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[bigdaddygamebot]

Your daughter doesnt need a really expensive product. How about getting her barbies, coloring books, books, and dolls instead?

I agree. She doesn't need a really expensive product. She doesn't even need a moderately expensive one.

She has all of the above...in spades (except Barbies).

Although...she has like...three different colouring apps on the Touch at the moment... : /

All three of my kids are jumping up and down for a 3DS. (They want iPads, too. But fat chance of that happening). But 3DS is #1 by far. My three kids mean more to the market than your one daughter. So 3DS wins by a 3:1 ratio.

Curse you and your prolific line!

Even better, Apple could just pay Nintendo to make Mario games the the iPad!!!!!!

Wonder what the price tag would be for that...

 

[Thunder Monkey]

If Nintendo had beefed up the RAM, something Factor 5 had asked them to do but they worried would raise the price above $200, it would have easily ridden right alongside the XBox in power.

The same problems would have existed as before, there would just be more RAM to work with. A simple Vertex Shader would have made more difference. Might have allowed stuff like normal maps to be easy. Instead of the trickery Factor5 had to employ to do it.

More RAM would have made the games look more like high quality Wii games. Still would have been lacking in some shader features departments. Poly counts would have been higher than the Xbox... but they already were. And good texturing has always been more about artistic vision than technical power.

At the very least Capcom wouldn't have had to render RE4 at such an odd and low resolution. Dithering still would have been a problem.

 

[legend166]

i miss the days when nintendo strived to produce cutting-edge systems. the snes was superior in its time to anything else and project reality was some of the most amazing shit i've ever seen come out of the game industry.

i consider gamecube and wii to be complete failures, both technologically and in terms of software. the 3ds looks to be more of the same, cheaply produced and gimmicky line of toys. to add insult to injury, the casual gaming phenomenon they started with Wii makes me want to puke.

i miss the old nintendo. their next system should be an absolute beast and complete change in design philosophy.

Nintendo are releasing the first ever mainstream, consumer level glasses-free 3D device.

Let me repeat that.

Nintendo are releasing the first ever mainstream, consumer level glasses-free 3D device.

I feel like this is really being overlooked.

 

[kman3000]

i miss the days when nintendo strived to produce cutting-edge systems. the snes was superior in its time to anything else and project reality was some of the most amazing shit i've ever seen come out of the game industry.

i consider gamecube and wii to be complete failures, both technologically and in terms of software. the 3ds looks to be more of the same, cheaply produced and gimmicky line of toys. to add insult to injury, the casual gaming phenomenon they started with Wii makes me want to puke.

i miss the old nintendo. their next system should be an absolute beast and complete change in design philosophy.

There isn't a ":|" big enough for this post.

 

[Boney]

People are calling 3DS underpowered now? I know it's not gonna be a PSP2 but seriously?

 

[bigdaddygamebot]

There isn't a ":|" big enough for this post.

Maybe he's being...sarcastic...or something?

 

[Gravijah]

People are calling 3DS underpowered now? I know it's not gonna be a PSP2 but seriously?

Power is relative, mang. Price, competition...

 

[Boney]

Power is relative, mang. Price, competition...

It has enough power for handheld games. And although I do agree it's really expensive, there's plenty of shit in there that drive the price, like gyros, accelerometers, camaras and a few AR games to add value.

 

[FStop7]

It's all going to come down to the games, really. Quality, fun games, popular games = continued sales win for Nintendo. Mario, Pokey's Mon, Advance Wars, Layton, etc. The 3DS is going to do very well. Maybe it won't be a cash register on the absurd scale of the DS, but it's going to do well.

 

[Eteric Rice]

It seems to be a huge leap over the DS, and developers say its a beast little device, so we'll see.

The PSP2 is sounding like it's going to be overkill, though. I mean 1 gig of RAM in a dedicated video game handheld? God damn.

 

[bigdaddygamebot]

It seems to be a huge leap over the DS, and developers say its a beast little device, so we'll see.

The PSP2 is sounding like it's going to be overkill, though. I mean 1 gig of RAM in a dedicated video game handheld? God damn.

Has Sony referred to it as a "dedicated video game handheld"?

I don't even think they marketed the original PSP as that. Weren't they pushing the whole, "music, videos and games" thing from the start?

 

[Thunder Monkey]

It seems to be a huge leap over the DS, and developers say its a beast little device, so we'll see.

The PSP2 is sounding like it's going to be overkill, though. I mean 1 gig of RAM in a dedicated video game handheld? God damn.

If Sony can do it and not break the bank then I give them leave to do so.

But in no way is the 3DS underpowered. For the resolution they are shooting for, it has more than enough power to give us some strange amalgam between the PS2 generation and the 360.

 

[Eteric Rice]

Has Sony referred to it as a "dedicated video game handheld"?

