Nintendo’s online service is better than most hardened gamers give it credit for. At least that’s what company spokesman Kit Ellis told Infendo in an interview last week.

When asked how the popularity of Xbox Live and PSN have encouraged Nintendo to rethink their online strategy in planning their next console, Ellis turned the conversation back to the present. “The Wii is here now, so let’s talk about its online offerings rather than speculating on the future,” he said. “The idea of online services is incredibly broad, so I’ll point to a few specific products that spotlight what Wii can do online.”

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I still remember the day I put in Mario Strikers Charged and had my first online match.  At the time, it was the only Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection game available for Wii.  The DS got the honor of being Nintendo’s first online-enabled system, but I really expected the Wii to take it to the next level.

There have been a few good steps in that direction, like the Nintendo Channel, Netflix on Wii, polls, weather, etc, but it really feels like Nintendo just doesn’t know how to get people together online.  WiiSpeak works really well, but less than a half dozen games take advantage of it.  Games have suffered quite a bit, too, with mostly sports games taking advantage of the service.  Do you remember the last time you exchanged a Friend Code for your Wii?