Nintendo 3DS unveiled, shares some features with iPhone 4

Before you read too far into that headline, I promise you — we’re not crazy. The iPhone 4 isn’t capable of 3D, doesn’t offer dual screens, and will never feature a Mario title in its rich catalogue of games. But the Nintendo 3DS, fully detailed only moments ago at Nintendo’s E3 press briefing, looks to share a number of features with Apple’s recently announced handheld – certainly more than one might have expected.

Specifically the 3DS will include a gyroscope, front and rear cameras, a motion sensor, and – much to the surprise of gamers solely expecting gaming – movies.

Similarities are similarities, but when you really put things under the microscope you can quickly see that not everything is the same in these two camps. The movies, like the gaming, will be in 3D. The cameras too will take pictures in 3D. With the exception of the gyroscope and motion sensor introducing tilt gameplay, it’s entirely possible to chalk everything else up to coincidence – and even those could be seen as a logical extension of Nintendo’s success with the Wii rather than borrowing a page from Apple’s book.

On the flipside, though, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata – the same man who took the stage today to detail the 3DS – was rumoured to have told top execs that Apple was their “enemy of the future.” Is 3DS Nintendo’s first shot in this future war? If so, you can see how getting motion-control into the mix would be an important element. Between that, touch screen capabilities, and downloadable content via DSiWare, one could easily argue that the 3DS is capable of everything the iPhone is in terms of gaming.

Now if only it could make phone calls…

Jim Squires

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Jim Squires is the Editor-in-Chief of Gamezebo. Everything you see passes his eyes first, so we like to think of him as "the gatekeeper of cool stuff." He likes good games, great writing, and just can't say no to a hamburger. Also, he is not a bear.