I don't even think they marketed the original PSP as that. Weren't they pushing the whole, "music, videos and games" thing from the start?

Even then, it's hardware is probably made for games. If so, 1 gig of ram is insane. I was expecting around 256 mb or something.

 

[Throwaway123456789]

I can't wait for the 3DS to sell something like 130 million units and be declared a failure next to the ~150 million DSes.

SIGH

 

[Rolf NB]

If Sony can do it and not break the bank then I give them leave to do so.

But in no way is the 3DS underpowered. For the resolution they are shooting for, it has more than enough power to give us some strange amalgam between the PS2 generation and the 360.

Agreed. The MGS 3D demo for one has already proved the 3DS can do pretty graphics.

 

[VOOK]

I can't wait for the 3DS to sell something like 130 million units and be declared a failure next to the ~150 million DSes.

SIGH

You forgetting what site you're on?

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

Just realized I haven't expressed my giddy joy here yet, but I can't wait for a 3DS. I don't understand how this isn't "bleeding edge" technology. That seems to be a very singular line of thought that relies entirely on graphical capabilities. The list of features on such a small machine is hard to fathom for me and, even in the realm of graphics, I find this to be a very capable device.

Anyway, day one for me

 

[Majima Everywhere System]

As far as 3ds graphics go, at least the animations are carrying over from newer gen stuff. Being able to stuff in those skeletons in so that the animations can be ported will go a long way in making the 3ds look great.

Both Street Fighter and the Lego game impressed me in that way (that "I can't believe that's a handheld way")

Maybe the PSP pulled a lot of that off. I may never have played the right games. I think Tekken had the same animations as the PS3 and 360, and that might have blown my socks off as well.

 

[Kodiak]

As far as 3ds graphics go, at least the animations are carrying over from newer gen stuff. Being able to stuff in those skeletons in so that the animations can be ported will go a long way in making the 3ds look great.

Both Street Fighter and the Lego game impressed me in that way (that "I can't believe that's a handheld way")

Maybe the PSP pulled a lot of that off. I may never have played the right games. I think Tekken had the same animations as the PS3 and 360, and that might have blown my socks off as well.

Yeah the animations in Kid Icarus are top notch, the way the feathers on his wings flutter and his feet dangle slightly. Monster Hunter Portable 3rd has some gorgeous animation work, but I can't think of much else on the PSP that comes close.

 

[Dreamwriter]

i miss the days when nintendo strived to produce cutting-edge systems. the snes was superior in its time to anything else and project reality was some of the most amazing shit i've ever seen come out of the game industry.

i consider gamecube and wii to be complete failures, both technologically and in terms of software. the 3ds looks to be more of the same, cheaply produced and gimmicky line of toys. to add insult to injury, the casual gaming phenomenon they started with Wii makes me want to puke.

i miss the old nintendo. their next system should be an absolute beast and complete change in design philosophy.

Let's see... I think I'll start with the SNES. The SNES was inferior to the Genesis in terms of CPU power. The Genesis was massively speedy, SNES a slowdown machine. It was superior in terms of colors per screen, sprite number/size, sound, and built-in effects, but the Genesis was far more powerful.

Gamecube was much more powerful than the PS2, which was the financial winner of that generation. Gamecube could throw polygons like nothing else, and had built-in cell-shaders and stuff. What it was missing were support for fully programmable shaders like the XBox had.

"Project Reality" (aka N64) was vastly inferior in terms of storage and manufacturing costs. The other two systems of the generation, PSX and Saturn, could have 640MB games that cost under $1 to manufacture. N64 had at most 64MB (512 megabits), I think only two games were released that big because those huge cartridges cost like $20 or $25 to have manufactured.

Wii is the first game system Nintendo made a conscious choice not to be "cutting edge" in terms of specs, but note that it *was* the first console to use experimental motion-controls in the mainstream, of which now all consoles do (which makes Nintendo "cutting edge" as well as proving that it wasn't just a gimmick)

3DS is way more powerful than any handheld we've seen so far. Rumors have the PSP2 as more powerful, but Nintendo definitely hasn't gone "cheap and gimmicky". I dunno where you got the idea that the 3DS is low-end or anything.

 

[DR2K]

People are calling 3DS underpowered now? I know it's not gonna be a PSP2 but seriously?

The gap between it and the and the portable released in 2004 aren't considerable in terms of tech.

 

[antonz]

The gap between it and the and the portable released in 2004 aren't considerable in terms of tech.

Well thats not toally true. From what we can gather based on info known it would appear Nintendo has greatly underclocked the hardware in the device.

The CPUs could be anywhere from 50-66% underclocked and the GPU could be as much as 50% underclocked. Its entirely possible in the future that Nintendo will unlock the full power of all the chips.

