Nintendo 3DS Might Get 3-D Video Chat
One of the biggest announcements of the recent E3 gaming conference was the Nintendo 3DS, a handheld gaming console that displays 3-D games without the need of special glasses. But according to an interview with Nintendo CEO Saturo Iwata, the 3DS might be capable of much more than that.
"Technologically speaking, a variety of different things are possible with the 3DS, for example, 3-D video chat," Iwata said, in an interview with Forbes.
The Nintendo press conference at E3 revealed that the 3DS has two cameras on the front of the case for taking 3-D images. However, the company has not mentioned anything about 3-D video chat before.
While the 3DS has been thoroughly detailed in the announcement, Iwata hinted that more details would be coming soon, including price and release date, although he didn't indicate if 3-D video chat would be one of them.
The 3DS is capable of rendering several different kinds of 3-D content. In addition to games, it can display 3-D images taken with the dual-camera set up and play 3-D movies. Nintendo promised 3-D movies would be available for the 3DS, although the company didn't give details on how they would be sold.
The 3DS console also has a special slider switch that can change the depth of the 3-D image to suit the player . By sliding it all the way down, the game or image reverts to two dimensions like standard games, which is useful for people that don't like or canât view 3-D content .
Iwata also told Forbes that a refresh for the Nintendo Wii console wasn't coming anytime soon. Iwata cited the big media coverage of the upcoming Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword game at E3, saying the company wouldn't be working on such a big franchise if a new console was coming soon.
