E3 2012 - That Gamer Hub’s Staff Wish List

Yes, it’s this time of the year again. The Christmas of the video game world, E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo), is just around the corner and rumours are already flying around everywhere on gaming websites. As things ramp up until the beginning of the official press conferences next Monday, here is our staff’s wish list for next week.

Matt’s list:

  1. The Nintendo Wii U: I want to see where Nintendo is heading with its next console. I want to see innovation, a great online infrastructure with great support, games that gamer REALLY want, and console performances that will give it a chance to compete with the other console manufacturers for years to come.
  2. More information on announced games: The Last Guardian, BioShock Infinite, Halo 4, Forza Horizon, Resident Evil 6, Rock Band Blitz, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance, Rainbow Six Patriots, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the next Splinter Cell game, Tomonobu Itagaki’s project (Devil’s Third).
  3. Less focus on gimmicky designs and more on solid gameplay experiences: The Wii, Kinect, and Move all have their place in the video game world. Still, I believe many publishers have forgotten that these new way of playing do not always fit perfectly with every types of games. This is why I would these peripherals to be used only when it does make sense, not just because “it’s cool”. Steel Battalion on the Xbox 360 seems to be going in a good direction, bringing standard controllers and Kinect controls together in a great way for gamers (making the technology an extension of what was already a great way of controlling games, not a step back with 100% use of motion control which are usually very inaccurate).
  4. SURPRISES: Anything! I want to see crazy stuff! Bring back StarCraft: Ghost… Bring back Jazz Jackrabbit… SEGA announcing a new console… Hideo Kojima showing off the next Metal Gear Solid game… Where is that Guillermo Del Toro game (Insane)? I WANT TO SEE ALL THAT STUFF!!! (Long story short: I want to have my mind blown by crazy announcements.)

Adam’s list:

  1. F-Zero on the 3DS. It has been far too long since we’ve seen a decent entry in this futuristic, Zero-G racing franchise. I’m not so much about the Original mode seven games that we’ve seen on the SNES and the GBA, but wouldn’t it be crazy to have a game in this series modelled after X or GX, in 3D? However, this would have to be a NEW, ORIGINAL title to satisfy me. No remakes of F-Zero X please! Oh, and no gyro controls either.
  2. More emphasis on the core audience. Core gamers are what bring the most attention to E3, right? Most of them don’t want to hear about Kinect games about Disneyland, or new Imagine games, or anything coming out on the Wii nowadays. Why not give them something to truly look forward to?
  3. MS points parody and/or elimination of MS points. If you live in Canada you probably already think this. If the loonie is at par the USD, why are we still getting 10 less points per dollar? It just so happens Canadians aren’t the only country affected by this either. Microsoft needs to change this up else we’ll just continue to get ripped off simply by not living in the US.
  4. Black Ops II to give players the ability to punch an opponent making fun of your mom. In the face. OVER THE INTERNET. I can dream, can’t I?

Frank’s List:

  1. Microsoft needs to get rid of MS points.  This ridiculous and unfair pricing of MS points from country to country needs to stop.  I don’t know why I get less points for $20 in Canada than my U.S. counterparts.  The dollar has been near part for months now.  Plus with the way taxes are now being charged on both PSN and eShop purchases, MS will have no choice.  I completely expect this to happen within minutes of the Microsoft keynote starting.
  2. More Grand Theft Auto V details.  I expect a release date, platforms and a new trailer to be shown either at the MS Presser or Sony (Maybe a PS3 exclusive?).  I predict an early 2013 release with a delay in between to make it Holiday 2013.
  3. Nintendo:  Redesigned 3DS with larger screen and built-in Circle Pad Pro, similar to the DSi XL. I fully expect Nintendo to bring out a revised version of the console at some point.  But I think E3 would be the perfect place to reveal it.  I also expect Nintendo to drop more Wii U details.  Such as how multiplayer will be integrated (local and online or online only as previously rumored) and most importantly what kind of media and storage options the device will support (Memory cards, HDD, BluRay, Old School Cartridges?).
  4. Sony: New God of War NOT starring Kratos will be revealed.  Along with a slicing and dicing trailer.  Maybe a new God of War Vita title as well.
  5. Surprises:  Microsoft reveals newly redesigned Xbox 360 Slim with BluRay drive.  That’s all I want out a next gen MS console.  I know they said they wouldn’t do it.  Supply and demand says this needs to happen.  Also, Nintendo will reveal a 20th anniversary SNES with built-in upscaler to 720p via HDMI.  Will be limited edition.  I really want that.

