Nintendo 3DS: Can it recover?

Since the release of the 3DS back in March, feelings of the Nintendo 3DS has been lackluster at best. The leadup to the 3DS was general excitement since the 3D worked and most hoped Nintendo had improved upon the previous DS generations. When it released though, Nintendo had a non-functional online store, a forgettable list of launch titles, and a staggering pricepoint given their home console cost less.

Since then, the Nintendo 3DS has had disappointing US sales that have yet to touch 1 million and a looming competitor in the PS Vita at the same pricepoint with impressive compatitbilities. Nintendo needs to do several things to pull this fuel out of the fire before it blows up in their face as a complete disaster.

1. Handheld Selling Games

There are many times an amazing game comes out for a console that people claim is console-buying worthy. Call of Duty could be up there, Metal Gear Solid, Halo, Mario, etc. Nintendo (and Sony in the future) need to have a similar game but something that will sell their handheld. Many were hoping that The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time would be that game. But is it really? A game that was released back in 1998 with a graphical update including 3D graphics is going to be the handheld seller? They need something more and they have the names to do it. With upcoming games like Super Mario 3D, Resident Evil: Revelations, Mario Kart, and more; Nintendo is trying to bring out a variety of games hoping to catch the interest of various gamers and bumping up the 3DS sells.

But a lot of these games seem like merely rehashes of previous games or ones that are already on consoles. Resident Evil: Mercenaries has come out with negative reviews for a full 3DS cost of a mode in Resident Evil 5. Star Fox 64 3D is just another N64 game with updates in the same vein of Ocarina of Time. Super Street Fighter IV, Metal Gear Solid 3, Madden NFL Football...why play these games on a 3DS when they have superior console versions?  There is no incentive to own these games other than to try and pass time with a handheld that has nothing else on it. So why even bother purchasing the 3DS until a better lineup is in stock?

2. The Cost

$250 is a LOT of money. To put it down on handheld that has not proven itself and whose biggest draw is a gimmick most people don't particularly enjoy...it's not going to succeed. Add to the fact the PS Vita looms in the distance and side by side, there is no comparison. The PS Vita will win out of the 3DS if they are at the same pricepoint. Considering how sad the sales have been for the 3DS, a pricedrop at E3 would have been reassuring. But with no mention of one, perhaps Nintendo wants to see how it fares during the holidays. This would have a bigger selection of games built up and they wouldn't have to sacrifice the price difference for a time where they probably get the most sales during the year. But, again, the PS Vita will be out around then too, and it will be in for a battle if they cost the same. If Nintendo wants a sure-fire way to come out on top, a price drop is the only logical answer.

3. No Real Rush

The clock is not ticking down on Nintendo. After the success of the Wii, Nintendo has more than enough money to back a disappointing launch of the Nintendo 3DS. Make no mistake about it, as problematic as this launch has been, Nintendo has a DS successor in it's grasp. But like the original DS, the train didn't take off until it's later generations. They do not need to toss this handheld aside and forget about it, they just need to help it start picking up steam. Better games, cheaper price, improved online capabilities, better store, less focus on gimmicky 3D and instead on how it improves gameplay, and it's street pass capabilities (even though it will work in very few places in the US). It's Nintendo. There are few areas where they have failed miserably. And this is not a Virtual Boy. It hasn't went through the holiday phase, it has next-to-no games available for it, and in truth...it hasn't been out for very long. As long as Nintendo makes wise decisions and don't treat it's software the same way they did the Wii, the 3DS will have a long life cycle. But they can not give up on it. If they do, the 3DS is DOA.


Nintendo has a many franchises they can use to back this system up with. They have a strong following with previous DS owners and plenty of money that they received from DS and Wii sales. They have formulas for success but they do have chances to screw it up. Support is what the 3DS needs, not denial. Yes, it has sold poorly and yes, many people are speaking bad of the system as a whole. Nintendo shouldn't let that get them down. They need to reiterate with it's fanbase how no other system will get Pokemon and how they want to improve this online store compared to the DS and Wii store. They have to let people know this is the new generation of DS and they aren't going to fall back into their safe DSlite zone. They must move forward and improve on the criticisms they receive. If it means a new 3DS with longer lasting battery, more colors, and smaller hardware...then fine. I'm sure with each iteration, the handheld will get better and sales will go up. So despite the past few months, Nintendo should not worry. There is room for improvement and time for it. Fans should not give up hope.

REVIEW: Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing

A few weeks ago, I sat down to this computer and started typing up a review for Brink and LA Noire. I ultimately realized...why would I want to review games that had received enough discussion when instead I could focus on lesser played games that SHOULD receive some sort of recognition. So I sat around playing some games recently, and after a purchase from Gamestop felt I came across one that I could finally write about.

