During a conversation with investors, Nintendo CEO Satoyu Iwata confirmed that the WiiU and 3DS systems will be able to support paid DLC. A transaction system is currently in development, with the 3DS version said to be available to developers by the end of the year.

Though while Nintendo is content with letting third party developers use whatever DLC trickery they may come up with, Iwata and Shigeru Miyamoto both share a different opinion on the matter. They feel that their first party products don’t need “low quality paid download content,” such as unlock keys, in order to extend the life of their games. While they do agree that it helps with profits, the dudes at the Big N feel that such tactics damage their relationships with the consumers.

In a sense, they do have a point. DLC, both good and bad, has a bit of a negative effect on how the consumer base looks at a game. Now, there are some cases where DLC is actually beneficial, such as with Rock Band’s entire music library, which is updated with new tracks on a weekly basis. However, we also have more dreadful scenarios, such as Activision’s map pack controversy, as well as Capcom’s shenanigans with packing entire game modes as DLC, despite already being present on the disc itself.

Looking at the issue from their point of view, Nintendo’s minimal involvement with DLC seems to stem from keeping potential problems with customers to a minimum. This probably shouldn’t be taken as saying they won’t pursue DLC in general for their products. Just don’t expect any on-the-disc dishonesty from them regarding it.

[via Andriasang]