Nintendo 3DS to Liberate Gamers from Evil Cartridges

[John Funk]

Nintendo 3DS to Liberate Gamers from Evil Cartridges

Nintendo's next-generation handheld will let users install games from cartridges onto internal memory, so you won't need to carry them around with you when you're on the go.

Handheld systems have always been great for long journeys, whether you're plugging away at your original Game Boy in the back of your parents' station wagon in 1990 or playing on your DS on a plane flight in the present day. But when your packing space is limited, it's always been a hassle to take too many games with you - most of the time, you just ended up picking one game that'd hopefully last your whole trip and sticking with it.

Nintendo wants to change that with the 3DS. According to Japanese news source Nikkei, the handheld will feature an optional "software install," which lets you copy a 3DS cartridge to internal data storage. Multiple games can be stored in this manner, and you can then select and play the games from the system's menu screen - as long as they're stored internally, there's no need for a cartridge.

Essentially, this means that the days of needing to bring a cartridge-filled carrying-case with you are now in the past. Before a trip, just install your favorite games, and switch between them without ever having to swap cartridges.

So, let me get this straight: The 3DS has really does work [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/101377-PilotWings-MGS-StarFox-Headline-3DS-Lineup], and the control slider is a better version of the PSP's analog nub. And now you're telling me I don't need to swap cartridges on the go anymore to play multiple games?

Good lord. Everything I've heard about the 3DS has been nothing short of fantastic. If this thing isn't too expensive and has a half-decent battery life, we could be looking at the goddamn Holy Grail of gaming. What's next? Will it come packaged with cake and a free kitten?

(Andriasang [http://www.andriasang.com/e/blog/2010/06/17/3ds_software_install/])

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[Snowden's Secret]

I've never bought a DS, but from what I've heard about the 3DS, it seems to be getting even more magical by the day. Please, if this is a dream, no-one bloody pinch me!

 

[MrPop]

So can I just borrow games from friends and install them on my DS I wonder.

 

[DividedUnity]

Oh man I think my mum shoul've bought my little brother this one instaed. He has lost so many of the cartridges.

Why is the little slider on the same side as the d-pad? surely it would've made more sense to put it on the right beside the buttons so the could go for a dual analogue style.

 

[Colonel Alzheimer's]

Holy mother of God, this thing looks amazing.
If this is priced at around $200, Nintendo will have effectively turned me in to a fanboy.

 

[jamesworkshop]

Oh hell Yeah

Looks like Nintendo is firing the first shots against Apples gaming market Here to a sequel to Eternal darkness on the thing

 

[MurderousToaster]

I can tell that Nintendo are going to live to regret this. I mean, seriously? You can just borrow a game from your friend and then play it whenever you want.

 

[V8 Ninja]

But wouldn't that hurt developer sales because people would just "Borrow" games from their friends and then install them on their system, effectively saying "F--- You" to every developer working on a 3DS game? I'm calling this fake until proven otherwise.

 

[Ki11erHyde]

Well, there goes one excuse for R4 cards.

 

[ProfessorLayton]

I don't want to buy a 3DS... but this looks too awesome. I can't afford all this stuff, but this is too good to pass up.

 

[Sneaky-Pie]

This will probably get me back into the the whole handheld shindig.

 

[Disaster Button]

The only thing that could make this better is if the thing is made from a self regenerative muffin like material.

 

[AdamRBi]

So can I just borrow games from friends and install them on my DS I wonder.

NO! Don't you ruin this for us! I do not want DRM on my 3DS games!

Besides, It copies save data too and most likely transfers it back to the cartridge when you want to remove it from the list to make room for other games. We don't know how much space these games take up or how big the 3DS's internal storage is so there's no way to tell if you can hold 3 games or 10, so you might be swapping out a lot.

Meaning unless you don't care about save data, you might have to download your friends game again and again if you have your own collection of games. In which case you can't keep your save data.

 

[Rainbowloid]

When I read the title of this article, my heart sank. I like having physical cartridges rather than internal data. But since it's optional, I can happily go back to being excited beyond belief.

I love you, Nintendo.

 

[Dr Bob]

This keeps better and better.

 

[fix-the-spade]

Apple must have really put the willies up Nintendo for the 3DS to be such a comprehensive improvement.

Then again, maybe the boundless success of the R4 also had a hand in this decision. I sincerely hope this doesn't end up with a similar situation to the DS and flash carts, although it almost certainly will. Bah.

Although, a bunch of N64 ports and appropriate control layout to play them on. Yes please.

 

[eyedonutkair]

After so many years of WIN, was anyone really surprised?

 

[Arkley]

I doubt it will be as simple as borrowing games from friends and installing them - after all, people could just install and sell/return them, and no one would make any money. Nintendo will no doubt come up with something to prevent this. Just off the top of my head, they could make it so installing a game to the DS renders the cartridge unplayable until the game is uninstalled with the cartridge in the DS. To avoid any accidental loss of software, they could make it so the DS won't allow installed games to be uninstalled without the presence of the original game.

That's probably not the /best/ way to go about it, but I don't believe for a second that Nintendo will allow people to get away with installing & trading.

 

[theaceplaya]

But wouldn't that hurt developer sales because people would just "Borrow" games from their friends and then install them on their system, effectively saying "F--- You" to every developer working on a 3DS game? I'm calling this fake until proven otherwise.

I'm with you. It honestly sounds too good to be true. ..or there's way more to it.

 

[dragontiers]

This does make me wonder what they will do for piracy prevention. I can't imagine they let that feature through without something. I'm cautiously hopeful that this will work as advertised and won't have some arbitrary restriction, like the game only stays in memory for 24 hours or something.