (also known as Yoshi's Jazz Club and Yoshi's Oakland) is a nightclub located in Jack London Square in Oakland, California, United States. The venue originally opened in 1972 as a restaurant in Berkeley, later moving to Claremont Avenue i ...

'' * ''

Major League Baseball Featuring Ken Griffey, Jr. ''Major League Baseball Featuring Ken Griffey Jr.'' is a baseball video game developed by Angel Studios and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64. The game is a follow-up to Nintendo's previous title featuring Griffey, ''Ken Griffey Jr.'s Win ...

'' * ''

Kobe Bryant in NBA Courtside ''Kobe Bryant in NBA Courtside'', sometimes mislabeled as ''Kobe Bryant's NBA Courtside'', is a basketball simulation video game developed by Left Field Productions and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 in 1998. At the time of the game's ...

'' * ''

F-Zero X is a futuristic racing video game for the Nintendo 64 console. Developed by Nintendo's EAD division, it was released in Japan, North America, and Europe in 1998. In 2000, the ''Expansion Kit'' was released in Japan, including a track and vehic ...

'' * ''

Diddy Kong Racing ''Diddy Kong Racing'' is a 1997 racing video game developed and published by Rare for the Nintendo 64. The game is set on Timber's Island and revolves around Diddy Kong and his friends' attempt to defeat the intergalactic antagonist, a wizardi ...

'' * ''

Cruis'n World ''Cruis'n World'' is the 1996 sequel to the 1994 arcade racer ''Cruis'n USA''. ''Cruis'n World'' allows players to race on various tracks around the world. The game also features more cars than ''Cruis'n USA''. This game introduced stunts to the ' ...

'' * ''

Banjo-Kazooie ''Banjo-Kazooie'' is a series of video games developed by Rare (company), Rare. The games feature a male bear named Banjo & Kazooie, Banjo and his friend, a large female red bird named Banjo & Kazooie, Kazooie, who are both controlled by the p ...

'' * ''

1080° Snowboarding is a snowboarding video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo 64 in 1998. In the game, the player controls one of five snowboarders from a Virtual camera system#Third-person view, third-person perspective, using a combinati ...

'' To bypass these lockouts, would require the re-manufacturing of the SharkWire cartridge's hardware. While subsequent GameSharks were released for the N64, the SharkWire Online cartridge was not updated, and more Nintendo 64 games were produced that it is unable to unlock and play with.

Reception

A review by Oklahoma City television station KOTV's news operation found the online portal content to be well-written and suitable more for young children, although very limited in content and scope and less suitable for more mature gamers. The review found the email functionality to be good once the faulty keyboard was replaced, and also well suited for children.

History

Usage

Reception

See also

References

Further reading