Nintendo of America has teamed up with Numerical Design Ltd. to provide Gamecube developers with the NetImmerse game engine. This will allow developers to cut down their development time significantly. "The higher-level interface offered by NetImmerse will enable developers to quickly create new titles. We have optimized the engine to take full advantage of the power of the NINTENDO GAMECUBE system," says John Austin, NDL's president. Also, developers who are using the PC, Xbox, PS2, or even the MacOS version of NetImmerse for game development will have a much easier time bringing their game to Gamecube. This would allow for quick ports or simultaneous multi-platform development. "NDL's NetImmerse technology allows developers to rapidly create, port and optimize software for NINTENDO GAMECUBE," says Ramin Ravanpey, Nintendo's director of software development support. Examples of games using NetImmerse include Irrational Games' Freedom Force, Oddworld Inhabitants' Munch's Oddysee, Totally Games' Star Trek Bridge Commander, AniVision's Net Race Live, Mythic Entertainment's Dark Age of Camelot, and Headfirst Productions' Simon the Sorcerer 3D and Call of Cthulhu. Does this mean we'll be seeing Gamecube versions of these titles? Not necessarily, but if the developers want to make a Gamecube version of their game it will be a lot easier and faster to do so. All in all, anything that helps Gamecube get more games in less time is a good thing. Click here or on the related link to see the full press release and, as always, let your thoughts be heard via the Talkback button.