 

[Thunder Monkey]

The gap between it and the and the portable released in 2004 aren't considerable in terms of tech.

It's more of a half-generational step than full generational, I see your point and admit it's legitimate.

Nintendo handhelds are on a different timescale than Sony's have been so far. Sony is trying to miniaturize a console, Nintendo is doing whatever the fuck they can to make a profit. It's a powerhouse handheld console. When it launches it will still have the title of most powerful for the majority of the year. The games are already pretty, and like any piece of hardware they'll look even more impressive at the end of its lifespan.

PSP2 games will look better. But the difference between 3DS and PSP2 is nowhere near as stark as DS and PSP.

 

[Lonely1]

The gap between it and the and the portable released in 2004 aren't considerable in terms of tech.

How is not? Is a good leap from even the PSP (not to mention the DS).

I don't like to do this, but people need a reminder on how PSP games actually look (on a non PSP screen), some of the best rated visuals for the PSP on their time

 

[Dreamwriter]

Well thats not toally true. From what we can gather based on info known it would appear Nintendo has greatly underclocked the hardware in the device.

The CPUs could be anywhere from 50-66% underclocked and the GPU could be as much as 50% underclocked. Its entirely possible in the future that Nintendo will unlock the full power of all the chips.

...keeping in mind that we know nothing at all about the system specs except 96MB RAM and the manufacturer of the GPU/CPU...

 

[antonz]

...keeping in mind that we know nothing at all about the system specs except 96MB RAM and the manufacturer of the GPU/CPU...

We know the rumored parts and the specs. I couldnt get our chinese friends to take better pictures of the chips themselves out of fear of being caught

 

[Dreamwriter]

We know the rumored parts and the specs. I couldnt get our chinese friends to take better pictures of the chips themselves out of fear of being caught

And we know that those rumors were wrong, since IGN's rumors listed 64MB RAM, while the system with the debug-OS says it has 96MB free.

 

[sasimirobot]

I am always reminded of this when people bag on how low-tech nintendo handhelds tend to be.

We all know how that turned out...

 

[Furoba]

I am always reminded of this when people bag on how low-tech nintendo handhelds tend to be.

We all know how that turned out...

at the start, PSP looked better though. ;-)

 

[boiled goose]

at the start, PSP looked better though. ;-)

The DSphat was so freaking ugly. It doesnt even look fun. It looks like an abandoned prototype.

 

[Lonely1]

The DSphat was so freaking ugly. It doesnt even looks fun. It looks like an abandoned prototype.

No. PSPhat is the sexiest handheld ever made.

Also, I just listened the Engadget podcast and they said that the 3DS RE (didn't specify) looked like an N64 game. And that the 3DS and they DSi look, graphically, almost the same, but in 3D.

 

[jjasper]

The DSphat was so freaking ugly. It doesnt even looks fun. It looks like an abandoned prototype.

Not only that, but the game lineup at the time was fucking horrendous. The PSP blew it completely out of the water. People laugh at that picture now, but it was appropriate at the time.

 

[antonz]

No. PSPhat is the sexiest handheld ever made.

Also, I just listened the Engadget podcast and they said that the 3DS RE (didn't specify) looked like an N64 game. :/

Im pretty sure too much of the tech industry has its head so far up Steve Jobs ass that they would say crysis looked like N64 tech if it was a nintendo product.

I cant imagine whats going to happen when Jobs dies. Half the industry is going to commit suicide

 

[Effect]

How is not? Is a good leap from even the PSP (not to mention the DS).

I don't like to do this, but people need a reminder on how PSP games actually look (on a non PSP screen), some of the best rated visuals for the PSP on their time

Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

 

[ElFly]

at the start, PSP looked better though. ;-)

Eh, it used discs. Battery and load times issues were evident once you stepped out of the hype train.

 

[Chorazin]

Not only that, but the game lineup at the time was fucking horrendous. The PSP blew it completely out of the water. People laugh at that picture now, but it was appropriate at the time.

Oh brother was it. The meager handful of good games in the DS' first year was pathetic. I'm sure I'm not the only one that sold their DS phat and didn't buy again until the DSlite came out, and by that time the library was much more robust.

 

[legend166]

No. PSPhat is the sexiest handheld ever made.

Also, I just listened the Engadget podcast and they said that the 3DS RE (didn't specify) looked like an N64 game. :/

People have legitimately forgotten what N64 games look like.

I bet in 10 years we'll get a handheld as powerful as the PS3, and people will say the games look like N64 games.

 

[Why would you do that?]

I'm probably the only one who likes the original DS's design. It feels like a rough-and-tough brick that'll withstand any damage.

Spoiler

Then you open it one day and a hinge piece falls off.

