We went to PAX South and got a chance to play with the New Nintendo 3DS XL. Yep, that’s its real name.
The New Nintendo 3DS XL features updated 3D with face-tracking technology. Basically, it senses where your face is and adjusts the 3D graphics accordingly, so that they look consistently good. It’s still a little hard to peek over someone’s shoulder and watch, but the improvements are notable. The graphics themselves are also much better. We played The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D, a remake of the classic Majora’s Mask for Nintendo 64. The graphics had incredible depth, and looking at the screen was like peering through a window into a tiny magical world.
The other big addition is the new c-stick, which doesn’t look like a traditional console controller’s c-stick. Rather, it’s like a trackpad nub you used to see embedded in laptop keyboards. This c-stick is used to control the camera in Majora’s Mask 3D, and it was surprisingly responsive. Simply running your thumb over the c-stick results in fluid camera motion. It’s a big change and one that works.
The New Nintendo 3DS XL felt satisfying to hold and to game on. We’re looking forward to spending more time with it when The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask 3D comes out next month.
