3DS Feature Blowout – My Seven Game Experience

With the 3DS just a little over a week away, Nintendo has been getting out there and showing off its new handheld to the public.  Since I was fortunate enough to attend PAX East this last weekend, I was able to get some brief hands-on time with seven upcoming 3DS games.

Some of the games surprised me, like the charming Nintendogs + Cats and the meticulously detailed Steel Diver.  Others were a bit of a disappointment, like the clumsy Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D and the simple Pilot Wings Resort.  The 3D effect of the system varied greatly from game to game, sometimes offering a huge benefit and at other times being barely noticeable.

Below are my quick impressions of the games.  Each demo I played lasted between 5-15 minutes.  Because of the short time I spent with the games, this is in no way a definitive stamp of quality on any of them. Instead, this is meant to help you gauge what to look forward to when the 3DS launches and the games to keep an eye on in the months to come.

Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition – Super Street Fighter IV was the best game I played on the 3DS.  Not only is it a faithful adaptation of its console counterpart, it makes smart concessions with the 3DS hardware in order to make Street Fighter on a handheld as great as possible.

The gameplay is much like you would expect, two fighters battling it out in the same locales found in the PS3 and 360 versions of the game.  The 3D works wonderfully.  With the game on a 2D plane, the 3D gives everything a nice “pop”.  It isn’t distracting and only adds to how incredible the game looks.

Speaking of excellent looks, the pseudo cel-shaded style makes a return.  Not losing much in transition from console to handheld, characters still dance across the screen with amazing animations across beautiful backgrounds.  If you want a game to show you the power of the 3DS, look no further.

Rather than trying to perform complicated super or ultra moves with the analog or d-pad, the game allows you to perform these moves by tapping on a large square on the bottom screen.  This way, when your super or ultra meters are full, you merely have to tap a screen and you’re doing something awesome.  This is an incredibly elegant solution – especially for newer players – and it takes the frustration out of a fight.

From what I played, I can’t recommend Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition enough.  Rather than being a quick cash-in, it looks as though the developers took time and care to give players an authentic Street Fighter experience on the 3DS.  Even if you’ve never played Street Fighter or haven’t played in awhile, the 3DS version seems like a great place to start.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D – Initially, I was disappointed by Nintendo’s decision to remake Ocarina of Time.  While I certainly consider it a landmark game, the Zelda series has needed a breath of fresh air for awhile and a remake didn’t seem to be the answer.  As I looked over the shoulder of a fellow attendee who was playing the game, my doubts seemed to be confirmed.  Nothing too exciting, roaming through the Deku Tree.  It certainly looked better, but it in no way rekindled my interest in replaying the classic.

It wasn’t until I actually got my hands on the game that my opinion drastically changed.  Being able to see the effect 3D had on Ocarina of Time made it an entirely different game.  Suddenly the old tired Deku Tree looked new again.  By adding depth, the dungeon felt so much more spacious, eerie and mysterious.

Mechanically, the game was very responsive.  The analog pad worked well and Z-targeting felt appropriately mapped to the left shoulder button.  One of the new features in the demo – the ability to aim the slingshot with the 3DS gyroscope – felt a bit awkward and pointless.  After messing around with it for a bit, I quickly reverted to more traditional analog aiming.

After finishing the demo, I’m certainly much more excited to see what Nintendo has to offer with their remake of this beloved classic.  With the recent announcement of “exclusive new content” coming to the 3DS version, it seems that Nintendo is offering a remake that might actually be able to stand beside the cherished original.

Kid Icarus: Uprising – It’s been almost 20 staggering years since the last release of a Kid Icarus game.  When Pit appeared in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, it was believed that Nintendo was prepping him for an outing on the Wii.  Not so, they were saving the underused angel for an appearance on their upcoming handheld.

The most striking thing about Kid Icarus: Uprising is how little it resembles previous games in the series.  The demo being show was split into two parts: an on-rails shooter similar to Panzer Dragoon and a third-person action game.

Uprising looks gorgeous.  The game has impressive lighting effects, as well as a striking use of color.  It looks like a Saturday morning cartoon come to life.  It was something special flying through the skies, blasting enemies with glowing arrows as the sun shines in your face.

The on-rails segment left a far better impression than the third-person one did.  It was easy to target enemies, even as things kept getting more and more frantic.  The action was intense and engaging, though it was far removed from the slower-paced style of the Metroid-esque games before it.

Unfortunately, things weren’t quite as bliss once the demo moved to the third-person sequence.  The controls felt immediately awkward and had a questionable layout.  You moved Pit with the analog pad, shot with the left trigger button and looked around with the stylus.  Using the stylus for camera control felt incredibly imprecise.  Often I found myself over or under shooting how much I would need to rotate the camera in order to fire at enemies.

The sloppy third-person controls unfortunately marred what was otherwise an exciting demo.  It hasn’t been announced whether or not the final game will allow you to switch the control layout when it arrives later this year.  If Nintendo can manage to fix these control issues, Uprising looks like it has the potential to deliver on almost 20 years of hype.

Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D – Resident Evil: The Mercenaries 3D was by far the most disappointing demo I played during my time with the 3DS.  The game felt clunky and shallow.  Lacking the depth of other Resident Evil games, Mercenaries 3D seems to offer little in the way of variety.

Those familiar with Mercenaries mode in either Resident Evil 4 or 5 will be familiar with Mercenaries 3D. The demo let me choose one of four characters: Chris Redfield, Claire Redfield, Hunk, and Jack Krauser.  I chose Chris, who wielded a shotgun and a pistol.

The game jarringly switches between third and first-person.  Third-person for running around and first-person for shooting.  Just like previous installments in the franchise, Mercenaries 3D uses a stop-and-shoot approach rather than run-and-gun.  This makes it easy to become overwhelmed as you awkwardly switch between perspectives.

Using the face buttons to aim feels completely unnatural, I found it very hard to lineup shots.  Considering that the enemies are bullet sponges and headshots are of the utmost importance, this is a problem.  It feels as if the 3DS may be the wrong platform for what Capcom is trying to accomplish here.

Nintendogs + Cats – The successor to one of the most popular titles on the DS feels like it was made for 3D.  No other demo during my time with the 3DS used 3D as effectively as Nintendogs.  Some of this is attributed to the nature of the game, there is very little action happening on screen, which allows you to absorb and appreciate the 3D.

The demo was limited to simply playing around with a dog and cat who were both lying in the back of a room.  In order to grab the dog’s attention, I started tapping on it with the stylus.  As the little guy slowly approached, I really noticed how well the 3D gave a sense of depth.  It appeared as if the dog’s snout was sticking right out at me.  Even more fun was the effect the 3D had as the dog panted.  It looked as if little droplets of dog slobber were coming out of the screen as it huffed and puffed.

I was given a tennis ball to throw at the dog.  As I held the ball with the stylus, the dog eagerly looked up at it, waiting for my move.  I threw it to a corner of the room.  This was easy to do with the way the 3D allowed me to gauge space.  The dog hurriedly rushed after it, coming back wagging his tail.

While all of this is happening, the cat stubbornly stayed in the same spot.  It lazily looked at me from time to time.  Hey, I guess the game does a good job of portraying realistic cats.

Nintendogs + Cats is incredibly charming.  I can imagine it will have the same mass appeal as the original.  I had a lot of fun with the demo.  Though elitists may scoff at its simplicity, it certainly put a smile on my face.

Pilotwings Resort – While it looked and played well enough, Pilotwings Resort was a complete bore.  The demo consisted of flying in a barren level while trying to travel through as many rings as possible.  Once I got used to the controls, Resort didn’t offer much in the way of keeping me entertained.

The game uses the same graphical style as the “Air Sports” minigame found in Wii Sports Resort.  Unfortunately, this style makes the game feel incredibly sterile.  Though there was a lot of vibrant color, the environment was devoid of life.  Nothing popped out, which is unfortunate in a flying game where a lot of time is spent focusing on what’s around you.

As far as controls go, Pilotwings Resort plays great.  It feels effortless navigating small corridors or under bridges.  The shoulder buttons are easily used to perform barrel rolls, bank left and right, or invert the plane.  Landing also feels natural, requiring precise braking to make a smooth landing.

Considering the pedigree of the series, it’s unfortunate that there just doesn’t seem to be more going on in Pilotwings Resort.  It’s worth mentioning that I only flew the plane in the demo, there will also be rocket belts and gliders available in the full retail version.  Hopefully, the full retail version will also add a bit more pizzazz to the seemingly uneventful launch title.

Steel Diver – When Steel Diver was announced at E3 last June, I thought it sounded incredibly dull.  Piloting submarines, who would want to do that?  It just so happens that Steel Diver was one of the most entertaining games I played on the 3DS.

There were two modes available in the demo.  One was side-scrolling – navigating underwater and taking out enemy ships – the other was first-person.  The first-person mode intelligently uses the 3DS gyroscope like a periscope.  You pivot your body to search for hostile submarines, looking to torpedo them to a watery grave.

In both the side-scrolling and first-person mode, when hit by an enemy torpedo, water leaks will appear on the bottom screen.  These indicate that the submarine’s hull has been breached.  On-screen prompts will then flash, telling the player to tap and hold the stylus on the leaks in order to plug them.  It’s a simple, but effective way of keeping you engaged and alert in the game.

Another small, yet incredibly important detail,  is the weight given to your submarine.  This is especially apparent in the side-scrolling portion.  The stylus is used to manage both your backward and forward movement, as well as your ascent and descent.  You have to be very steady with the controls.  The giant submarine has a lot of inertia, as such, allowing it too much momentum in any one direction will surely send it crashing into rock.

Steel Diver comes across as both authentic and enjoyable.  For a game that looks so agonizingly boring on the surface, it’s pleasantly surprisingly how much fun it actually is.  If you plan on becoming a 3DS early adopter, try taking a chance on Steel Diver.