Harold’s List:

  1. Microsoft- No more points, price drop, perhaps a new tier of Xbox live, Summer of Arcade lineup announced (predictions- Battleblock Theater, Charlie Murder, The Wreckateer, Dust: An Elysian Tail)
  2. Sony- More characters announced for PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale, including official announcements of Cole, Drake, and Snake, as well as Sackboy, Crash, Spyro, Ryu, Chun-Li, Scorpion, Sub-Zero, and Sonic.
  3. Nintendo- NO 3DS redesign (Probably E3 2013), a focus on Wii U titles, including Mario, Sonic, Mario Kart, Pikmin, and maybe some early footage of Smash Bros. (but I’m not holding my breath for that one). Release info for previously announced 3DS titles (Animal Crossing, Luigi’s Mansion 2, Paper Mario), as well as Nintendo Network details.
  4. Surprises: Retro-styled new Nintendo titles coming to eShop, including Super Mario Bros., Zelda, & Metroid, Vita gets PS1 & 2 classics, Rock Band Blitz on Summer of Arcade- therefore having a timed exclusive on XBLA.

Jose’s List:

  1. I want Microsoft to announce a bunch of original exclusive titles that are not sequels, or remakes. They’ve left the hardcore gamer out to dry, whilst spending all their time going after families and casual gamers. All they give the rest of us is a remake or a sequel to IP’s that are anywhere from 6-10 years old. For goodness sake, how many more Halo games can you make?
  2.  Nintendo will clarify once and for all that the Wii U is not a tablet. I know we should all know better but I’ve been around a couple of people who are still confused about what the hell this thing does. It would also be great if they announced that they would be alternative, more traditional controls for the Wii U. Some of us just don’t wish to hold a giant rectangle in our hands for hours. Oh and no Mario sequels this year. Something new and original please.
  3. Sony, well you already know what I’m going to say. And it’s mostly all Vita related. CUT THE PRICE. I want my friends to buy Vitas so that I don’t feel so alone in the world. It would also spur more sales, which is best for Sony in the long run. Announce a bunch of cool new apps for the Vita, and a kick ass line up of games to be released through the duration of this year. I’m desperate to have the Vita be a success, it’s such an amazing handheld!
  4. I have a dream, that one day there will be an unveiling of a universal console. That plays all games, is DRM free, backwards compatible, and doesn’t allow for unnecessary / on disc DLC. It would truly be a console made for gamers, with their hardships taken into account. Sigh, a man can dream can’t he?

Albert’s List:

  1. It’s time for Nintendo to bring it.  I am so tired of this year after year shoving the Wii and Wii U in our face.  Here’s an idea. Stop trying to be different and just go with what works best.
  2. I’d love to see another Metal Gear HD game for the masses to celebrate the 25th anniversary….
  3. Sony needs to keep pushing the Playstation Vita. It’s doing pretty good so far, but this is just the beginning.
  4. Surprises!!!  I want to see something mind blowing. How about Microsoft fooling everyone and showing off the Xbox 720. That would trend on Twitter for hours. #EpicXbox720. If that trends, you know where it originated from!

Stay tuned to That Gamer Hub next week for our live E3 coverage, summary articles as well as special E3 podcasts!

Original Article

What’s wrong with some video games awards ceremonies?

It should be no secret to you by now that we at That Gamer Hub are huge gamers. Not only gamers that play a couple of online multiplayer shooter game while yelling insanities at young kids (who should not be playing these games anyway). Still, some of us refuse to sit back even once a year and celebrate gaming by watching video game awards ceremonies taking place throughout the year just like a movie addict would watch the Golden Globes and the Oscars (as well as all the less popular ceremonies). I do understand that many gamers just do not care enough to watch these but I believe there has to be deeper reasons.

