Weekend Weekender

Has the Nintendo 3DS failed to deliver?

Gillen: I noted with interest the new spin on the 3DS adverts, the tagline now "this is not DS. This is 3DS." The emphasis is a clear push to tackle one of the unit's biggest issues: differentiating Nintendo's new handheld from its predecessor.

I think familiarity has ultimately hampered it - although I can understand Nintendo's reasoning for doing so - with the mainstream market perception is that this is just another DS. Nintendo has played it safe, retaining brand name association for easier transfer, but in doing so has shot itself in the foot, and ultimately it'll be interesting to see if similar association will damage the Wii U.

Nintendo's aggressive push for hardware tweaks - Lite, DSi, XL versions of the DS have rolled off the production lines in quick succession, and have driven sales spikes, may have backfired for the company as buyers associate the 3DS as just another upgrade to the system.

And anyone seeing that second stick add-on couldn't help but clutch their wallets and groan with the expectation of the redesign likely to come much too soon.

That said, if the release schedule was healthier these past few months there'd be more reason to buy. Much as I love retreading classics, if 2011 had been full of brand new titles sold on a "only possible on 3DS" line, things could have been so different.

The console's got some great ideas bustling under the hood, but its really a "wait and see" situation with me at the moment. Nintendo really failed to capitalise on the heat surrounding the console off last year's E3 - 2012 will be a uphill struggle when it should have been a stroll.

Bengt: I would say that so far Nintendo 3DS has been a failure, both in terms of what it offers and in terms of the audience it has attracted. Quite frankly it has not lived up to the hype and the software has either been forgettable or memorable as in "we already played it ten years ago".

The main problem is that Nintendo banked on 3D being the killer app rather than the games, and that just hasn't panned out. Hopefully, the injection of some major titles such as Mario Kart 7 and Super Mario 3D Land will help revitalise the system. If a redesign is being considered I think Nintendo would be well advised to take a step away from the familiar DS design, that I think in part dampened the excitement of the new hardware.

The Weekend Playlist

Bengt: This weekend I'm spending some time at Gamex, a game show situated a few clicks north of Stockholm - and hopefully I'll get my hands on some upcoming titles you will be able to read about here on the site next week.

I'm most excited about getting my hands on the Galaxy at War co-op mode in Mass Effect 3 - a mode I'm really nervous about. I don't want to be forced to play a mediocre co-op mode in order to maximise my outcome in the main adventure, but hopefully it will be entertaining.

I'm also excited to get some time with Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, and there will be Vitas on hand as well as a recent build of Soul Calibur V (starring Ezio).

Given my recent hand injury (right hand still a bit stiff and not back to 100%), I probably won't play much else... I'm probably going to spend a few hours with FM2012 like the addict I am, and Bejeweled Blitz recently got me back in its claws on the iPhone (snatched me way from Fruit Ninja Puss in Boots). My conscience keeps telling me I need to go back to Gears of War 3 and finish it, so I might do that if my hand is up for. Anyway, it sure looks like an exciting weekend of gaming.

Gillen: This weekend will mark the last - for 2011 at least - that I'll be constrained from mentioning the lion's share of my gaming hours due to a wealth of NDAs. You can take a glance at the releases in the upcoming weeks though and take a guess at the lengths of adventuring I'll be getting up to.

But for a break from embargo-based sessions, I'll be jumping back into Arkham City to continue my methodical round-up of Riddler challenges, and try and clear the Identity Thief side-mission, then its likely a relaxed patrol around the streets to discover those easter eggs that I'm only hearing about now.

And to yank myself out from overwhelming realism (well, much as you can get with a man dressed as a bat), I'll be jumping on Daytona USA, the XBLA release of which completely passed me by. Anyone up for a multiplayer race?