Hardware The greatest 3DS review yet

[BORTZ]

"Grew up with Halo"?

He looks pretty developed for a 13 year-old.

LOL

this guy is awesome.

 

[Xuphor]

I can SWEAR that cartridge he's putting in it is the Super R4i (The lack of the 3DS notch, the black pattern on the visible part of the sticker, etc).
http://www.r4ds-r4i.com/product_images/t/s...rd_0__43708.jpg

All seriousness though, it's CNN. Did anyone really expect them to have even halfway competent about game devices that don't double as an Apple-money-maker?

 

[Traversal]

Ok,

1. Why in the world is CNN reviewing the 3DS?! Must be a slow news day...

2. Where in the world are they getting there information from?! If they are getting any information at all.

3. Where has this guy been for the last 10 years?! Not only did the DS have cartridges , but even the GBA used cartridges. Heck, the only major company not use cartridges on handhelds was Sony, until the NGP, that is.

Of course though, I don't think anyone with half a brain takes this guy seriously. I mean, it's CNN, they're not exactly known for news on video games.

 

[redact]

I can SWEAR that cartridge he's putting in it is the Super R4i (The lack of the 3DS notch[...]

what's that you say?

 

[LightyKD]

This guy sucks at reviewing. The iPod touch is not a game system, neither is the iPhone. Comparing a handheld to a console? What??

This is a legitimate concern though. Even Nintendo is very concerned about the games on the Apple App store, which includes the iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad. The games on there are very inexpensive relatively and again a lot of people already own these devices. Apple is Nintendo's first real competitor into the handheld market in years. A misstep at this juncture could really kill them. Whether you like it or not, developers are migrating over to companies that make games on Facebook and the Apple App Store. They're cheaper and more profitable. People are very very worried about Zynga and what its impact is going to be.

At this point the 3DS and DSi are competing in the same space as the iPhone and iPad and Android markets. Are people going to become price sensitive due to the fact that games on the Apple store are significantly cheaper than on the Nintendo platform? It doesn't matter if the games are 'better' on the Nintendo platform. People are going to EXPECT games are going to cost a certain amount, just like how iTunes made 99cents the 'standard' for buying songs. When that happens, Nintendo will be in a very tenuous position because you have to buy a new product (since most people own some kind of Apple product at this point) and the games cost 3x-5x more than on a product you already own.

Even the stylus comment is somewhat relevant. There is no other consumer device left that uses a stylus at this point. Everything is touch screen based. At the time the NDS stylus was a great idea. At this point in time though, having a stylus seems to be a bit antiquated when compared to the rest of the market. Yes yes I realise the 3DS is more of an 'evolution' on the NDS line than a total overhaul so yeah it needs a stylus.

Just to give reference, I was recently at PAX East and my friend who is an analyst came along for 'work'. We all had fun but he was somewhat surprised that Apple and Zynga had no presence there, since those were what most analysts think are the dominant market forces in the gaming industry are. Basically the people with the money and are advising people are looking in that direction. They could be wrong, but it's not wise to discount their opinions out of hand.

Ever tried drawing with a capacitive touch screen? -_-' Until someone can make a capacitive touch screen that is as spot on as a resistive screen when it comes to "pin point" accuracy, give me my stylus any day!

 

[VGMaster64]

It's fun to see what other people think about the 3DS. Even when they have absolutely no idea about the system whatsoever. Gives me a good laugh. *goes back to play 3DS*

 

[nutella]

This guy sucks at reviewing. The iPod touch is not a game system, neither is the iPhone. Comparing a handheld to a console? What??

This is a legitimate concern though. Even Nintendo is very concerned about the games on the Apple App store, which includes the iPod Touch, iPhone, iPad. The games on there are very inexpensive relatively and again a lot of people already own these devices. Apple is Nintendo's first real competitor into the handheld market in years. A misstep at this juncture could really kill them. Whether you like it or not, developers are migrating over to companies that make games on Facebook and the Apple App Store. They're cheaper and more profitable. People are very very worried about Zynga and what its impact is going to be.

At this point the 3DS and DSi are competing in the same space as the iPhone and iPad and Android markets. Are people going to become price sensitive due to the fact that games on the Apple store are significantly cheaper than on the Nintendo platform? It doesn't matter if the games are 'better' on the Nintendo platform. People are going to EXPECT games are going to cost a certain amount, just like how iTunes made 99cents the 'standard' for buying songs. When that happens, Nintendo will be in a very tenuous position because you have to buy a new product (since most people own some kind of Apple product at this point) and the games cost 3x-5x more than on a product you already own.

