Everything Nintendo 3DS Revealed!

The new Nintendo handheld, 3DS, is gearing up to get here. It’s no surprise that the Nintendo press conference should focus greatly on the matter and so they released tons and tons of information. In an overwhelming display, much of the final details were all given out, together with as much promotional footage those Japanese heroes could fling at us.

It can get a little smothering to try and keep up with literally hundreds of press releases, so this editor has taken it upon himself to wade through all the info. In this Olympic marathon of material, we’ll try and get everything you need to know covered in 1 concise article.

- Date and price: The first thing you’ll want to know is when you can get your hands on one of these awesome clams and how many clams you’ll need to save up to purchase said clams. Is that too many clams?

Anyway, Japan will see the release of the 3DS first on February 26, 2011 for 25,000 yen. North America and Europe will have to wait a month, until somewhere in March 2011, to purchase the handheld for about $300/220€.

Included with the purchase of your console, you’ll receive a charger stand, an AC adapter, a 10cm telescoping metal stylus, a 2 GB SD memory card and 6 paper Augmented  Reality (AR) cards, which will be used for the system’s built-in AR game software. The 3DS' outward-facing 3D camera will detect and replace these cards with different 3D objects in the room.

- Specifications: Just what exactly can the clam do, except be awesome, impress all your friends and get you laid? Well, here’s a huge list, as released by Nintendo in a PDF file:

Size: 134x74x21mm
Weight: 230g
Upper Screen: 3.53 inches, 3D support, 800x240 pixels
Lower Screen: 3.02 inches, 320x240 pixels
Sound: Stereo Speakers on the top screen.

Inputs: A/B/X/Y buttons, L/R shoulder buttons, Start/Select buttons,  D-pad, Slide Pad for 360° analogue input, Touch Screen, Internal Microphone, Camera(s), Motion Sensor, Gyro Sensor,3D Depth Slider, Home Button, Power Button and a Wireless Switch that can turn off wireless even while in-game.

Camera: 1 camera inside, 2 cameras outside. Each camera is 0.3 megapixels (640x480)

Connections: Game Card Slot, SD Memory Card Slot, AC Adapter Connection, Charge Connection, Headphone Connection

Game Cards: Nintendo 3DS exclusive game cards with 2Gb capacity. They will be the same size as DS cards.

Wireless Communication: 2.4GHz. Wireless internet compatible with WPA/WPA2 IEEE802.11 security.

Battery: Lithium Ion

That’s quite a lot to go through, right? Well, stick with us, because there’s a whole lot more. For instance; you’ll need to know what you can play, once you get your awesome device.

- Line-up: It’s not definite at this point which titles will be released upon launch, but one thing is for sure: The Nintendo 3DS will have an awe striking first generation. Just feast your eyes on some of these amazing titles, coming out as soon as possible to launch.

Everything will be 3D. Even 2D Mario.

Super Mario 64, Paper Mario, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Animal Crossing, Harvest Moon, Professor Layton and the Mask of the Miracle,  Kid Icarus: Uprising, StarFox 64, Mario Kart, Pilot Wings Resort, Sonic, Metal Gear Solid, Ninja Gaiden, Driver, Dead or Alive, Chocobo Racing, Resident Evil Revelations, Super Street Fighter IV, Dynasty Warriors Musou, Project LovePlus, Kingdom Hearts, Super Black Bass, Super Monkey Ball, Licca-chan, Steel Diver, Nintendogs + Cats, Marble Mania, Deca Sporta, Bomberman, Gundam, Super Robot, Dragonball, Pac-Man & Galaga, Ridge Racer, Crash-City GP, VS-robo, Class of Heroes 3D x 3D, Combat of Giants Dinosaur, Ghost Recon Tactics, Splinter Cell, Samurai Warriors Chronicle and possible more .

That’s right; even more titles are making their way to the confirmed list every day. So, I hope you were not planning on just spending 300 dollars and be done with it, because the big N is after your money! And you know you want to give it to them!

So, now that we know all this, we can move on to all other things a 3DS can do.

- Functions: Ok, so it might not be able to fry you up a croque-monsieur, but you’ll be amazed at what capabilities it does have.

Obviously, the big selling point is 3D support without the need of anything else. The 3D effect will be applicable for both image and sound and can be adjusted with the 3D Depth Slider. It can even be rendered completely 2D, if you so please.

Since the card slot is made conveniently the same size as its previous system, this can only mean one thing: Yes, the Nintendo 3DS will be Backwards Compatible; and that for both DS and DSi!

On the outside of the shell, a stereoscopic camera can take 3D pictures, which are instantly viewable.

Just like with the DSi, you’ll be able to set Parental Controls, which have been improved from previous versions. These restrictions will be based off game ratings. You’ll also be able to limit browser use and other areas.

There’s a Motion and Gyro Sensor, a feature called “Book” (for a possible eReader?)  and there will even be 3D TV streaming; at least, if you live in Japan. There has not been any indication if the rest of the world will also receive a TV streaming program.

Now let’s look at some of the bigger features that the 3DS will also be able to perform:

One big aspect is called Tag Mode. This allows your 3DS to exchange data automatically with other 3DS systems, while in sleep mode. The system will even be able to transfer data from multiple games simultaneously. This feature will be called ‘StreetPass’ and will be more passive.

The more active ‘SportPass’ will also work when in sleep mode. Here, the system will automatically seek out Nintendo Zone and wireless LAN access points and obtain information and game data from the web, but also free games, videos and more!

You might also have noticed the Augmented Reality component. This works much like you would know from Invizimals and such, where the line between the physical world and the virtual world get blurred together. A regular room will look different, if looked through a 3DS’ camera. By use of these cards, you could for instance watch monsters appear on your screen and be able to shoot them down.

Joining the bandwagon of digital download, it will also be possible to purchase your games online! You’ll also be able to view videos and rankings.

But that’s hardly all! The Nintendo 3DS will also set up a store, in likes of Virtual Console, for Gameboy (Color) games!  Oh yes, it has finally arrived. Demanded when the DS came out, the online store will finally give handheld fanatics the chance to relive past glory, such as Marioland and Link’s Awakening. And while it was rumored that this would also stretch out to Gameboy Advance games, no official statements have confirmed this, for now.

Another big new thing is the ability to transfer data. This will allow 3DS owners to transfer titles and other software from one console to the other. Although there will be a set amount of times this action will be applicable and it will not be accessible for all data, it’s still nice to be able to switch your game from one system to the next.

And last but not least:

Mii support! Yep. After the success of the little virtual critters on the Wii, your cartoony alter ego will also be making its way to your handheld in force. For instance, you’ll be able to create a Mii character a lot easier now, using the 3DS’ camera. Simply by taking a picture of yourself, the 3DS will generate a Mii based on that photo with Mii Studio. This is radically easier than trying to create a person on Wii.

The little creatures will also get their own their own Mii Plaza, where you can do all sorts of things with them. It will also integrate Tag Mode, where it includes meeting and exchanging Miis with other users.

That’s about everything for now. You can see it’s already quite a bit to swallow. Nintendo didn’t take the easy route out here and really went all out to make their new handheld number 1 on the market. Here’s hoping you’ve enjoyed catching up to, what might be, a revolutionary piece of hardware.

So, which feature are you excited about?

Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed.