Nintendo 3DS Gets Camera Update, Charming Mario Editions

Nintendo has just wrapped a press conference going over some developments for the 3DS. The platform has seen strong but lower than expected sales, though the pricing do-over in August has spurred adoption. This update seems like a sort of holdover while the big games are still unreleased, but any improvements to the platform are always welcome.

First, a system update brings new options to the camera. You can now record 3D movies of up to 10 minutes in length, and it will also capture time lapse or multiple shots per second or stop motion. They also enabled the ability to shift data to a new 3DS, which some are taking as an indication of a “3DS Lite” or the like (perhaps one with two circle pads) arriving down the road.

3D makeovers of a few classic games were also announced. Kid Icarus and Kirby’s Adventure will be gaining an extra dimension the same way Excitebike and Xevious have. Not the biggest news of all time, but Kid Icarus is one of my favorite NES games and I think this is simply wonderful. Hopefully Metroid and Blaster Master aren’t far behind.

Lastly, they are initiating a sort of raffle this holiday season in which if you buy two Nintendo games, you’re entered in a drawing to win one of the cute Mario-themed 3DSes pictured above. That mushroom one is calling my name. Unfortunately it seems unlikely that the contest will actually be offered here in the US, but we can always hope.

You can find a few more game-specific details summarized over at 1up.