When it comes to Nintendo’s ideas, the 2DS is up there with the Virtual Boy on first glance.
It’s almost as if the team decided to push out an early 3DS concept for a laugh. By taking away the clamshell design and the 3D functionality – both headline features of the flagship handheld – it’s left a lot of people understandably confused.
So has it conceded on 3D and decided it’s dead in the water? Not exactly. There’s method in Nintendo’s madness: affordable, no-whistles gaming for a younger demographic of gamers. Dropping the stereoscopic format alone helps serve both these purposes.
The 3D feature on the 3DS is meant for children of 7 years and over due to the harm it can do to less developed eyes – concerned parents, sleep easy. Of course, for those who didn’t care about 3D in the first place this is no issue as the 3DS allows you to turn off (and keep off) the feature completely.
Nintendo 2DS design and features
As the surviving part of the name suggests, the dual screens are still both here but, as a lot of people have been quick to criticise, Nintendo has simply divided one big touch screen with a bit of plastic rather than installing two separate displays. While this cost-cutting design choice might seem a tad tacky, we found it was unnoticeable and made no difference to the experience.
The console’s door wedge design does, however, take the “pocket” out of “pocket gaming”. But once again, it’s all part for the plan. The 2DS is perfect for throwing into a rucksack and will probably survive some sizeable drops (worth noting that we weren’t able to test that). In other words, it’s as robust as it needs to be.
But pick it up and the strange design choices don’t feel so strange. It’s a lot lighter than it appears, something that was particularly noticeable when we held a regular 3DS in the other hand.
We also couldn’t help but be fondly reminded of the Game Boy Advance, the last handheld Nintendo put out that didn’t come in the clamshell form. While the closable design is still king, it was nice to not be bugged by that wobbly hinge that plagues so many 3DS consoles.
In terms of controls and buttons, everything from the 3DS is here but with some slight rearranging. The home button has been inflated while the start and select buttons have been moved to the top right hand side of the touch screen.
The thing perhaps most surprising was how comfortable it felt in the hands. All the buttons are in perfect reaching distance for thumbs, and while it’s not on the level of the PS Vita in terms of feel, it’s far better than we expected.
Game cartridges are loaded into the slot on the top which is now positioned over to the left, while the AC adapter port sits over on the right. The headphone jack is on the far left of the bottom, meanwhile, and the stylus and SD card slot into the right side of the 2DS.
No, there’s still no second thumbstick but then this wouldn’t be the right moment to bring it in. And even if Nintendo does ever do it, it’s sure to put game developers in a tricky decision.
Nintendo 2DS camera
Curiously, the 2DS still has two cameras on the back for taking 3D pictures even though you won’t be able to view them in the extra dimension. Nintendo told us that this was left so 2DS users can still send their snaps to a friend with a 3DS and get the three dimensional effect.
But we can’t honestly see that happening an awful lot. The low resolution lenses still make for pretty blurry 3D photos; it’s a gimmick that even the younglings will soon get over.
Currently retailing for £110 ($130, around AU$145), the 2DS is certainly not here to nudge the 3DS regular or 3DS XL out of the market
And why should it? The 3DS isn’t doing badly at all. In fact, Nintendo’s handheld is proving baffling successful for the naysayers who predicted the dedicated handheld apocalypse would have taken its course by now.
As Nintendo’s grip on the home console market begins to slip with the Wii U, it needs to do everything it can to stay relevant. And if you cut through the seemingly bizarre design choices and reverse on 3D, the Nintendo 2DS makes plenty of business sense.
It will no doubt fly off the shelves and into kids’ hands come Christmas. For everyone else, including owners of the 3DS, there’s no incentive to pick one up and Nintendo knows that. But it wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world if you did.
Early verdict
No, it might not be the best-looking console ever put out. However, with its cheap price tag and robust design the 2DS is a smart move for Nintendo to make right now. Current 3DS owners might as well move along, but come Christmas the kids will be lapping this up.
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