E3 2010: 3D

One of the biggest topics going into E3 was 3D stereoscopic gaming. In an earlier post I laid out some challenges facing 3D and after the show I feel confident that all of those points were validated, though to be fair these were not hard to deduce. At the show I was finally able to play 3D games, as well as observe others playing and I developed some distinct impressions and followup thoughts from my June 8 post.

Stereoscopic 3D generally still requires a 3D capable TV for it to work and that is still expensive. I did get to try out Gears of War 2 on a dev kit using an "aftermarket" 3D solution where the code was modified, allowing it to be viewed in 3D on a traditional HD television using glasses. This solution from Darkworks functioned, but wasn't that impressive. Darkworks also let me play Gears of War 2 in 3D on an actual 3D Samsung television (and using a different, more expensive pair of Samsung 3D glasses) which I admit did look much better. Still, the 3D did not make the game much more fun. While I did not expect any amazing console 3D gaming without glasses, it was still somewhat disappointing that no other company came out of the woodwork with a solution that could pull it off. Maybe at GDC 2011? Anyway, the best looking 3D console content was on an actual 3D TV.

Based on the above, Sony was generally the place to be for trying out 3D gaming. The first game I checked out was Sony's fighting game for the Move controller which, interestingly, was also in 3D. (This is what MBA students call "synergy.") I'll save the problems with that game and Move for another post, but the 3D took several tries to get working and once it did it failed to impress. I know the code was not final, but as someone with 15 years of martial arts training including many types of boxing, this game was a big let down and the 3D looked bad.

But the fighting game was the lowpoint at Sony's booth. After that disappointment I finally played Gran Turismo 5 in 3D. I must say graphically the game looked great in 2D, but what else would you expect from this franchise? The 3D looked crisp but it did not have as much punch as much as I would have wanted it to. After a few minutes I didn't notice the 3D anymore and I was actually wanting to play it in 2D so I could ditch the glasses and focus on the game.

By far the best looking game in 3D at Sony's booth was Killzone 3. For one, the 3D seemed to calibrate faster and function better once it got going, but that may have been due to the person running the demo station on the second floor of the Sony booth knew what he was doing. Killzone 3's use of 3D looked stunning, though again it did not immediately appear to have an impact on gameplay.

Also at Sony's booth I played a generic feeling racing game that actually reminded me the old Carmageddon (see picture in this paragraph) games on PC of the 1990s, else their take on Disney's recent Split/Second racing game. The problem was that there was so much going on the screen that the 3D effect actually felt distracting.The big takeaway from Sony's booth about 3D is that it works and while it may sometimes look really cool, it does not add much to gameplay. In some cases it was downright distracting. In all cases, you had to wear the glasses which was still annoying. I'm a little concerned that the quality of the 3D visuals may actually vary by TV manufacturer. I'm sure Sony's TV division is going to want SCE to push the message that 3D gaming on PS3 "looks the best on a Sony TV" even though that would be in conflict with the the idea that the PS3 should be hardware agnostic when it comes to which TV you use. While a traditional 42" HD 1080p TV from Samsung may have a slightly different picture quality from the Sony Bravia of the same spec, the functionality of the resolution and refresh rate differences (if any) should not be a material difference in what games look like on the them. With 3D, because Sony has so much invested in the technology, you have to wonder what the marketing message will be come later this year.

As for Microsoft, 3D was not part of its messaging or anything it presented at the show. The unspoken message is that the 360 can do 3D, but for now Microsoft is not focusing on it. That said, Crysis 2 will be 3D playable on PS3, 360 and even PC, so at least we know Microsoft will have a toehold in that market if nothing else.

As for Nintendo, that's coming in a future blog post.

The final takeaway about console 3D gaming: it's going to happen but it's going to take a while for highly compelling content comes out, particularly content that has 3D as part of the gameplay and not just as eye candy.