No matter what, though, it's still better looking than this... thing:

I remember when I was so excited for that...

 

[ThatObviousUser]

I'm probably the only one who likes the original DS's design. It feels like a rough-and-tough brick that'll withstand any damage.

Spoiler

Then you open it one day and a hinge piece falls off.

No matter what, though, it's still better looking than this... thing:

I remember when I was so excited for that...

I like that prototype more than the actual DS Phat. >_> Looked more congruous.

 

[Lonely1]

I like that prototype more than the actual DS Phat. >_> Looked more congruous.

The D-pad looks like crap, though.

 

[ElFly]

I like the black bar for the screens on the DSProto.

Combine that with the DSPhat buttons/pad, and there, sexiest DS ever.

 

[Dreamwriter]

Not only that, but the game lineup at the time was fucking horrendous. The PSP blew it completely out of the water. People laugh at that picture now, but it was appropriate at the time.

Spideman 2 was pretty good at launch. And the Urbz, while not a technological wonder, was a pretty fun adventure take on the Sims. And Feel the Magic, while really freaking short, was quite fun and unique (it felt more like an indy-game than a Sega game). And of course there's Mario 64DS, which was decent when used with the thumbstick.

Edit: And Japan actually got the best launch title - Band Bros. I *still* play that game.

 

[kman3000]

Not only that, but the game lineup at the time was fucking horrendous. The PSP blew it completely out of the water. People laugh at that picture now, but it was appropriate at the time.

What was out for PSP in its first year? I remember buying both the DS and PSP at launch and being pretty bummed out with both of them.

 

[Lonely1]

What was out for PSP in its first year? I remember buying both the DS and PSP at launch and being pretty bummed out with both of them.

Wipeout Pure alone was worth the price. I still play it today from time to time. Also, Lumines and Twisted Metal out of my head.

 

[Dreamwriter]

What was out for PSP in its first year? I remember buying both the DS and PSP at launch and being pretty bummed out with both of them.

PSP had a good launch...and then the worst dry spell ever. It launched with Wipeout Pure, Lumines, Ridge Racer, Twisted Metal, Darkstalkers Chronicle, Need for Speed Underground, Metal Gear Acid, Untold Legends, Dynasty Warriors, Spiderman 2, and a bunch of sports games.

 

[Why would you do that?]

The prototype DS's gloss is very strange looking to me. If the whole system were black, it'd probably looks a whole lot nicer, though.

As for launch titles, I feel like the DS launch games are better than the 3DS's, but the 3DS's first year will no doubt be better than the DS's. When the DS was announced, the game I wanted most was Feel the Magic: XY/XX. It's not the greatest game ever at all, but it definitely has a strong charm to it. Besides that, Mario 64, Kirby Canvas, and Warioware were pretty much all the notable DS games we had for almost a whole year.

 

[jman2050]

What was out for PSP in its first year? I remember buying both the DS and PSP at launch and being pretty bummed out with both of them.

I remember people were all over that boring puzzler Lumines for the first year or so. Quite interesting to remember the hype for that game on hindsight.

Ditto for the Meteos warriors.

The prototype DS's gloss is very strange looking to me. If the whole system were black, it'd probably looks a whole lot nicer, though.

As for launch titles, I feel like the DS launch games are better than the 3DS's, but the 3DS's first year will no doubt be better than the DS's. When the DS was announced, the game I wanted most was Feel the Magic: XY/XX. It's not the greatest game ever at all, but it definitely has a strong charm to it. Besides that, Mario 64, Kirby Canvas, and Warioware were pretty much all the notable DS games we had for almost a whole year.

In all fairness, Kirby Canvas Curse was *the* game that I felt legitimized the DS from that point on. Much like Wii Sports or Halo, one game was all it needed.

 

[VOOK]

Also, I just listened the Engadget podcast and they said that the 3DS RE (didn't specify) looked like an N64 game. And that the 3DS and they DSi look, graphically, almost the same, but in 3D.

Yeah Engadget's impressions on the 3DS have been terrible so far, everything they say is wrong or factually incorrect. Love them as a gadget site, but stay the fuck away from games guys.

 

[Gravijah]

I like that prototype more than the actual DS Phat. >_> Looked more congruous.

Does it even have speakers?

 

[Kard8p3]

The prototype DS's gloss is very strange looking to me. If the whole system were black, it'd probably looks a whole lot nicer, though.

As for launch titles, I feel like the DS launch games are better than the 3DS's, but the 3DS's first year will no doubt be better than the DS's. When the DS was announced, the game I wanted most was Feel the Magic: XY/XX. It's not the greatest game ever at all, but it definitely has a strong charm to it. Besides that, Mario 64, Kirby Canvas, and Warioware were pretty much all the notable DS games we had for almost a whole year.

You forgot Meteos.