To be honest, you don’t have to look very far to understand why gamers don’t really care about these special events. Here are the problems that I think should be fixed with some of the biggest award ceremonies.

Video Game Awards (VGAs)

Let’s start with the big one: the Video Game Awards. Hosted by GameTrailers and SpikeTV, this awards ceremony has been offering the total opposite of what a video game award ceremony should normally be about: the games and their creators. As a fact, last years’ VGAs featured multiple game announcements and trailers as well as many crazy segments featuring Felicia Day (such as Fruit Ninja-like fruit cutting with swords). However, it did lack something really important in my opinion: actual awards being given away to people of the gaming industry. Game awards were barely mentioned throughout the night which I felt was a huge disrespect to game developers (artists, designers, programmers, testers, etc.). I even felt that the first time Hall of Fame award given to Shigeru Miyamoto was only an excuse to get this industry giant to their show and get higher ratings because of it. Of course, Miyamoto is without a doubt one of the biggest game designers of all time, but keep in mind they gave him this award for the work he put into creating The Legend of Zelda 25 years ago. While it is a bigger franchise, I just don’t understand why this award was not given to him for Super Mario Bros. (who is a much more iconic character in the video games industry than Link or Zelda).

I know Spike probably wanted to go the MTV Music Video Awards route with celebrities cameos and ridiculous segments to appeal to a wider audience. It might sound very formal, but celebrating those people’s hard work should be the main reason why this sort of ceremony is created.

Independent Games Festival (IGF) Awards

Being a huge Indie Game lover, there is absolutely no need to tell how much I love the IGF Awards. Taking place right before the Games Developers Choice Awards, this ceremony celebrates the more “underground” game development scene. Being a great way to discover new and amazing games (thanks in part to the Nuovo and Student awards), there is simply no other event like this one in the industry which is why I cherish it so much. So, there shouldn’t be anything wrong about the IGF Awards, right? Sadly, there is one big issue in my opinion: unfinished games can win awards in the same categories as well-finished and released games.

See, I do understand that independent video game development is much different from “traditional” games’: development teams are usually smaller and the development cycle can be more difficult due to multiple issues (such as financial ones). Most Indie games developers cannot spend much of their time promoting their games since they are hard at work creating them. Winning a prize serves any of these developer well, getting people’s (and most specifically publishers’) attention to their games and making it easier for them at launch (from a sales/funding perspective). However, having games win awards before it is finished makes no sense to me in my opinion.

In fact, quite a few games have won awards or were nominated before even being completely finished. Both Retro City Rampage and Cobalt Excellence in audio were nominated for Excellence in audio last year even though none of them are released as of today. Even crazier is the case of Polytron’s Fez. While the game does look impressive, it won Excellence in Visual Art back in 2012 and won the IGF Seumas McNally Grand Prize last week. While the game was indeed mostly completed when it was submitted for the 2012 IGF Awards, it sure was not back in 2008. Movies usually don’t get awards four years before they are released because of their special effects work during production and so game shouldn’t either. I would at least suggest that games shouldn’t be able to win awards until the game is finished or that games shouldn’t be allowed to enter twice, which would make it more fair for other developers.

For some strange reasons, Minecraft also did win prizes last year (Seumas McNally Grand Prize and Audience Award on the IGF Awards as well as many Game Developers Choice Awards at GDC) but was not nominated in any category in 2012. The game was not released when it won those awards but was launched in between the 2011 and 2012 award ceremonies.

Many video game awards do things right in my opinion: British Academy Video Game Awards (BAFTA), Game Developers Choice Awards (GDC - aside from last year’s Minecraft nonsense), the Canadian Video Game Awards, and many others. I just think both the IFG rules and the VGAs format should be changed to make it both more fair for game developers as well as more respectful toward the people creating the awesome entertainment product we all love. Most of these ceremonies are already on the good track: they are just missing the mark by a few inches.

