I saw the 3DS today, and I feel the 3d could actually HARM the sales of the 3DS.
When I first started playing it fooled me because I thought "oh this isn't that bad, I'm fine." But after about a half-hour I started to feel a slight headache and sort of motion sick.
We already know that kids are not going to get it. Parents have already been over-alerted and Nintendo has given them a good reason not to buy a 3DS for their kids.
Older people are going to be scared of it. Can you imagine your grandmother liking this? I know that sounds funny, but that's one of the main reasons why the Wii was successful. This audience already have a bias against 3d content and actually seeing it is not going to help. The older people that bought Brain Age on the DS are not coming along for the ride here.
It's funny how Nintendo says one thing and then does something completely different. Here they've been harping on the gaming industry to expand the gaming audience, and now they are coming out with something that is blatantly overshooting the market and pushing people away.
And yes, they think the 3DS is expanding the market because "it's makes it easier to hit blocks"... I don't buy it. I played the 3DS for a while today and I just couldn't get how it would make gameplay easier. If anything, it made it harder. Pilotwings was much more difficult to see and comprehend with 3d turned on (and the controls didn't make it any easier either).
I really don't want to be a 3DS hater, I'm not. Honestly at the beginning of this day I was really excited to go see the 3DS. But after actually seeing it, I've lowered my expectations. Maybe I just didn't have enough time with it (That's what I hope for)... but so far it's been a disappointing experience.
