Justin’s Words of Wisdom: My Thoughts on the Nintendo 3DS
- January 20th, 2011
- Posted in Justin's Words of Wisdom . Video Games
- By Justin
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By Justin Polak
Co-founder, Ambassador to the Mushroom Kingdom
After a long wait, Nintendo has finally revealed major details on the upcoming Nintendo 3DS, a successor to the original DS, that allows a player to experience games in 3D without the aid of glasses. The 3DS will drop March 27 at $249.99. It will be available in two colors: Aqua Blue and Cosmo Black.
Image from kotaku.com.
Before I share my thoughts, let’s see what Nintendo promises with the forthcoming handheld.
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1.) In addition to being able to play games in 3D, the camera included will allow you to take pictures in 3D.
2.) There will be software included. Mii Maker works much like the Miis on the Wii, the key difference being the ability to create your avatar through the use of the camera. StreetPass Mii Plaza will allow you to share your Mii online. Finally there’s Face Raiders, an augmented reality game that interacts with your photos of faces.
Image from destructoid.com.
3.) The handheld will include a 2GB SD card, six augmented reality cards, and a charging cradle. The AR cards will interact with augmented reality games, using photos like the Face Raiders game mentioned above.
4.) The 3DS will track your activity, including how long you have played your games. Also, you could activate a pedometer that keeps tracks of how far you have walked. Through this you can earn Play Coins, which is something that will be used in certain titles.
5.) Like the DSi, an internet browser will be included.
6.) Along with original software, the Nintendo eShop can be used to download classic Game Boy and Game Boy Color games.
7.) You can transfer downloadable software to another 3DS. You can also take software from your DSi and transfer it to your 3DS.
8.) An MP3 player and a sound recorder will be included. You can manipulate the sound if you wish.
9.) First party games that may be available on or around launch are Pilotwings Resort, Nintendogs + Cats and Steel Diver. Third party games that may be available on or around launch are Dead or Alive Dimensions, Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 3D, Madden NFL Football, Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition, Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D, Asphalt 3D, Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D, Ridge Racer 3D and LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars.
10.) Notable, much hyped games The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D and Kid Icarus: Uprising did not receive a release window.
11.) The friend codes return once more, but this time they are limited to one system instead of each game.
12.) Thirty titles should be available by June 7.
13.) A built in motion and gyro sensor will be included.
14.) The 3DS will be backwards compatible with original DS titles.
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What I am excited about:
The 3D Camera. Besides the ability to see games in 3D, I find myself fascinated by the 3D camera and the apparent interactivity of photos you take with certain games. If used correctly this feature could very well be more important than the 3D angle Nintendo is boasting. I’m not sure exactly how the supposed augmented reality games are supposed to work, but keep in mind there were a lot of people who said that the original DS wouldn’t take off, or the Wii for that matter. While there have been bumps in the road for both of those systems, I have faith that Nintendo could make interactive photos work.
Photo from destructoid.com.
Virtual Console for Game Boy and Game Boy Color Games. I also love the fact that we will finally be able to download original Game Boy and Game Boy Color games. Frankly, this is something I wish Nintendo would have implemented with the DSi. When I travel, I tend to lug many video game related devices around. A couple of years ago, it got to the point were I kept on thinking I misplaced those tiny cartridges, so I was forced to cut down on what I carried with me. It will be nice to have a system that can carry many classic games I love all in one portable device. It’s kind of like how I am willing to download old games I already own on my Wii for the simple fact that I don’t have to dust off an old console when I want to play an old school game.
Great Price Point. I am also satisfied with the $249.99 price point, especially since it comes with so many goodies! Usually when a new handheld or console comes out, all you get packed in the box is a charger, instructions and maybe minor equipment replacements, like the stylus with the original DS. If a handheld did come with a storage card of some sort, the amount included was something pathetically small. Though I am sure Nintendo’s generosity is thanks to how rapidly cheaper SD cards and other equipment are becoming as time goes on, I’m still giving the thumbs up to the big N regarding that aspect.
What I am worried about:
The Chore of 3D Tech. As much as I am very interested in the 3D technology the handheld has to offer, I am also a bit concerned by it. I have read articles before that claim while the 3D effect works, the key is finding a “sweet spot” between setting the 3D and your position to it. I can envision many gamers being thoroughly annoyed with the 3D if the feature is too rigid. For example, the handheld also has motion sensing included. What if a game causes you to tilt the 3DS so much that constantly adjusting your eyes to the 3D becomes a chore? For that matter, how long will it take a player to adjust their eyes when they look from screen to screen? A glasses free 3D handheld sounds great on paper, but I am still not convinced that it’s bulletproof.
