Hey guys, sorry I haven’t written you lately. Been very busy. I stalked you a bit on Facebook, though, and I must comment on your recent exploits!
So, first of all, a big “woah” about this iPhone gaming thing. Can’t say I really saw that coming. I thought you guys had this stuff locked down tight! Oh well, it’s not like you guys aren’t used to upstarts swiping your marketshare, or being marketshare-swiping upstarts yourself. Good for goose and gander or something, right?
I gotta say, from where I stand (on a peninsula between two metaphorical points), you don’t really stand a chance this time around. Phones are small, everybody has one, and they have them with them all the time. Of course they’re going to become the dominant gaming platform! And those kids you’ve been banking on? Their parents are going to get tired of letting them steal the iPhone “real quick” for an “Angry Birds sesh,” so child-producing members of society will just buy more iPhones or iPod touches to keep all elements of their nuclear families in line. You’re screwed.
But that’s not what I’m here to talk about. See, just because you aren’t taking the boring, safe, world-dominating approach doesn’t mean I don’t love you! I love you for you.
Nintendo: the 3DS is the outsider art of gaming consoles. It’s completely bizarre! It hardly makes logical sense! It’s too large to put in a pocket, it has several contradictory and possibly superfluous features. It still has two screens. I love it. Glasses free 3D can be headache inducing, and it’s a little difficult to pull off while in motion, but it’s unquestionably innovative. We’ve been struggling with the lack of accurate depth perception in 3D games ever since there were 3D games. Mario 64 taught us how a 3D platformer should play, and now depth perception has a chance of teaching us (at last!) exactly how far we should jump.
But the display might not even be the best part. Those cameras are augmented reality savants. Sure, you can do a bit of augmented reality with a phone, but what sort of stuffy phone user is gonna juke and jive around a virtual dragon while wailing on the fire button? They won’t even be able to see the dragon with their thumbs splayed all over that poor, solitary touchscreen. Those cameras on the 3DS are a gift to the world, a gift to our collective childhoods. A love letter.
Sony: the NGP is the space mission to Mars of gaming consoles. It’s way too ambitious, and bureaucratic pressures will threaten to destroy it before its (inevitably late) launch. But what a beautiful dream! That screen, that rear touchpad, those dual analog sticks! It’s more powerful than a $500 tablet computer from Apple. You’re bringing the current generation of home console gaming to your handheld, and yet so much more.
If you can deliver on even half your promise, every single red blooded male that ever touches that device will know, within his heart of hearts, that his phone is a pale imitation of a true handheld gaming computer. I think the rear touchpad alone should win you some sort of Nobel Peace Prize. You are a bold explorer, Sony. A conquistador of functionality.
Ultimately, neither of you will find nearly as much success in this handheld generation as you enjoyed last time around. Even your PS Suite efforts are unlikely to make much of an impression, Sony, simply because your heart isn’t in them. You two are dreamers. Your heads are in the clouds. And my thumbs salute you.
14 Comments
As much as I hate to say it, you are probably so right its not funny.
Despite my intense hatred of Apple and their products, I’ve spent more time playing games on my hand-me-down iPhone 3G than I have on any of my gaming systems – and my iPhone doesn’t even work as a phone.
I think you’re right in many ways, but using the wrong reasoning. If anything, I think it has to do away with more of Nintendo’s and Sony’s locked-down systems. If you look at Nintendo and Apple as equals in the gaming sector (which is Apples and Oranges truly, but bear with me), Apple looks like Google in terms of comparative openness.
I love Nintendo, and Sony is okay.. but I think what will truly hit these two big wigs is not Apple’s “put it on a phone” approach (although that one DOES hit pretty hard), I personally think it will be the app store model apparent on both iOS and Android. Buy it once, put it on any iphone/ipod touch/ipad you ever get (or android phone for the Android OS) and make it easier for publishers (than having to apply for a development kit and etc and etc). I think that might be the true game changer, and I believe that both Sony and Nintendo are starting to notice that. The evidence being Nintendo’s weak attempt at DSiWare and 3DSWare.
I believe it will, however, be very interested to see where this goes.
I just hope the PS Suite works in spite of Sony. Mostly because I’m an Sony Ericsson fan and PS Suite will probably help.
Do you believe that the handheld market will last? I almost bought an iPad 2 and was thinking of the NGP. If the NGP cost around $500 I don’t think it will sell. A devise that only does gaming in the mobile market is dead. With my iPhone 4 i might get a crappy gaming experience compared to the NGP, but do I care enough to buy one? I much much much rather buy a new PS4 or Xbox 720 with upgraded graphics for my TV or a new Macbook Pro then spend all my money on another handheld. Wouldn’t you rather sit down and play Uncharted 3 on your giant TV then a dumbed down version for your NGP in the car? I think it would be better to play a quick crappy game like Tiny Wings for the iPhone in the car. The fact of the matter is, Sony and Nintendo are trying to compete with App snacking on the iPhone, but releasing games that cost $40 bucks!! I hate Microsoft, but I think they have it right by just focusing on the 360 and making it a better gaming experience. I am a PS3 fanboy, but I bought a PSP and hardly use it. Not because I didn’t like the games or one analog stick, but I rather spend $40 bucks on a used copy of Fallout 3. This entire article is like saying, a Macbook Air WAY better at getting things done compared to the iPad 2. But the flaw is that if i spend $200 dollars more I can get an iMac or a Macbook Pro which is 10 times better than at anything a Macbook Air can do.
