3DS "Review"

The 3DS has nearly been out for a week in the UK, and most of us have had time to mull over the ins and outs of the consoles. Its Nintendo’s most expensive handheld to date, so many will be asking – is it worth the money? My answer – yes.
Rather than give a lay down on everything the console does I’ll be commenting on features that particularly stood out to me as you’ve probably heard everything there is too already (And if not the internet has a plethora of information.) Anyway, onto the “review”.

The first thing you’ve got to notice is the machine itself. It looks brilliant – from the front at least. The surface is immune to fingerprints which I’m sure will be a welcome sign to anyone. It’s a nice finish overall and a massive step up from the DS I’ve been used too for all this time, but perhaps not as much for the DSi generation. It’s not perfect though. The stylus is oddly positioned at the back of the console again akin to the original DS. It’s also retractable and often a struggle to remove, which adds a few extra unnecessary seconds. Hardly a factor that will sway you away from the console, but an annoyance non the less. Another problem at the back is that – it’s metal. Rather than the sleek combination of black and grey surrounding the rest of the console, a metal strip sticks out and just makes me wonder why they didn’t cover it up. I assume this will be improved upon in the next iteration. Both these issues are minor niggles at the most, and really don’t take away from the overall feel of the console. The Circle pad works great in conjunction with the D-pad, both easier to use than it may first look.
However, who buys a console solely for its looks? The software is what really matters, and this is where the console really stands out from previous iterations. It’s worth considering I skipped the DSi so some of my points may not be a massive step up from that, but compared to Phat and Lite it really is a massive difference.
The menu is clear, concise, easy to navigate and can be manipulated at will, much akin to the iPhone layout.It’s a nice thing to see when you load your console and allows a small amount of multi tasking, but only 1 main task at a time. It gets kind of annoying confirming you want to quit each application, yet the features saved me once or twice. What really shines out is the sheer magnitude of features bundled in with the console. Classics like playing games (duh) alongside the DSi’s camera mode and sound are carried over, but many more gems are hidden within.

There are 3 games bundled in with the console that will entertain for a few hours (Face Raiders, AR games, Mii Plaza games). They are surprisingly fun, yet short, but for free you really can’t ask for much more. They serve to highlight some of the 3DS’s new functionality in the gyroscope, pedometer and AR use more than as standalone games, yet there is massive potential in each of these titles. I personally spent hours exploring before even loading my bought game. The Mii creator from the wii has also been ported over and expanded for 3DS use, able to go through the old method or take a picture to Mii-ify. It fails at times, but often gives surprisingly good results. It’s nice to see this feature is here to stay, enabling there use in games such as Pilotwings.Going through what I love about each feature would need an entire review in itself, so I’ll stop at this – prepared to be impressed.

But there’s more. I’ve managed to get this far without even mentioning what is a key feature to many potential buyers - the 3D. “Believe your eyes” is a the main element of nintendo’s ad campaign, so how does it stand up in the real world? Simply put, it works. Everyone seems to see it slightly differently, but as a general rule the layers of depth it adds really is something to see. It works. And it’s great.
But is it necessary? Nope. Even on launch day, I soon found myself switching between the two with a pretty even split. This may be down to Street Fighter able to produce fantastic images due to its game play. I even found it distracting at times, having to keep in the sweet spot during a tense battle can sometimes be troublesome. But with the ability to adjust 3D levels without so much as a pause, it’s easy to adjust given your situation. It’s nice to have, and the console excels with 3D or without.

However, there are a few things that I have a problem with. The first issue stems back to a hardware problem, battery life. 3-5 hours is abysmally low for a handheld, and this could easy push away buyers who save there handhelds for long trips – it just won’t last. Eventually either Nintendo or a 3rd party will remedy this via a battery pack or an updated console, but for those who are wanting to purchase now may question its immediate use.
The streetpass feature is also a really neat idea – you walk past someone who also has the mode turned on, then your two consoles exchange data without so much as a sound. It can be nice to open your 3DS and see your trophies have battered another’s in Street Fighter; or even that another Mii has appeared to help save the king in Streetpass quest. Yet this stems back to the battery life. The console has a short battery life as is, having to leave wireless active on the go just in case is a hard sell. This is especially hindered by the lacklustre numbers that come with every launch, coupled with UK tradition will make the occurrence rare outside of game stores. If this didn’t require that extra battery life from an already short lifespan I would love it, but for now it’ll have to stay off unless on short journeys.
A similar situation lies in the pedometer – the console needs to be on for it to work. If you take your console with you it’s generally off to start with, so being forced to ensure it’s on (using precious battery life) is frustrating. It may be necessary (I’m no technical wiz) but frustrating non the less. There’s life in this though, as for the steps you take you earn play coins which can unlock nice little features like extra AR games or rent-a-hero in streetpass quest. It’s worth doing it for the 1000 steps a day to max your cap.

I hate to end on a bad note, and for a console like this, I can’t.. I love it. The problems I’ve outlined are the only downsides I can find other than an underwhelming launch line-up, but that will soon change. I started this review aiming for a quick review, but I’m already over 1000 word. I’m just bursting with stuff to say about the 3DS. I could now easily go on for another few thousand words about just how much I love it, but I need not bore you any longer. All I can say is that if the negatives put you off, think again. They may be frustrating, but the overall package is fantastic, even for its hefty price tag. I would recommend it to anyone with only one barrier to instant purchase – the games. As innovative and outright fun games like face raiders are, they don’t quantify to such a purchase. If you want to wait for the killer apps to be released, fair enough. Prices may have changed or upgrades are release. But there’s something for everyone (even your grandma) in this little machine, so sooner or later, you should add one to your collection.