A pipe dream is essentially a grand hope or plan that is seemingly impossible to achieve. In the case of Rare Ltd., one of their pipe dreams, the melding of DS and Xbox 360 technology, just happened to come true.

There's just one problem though: their achievement won't go public.

Speaking to MTV Multiplayer's Stephen Totilo about the new Viva Pinata game, Viva Pinata: Trouble in Paradise, Justin Cook noted that the game would actually be compatible with the Xbox Live Vision Camera. According to Cook, the camera could be used to scan specially made VP cards to acquire new animals. Cook also noted that the camera feature also worked with card codes from video screens on objects such as iPods or Zunes.

Totilo then asked an intriguing question about connectivity with other devices, such as the Nintendo DS - there is a Pinata game for the DS coming out soon, after all. Cook responded, saying they actually made the Xbox 360 and DS work harmoniously in a pinata-esque mating of technologies. The problem was that it was too late to actually make it feasible. Notes the Multiplayer report:

“We got it to work, but it was too late in the development cycle,” Cook said, presumably talking about the cycle of the DS game. If only they’d thought of it sooner, he laughed. “It’s one of those things where you just kick yourself.”

Wouldn't it have been cool to meld the Xbox 360 and DS versions of Viva Pinata? Imagine taking animals you picked up in the DS game and uploading them into your Xbox 360 version? Better yet, imagine a DS-specific pinata mating with a 360-specific pinata... that'd be cross-breeding heaven!

Perhaps if the two games they're coming up with turn out well enough, maybe the next installments for the franchises will have that sort of connectivity. Let's just hope it gets past the development stage.