Ok so I finally got my hands on a 3ds! I wanted to give a detailed run down of my experience with the system. I'll break this down into a few categories to help organize my thoughts :P
1) The hardware: 1st thing I noticed was that the system I was able to demo was Aqua blue, which was awesome because its the one I ordered and I really liked the way it looked EXCEPT it doesnt have a matte finish on the back which bugs me because I hate finger prints lol but I guess ill have to deal with it. The system felt great in my hands- mind you I have large hands so I prefer this design over the DSL wich is smaller in comparison. The buttons feel great as well as the D-pad, and I love the analog control- its very well built and is a welcomed addition compared to the psp's nub. The top screen is large and looks great, and the placement of the wifi switch, power button, and volume controls is nice.
2) The graphics: I remember back in the day when I would say "man if only there was a gameboy with gamecube graphics.." well sadly that hasnt happened yet, but luckily the 3ds surpasses it! man the graphics are great. I could only play Pilotwings but the game showcases the power of the 3ds well. Its not the greatest looking game ever, but if this is a launch title then Im excited for the systems future. The game renders well, the framerate never hiccups, in the daytime levels the sun shines brightly and beautifully on the top screen- it really is pleasing to the eye.
3) the 3d: This is the most interesting topic of them all. first off I will say that the 3d effect of the 3ds neither surpassed my expectations or failed to hit them- it was just different then I expected. I honestly dont know how to describe it and its hard to even remember it after playing. Kind of like a really cool dream that you vaguely remember when your talking to people about it. When I first looked into the screen, I realized that the 3d switch was all the way up- and after my eyes adjusted I realized that the effects were too much personally for my eyes. So I slid the switch to about halfway and the effects really popped- I found my sweet spot. The 3d effect on it raises depth perception in a way that allows the viewer to see past one plane, and see multiple planes of detail and animation. To really see if this made a difference I switched back and forth from 2d to 3d several times during missions in pilotwings and the difference is pretty awesome. Its the subtle improvement that 3d makes on your gameplay that really makes it special. Now you can truly measure how far you are from something, the distance between two objects is defined clearly and on top of this, tiny details like glints of sunlight, leaves flying in the wind, water splashing- these things pop up at you and its really great.
Overall my impression on the 3ds is a good one, I grinned the whole time while playing and since I was at a best buy in the middle of nowhere I didnt wait in a line and could spend about 20 minutes playing- I cant wait to get my hands on my own. Now that I know what Im getting myself into, I can safely say that handheld gaming is safe for the next 5-8 years, the system is a blast and its only up from here.
Sorry for the grammatical errors :P Im an english major too lol but much too excited to share this to proof-read :)
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