Original Article

Asura’s Wrath | Review (PS3)

Asura’s Wrath is a game that is unlike anything I have ever seen before. An interesting new IP from Capcom, Asura’s Wrath takes you through the tale of a demigod’s revenge, and his wrath. A lot of wrath.

Early footage of Asura’s Wrath made it seem like some kind of crazy interactive cutscene, but it so much more than that. Its an experience, and its one I won’t soon forget.

The game’s story is about the Eight Guardian Generals, which are eight demigods employed by the Emperor to stop the evil impure beings, the Gohma. The game opens with an all out war between the Guardian Generals’ fleet and the evil Gohma. From there, Asura, the main character, gets killed, comes back to life, loses his memory, and fights beings the size of planets. The story is absolutely ridiculous, as are its characters. Each of the demigods have their own transformations and their own absolutely insane scenes all to themselves. For example, one Demigod may expand into the size of a mountain and crush you under is bum. He may then punch you into space, grow to the size of a planet, and try to crush you with his finger. This, mind you, is only one of the demigods you face and there are still six more.

An easy way to think of the story is as an anime, especially since a third or more of the gameplay takes place in cutscene form. The characters and story follow similar anime tropes, as does the character and level design. Fights that span large cities/canyons, over-the-top angry characters, lone-wolves, and characters that only speak by yelling are all pretty normal here. Also, you’ll traverse from a medieval town located in a fissure to giant space ships in the sky, because nothing about an anime universe like this feels the need to make any sense. Fight scenes last multiple “chapters”, much like those encountered in Dragon Ball Z games, which usually contained three episodes of grunting and two more of punching. Similarly, the characters have an anime feel to them as well. All of the Eight Guardian Generals have a similar robotic design, drawn in a cell-shaded style, with dark thick lines running through their skin that make them almost statuesque. It is well stylized in this crazy universe the developers have crafted.

Unfortunately, some of the environmental textures seem really low-resolution when viewed up close. A noticeable example is the side of a giant space ship looking blocky and zoomed in, where you can see giant pixels lining the side like you’re back on the SNES. In comparison to the the great character designs, this noticeably ugly level/environment design decreases the beauty of the experience.

Gameplay falls into three basic categories: flying around and shooting like your basic shoot’em up (top-down shooter), or ‘shmup’; third-person action where you mash buttons and perform combos; and interactive cutscenes which are full of quick-time events.

When I say flying around like a shmup, I really mean it. Think of Panzer Dragoon, where Asura is flying around the screen destroying everything in his wake, as well as marking targets and shooting them with red rockets. Mind you, you’re actually just a person, so you’re more likely throwing some kind of projectiles out of your hands, although the game isn’t really clear on this. Suffice it to say, its ridiculous and satisfying, because you frequently lay waste to entire fleets of space ships and other enemies.

The combat portions are very basic. You have basic attacks that combo themselves and heavy attacks that have to cool down every time you use one. The combat feels far less refined than similar games like Darksiders. It is much more rudimentary and lacks any real creativity. Since it is only a third of the game and these sections typically last two minutes or less, it’s really not that much of an issue. Also, even though the combat is relatively basic, you will frequently encounter performance issues in both the third-person combat and even when simply flying around shooting monsters.

When engaged in either of the two types of gameplay listed above, there is a gauge under your health bar that slowly builds as you blow up ships and punch enemies in the face. Once it fills, you have the option to “Burst”, which is really the game’s focal mechanic. Once you burst, you enter a cutscene which includes numerous quick-time events. Usually, these scenes are absolutely insane. You may grow four extra arms, punch someone the size of the planet or take a sword in the stomach and fall through the stratosphere. Yes, all these things happen. Even though you aren’t in direct control of your character, it’s still incredibly satisfying to witness and your mind will be blown at some of the feats Asura performs.

Some unfortunate drawbacks, however, are the constant performance issues. Frequently, when the action gets more frenetic, the frame rate will drop significantly. There are also some choppy audio issues. In addition to these problems, the game’s occasional blocky environmental designs can be frustrating. Luckily, however, there are only four or five instances where this is evident.

