Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last few years, you’re well aware of Hollywood’s recent obsession with 3D… only, it’s not just Hollywood that’s obsessed. The video game industry has been eager to embrace this latest fad as well, with the Sony PlayStation 3 already offering several titles that are compatible with 3D-ready TVs. But if there’s been one steady complaint during this whole 3D craze, it’s that in order to take advantage of the technology, you have to wear a pair of clunky (and expensive) shutter glasses. That’s what makes the Nintendo 3DS so appealing, because it’s not only the first handheld device to offer 3D gaming, but also the first to deliver a completely glasses-free experience.

Though the system isn’t without its flaws, I was overall really impressed with what Nintendo has achieved with their latest handheld system. Head over to Bullz-Eye now to read my full review.

XpanD, the company that produced the glasses for Avatar has said a pair of their shutter glasses will start at $70 a pair and run up to $150. That’s on top of the premiums you’ll pay for the TV, though some sets will likely ship with glasses included.

For a family of four, you’re looking at about $300 just for the glasses. Granted, your average family of four won’t be gaming in 3D together, but think about having your friends over. The expense of the hardware is going to dictate that you enjoy your 3D games alone, a trend the industry has been moving away from for the last decade.

Until costs come down, there’s no way Sony can expect real revenue from 3D next year. It’s just too expensive.

You’ll have to excuse my sarcasm, because I do think Sony has a big year ahead. The biggest its had in a while, anyway. The PS3 Slim is selling like mad and there are some great games out for the system. The only “pillar” I see working in 2010, though, is PSN. Motion gaming already exists on another system, one that is much more family friendly than a console like the PS3. And 3D gaming? That’s a pipe dream for 2010. Hell, I’d call that a pipe dream for 2015. There just won’t be enough 3D TVs to drive any kind of reasonable business for a game system.

That doesn’t keep Koller from claiming that Sony just might hit the “Holy Grail of gaming,” by “placing you as a consumer into the game physically.” I think he’s nuts. Read the full interview at Gamepro.

Source: Kotaku

Ubisoft created the video game version of Cameron’s vision. Avatar: The Game, which releases today, puts the player in the same 3D world, with one major restriction. You need a 3D TV. Otherwise you’ll just get two-dimensional version like every other game. I’m going to go ahead and guess the game is terrible in terms of play, but probably pretty cool if you’ve got the 3D rig to support it. Ubisoft, like many others, is banking on that cool factor to make 3D games the next big thing.

“3D is to pictures what Dolby Stereo was to sound. No one wants to go back to mono.” That’s from the head of Ubisoft Montreal, Yannis Mallat. In a sense, I think he’s right, but there is a glaring difference between the progression from mono to stereo and 2D to 3D: the glasses. I’m not trying to be a luddite here, but I think 3D has a ways to go before I’ll be enticed to put on the glasses to watch or play something in my home. It just isn’t practical yet. Where Dolby Stereo could almost immediately be appreciated, I would guess 3D still has a decade before serious adoption, from both consumers and film-makers/developers. There just isn’t enough hardware to support the medium.

According to the Financial Post, Ubisoft wouldn’t have made Avatar if it didn’t think people would someday purchase 3D TV sets. So let me get that straight – you developed a 3D game that next to no one will see because someday people will own 3D TVs? And they’ll still want to be playing Avatar when that day comes? Huh. The movie must be a whole lot better than I expect.

Source: Financial Post