NEW YORK – Nintendo's glasses-free 3-D game machine is coming this March, but we still don't know everything about it. And Nintendo is keeping a tight lid on many of the details.
Here's what we know about Nintendo 3DS. Nintendo will release the $250 device on March 27 in the U.S. Nintendo and third parties will release 30 games between March and early June, including a whopping eight titles from Ubisoft alone.
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3DS will also feature a slew of built-in software, including a digital eShop that will allow 3DS owners to purchase old Game Boy and Game Boy Color games like Super Mario Land and Link's Awakening DX. But Nintendo hasn't said when it will launch this.
To find out more about the 3DS launch plans, Wired.com spoke with Nintendo's senior manager of product marketing, longtime company employee Bill Trinen, at the New York City media briefing last week.
We spoke about several of the still-mysterious facets of the Nintendo 3DS – the as-yet-undefined eShop download service, the region lock on the device, the 3-5 hour battery life and whether you can transfer 3DSWare downloads between consoles (noyes).
Professor Layton and the Disappearing Downloads
Wired.com: Nintendo's only spoken about "launch window" games, not launch day. What's getting released on March 27?
Bill Trinen: At today's event, we're only talking about the launch window. In terms of the day-to-day titles, we'll probably be going into that in the next few months, closer to launch.
Wired.com: And the eShop download store is coming later?
Trinen: Yeah, obviously, I mean we showed the video of the store today – it proved that it has a lot more features on this version than on Wii and Nintendo DSi. In terms of how or when it's going to be available, that's an announcement for another day.
Wired.com: Do you think it will be available before E3 Expo, in the launch window?
Trinen: Today we're really focused on the price announcement, the launch window time frame, and then in terms of specific announcements on each title in the shop, we'll do that as we get closer to launch. We need to save some limits for later.
Wired.com: Will any downloadable 3DSWare games be available on day one?
Trinen: We'll probably talk about that when we go into more detail about the shop itself and when that will be available and what it will come with. Today we showed a couple of Virtual Console games – Link's Awakening DX and Super Mario Land – those are both examples of the possibilities of content we're showing in Game Boy and Game Boy Color games. But in terms of specifically what digital content is going to be available, that's all going be part of an announcement that's closer to launch.
...and the Nontransferable License
Wired.com: You mentioned that users will be able to transfer their downloaded DSiWare software to 3DS. How will that work?
Trinen: There will be an application that will allow you to transfer your Nintendo DSiWare to a Nintendo 3DS. We'll go into more detail on that… the shop and all that, we'll talk about that in one big announcement.
Wired.com: If I buy a piece of 3DSWare on my 3DS, is that restricted to that 3DS that I purchased it on?
Trinen: That would be similar [to] how Nintendo DSi works.
Wired.com So it would be restricted to one 3DS, and I can't move it? Even if I put the software on an SD card?
Trinen: Correct. Once you've bought it, it's for the system you bought it on.
(Update: Since the publication of this interview, readers have pointed out that Nintendo's official 3DS site states in no uncertain terms that the System Transfer software, available after launch, will allow a "limited" number of license transfers between 3DS units.)
...and the Restricted Region
Wired.com: Is 3DS region-locked, so it will only play software from its own territory?
Trinen: Yes, the system is region-locked.
Wired.com: What is the logic behind making that decision?
Trinen: There's a number of different factors that go into it. One of the primary ones is that we have parental controls built into the system and region-locking allows us to use parental controls with different rating codes in each country, since the rating codes are different in each region.
Wired.com: Can you tell me some of the other factors?
Trinen: I could if I knew all of them.
Wired.com: I was just curious because the DS is completely region-free, which a lot of people enjoyed. A lot of people enjoyed being able to import games and not having to get a whole new system – what would you recommend to people who would want to import a game and play something that isn't localized here?
Trinen: Well actually with Nintendo DSi, the system was region-locked, and obviously Wii is region-locked, our home consoles have always been. I mean, I guess if you're really intent on playing [Japanese content], then you can get a Japanese 3DS.
...and the Shrinking Battery
Wired.com: The 3DS battery life is officially specced at 3-5 hours. Does that mean 5 hours maximum at the lowest brightness setting?
Trinen: 3-5 hours is… a good expectation [if] you're using the system and all of its features. The screen itself is what uses most of the battery life. There will be some opportunity to adjust your screen [brightness], but 3-5 hours is a good range.
Knowing that [3-D] would have a bigger impact on the battery life than was normal, that's the primary reason we've included the charging cradle. The charging cradle is going to make it very easy for people to carry the system with them, and as soon as they're home it's not a matter of having to plug anything or find anything – you just plug it into the cradle and charge right away.
Wired.com: Can you play the system while it's charging in the cradle?
Trinen: Yeah. You can play while it's charging.
Wired.com: If I play the game without 3-D on, will that make my battery last longer?
Trinen: If you turn the 3-D completely off, that may lengthen the battery life somewhat.
...and the 3-D Movies
Wired.com: What's the plan for viewing 3-D movies on 3DS?
Trinen: Obviously, today we showed trailers of Yogi Bear in 3-D, and also a new movie called Born To Be Wild 3-D which was actually not CG but live action – pretty cool scenery of nature and animals and things like that.
Those are a demonstration of the system's 3-D video playback capabilities. We're still obviously discussing what the SpotPass content is going to be, and how all that's going to work, and looking at what our options are for 3-D video content in general. What we showed today is an example of, this is how we do it, this is how great it looks. The announcements will be revealed as we get closer to launch.
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