Although I loved the insane story and its ups and downs, it ends with a good deal of unanswered questions and leaves an enormous gap for a sequel.

If you can enjoy the game regardless of its lack of resolution and huge focus on quick-time events like I did, then you’ll have a good time with Asura’s Wrath. If you don’t like either of these things, you may want to steer clear. I must say, there are some incredible story moments throughout the game, that I will never forget. Even though the game is only about eight hours long, it was some of the most entertaining eight hours of gaming I’ve ever experienced.

Original Article

Back to the Future: The Game – Ep 5 | Review (PC)

After several months of episodic releases, Telltale Games closes the book on Back to the Future: The Game with Episode 5: Outatime. Is this the first you’ve heard of this game? Really? Don’t lie to me, I’ll know. Okay fine, if this really is your first encounter with the game, I’ll run through the basics before we talk about Episode 5.

BttF:TG is a point-and-click adventure game where you are cast as the young Marty McFly on an adventure through time in an attempt to save Doc Brown. This is the setup for the entire series of episodes, and Episode 5 brings the story to a close. The individual quality of the episodes fluctuated across the run, but this episode is one of the best ones and brings the series to a satisfying end.

Full Review

We Are Not Robots: John’s Gaming History

Sadly, we here at TGH are not robots *unplugs from power source*

There’s more to us than “hey, this is a cool game and here’s why”. So, I put out a task to my fellow compatriots, “What makes us the gamers we are today? Why do we want to write about games and what spawned that?” A lot of people enjoy playing games but not everyone wants to write about them, let alone have discussions in conference rooms about them.

For the next few weeks you’ll see articles that will spotlight the That Gamer Hub writers, giving them the chance to tell us why they are they way they are (in relation to games). And since I put out this “call to arms”, and introducing the feature… I guess I better lead off.

I am a “late bloomer” in regards to video games. Sure, I started playing the Atari 2600 way back in the day but my console progression and the games that are associated with them are fairly conservative but, more importantly, I’ve missed out on a lot of great series and games. I was an arcade game player for a long while in my youth. My father was a pinball wizard in his day and is still one of the best I’ve ever seen in person. He was a fan of Missile Command and other games of that generation and therefore, that is how I learned how “to game”. Gorgar, Street Fighter, multiple racing games, as well as the the X-Men and Ninja Turtle arcade games were all staples throughout my youth. Some of my earliest memories of gaming are playing racing games against my father, where I couldn’t even see over the steering wheel but through the gaps in it, at full stretch in order to reach the gas pedal…the brake pedal out of the question.

My quick console progression can be seen below…

As mentioned before, I missed some great series and games growing up. For me, the Princess has been in another castle, I have never listened to Navi, never held hands with Yorda and the scalp of the 13th Colossus still eludes me (I have played these games to a degree or gone through “Let’s Play” ‘s multiple times). Aside from the first Metroid, Samus and I aren’t really acquainted and the list goes on.

I was a console gamer of convenience and advertising. I still remember the Final Fantasy VII advert that I saw before a movie and sports games litter my past. NCAA football was fun to play in college, though my alma mater wasn’t that great, but others played it and the local multiplayer experience was grand. Like Noble 6, my single-player experience with the Halo universe ended on Reach. Halo 1 and 2 LAN parties are some of my fondest memories but I can’t describe the Halo story whatsoever.

PC gaming was there and it wasn’t. I played the original Myst but was so young that it confused me (though in hindsight, it seemed to confuse a lot of people). The Blizzard Entertainment essentials were always there but I never strayed into adventure games or other popular series aside from the RTS, such as Command and Conquer.

Final Fantasy Tactics and the re-release of the War of the Lions is another strong memory, along with the Metal Gear series.

It wasn’t until after college that I became adamant about video games. They were always a strong hobby but I never strayed too far from my comfort zone of racing and sports games, unless it was the occasional JRPG or Snake was fighting another Metal Gear.

