There has been much talk about 3D gaming as of late. And rightfully so.  TV makers have been making a lot of noise about bringing 3D gaming to the masses with their TVs, bluray 3D specs were finalized and Avatar is tearing up at the box office.

As someone who has been an early adopter of 3D gaming, I thought I'd make this thread and share everything I have learned about it.

3D Gaming Explained

Q: What is 3D gaming and how does it work?

A: While there are many different types of 3D in the media, 3D gaming primarily works by using Field-sequential 3D technology also known as stereoscopic 3D. Not to go in to too much detail…it works by blinking an altered two-dimensional image so that each eye is tricked by picking up a slightly different image hence giving our vision the illusion of depth.

Example...like this but much faster blinking.

This can create some really cool “in your face” effects as well as add new levels of gameplay to video games. Trying to melee in Halo while playing in 3D for the first time…is quite embarassing.

Q: What hardware is used to acomplish this?

A: There are a few different methods that different gaming devices use but they all involve monitor/TV that is able to take 120 HZ signal and have a 120 HZ refresh rate, polarized shutter glasses which sync up to the display and a game driver which renders the game properly for this method to work.

PC 3D gaming FAQ

Q: Who offers 3D gaming on a PC?  

A: Currently there are 2 companies which offer 3D gaming and they are Nvidia with 3D Vision and IZ3D.

Both offer their own “certified” monitors as well as their own glasses. They also offer 3D gaming solution for owners of DLP and Plasma TVs which are 3D certified.

They each come with their own set of drivers which render the PC games in 3D.

Q: What do I need to play games in 3D using either product?

A: You will need a 3D certified tv/monitor. To see a list of 3D capable monitors, click here. If you want to check if your DLP or plasma is 3D ready for certain, look at the back of your TV and see if you can spot the 3D Sync Out plug.

You will also need 3D shutter glasses, depending of which monitor or drivers you’d like to use. Nvidia glasses ONLY work with Nvidia drivers. IZ3D glasses only work with IZ3D monitors but the IZ3D driver gives users the abilty to use other brands of shutter glasses when gaming on 3D ready TVs. These tridef glasses work great with IZ3D driver on my Samsung  DLP TV http://www.ddd.com/cart/product.php?productid=1&cat=1&page=1

Finally you need a MONSTER of a PC. Because 3D gaming involves rendering each image twice, you will need to have a rig that can run games at over 60 frames per second, in order not to experience in game slowdown. In game frame rate is cut in half as seen below from a screenshot I took while running SF4 in 3D and without 3D…

Look at each manufacturers minimum specs, and then multiply them by 10 to get optimal PC required to do 3D with any game.

Q: What games can I play in 3D using these products?

A: Nvidia 3D vision –  http://www.nvidia.com/object/3D_Vision_3D_Games.html

IZ3D - http://www.iz3d.com/compatible

Some games work better than others.

Q: I’m interested but which one should I choose?

A: That depends on a lot of things.

You can choose Nvidia 3D vision if-

You have 3D ready DLP, plasma or Nvidia 3D vision certified monitor; you have a Nvidia 3D graphics card (it doesn’t work with ATI ones); you are interested in only 3D gaming and occasional 3D movie clip; You have windows vista or Windows 7(won’t work with XP);

You can choose IZ3D if –

You have a 3D ready DLP, Plasma or IZ3D approved monitor; you don’t have a dual graphics card (doesn’t support SLI or crossfire setup); You want something not as pricey; You want to try making 3D movies and pictures yourself using 3^rd party software.

My 2 cents…

I’ve used both products on my 67 inch DLP TV. Both are very good. If you have an ATI videocard, go for IZ3D because the drivers are FREE! for ATI users. Nvidia users have to pay 49.99 on top of the cost of glasses however it still comes in cheaper than Nvidias bundle which retails for 199 for 1 pair of glasses alone.

But if you have a Nvidia videocard or a dual video card setup, and saving 100 bucks here and there isn't really an issue, 3D vision is a great choice for gaming.

Console 3D gaming FAQ

Q: Are any of the current gen consoles capable of 3D gaming?

A: They all are "capable". But playing games in 3D on a console requires same things as PC gaming. TV that is 3D ready, shutter glasses and software driver to produce 3D.

