"Recently there has been rumors about Nintendo dropping Friend Codes in favor of a unified code system."
That came from one of IGN's Wii bashing broadcasts. That shoots the credibility of that, since it's the only source of these rumors.
A flashy-first game is awesome when it comes out. A great-first game is awesome forever.
Plus, just for the hell of it: Kelly Brook at the 2008 BAFTAs