I enjoy the BioShock series quite a bit and when the Minerva’s Den DLC came out, I researched who was on the dev. team. The name Steve Gaynor (as he was the lead) came up and I found that he was part of The Idle Thumbs Podcast. To keep it short, Idle Thumbs is a great podcast. Seemingly, it has passed its golden age as all the members are now in the video game industry and busy making great games (respectively working for Telltale Games, Bethesda Softworks and Irrational Games). The discussions regarding games, their narratives, mechanics, the dynamics they presented and insight from the point of view of a developer and established press (two members of the podcast were journalist before) are really insightful and interesting. There was a fair amount of humor that I enjoyed, but the depth of the conversations and the topics presented were something that I had missed out on in my gaming career. And I became enthralled…

I now listen or view GDC post-mortems, gaming podcasts, study why certain game mechanics work, why others don’t. Figure how music can accentuate an experience or completely ruin it. Try to understand how the linearity of games can be good and bad, and the same goes for side-quests. I enjoy articles such as the “Less Talk, More Rock” by Superbrothers and want to actively engage in conversation people about it. I’ve gone back and looked at “Let’s Play” videos, joined forums and read wikis, trying to find out about stories and how games were played. I’m currently re-playing a game that frustrated me when I was younger, as I look upon it now with a completely different mindset.

For whatever reason, Idle Thumbs flipped a switch in my brain and since then, I’ve been going back and trying to play games that I missed. I look forward to The Last Guardian, not only because it looks great, but because its being released with Shadow of the Colossus and Ico.

I enjoyed writing as a whole and essentially blogged a little bit for a couple small sites about a multitude of topics (from music to politics to sports). When I came across the opportunity to write for TGH, after thoroughly enjoying the podcast, I took it…and that’s how you see me here today. A guy that missed out on a lot of stuff, who enjoys games and is desperately trying to catch up by immersing himself as fast as possible in anything and everything he can get his hands on.

And we put it onto you dear readers? What made you the gamer you are today? What games do you enjoy, what games did you pass on…but most importantly - WHY? Tell us your story in the forums.

Pictures were done by John. The Shadow of the Colossus picture can be found on Google Images and was edited.

Original Article

Nintendo 3DS: First Impressions

So, it’s here.

The Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo’s new handheld that’s said to change the way we look at portable gaming forever, launched on Sunday to mixed reactions. For myself, a Nintendo handheld devout, I was dazzled by the E3 announcement detailing just what kind of games were going to come to it, I just had to buy it. Literally being the first person in the Vancouver area to get it, (i.e. first in line at the only known midnight launch in the city on Saturday night) I quickly found myself staring at the shiny blue box my brand new toy was housed in, just waiting to tear right in.

But the real question is: Was it worth it?

The 3DS, unlike any of the versions of its predecessor, has a shiny, metallic finish. Most of lights (power, wireless, etc.) have been moved to the bottom or sides of the system’s casing with the exception of the “notification light”, which lights up when you receive new StreetPass/SpotPass notifications, when your friends come online, or when it’s time to charge your battery. This light sits on the top of the hinge where the power lights on the DS Lite used to be located. A switch on the right side of the unit allows you to turn wireless communication on and off at the hardware level, and the volume slider is located to the left, just above the SD card slot. The retractable stylus is kept in its compartment at the back of the console, much like it was with the original DS.

Opening the 3DS reveals some of the more apparent additions; The first that’s likely to be noticed is the new widescreen top screen, which if you couldn’t guess by the name of the system itself can display images in stereoscopic 3D. Also noticeable at first glance is the addition of a “circle pad,” which is an analog slidepad similar to what you would find on the PSP. The start and select buttons are now placed along the bottom edge of the touch screen with the new home button sandwiched between them. Overall the button layout remains largely the same with the exception of the D-pad being moved down to accommodate the circle pad, but most people who have played a DS will likely not have any problems adjusting to it.