Now, while I feel that those who did review this game seemed to be pretty praiseworthy about it, I think it felt more sideline-esque. Worthy of a mention, but easily overlooked and just briefly stated. After spending quite a few hours this week playing this game, I came to the realization that if you don't have Mario Kart at your disposal, or even if you do, this game could possibly become your favorite cart racer you have played in years.

Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing features twenty characters and around 30 playable tracks that all revolve around Sega games. While I haven't played a lot of Sega games (and had missed the Dreamcast altogether), a lot of what is in this game didn't seem like it would appeal to me. Half of the characters I didn't know anything about and the most knowledge I had about them is that I heard of the game they were in...but never played it myself. Fortunately for those of us with no experience with Shenmue, Space Channel 5, and ChuChu Rocket!, the majority of the characters in the game (7 of the 20 to be exact) come from the various Sonic games throughout Sega's history. Of course you will see Sonic and Tails, but Shadow the Hedghog makes an appearance along with the much hated Big the Cat.

Once you pick the character you would like to use, there are also 24 tracks to choose from all coming from the same games the characters are in. Here is where I think it starts to overshadow the popular Nintendo cart racing games. The levels in this game are nothing short of beautiful. Bright bold colors with lively music and some creative looks to the level left me in awe. One level in particular involved driving on a sort of "rainbow road" but in the distance is a large head of some characters that I'm unfamiliar with and streams of colors everywhere leading to one trippy experience. I have played many of the Mario Kart games, and none of the levels have really caught my interest the way these levels have.

The controls in this game are remarkably smooth. The movements are tight, drifting is very easy and also a large part of this game, and I have yet to have any issues with placing items. The one drawback I have with the controls are the stiffness and difficulty I have with the character All-Star moves. For example, Tails has the special move of calling down a tornado. Moving Tails and the tornado is quite a frustrating thing. Moving left and right feels almost non-existant while the character itself is automatically propelled forward in the track. As a whole however, the controls are responsive and crisp and easy to pick up and simply play.

All of the characters and tracks that are playable are not available right at the beginning. As the game is played, the player racks up Sega Miles which they can then use to unlock various other characters, tracks, and music to use. While I haven't quite figured out how the Sega Miles calculator works, I would think it safe to assume that it depends on how big the track is, how many laps you do, the difficulty, and what place you finish in. These are quite easy to attain and can be done in the various modes that the game offers from Single Race, Grand Prix, Time Trials, or the missions it offers.

The game modes offer a lot of replayability and a nice mix of ideas that make it push past a simple battle cart game. Like most games, you have the regular single race where you pick the level, the character, how many laps, etc. There are also six different Grand Prix events, each with four different levels to play with basically the same scoring method that Mario Kart has. Time Trials are just what they sound like. You race around tracks trying to reach the quickest time battling not only yourself, but also the staff racer and also the ability race against the ghosts of those on the leaderboard for the game. Finally, the Mission mode has 64 different...well...missions you play from that you need to try to AAA rank in. You can get by getting lower scores, but the AAA is what you should shoot for. While I haven't finished all 64 missions since more unlock as you play them, I have had missions where I roll around on a giant egg as Billy Hatcher, try to get all the chaos emeralds and as many coins I can as Dr. Robotnik, knockout races where a timer ticks down and once it reaches 0 the person in last place is out, and one where targets move on the track and you need to shoot them all with boxing glove items. Very nice addition to an already great game.

Speaking of items, expect a lot of similarities to the italian plumber version. Instead of hitting question mark boxes and running over brightly colored arrows to dash, expect to grab question mark bubbles and run over blue arrows to speed up. Missiles have replaced red turtle shells while green turtle shells have been replaced with green boxing gloves. Each character also comes with a special maneuver if they are racing rather badly, but fortunately the rubber-band gameplay is not as bad as it's Nintendo counterpart and while I'm in first, I've never been threatened by a character who went into their "All-Star" attack. Throw in some other items like a confusion star that turns the world upside down for a character or a horn that blasts characters too close to you, and despite the similarities, it comes out with a good number of likeable items.

Now, I have mentioned Mario Kart several times in this review and normally I'm not a big fan of reviewers throwing in other games to describe the one they are trying to review. However, once you play this game, you'll notice why I used it. This game does more than simple nods to Mario Kart, it flat out goes full Night at the Roxbury head bob for this game. Make no mistake, Sega made this game to try and capture the Mario Kart audience that wasn't quite being fulfilled enough on the Wii and DS, and for sure wasn't being satisfied on the Xbox or Playstation. And while games that try to cash in on other game successes usually come off pretty poor, I hope Sega comes out with more. This was an immensely satisfying game and the best cart racer I've played since the original Mario Kart.