What I'm not working on...

Is this the first victim of the 3DS announcement ? It could be.

I was working on some new tech to support my next game. The following screenshots are taken from a regular Nintendo DS. It shows the Galaxy 2 Engine in action. It's a true 3D engine with some nice next-gen effects such as bump mapping.






(weapon and texture images are from the internet, and only used for the prototype).

I canned this prototype because I don't think there will be a market for this kind of game, now that the 3DS is coming. However, I thought the screens looked cool and I wanted to share them!

This was btw not the main-project, that one is still going strong. Expect some new material soon!

3DS and what I think

Many people have asked me what I think of the new Nintendo 3DS. I have mixed feelings, the machine it self looks pretty slick. The analog thumb stick seems a welcome addition to the original d-pad.


(BTW I only know what I've read/viewed online, I did not actually play or see a 3DS in real life).

The demos and games presented at E3 seem pretty cool. It's for the first time I'm excited about all games in the first line-up. The graphics of some of them seem like a huge step forward.

It's also at this point I have some troubles. It looks good, but what does it bring to the table ? I want to play those names mainly because I know the brands. I know Metal Gear, it is cool.

But it doesn't really do anything different than what I'm used to. Is that needed ? I don't know.

Same goes for the 3D effect. A lot of those games are ports. They ran on hardware that didn't have the 3D effect. They do not need the 3D effect to be great, or to play good.

Don't get me wrong, I'm excited. I cannot wait to have a 3DS in my hands. I will definitely buy it.

I'm just wondering if they 3D effect will make a big impact. Sure it will be cool the first week, but after the 'new' effect wears off, will it improve gameplay or my experience ?

How will this stack up for developers. How about indie developers like me ? Will we be able to make games ? Or make games that we want to make. For example, will a 2D platform game still be successful ? Because it's hard to image somebody playing a 2D game on a system that he bought especially for the 3D effect.

I know there will be 3DS-Ware, but how will that market look. It's hard to imagine that little studios will be able to create something on the same level of detail as the games that we seen on E3.

It's going to be a wild ride for developers, that's for sure....