At E3 2010, when Reggie Fils-Aime said that you “had to see to believe” the 3D effects that the 3DS was capable of, he was spot on. I’m honestly at a loss of words of how to describe it. When I finally found that sweet spot while I was testing the system out, it was a feeling of exhilaration. I knew that Nintendo had done something amazing; They had put three dimensions in the palm of my hand without the need for glasses. The technology isn’t new at all but it’s a whole new experience in this form. Still, with all the warnings about the effects that 3D can have on your eyes and head, the real test came when I brought it home and was able to give it a shot for a longer period of time.

The primary issue for me and 3D was the fact that, as a kid, I had an eye condition known as Strabismus which I required surgery to fix. Even still, this meant one of my eyes could wander off and ruin the 3D effect or that I could get a headache from eye strain faster than the average person. I’ve been playing with my 3D slider at maximum for hours at a time, and never had a problem with being able to properly see the 3D image. However, the fact that the effects are given as is, the 3DS’ sweet spot is fairly small, and even a simple twist can move the screen enough that you end up only seeing one eye’s image or the other. The system’s 3D capabilities, as Nintendo is quick to point out, is not for everyone. Warning labels on the system and game boxes are quick to say that children under 7 should only be playing in 2D mode, though optometrists claim that the effects can help them in diagnosing eye disorders.

The 3DS also comes with the introduction of Miis to the portable scene. Introduced with the launch of the Wii, these avatars come with a few new tricks, including the ability to generate your Mii’s facial features using a photo of yourself. New ways of sharing your Miis are now introduced as well, with the ability to generate and scan QR codes (look at the bottom of this post for mine) as well as walking around and picking up the Miis of other people through StreetPass Mii Plaza.

Nintendo has also made improvements with network and online connectivity. Friend codes still exist, but this time they are assigned per-system and not per-game. Though it’s not exactly up to par with Xbox Live and PSN, it’s a welcome improvement and removes the frustration of having to add your friends for every single online game that both you and them have. This also means that you now have a friends list capable of holding up to 100 people who prominently displays their Mii and their favorite title. Further improvements made to communication include StreetPass, which functions as a “universal tag mode” for 3DS titles. Data is exchanged between systems as they pass by depending on what games the user has registered. (Up to twelve can be registered at any time) What exactly gets exchanged depends on the game. For example, Ridge Racer 3D exchanges ghost data between players while Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition users will start a battle with their collected figurines as they walk by each other.

Even still, the system is not without its caveats. It’s been mentioned many times that the 3DS suffers from an unusually short battery life for a Nintendo handheld, barely edging out the PSP at 3-5 hours while playing 3DS game. It only lasts a couple of hours more when playing (non three dimensional) DS games.  Another factor that at least is having people hold off on buying the system is the system’s launch lineup. While not the worst, people have described the games available at launch, which includes titles such as Pilotwings Resort, Steel Diver, and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon: Shadow Wars, as lackluster. With the absence of  the AAA titles announced at E3 last year, many are holding out until later this year. Although there are no known defects with the actual hardware just yet, some people with US and UK systems are reporting that their systems are crashing when playing certain titles, though this only seems to affect a small portion of units. Finally, the browser and eShop are currently locked out as they won’t be finalized and released until sometime in May, something that when coupled with the lack of Pokémon Global Link at the US release of Pokémon Black Version and Pokémon White Version, is starting to personally give me the impression that Nintendo would rather release a product without its full feature set rather than get it all up and running by launch.

In the end, though, the 3DS is a well-rounded system. I couldn’t really care less about the 3D effects but it ended up being an added bonus for me. This is coming from someone who firmly goes by “Gameplay over graphics. This system has impressed me so far in just about every way that it could and easily earns my seal of approval. Definitely pick this one up if you’re okay with the current software lineup and can afford the $250 price tag, but don’t feel the need to rush. Two days following the US release I’m still seeing units on store shelves, so the shortage issue that usually accompanies a Nintendo console launch isn’t apparent here.

Still, this is the first system that I picked up on launch day (three minutes into the day according to my receipt) and I can’t wait to see how the 3DS will entertain me over the next few years.

And for those of you that own a 3DS already: Here. Have a free Moofey that you can take wherever you go.

Original Article

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