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Nintendo 3DS handheld to offer switchable 2D mode, thankfully
It was pretty much implied when "backward compatibility" was listed as a feature of Nintendo's new 3DS handheld back in March. But it's good to hear that 3D gameplay can be easily switched off, direct from Nintendo president Satoru Iwata, when headaches or nausea set in during marathon sessions. This should also ease concerns from parents over any adverse effects that long term exposure to parallax barrier gameplay could have on their children's developing eyes. Besides, a 2D mode is desirable in that we expect it to offer a brighter image (especially when viewing off-center), better text reading experience, and a wider angle of view for sharing the display. Now, we know what you're wondering: what about that new 3.4-inch glasses-less 3D touchscreen display from Sharp, is it 2D switchable? Yup, lending more credibility that we'll see it on the 3DS when the handheld gaming console is fully revealed at E3 next month.
Slim Xbox 360 and Natal bundle to debut at E3? (Rumor update: false)
It's always good to see rumors coalescing into neat little bundles, which in Microsoft's case means that its expected 360 hardware refresh and Natal re-introduction will coincide at E3 this year. Surfer Girl, one of the gaming industry's more notorious rumor hounds, is telling us that Microsoft is about to unveil a slimmer Xbox 360 at the upcoming E3 in June, together with Natal hardware bundles. She describes the new system design as "pretty neat" and suggests there'll be a shift to black as the console's primary color, to go along with Natal's darker hue, which in turn was dictated by the fact it'd have to sit alongside dark and moody HDTV sets. Very feng shui of Microsoft indeed. For the final, and most unbelievable of her predictions, she tells us -- while highlighting the initials M.G.S. -- that we'll be "very surprised and very pleased" by one of the Natal games revealed at the show. Seriously, Metal Gear Natal? [Thanks, Lander] Update: Looks like this was all a hilarious hoax perpetrated by someone pretending to be Surfer Girl. Yeah, we've heard plenty of "real" rumors about a slimmer Xbox and Natal bundles, but it looks like there's no weight to this one.
Project Natal 'experience' to premiere at E3 on June 13th
No big surprise here, but Microsoft is bringing its full Project Natal setup to the E3 games show in LA this year, with a "world premiere" event on Sunday, June 13th, followed by a media briefing on Monday the 14th. It's good to know they're on track for showing this off, after a no-show at the PlayStation Move-dominated GDC, and we'll of course be there in force, waving our arms around like we just don't care. From the looks of our invite, which puts the name "Project Natal" in quotes, we're not convinced that's even the final name for the device, but we suppose we'll find out for sure in June. Microsoft promises this will be our "first look at the future of fun," and we imagine some near-final hardware and beta game experiences will be on display as well. No word in the invite, but we imagine a Fall launch is still in the cards, with Jonathan Ross's "October" tweet as the most recent morsel on that front.
Nintendo announces 3DS -- the glasses-free 3D successor to the DS
Whoa, now this is a whopper coming (almost) out of nowhere. Nintendo has just slipped out a press release in Japan informing the world that all-new 3D-capable portable hardware is coming, with a full unveiling set for E3 2010 this June. Tentatively titled the 3DS, this glasses-free 3D wonder is pitched as the successor to both the DS and DSi, and will use a "compatible cart" that should ensure backwards compatibility with your vast library of favorites from the older consoles. Nintendo expects to launch the 3DS into retail "during the fiscal year ending March 2011." Update: Unofficial reports from Japan suggest the 3DS will have a parallax barrier 3D LCD from Sharp, a vibration function, and a "3D control stick." Read about it all here.
Rumor mill says Nintendo DS2 might be headed for E3 unveiling
Hot on the heels of the recent DSi XL appearance, rumors are swirling that Nintendo is preparing to announce a second version of the DS -- the DS2, if you will -- at E3 in June. Over on RPad they're spilling the beans about the supposed device, including the fact that it'll boast two larger, higher resolutions screens, an accelerometer, and it will also supposedly run on an NVIDIA Tegra chip. Finally, RPad is also reporting that they spoke with developers who say their games will be finished by the end of the year... leading us all to speculate the unannounced successor could, possibly, be announced at E3, then available by the end of the year. Of course, this info's all 100 percent unofficial, so take everything with a grain of salt, relax, and we'll let you know as soon as we hear something more solid.
