Nintendo DS will be playable at E3

The latest issue of Japanese Nintendo Dream magazine once again offers some interesting Nintendo DS titbits that were too juicy to ignore, principally the first confirmation that the enigmatic handheld will be on display in playable form at E3. Nintendo also once again repeated its assertion that the DS will be a distinct platform that won't infringe on the GBA's vast market share.

Meanwhile rumours are floating around that Mario 64 is being used to demonstrate the system's hardware capability. This has led some commentators to speculate that it will offer Nintendo an outlet for N64 ports in future, although that would seem to be at odds with the platform holder's previously stated ambition to deliver new forms of gameplay via the device.

Indeed, although a leaked document purporting to be a full specification for the DS recently surfaced in Japan - promising a touch screen, wireless LAN options and 3D visuals amongst others things - we're still at the stage where nothing is set in stone and it's very difficult to predict exactly what we'll see when the doors to E3 open in a couple of months' time.

By the sound of it though we may well have another chance when they close again, as the same issue of Nintendo Dream also says Nintendo may host another public exhibition later in the year, potentially reviving the Spaceworld show which has been absent from the gaming calendar since 2000.