Even the stylus comment is somewhat relevant. There is no other consumer device left that uses a stylus at this point. Everything is touch screen based. At the time the NDS stylus was a great idea. At this point in time though, having a stylus seems to be a bit antiquated when compared to the rest of the market. Yes yes I realise the 3DS is more of an 'evolution' on the NDS line than a total overhaul so yeah it needs a stylus.

Just to give reference, I was recently at PAX East and my friend who is an analyst came along for 'work'. We all had fun but he was somewhat surprised that Apple and Zynga had no presence there, since those were what most analysts think are the dominant market forces in the gaming industry are. Basically the people with the money and are advising people are looking in that direction. They could be wrong, but it's not wise to discount their opinions out of hand.

Ever tried drawing with a capacitive touch screen? -_-' Until someone can make a capacitive touch screen that is as spot on as a resistive screen when it comes to "pin point" accuracy, give me my stylus any day!

There are styli for capacitive touch screens, though I do see your point. I think the concern, however, was that iDevices will have an affect on the commercial success of the 3DS, no matter how inferior it may be as a gaming device. I mean, to be fair, it's not like the guy who reviews the 3DS is a complete retard or anything. It's just that we are all very familiar with video games and can point out the obvious flaws in his review. The fact is, there are millions of unknowing consumers with the same clouded thinking as this guy. Once you realize this, it's not too outrageous to think that an iDevice can put a significant dent in the success of a Nintendo product.

 

[Nathan Drake]

The problem with iDevices is that even though they are as expensive, if not generally more so than any Nintendo system has been or will be, they are simple. People don't buy them for their elaborate games, people buy them for simplicity. I mean, most people I find are impressed with Angry Birds or Robot Unicorn Attack on their iTouch or iPhone. The problem is though is that these games are also inexpensive. I can buy this $300 fancy iPhone and can buy 40 $1 games for the price of 1 3DS game. In the end, that does hurt any handheld trying to make money using its primary source of income; its games.

Why the iDevices aren't threats to modern handheld gaming systems though are many. You get a longer, larger, and more fulfilling experience over any iDevice game. Even the more complicated and intricate games coming out for these devices will never match up to that of a retail game. Simplicity isn't satisfactory for the majority, otherwise console games would be screwed too. Why buy Halo or Call of Duty when I can get this more simple, yet inexpensive shooter on my iDevice? It isn't enough to satisfy gamers. The majority of gamers think those who consider the iDevices for serious gaming are idiots, as they will never have the developer backing to compete.

The fear is irrational. I still don't know anybody who bought their iPhone for anything more than a fancy phone, or an iTouch for much outside of music playing and basic applications. I have yet to see a single person trying to lord their iTouch or iPhone or iPad over me as the next big gaming device, as it makes no sense.

For the person that mentioned Zynga: Okay, you have about 10 million people totally consumed with the games on Facebook, about 100,000 of which would be able to buy the iDevice and the game on it. Not exactly big competing numbers.

Edit: Sorry if it doesn't all make sense. It's late and I may not be thinking completely straight at this point.

 

[KingdomBlade]

He did express a very valid concern over the fact that the chances of the 3DS to sell will drop as the iDevices are performing excellently in the market. Because the previous DS was simple, accessible, and friendly to kids, it sold very well to large portion of the consumers. The 3DS however has low battery life, causes headaches and eyesores if the 3D is not turned off (I don't think a 5 year old knows how to turn it off), and is very expensive. The iDevices have games that aim to do what the DS did in the past.

The simplicity of the games on the iDevices are what makes them sell. If you think about it, families and casual gamers were the largest buyers of the DS and now, they are the largest buyers of the iDevices.

Also, lets look at it this way. Suppose that there was a normal, non gamer person who wanted to buy some sort of device. Would he buy A) The $250 device that causes eyesores, has low battery life, and has very expensive games or B) A $200 dollar device with games for a buck each, acts as a cellphone, has its music store and is smaller and compact? It doesn't matter if A has better games, the average consumer will go for the one that is more affordable. And the creators will go for the one that is more profitable.

This forum is filled with gamers, yes, but that doesn't make our group the only consumers on the market. The group of casual gamers and families might be even bigger than the "pro-gamer" group. Try to look at the bigger picture here before saying that it is stupid to compare the 3DS with iDevices. If we don't consider it a gaming device, it barely even matters since some people care more about things than the games. I doubt that a housewife prefers LoZoT over Calls + Texting + Skype + Angry Birds.

The guy said a relevant point here in this case.