The Waggle Factor. Some of you who may already know details of the 3DS know that the 3D feature can be turned off. Okay, no problem…right? Well, I don’t want the 3DS to turn out like the Wii. What do I mean? Before the Wii’s launch, Nintendo went on and on about how motion controlled gameplay would revolutionize the game industry. Well, it succeeded…in impressing a market full of people who usually don’t play games. While some core gamers still like the Wii’s motion controls, there are many who are just done with the whole scene. You could blame this on the massive amount of shovelware that has been spewing from the Wii since day one. It doesn’t help that only first party titles put any realistic effort into bringing us a game with good motion controls. Long story short, I don’t want the 3D in the 3DS to turn into an obstacle like motion control has become for many gamers.
Image from famitsu.com.
Cashing in With Remakes. Lastly, while I’m excited for the Ocarina of Time remake, I hope the 3DS doesn’t become an excuse for developers to released old games with a “3D” at the end of it. Frankly, I am getting a little tired of ports, even if they do come with some original content. I also fear that developers won’t create enough original titles for the handheld. Oh sure, we’ll get new games in many established series, but I hope the 3DS has more than “10 to 20 year old franchise in 3D” littered all over store shelves. It’s okay to tread old ground, but the path becomes worn out very quickly.
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Despite some of my worries, I did reserve the handheld, and I do hope that I will forge many memories with it in years to come. What about you, though? Will you be there on day one, or will you pass on a 3D world?
Front page photo from kotaku.com.
Get ready for FFIV in 3D as Square goes back to the cow to make some chunky milk.
This whole thing looks like a jumbled mess of technology that Nintendo threw together hoping that someone somewhere will eventually make something decent with it.
A 2 GB SD card? That costs just as much money to produce nowadays as a 4 GB SD card. What the fuck Nintendo?
3D adjustment shouldn’t be a problem when looking at different screens as this isn’t a 3D magic eye poster. It might not be as clear but that is just the angular problem and not your eyes adjusting. If anything it is your brain that may hurt after a while because like 3D movies it is a trick of the mind and your brain compiles the images it sees as 3D.
I really wish one of these game companies would release a device for me to copy the roms of my old cartridge games to play/emulate them on the newer consoles. Use a USB plug as that doesn’t seem to be going anywhere for the next decade. I don’t care for all of these re-releases of old games that take them all of 10 minutes to do (copy rom; add emulator; create executable using both) and charge crazy prices for them. If I can buy Metroid II for $1 then I might actually consider it but any more than that and I bust out the gamecube w/ the gameboy player and play it on the BIG screen!
In the end it seems more and more like Nintendo is competing with Smartphones but they left out the phone aspect on this one. Serious, charge an extra $50 and put some phone bits in there. It already has everything else a phone has plus 3D. The should really create an app store like Apple and Droid have and let anyone develop a retarded fart application for it. At least the fart application will be big with the target audience of kids for the handheld. Angry Birds on the 3DS = big money, low cost fun.
I was not skeptical of the DS. I saw the potential of having a stats screen or map for standard games on the small DS Screen. Solitaire mouse clicking (DS tapping) style games like all those moronic flash games. The Wii I was more skeptical on and never bought into outside of games I would like to play in real life such as tennis. Playing Tennis in the snow sucks. I view the wii more as a tool and less of a game machine XP
The 3DS though…I seriously cannot begin to see the practical applications in handheld gaming for half this stuff outside of gimmicky shovelware. The only game that would kick ass with the 3D camera would be a Where’s Waldo game. Go down town, snap a picture of people crossing the street and then find waldo.
I will eat my words if a great innovative game comes out where it uses, simultaneously mind you, 3D graphics, the 3D Camera, the Front Camera, the gyroscopes, the touch screen and at least the analog stick, dpad or face buttons (not all of them…you are holding the stylus in one hand after all).
I think the augmented reality is a lazy way to not design backgrounds for your game while at the same time giving the user some sort of emotional connection because that is their place/city/school.
I think Nintendo could have cut all that crap out that will amount to nothing more than a gimmick and charge $160 for it, turn a bigger profit, cut down on the shovelware and turn out a better, more solid product. If they are actually going to use the 3DS store more like the IPhone/Droid application store then these shovelware-tastic things might produce some useful apps. They already have one that uses the gyroscopes and whatnot with the pedometer (how did you think it worked anyway?) But I don’t see nintendo delving into the app store and attempting to compete with their actual competitors.
