The hot word on the block seems to be Nintendo’s upcoming 3DS portable. With lines that hail back to the 2005 E3, people were waiting hours to get a few minutes with the new device.
The main draw for the 3DS, of course, was the high quality, glasses free, 3D display, a first for any personal electronic device. Most writers and developers agree that the effect is comparable to any other 3D experience and mixed with the built in 3D camera were highly impressed. The one major complaint I have noticed reading the various first impressions, was the 3D effect’s sweet spot was, just that a spot. Outside of this spot, the 3D effect beings to blur.
Personally, lacking any depth perception, any device or movie labeled 3D usually gets an instant pass from me. One thing that does hold my interest is the overall power of the device. It is clear from the technical demos that the device has the potential to render 3D environments with as at least, as much detail and texture as a GameCube. Nintendo is being its usual dodgy self, and has not detailed the specifications of the device, so I am looking forward to hearing more from the studios and developers with access to the 3DS development kit.
As most of the world has noticed, this past week was the massively popular game developer’s convention simply named, E3. This year was a stellar year with many great videos and overall announcements by the major game industry players.