Those betting that Nintendo's next-generation of hardware would be an HD-equipped Nintendo Wii have officially lost that wager, as the company surprised not not just the videogame world this week, but the world of technology followers with the announcement their latest addition to the popular DS family of consoles would feature one of the most popular advancements in recent entertainment history, 3D. Only without the glasses and, most likely, cheaper than you might think. Introducing the Nintendo 3DS.
Yes, the 3DS is real, and its coming sooner than you think. Keep reading to see what's got the whole world buzzing, and why this could change everything.
Nintendo's obscure press release (located on the company's official Japanese website HERE) announcing the 3DS was set to be the official successor to their best-selling DS brand, which encompasses the original DS, DS lite, DSi, and more recently, the larger-screened DSi XL. From the translated presser:
"Nintendo 3DS (temp) is going to be the new portable game machine to succeed the Nintendo DS series, whose cumulative consolidated sales from Nintendo amounted to 125 million units as of the end of December 2009, and will include backward compatibility so that the software for Nintendo DS series, including Nintendo DSi series, can also be enjoyed."
The timing of this announcement has struck many onlookers as odd behavior for the company, as they are set to beging selling the latest version of the original DS line (the larger-screened DSi LL) in North America, and have made several public announcements recently disparaging comments from president Satoru Iwata about rumors the supposed "DS successor" was indeed coming. For months online speculators have pegged chip supplier Nvidia contributing their powerful Tegra processor to the handheld, while others have speculated Nintendo may have been experimenting with hologram technology and other 3D experiments.
Iwata has been coy in the past regarding hardware updates to existing product lines, and just recently had made specific comments that seemed to disparage Apple's iPad device ("It's a bigger iPod Touch"), although his comments regarding the future of 3D gaming ("I have doubts whether people will be wearing glasses to play games at home. How is that going to look to other people?") seem to fall in line with Nintendo's plans for the 3DS's potential capabilities.
Already there have been several online reports attempting to piece together the configuration of Nintendo's latest portable, with new screens featuring 'parallax barrier' technology from Sharp, with the Japanese newspaper Nekkei reporting it will also have a "3D virtual stick", and will likely include full rumble (force feedback), faster Wifi (Wireless N?) and longer battery life than current DS models. All reports have the 3DS hitting shelves sometime before the end of "fiscal 2010", which would suggest sometime around March 2011.
So how might Nintendo achieve 3D visuals without the need for glasses? Japanese DSi game Rittai Kakushi e Attakoreda, from developer Good-Feel, Inc. (creators of Wario Land: The Shake Dimension) may hold some clues as to the future of the 3DS console. Check out the game in motion - literally.
Nintendo's surprise announcement of the 3DS is just the first of many curiosities about the new hardware, and the questions are only expected to continue as we approach its public unveiling at the upcoming E3 show in June. The company is promising to fully demonstrate their latest console, and possibly let the public have its first sampling of its 3D technology as it applies to the future of gaming. Stalwart fans will remember (although probably not with much excitement) that the 3DS won't be the company's first experiment with 3D technology on a portable platform, as the failure of 1995's Virtual Boy is often considered the largest stain on an otherwise unblemished record of successful console experiments.
With Microsoft and Sony already planning to demonstrate their own Natal and PlayStation Move technologies (to say nothing of Apple and their growing iPhone/iPad platform), this year's show is planning to be absolutely gangbusters for those looking for hands-on reporting.
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