3DS = WTF?

[JskieXL]

March 23, 2010

To Whom It May Concern:
Re: Launch of New Portable Game Machine

Nintendo Co., Ltd. (Minami-ward of Kyoto-city, President Satoru Iwata) will launch "Nintendo 3DS"(temp) during the fiscal year ending March 2011, on which games can be enjoyed with 3D effects without the need for any special glasses.

"Nintendo 3DS"(temp) is going to be the new portable game machine to succeed "Nintendo DS series", whose cumulative consolidated sales from Nintendo amounted to 125million units as of the end of December 2009, and will include backward compatibility so that the software for Nintendo DS series, including the ones for Nintendo DSi, can also be enjoyed.

We are planning to announce additional details at E3 show, which is scheduled to be held from June 15, 2010 at Los Angeles in the U.S.

http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/pdf/2010/100323e.pdf

BAM! Out of nowhere!

OK, two minor questions...

1. Isn't a DS going to be a bit too small to create any kind of immersive 3D world?

2. No glasses? How does that work?

Colour me intrigued, albeit sceptical. Can't wait to see some more concrete info on this.

[LaBomba]

http://www.gamepro.com.au/article/340652/how_nintendo_3ds_3d_works/


The technology seems pretty legitimate, Sharp is a high-quality technology manufacturer, and really cool.

I am officially super-excited about this one.

[Kris]

Seems like Nintendo shot their april fools load a bit early this year.

[JskieXL]

http://www.gamepro.com.au/article/340652/how_nintendo_3ds_3d_works/


The technology seems pretty legitimate, Sharp is a high-quality technology manufacturer, and really cool.

I am officially super-excited about this one.

Looks nice, although the only references I've seen to Sharp being involved are rumours from several years ago, so it's in no way official that this is the technology being used.

Seems like Nintendo shot their april fools load a bit early this year.

The 3DS will use the innovative Post-It(TM) screen protection system and will be available in Pea Green and Carrot Orange.

[MattP]

Nintendo has used Sharp as one of their main suppliers of LCD screens for quite a while, so them being the partners for this wouldn't be too surprising.

I'm more interested in what else Nintendo will announce at E3 this year. A Kindle-like free wireless download service would be welcome, but a worldwide rollout for a service like that is a bit implausible.

I'm sure Nintendo has something else up its sleeve that they are not willing to share just yet.

Also, I have a feeling this technology will only be used on the top screen (assuming only the lower screen is a touchscreen this time around as well). It would be too difficult to use touch control with a real 3D environment  - you would have trouble seeing where your finger was touching - and Nintendo will want to keep the cost down as much as possible. They may even make the top screen larger than the lower screen (so the lower screen just becomes an extra control method for most games, with the upper screen being where all the action takes place).

Of course, all conjecture, but I LOVE the kind of dreaming that takes place when such a vague announcement of a new system is made!

[Craig]

Totally out of the blue, what with the lack of fanfare this has to be a message for investors rather than to hype up game players. Especially how it's noted to be released in the next fiscal year.

That being said, I'm very interested to see how exactly this will work. I think they'll likely be using the same kind of tech an iphone game uses which uses the accelerometer to note which way you're pointing the thing and change the image accordingly. Not really pop out 3D, but certainly depth. I can see it working.

Sony seems to be pushing for 3d on the PS3 and the initial reports say it's great. I'm not really sure how far it'll take off the ground though considering an expensive new tv is required and so many people have made the jump to HD and gotten expensive new TVs in the past few years. I definetly want to have a go though, wipeout 3D may acctually make me vomit.

[JskieXL]

Craig: enjoys vomiting.

Today we learned something new... and disturbing.

[MattP]

They are definitely announcing it right now for financial reasons - the exact date of the press release is one week before the end of the financial year for them.

EDIT: Sony's response:

http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/27795/Sony_Questions_Nintendo_Demographics_3D_Acceptance.php

"I think it remains to be seen where Nintendo goes with 3D on a portable," said John Koller, SCEA director of hardware and marketing in an IGN report.

He continued, "Having been in the portable space for quite awhile, I think it's an interesting move but one I'd like to see where they go from a demographic standpoint. Eight- and nine-year-olds playing 3D is a little bit of a stretch given where some of our research is right now."

...

Koller added, "Our focus on 3D right now is on the console. There's a tremendous amount of opportunity on PlayStation 3 with 3D. The amount of interest in 3D from the retail side and game publishers is off the charts. We know we have a hit with 3D on PS3 and we're going to concentrate our efforts there."

Now to dig up the quotes from the time when the Wii and DS were announced:

http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3156850

...

"Wii could be considered an impulse buy more than anything else," said David Karraker, SCEA's senior director of corporate communication, suggesting PS3 and Wii shouldn't be considered in the same category.

...

"With the DS, it's fair to say that Nintendo stepped out of the technical race and went for a feature differentiation with the touch screen," Harrison says. "But I fear that it won't have a lasting impact beyond that of a gimmick - so the long-lasting appeal of the platform is at peril as a direct result of that."

...

If there's one thing I hate, it's arrogance - and Sony is the king of it.

[JskieXL]

It's not arrogance, it's just PR. They want to discourage companies interested in 3D from investing in the 3DS and encourage them to make PS3 games instead. Makes perfect sense.

I doubt anyone at Sony seriously thinks that Nintendo handhelds have no appeal to anyone over the age of nine. No one they should be paying to do any thinking, anyway.

[sim]

Hope this isn't another DS where I enjoy reading about all the cool shit it does more than actually playing it.

[JskieXL]

Same with the Wii. The gimmicks might bring in the punters, but the more traditional games are the ones actually worth playing.

[Kris]

True. Except for Trauma Center, Wario Ware, and the obvious Wii Sports, I don't think I've played a game with added on motion controls that I've enjoyed. Or at least, enjoyed because of the motion controls.