E3 2010 – Nintendo 3DS First Impression
So really, what’s the deal with this 3DS the industry is all a-buzz about? Has Nintendo actually created a system with a 3D display that doesn’t require you to wear a bulky (and pricey) set of glasses to really see? The short answer is YES. The longer answer might explain what you may have already expected.
Rather than prattle on about the new analog “slide pad”, the fact that you can take your own 3D pictures or the very clearly improved graphics capabilities, I’ll lay it out as plain as I can. The screen doesn’t produce a hologram. Done. What it does do is effectively create what I’ve called a ‘deep’ image. In the past, red/blue 3D movies brought the images out in front of the screen to produce cheap scares and migraine headaches. As tech got better, we weren’t limited to red and blue and black and white, but the polarized technique gave viewers full color.
More recently, 3D has gone through a change. Instead of throwing images into viewers’ laps, the screen becomes more of a window to look out of. That’s what the 3DS has done. The upper screen creates convincing depth by displaying different images to each eye. The best way I can describe it is to relate it to those lenticular-print images you’ve probably seen, the ones that make a zippy sound when you run your fingers across them. These prints are effectively 2 or more images printed on raised lines at slightly different angles so when you move your head or flip the card, it appears to be animated, albeit with limitations. In the 3DS case, you fix your gaze to the top screen and find that sweet spot where each eye sees only the set of images it supposed to see, creating a feeling of depth.
From games to perhaps full length 3D movies (we watched a trailer for How to Train Your Dragon), Nintendo proves to have an impressive device to add to their roster, but it wasn’t hard to spot potential trouble areas, even in the 20 minutes or so we got to spend with the little bugger.
The most obvious issue is that this is still a DS that still has a touch screen which is where a good portion of the interaction will presumably take place. The lower touch screen is not in 3D. Reps told us that they found that the lower screen gets fingerprints, smudges and eventually scratches on it more frequently because it’s the primary input for the device and fingerprints completely destroy the effect. Along the same lines, your eyes won’t always be fixed on that top screen and make no mistake, it takes just a second (at least it did for bespectacled me) to re-find that sweet spot on the top screen every time I had to take my eyes off of it, even if it was to simply tap an area of the touchscreen.
Furthermore, if you’re one of a large portion of the populace that finds themselves preferring 2D films over their 3D counterparts because you aren’t fond of grinding headaches, you’re likely not going to find any relief here. Even though you aren’t wearing glasses, this is still blasting two offset images to your eyes at once and during lengthy sessions, you’re going to find yourself rubbing your temples and looking for aspirin. A slider on the side of the unit does allow you to adjust the effect up and down, but even at the ‘off’ position on the units we tested, I found certain visuals weren’t completely removed and a sort of tearing occured, both in game demos (fire bursts from the rear of the karts in Mario Kart) and in full motion video.
There’s still a lot to like about this 4th generation of DS handhelds. The graphics are much improved and the 3rd party support is incredibly impressive, backed by the likes of Activision, Capcom, Konami, THQ, Harmonix, Sega, EA, Bandai/Namco, Ubisoft and a host of others, all with some exciting possibilities (Madden anyone?). Nintendo’s own title list is tingle inducing: Kid Icarus Uprising and Star Fox, just to name two.
Plenty to love, certainly a different way of gaming, but perhaps not the golden fleece of gaming some were hoping for (and Nintendo marketing would have you believe).
