The XL was never really billed as an upgrade, just as an alternate option. The DSi ran on the same technology as the DS but with a few more online and storage features. It's the 3DS that can't be compared.

It's been a nightmare for Nintendo as they can't show off the 3D aspects through video as you have to have the 3DS in your hands to see it in action. The 3D won't be as advanced as it would be with things that require glasses. Mario's not gonna burst out the screen and run up your arms to jump on your head but it's more about depth of field apparently. It's been said to be a subtle but amazing effect.

For me though it's all about the games.

This seems quite interesting actually, what kind of games are we looking at?

No, I'm over the age of 5.

Resident Evil: Mercenaries
Resident Evil: Revelations
Super Street Fighter 4 3D
Dead or Alive Dimensions
Kingdom hearts 3D
Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Times 3D
Starfox 3D
Pilotwings
Kid Icarus
Paper Mario
Saints Row: Driveby
Professor Layton: Mask of Miracle
Professer Layton Vs Phoenix Wright
Pro Evolution
Metal Gear Solid Snake Eater
A Shin Megami Tensei game
A Final Fantasy game
An Assasin's Creed title
Some Tom Clancy games

Plus a lot more. There'd a load of titles been announced and only a few seem to be aimed at the casual market. It's attracted a lot of 3rd party party developers though.

News to me.

Oh good, yeah I see what you mean about the games, there's a wider range there than what the DS has had in the past. Good to see a Saints Row game on there, always a bit wary of how well a sandbox game can work on a hand held console though

I don't even know what it is

Getting this at midnight on the 24th for my birthday, trading in my DSi and Super Mario Bros game to get it for under half price. :D Read loads of positive reviews about it so can't wait to actually try it out now.

Not interested in the slightest to be honest. I don't like any of Nintendo's core franchise property and gimmicks in games [like the motion gameplay craze that has 'revolutionised' games by making them worse] don't interest me at all. I still prefer good old fashioned games. I'd pick up a PSP2 over one but I'm not really interested in hand helds. I don't have much time for games these days so when I do play it's in bed and on a nice big telly.

Has anybody got this then? And what are your views on it if you have?

I'm really tempted to get one, never even played on a DS before I don't think, but I'm so tempted to buy this, just not too sure atm.

I got one on Friday, I really love it. The 3D effect is so cool, it's not overdone neither, like really in your face but you can tell it's in 3D and it looks so much better than just 2D. You can take photos in 3D too which will be really handy when going abroad. I've only got 2 games for it so far, Rayman 3D and Nintendogs which was free. Both make great use of the 3D effect and Nintendogs is so cool when the dog comes up to the screen, it looks as if it's going to jump through. :laugh: I would reccomend it though and if possible buy it soonish because I don't think the under £200 prices will stay around for much longer.

Ah cool cheers, do you or anyone else know where they're selling them for the cheapest? I know Argos is 220 but I could get my discount on that, but apparently 200 is still quite expensive compared to other places?

Well Tesco are doing a deal until Tuesday midnight that if you buy any 3DS game, you get the 3DS for £175. But if you just want the standalone console, they are selling it for £197. GAME are selling it for around the same price too. Amazon sell it for £187 which I think is the cheapest you'll find. :)

Got mine today plus Street Fighter for £185 thanks to Morrisons 15% discount day :love:

I'm really impressed with it so far, although with the 3D turned on it does make your eyes go a bit funny after while so I have to keep having a break from it for a while or just turning it off, it's not as bad when you're actually playing the game though and the adjustment of it helps too, I'm just looking forward to more games coming out on it now because the ones atm are pretty crappy, Street Fighter is good fun but that's the only game for it I can imagine myself liking.

Are there any other games that anybody would recommend getting as I'm a DS virgin? :laugh: I've already ordered Pokemon Black because I'm a big kid, and I'm probably going to buy the super mario game and brain training, but are there any other games that are enjoyable and don't get boring after a couple of days?

Looking forward to it? :laugh2: It just a DS with a 3D screen. Nothing more nothing less. And from what I've heard getting the 3D to work properly is a bit awkward because you have to hold the damn thing still to get the 'sweet spot' where the 3D is properly visible.

I'm much more excited about the Sony NGP though. :amazed:

The original DS can run Snake Eater, can it?

Maybe not, but the graphics quality isn't that impressive. My phone could probably run that game. :/

It's not hard awkward at all. Granted you can't really see it if somebody else is playing and it looks like the double image you get without glasses, but you'd have to be pretty retarded playing the thing from the side or anywhere other than in front of you. :joker:

Don't be riddiculous. Only high end phones could run that game and they would cost you as much as the 3DS anyway I imagine. The powerhorse argument is a meaningless one when you consider the DS has outsold the PS to a riddiculous degree. Saying it's the same thing as the DS when it has a new gimmick and an updated engine is crazy considering that's what most console and/or handheld upgrades are predicated on anyway.

What's an NGP? A slightly less powerful PS3 with a touchscreen? It will run largely the same games the PS3 will run only on the bus.

Picking sides or attacking the other system is dumb. They are both great. I have no interest in the 3DS either but different strokes ...

By the way on a side note I think graphics reached a threshold around the time of the PS2 where they now just don't interest me anymore. Playing really old games now you can see how they have dated and offered thinner experiences. But from about the PS2 on you could pretty much do anything within reason and all games from that era are still totally immersive and impressive. I wouldn't call the graphics crap at all. They are more than serviceable. Crysis 2 has the best graphics ever seen on a home console but it's boring as a biscuit and not a patch on something like Half Life which was released in 1998.

Games don't look like games anymore. They are trying too hard to be Hollywood and the imagination is draining from them as a result. That's why I love something still game-ish and silly like a Dead Rising 2.

Fair enough but I think its a bit naff. I just think the 3D thing is a gimmick. it don't interest me at all. I've had a DS Lite then I traded it in for DSi so the whole DS thing is just boring to me now. Adding a 3D screen isn't enough to interest me (I know that sounds incredibly dumb but thats how I feel).

I just think the NGP is the better system. It would be a better system for me anyways, I mean if they had CoD, Fallout or Bioshock on that thing at launch I'd buy one straight away. :laugh:

Of course it doesn't sound incredibly dumb. It doesn't interest me at all either. But it does merit it, along with the new engine and specs etc, to be considered as a 'new' system. What is a gimmick? Something which doesn't change the core gameplay? How then is the NGP going to do that? It's gimmick is that of being a PS3 in your pocket. It's still a gimmick.

The 3DS has just launched and the NGP has yet to see the light of day. I'll reserve judgement on which is the better system for awhile.

handheld consoles never interested me
i just prefer to sit down with a controller and play my games on a tv

Oh ok. Its just I've read on reviews that you have to hold it pretty still to get the full 3D effect. Is the 3D actually any good?

True but it would've been nice if Nintendo could make the graphics a bit nicer.

They don't need to be any nicer because Nintendo don't churn out intensive war games for hardcore crowds who monitor their framerates for the sheer pleasure of it.

Why would you soup up your system to increase productions costs and retail price in order to alienate a customer base that doesn't value earth shattering graphics?

It's horrible business accumen.

To me a gimmick is something like 3D. It doesn't do much else other than have things pop out at you. How is that going to make gameplay any better?

And I'd judge the NGP as the better system because of the other things Sony are doing with it like that real touchpad and the OLED screen. Not to mention the quad core processor inside. The potential those specs alone could have over the next few years is crazy.