Q: So can I play games in 3D on my current gen console?

A: Yes you can! There are 3 PS360 games that were optimized for 3D and included a 3D option in the retail copy of the game. They are Avatar, GForce and Invincible Tiger: The Legend Of Han Tao. Enjoy!

 Better in 3d?

Q: What do I need to play these gaming masterpieces in 3D?

A: You need stereoscopic 3D glasses with emitter. Many different companies make them. These glasses work great http://www.i-glassesstore.com/dlp3d-wireless-2set.html

Also you need a 3D capable TV, which if we are looking at 2009 TV models, are Mitsubishi DLP line and Samsung 450 plasma line (PN42B450 and PN50B450). No LCD TVs support 3D gaming yet…

And you need the game.

Q: Will I be able to play other console games in 3D in the near future?

A: It is technically possible so most likely. However unlike PC's, consoles don't have a standard driver that can make games run in stereoscopic 3d so the game needs to be built with the 3D option in mind and requires extra work... No one likes more work so don't expect too many games to support this in the next few years.

Q: I heard that in order to play in 3D, games need to render at 1080p with 60 frames per second. Since current gen consoles can’t do that without 3D and 3D requires extra horsepower, how will this be possible?

A: First of all this is not entirely true.  3D can be rendered at any resolution. 800x600, 1024x768...etc.

Also, 3D games do not need to run at exactly at 60 frames per second. Do not confuse screen refresh rate with in game frame rate. However in order to maintain the same gaming experience as they would in 2D without slowdown, the game will have to render twice as many frames as it originally would without 3D. For example, Halo 3 will still run at 30 frames per second but the xbox360 will have to be rendering 60 fps. Unique frame per eye...

This is possible to do when designing a game from the ground up with that in mind but it will be very difficult to pull off with games already released on the consoles.

Q: Will 3D gaming have an impact on the console race this gen if one company decides to implement it?

A: The current line-up of TVs that support 3D are Mitsubishi DLPs and two Samsung Plasmas, and both are technology that is being phased out. LCD still doesn’t support it and hopefully CES 2010 changes this. There simply aren’t enough people that will be buying new 3D ready TVs in 2010 and beyond to make a significant impact for console 3D gaming this gen. So the answer is no, it will not have any impact the console race…but it will be hella cool for the select few of us. Come on Sony you can do it!

Thoughts? Questions? Comments?

UPDATE -

Below is a video that explains Sonys strategy for 3D gaming, bluray. There is a lot of marketing fluf in there but some solid info as well.

Excellent thread, very informative.

3D movies give me a severe headache. So not going to watch anything to do with 3D for a long time.

It was a shit cinema so that might have caused it. The movie didn't even look like it was in 3D to me but I have nothing to compare it too.

Gaming will give you a headache too. For about 2-3 days. Then your eyes get used to it. Its like second nature after a week.

If you still get a headache after a week of using 3D glasses, you have a vision problem. At least Nvidia says so...

A little off topic, but 3D will never be huge until you can get by without wearing the glasses.

It's too much of a pain in the ass for anyone with glasses and wearing the 3D glasses on top of glasses just sucks.

Movies are loving 3D right now not because it's cool, but mainly because you can't pirate 3D yet (or at least it isn't widespread if you can).  It's an excuse to make people actually go to the theatres (and Avatar is very much worth the 3D, I even put in my contacts just for that).

Valid point Twesterm.

I don't think it will ever be a console selling feature one of the reasons being the glasses.
However the market will be substantial to warrant support in 3-5 years.
It just looks really cool for some games and I know people that won't even game in 2D anymore. I personally am getting Mass Effect 2 on PC instead of 360 mostly cause it looks like a game that will kick ass in 3D.

Also, at least they are getting better with the glasses designs. http://www.iz3d.com/3dglasses

bump for people that may have missed this and are interested in 3D.

awesome thread, very informative

I'm going with Iwata: I don't think it'll become a trend in the near future. Maybe in a far future, but in this or next gen, it's unlikely.

I think you re right.

But its something everyone will want to try and play with for a few months. Sony, Samsung, LG and other TV makers are counting on this as they are trying to sell you new TVs and Blurays that can do this...