Good read, and mostly agreeable, I just have one issue of contention, I simply don’t see how the 3DS can be considered innovative.
It’s a matter of opinion, for sure. But I don’t see it, it’s 3D, glasses-less 3D for sure, but I feel it doesn’t bring a huge amount new to the game play, at least in my limited time with it. The DS was innovative, as was the Wii. I see the 3DS as an advance on the current DS, just not as innovative.
this article is stupid!
Paul Just wait a few years until AppleTV & GoogleTV get apps, you’ll be writing this article all over again but about consoles instead.
I just came here to say I really like your articles. That is all, keep it up!
nice read, i feel the same way and probably won’t be buying a NGP because I will buy an iPhone 5 and be good to go. Anyhoo whats next for Paul Miller and the rest of the engadget editors?
The NGP will arrive at the end of the year. That 500$ tablet on the other hand is available right now and its graphics processor is already about half as fast (same GPU – 2 cores instead of 4). The iPhone 5, coming in July, will be half as fast as well. Sony’s problems in this situation: First, tablets and smartphones basically do the gaming part for free, and half as fast as the fastest dedicated mobile gaming system isn’t so bad. Secondly, the NGP will probably be on the market for 5–6 years, whereas tablets and smartphones are updated every year. It could very well be that the iPhone 6 in 2012 will feature the same quad-core technology that the NGP does (and I bet the iPhone has more RAM already than the NGP will have).
In the long term, Sony can’t win in terms of performance. That’s why the games are even more important for the future of the platform than they were for the first PSP. No smartphone in the world has God Of War, Uncharted, Killzone, Motorstorm and so on. I also think the price point is crucial. Even 300$ would be a tough sell in my opinion.
At the same time, Nintendo doesn’t have to worry about the quality of its games: that’s what has always driven their consoles’ sales. The 3D feature, though, only gives them a temporary competitive advantage, seeing as the first Android smartphones with 3D displays (with _much_ higher resolutions) are already arriving. They bear the question of a standardized 3D API for 3D apps and games, though. Apart from the display, the hardware of the Nintendo 3DS is pretty crappy, which lets the price point of 250$ seem really high. 200$ tops would be much more reasonable.
(BTW I pre-ordered an Xperia Play)
It’s only a matter of time until Sony announces that the NGP will
run Android apps, making it the ultimate gaming platform.
It’s true. I played hundreds of hours (possibly thousands?) on my Gameboy and later portable devices, but that must be far surpassed by the amount played on the phones I’ve owned in the last 3 years. Get with it Nintendo, et. al. Now I want you to take it to the next level: Zelda and Mario on my iPad.
Dear Mr. Miller:
Um … but it’s the “red blooded” females driving this market. (Women gamers outnumber males on both, DS and PSP platforms.) The 3DS and NGP may not gain male market share for the reasons you stated, but neither company is specifically targeting them with these handhelds anyway.
I disagree with you that the 3DS will be less successful than its DSi XL predecessor. The 3DS is an improvement over the DSi (Nintendo’s most successful unit) in every way; the adjustable 3D can be turned off; and it’s compatible with all DS games (hence the two screens you emphasized). I believe its improved features and the 3D technology that also applies to its outer-inner camera will appeal to people to trade up or buy new.
And just because iPhones are ubiquitous, not everyone is into mobile gaming (ask Rovio Mobile) or is dedicated solely to a portable gaming device (just as Zynga) let alone to just one.
The 3DS may be too large to “put in a pocket”, but it’s not too large to put into a pocketbook.
We all assume that Apple’s iOS is “going to become the dominant gaming platform” but it’s not a Nintendo or Sony portable gaming system killer … yet.
Modifications/Corrections:
I disagree with you that the 3DS (the most pre-ordered video games system in Amazon UK’s history) will be less successful than its DSi XL predecessor.
And just because the iPhone is ubiquitous, not everyone is into mobile gaming (ask Rovio Mobile) or is dedicated solely to a portable gaming device (ask Zynga) let alone to just one.
Strong Start for 3DS
Nintendo Co. said first-day sales for its new hand-held game device in the U.S. set a company record, signaling a potential revitalization of the company’s mobile efforts.
Nintendo of America didn’t provide actual sales data, but a spokesman said more details about U.S. sales figures will be made available on April 14. The 3DS was released in the U.S. on Monday.
The early success of the 3DS suggests it could surpass the company’s popular DSi hand-held device, which sold 435,000 units in the U.S. during its first week of sales in 2009.
—Ian Sherr