- 2D or not 2D? The Nintendo 2DS Verdict - 19 November, 2013
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If you’re a geek collector like me you have to have everything. Right now. It doesn’t matter if you’re ever going to use it or not. It doesn’t matter if it’s just going to end up in the attic collecting dust. Just knowing you have it is satisfaction enough. There are many things I have bought that could be placed in this pigeon hole. I thought the Nintendo 2DS would be one of them, I mean, look at it, it just doesn’t make any sense.
That is until you actually get it out the box. I did this because even though I rarely use everything I own, I do like to open them up and just touch it for a few seconds before wiping the smudges off and boxing it away for a year before I get the urge again. Yes, I’m weird, I know. While it isn’t lighter than the original 3DS it doesn’t feel heavy. It’s comfortable to hold and what appears as odd button placement at first makes total sense when you use it. OK, so it won’t slip in and out of your skinny jeans pocket but I doubt anything does!
The Nintendo 2DS is part of the 3DS family of devices. It’s marketed as the value version of all the devices with a RRP of £110 but most online retailers are selling it for just under £100. It’s also been aimed at kids below 7 who shouldn’t be looking at the stereoscopic display of the regular 3DS, so as the name implies you cannot see 3D images on the 2DS. I do find the 3D an impressive feature but I hardly ever used it only switching it on when playing a new game just to see what it was like. It still includes the 3D camera feature so you can still take those horrid, grainy pictures with the low resolution cameras. You’ll just need to transfer them to a device that can display 3D pictures to view them.
Another major difference in the function of the Nintendo 2DS is that it doesn’t feature a clamshell design. I thought this was quite obvious but then my none-gaming boyfriend asked me “How does it close?” so maybe it isn’t! Bless him. It’s almost square, looks more like a tablet than anything else and is wedge shaped, thinning out toward the bottom. Sleep Mode was a useful feature that let you pause your game at any point by closing any previous DS system. This is now accomplished by a little switch at the bottom. It’s quite a stiff switch so it won’t be triggered by accident.
We’re used to having stereo speakers either side of the top screen on 3DS but this has been reduced to a mono speaker on the top left. To get stereo sound, you’ll need to plug in some headphones. Wireless communications are also now switched off using an on screen menu rather than a switch and there is no longer a battery saving feature in the screen settings.
The Nintendo 2DS is fully compatible with ALL 3DS and DS games giving you a huge library to choose from. The Nintendo eShop is there with a huge variety as well, offering games for less than £2 as well as download versions of full retail titles. The included 4GB memory card might not sound like a lot of space but the games don’t actually take up that much space so you’ll have plenty of room to get you started.
It comes in two colours at the moment but knowing Nintendo, they’ll unleash limited edition varieties at some point . There are well over 50 variations of the regular 3DS/XL after all. It’s definitely not a premium looking device, this is all about value after all, but it certainly does not feel cheap. It’s solidly built and could definitely stand a few knocks though maybe invest in some screen protectors if you don’t plan on using a carry case. I do hate it when people don’t use protection!
I don’t regret switching to the Nintendo 2DS at all but I’d recommend current 3DS gamers try and get their hands on one first. If you’re looking for a device to introduce you to gaming, I think this is the perfect solution.