I think I am beginning to repeat myself so I will end this by saying: I am an old skeptical gamer nowadays which is probably why I find Fallout New Vegas so insanely satisfying…then again I think Big Brain Academy and Picross 3D are the two single greatest games for the DS and those are really just PC mouse games at their core. I also don’t really care for handhelds unless the game is bringing something truly unique to the table where it needs to be on a handheld and that seems rare. Fuck…all of these handhelds should have an output to the TV by default. It is why the Gameboy Player and Super Gameboy were so popular. Now if you will excuse me I am off to play FFVII: Crisis Core for the PSP on my TV!
Maybe not…it is late which probably explains why I seem so God damn bitter about something I could care less about and will not buy. The more I thought about it, the more bitter I became xD
Can’t log in on my crappy computer at work, so I guess this will have to do!
Anyway, yeah, Nintendo could have given us a bigger SD card, but I remember the days not too long ago when the PSP was charging $100 or $200 dollars for thier cards with just as much room. The PSP did come with a memory stick, but that was only 512mb. Now, I understand that SD tech is cheaper, but I am still happy that Nintendo didn’t stiff us in a similar way. The DSi didn’t come with a SD card, for example.
As far as adjusting to 3D goes, I was worried because I read an article on Kotaku were the writer said looking from screen to screen became annoying because it took a moment to adjust when looking from the bottom screen to the top screen. Also, in general I am bothered by the whole “sweet spot” talk. I would hate it if I had to sit in a specific manner the entire time to experience the 3D.
As far as your point on ROMs go. Yeah, they should let us do that already.
Nintendo IS competing with smartphones in a way because they have said in the past that they recognize how succsessful apps have become over time. They want to emulate that, I think, and there is nothing wrong with that. But it would be cool if they let users develop apps for it. Don’t see that happening though since I am sure Nintendo would worry about mature content.
While you saw the potential in the DS, I recall that a lot of people were convinced that it would bomb. You may not see any innovative future for the 3DS, but I do. The simple fact that games are in 3D is an innovation in itself, and original games can come from it. There are a lot of creative minds out there, and usually a simple twist is all it takes for a good game to take off. Many innovations on the original DS were very simple, but they added a whole new dimension to a game.
The 3D camera is still a cool idea for me. Again, many people didn’t see how the DS or Wii would work, but smart developers figured it out. Shovelware is inevitable with new technology like this. Hell, both the Kinect and PS Move already have shovelware on it, but that doesn’t means innovative titles won’t come from them.
As far as the “PC mouse” games for being the best DS games, I can think of many others that are far better that offered simple, but innovative ideas. Some of these you could do on a PC, but the touch screen feels better for it, I think. That and there’s the whole portable thing.
Tramua Center–Arcade style surgery is awesome.
Mario&Luigi games–Great use of both screens for action RPG games.
Warioware Touched–Took great ideas from the Gameboy game and then used DS tech to make the player think on their feet in a different way.
Animal Crossing DS–Many gamers consider this the best one just for the fact that controlling it is smoother on the DS.
Kirby’s Canvas Curse–A touch screen controlled platformer that actually worked.
Hotel Dusk:Room 215–A stylish adventure game that utilized amost every DS feature.
Metroid Prime Hunters–I didn’t enjoy the game, but FPS controls on the DS were smooth and felt natural, and there were multiple settings for it.
Zelda PH&ST–Both these games were also touch screen controlled and both very good games. Puzzle sovling was fun using your items through use of the touch screen.
Again, some of these ideas could work on the PC or whatever, but a portable system makes all the difference. YOU may not like handhelds all that much or rather play on the TV, but there are many people like me who like it. Not really sure how the DS would work by hooking up to a TV anyway. Any game that used the bottom screen would be unplayable on a televsion.
Not really sure why you are bitter about something you don’t care about. That’s something I kind of find annoying today with gamers/people in general. If one single idea doesn’t cater to them specifically, no one else is allowed to enjoy it. For example, I don’t like MMORPGS all that much, but I’m not going to get in someone’s face and worry about it.
meh, I might wait for the thinner 3DSi with the longer lasting battery.
I was actually going to include this point in my article, but I decided to focus on other aspects. But yeah, I am sure a redesign is inevitable.
Just wait til the second generation…or buy a couple and resell at Christmas.