Iwata Asks is a series of interviews conducted by former Nintendo Global President Satoru Iwata with key creators behind the making of Nintendo games and hardware.



Iwata Asks Home

Nintendo 3DS



Volume 6 Nintendo 3DS Built-in Software

To Many People

Iwata

In closing, then, I'd like to ask each of you for a message to the players. Mizuki-san, let's start with you.

Mizuki

The stereovision in the Nintendo 3DS system has been attracting most of the attention. However, we were in contact with things besides that all through development, such as counting your steps as a pedometer, or having StreetPass encounters with people, and it's really fun to watch the changes that take place within those day by day. I'd really like everyone to experience those things as well. Also, please do connect to the Internet.

Iwata

As a member of the Network Business Department, that's something you really do have to say, isn't it. (laughs)

Mizuki

Yes. When you're setting up the Internet connection (wireless broadband Internet access required), a cute little character shows up and guides you through things very simply, and shows you exactly how to connect. Please do try it out.

Iwata

It is the friendliest version so far, that's true.

Mizuki

One more thing. The Nintendo 3DS charging cradle is very easy to use; all you have to do is set the Nintendo 3DS system on it and it charges. For people who have wireless LANs at home, if you leave the Nintendo 3DS system switched on, you'll be able to receive game information via SpotPass, too. I hope people will enjoy it.

Iwata

With previous handheld game systems, once players were done playing, they'd turn them off, but you'd like them to change that habit with the Nintendo 3DS system.

Mizuki

That's right.

Suzuki

What I'd like to tell them is that, earlier, when Akifusa-san was talking about Nintendo 3DS Camera, he said he wanted to make something people would use for five or ten years, and I feel exactly the same way. Because, in order to create Face Raiders, I pulled out Game Boy Camera16 and played with it for the first time in a long time.

Iwata

Game Boy Camera was released more than ten years ago, wasn't it. 16. Game Boy™ Camera: Peripheral equipment for the Game Boy system, released as Pocket Camera in February of 1998 in Japan. Players could work with photos they'd taken, use the Game Boy Printer which was sold separately to print them out as stickers, and could also take face shots and play games with them.

Suzuki

Yes. The Game Boy Camera still held lots of photos we'd taken a long time ago, and even though they were in black and white, looking at them made me feel that they were crammed full of memories. The Nintendo 3DS system is also a handheld game system, not to mention 3D, so in future, when people look at them, I think they'll feel something similar. So I'd love it if everyone took tons of photos with the Nintendo 3DS system, saved them in the Nintendo 3DS system or on their SD cards as real face collections, and then enjoyed them in – although this is a long way off – ten years or so.

Kawamoto

I created several things this time, but first of all, in Mii Maker, you can take photos and make Mii characters, and I think it would be great if players made Mii characters of all sorts of people. Sometimes they don't look much like the person, but that's interesting in itself. Then, as I mentioned before, with AR Games, I'd like them to put an AR Card in their wallet, carry it with them when they go out, and let all sorts of people play with it. In StreetPass Mii Plaza, the more people you encounter via StreetPass, the more interesting things get, so I want to make sure they remember to take their Nintendo 3DS system with them when they go places.

Akifusa

I worked on Nintendo 3DS Camera and Nintendo 3DS Sound this time. In a sense, I created twin software, and in fact, I was blessed with twin sons last autumn.

Mizuki

Oh!

Everyone

Congratulations!

Akifusa

Thank you very much. (laughs) They were born during a very busy time for me, but I want to take 3D photos of my boys, and I want to record their voices and make Mii characters for them. There are a lot of things I want to do with the Nintendo 3DS system.

Iwata

These days, when children are born, they can have 3D photos of themselves starting that very day.

Akifusa

That's right.

Iwata

That's amazing!

Akifusa

Actually, when you take a 3D photo of someone, it's even possible to remember the person's particular atmosphere accurately. So I want to take lots of 3D photos of my sons. For that reason, even to me, it feels as though the Nintendo 3DS system is changing the way I live, so I definitely want everyone else to try it as well. Then, and this is a topic I received from you, Iwata-san, but I would really love to take 3D videos as well.

Iwata

You'll be able to take 3D videos of your twins. Your motive just expanded exponentially, Akifusa-san! (laughs)

Akifusa

Yes. (laughs) So I'd like people to look forward to that, as well.

Iwata

Okay, Takahashi-san. What are your ambitions for the real Tomodachi Collection?

Takahashi

As you'd expect, I'd love it if players registered 100 people on their Friends List. The Nintendo 3DS system is made so that, if you press the HOME button just this side of the lower screen, you'll be able to get back to the HOME menu any time. Even if they're in the middle of a game, by pressing the HOME button whenever they want and checking their Friends List, they'll be able to see what their friends are playing right then, and read and send comments, so I think it will be a good way for friends to enjoy communicating with each other as well. In addition, as with Notifications List and Game Memos, we've made it so that they can temporarily pause their game and access it. I'd like people to actually touch this and experience it.

Iwata

And finally, Kuroume-san.

Kuroume

Since we want players to carry the Nintendo 3DS system around with them, we managed to create more ways to have players touch the Nintendo 3DS system even when they aren't directly playing a game. For example, it can count the number of steps you take, and you can check that number later in your Activity Log. In addition, we managed to combine the charms of the individual build-in software well, so I'm sure they'll be able to enjoy it. In any case, I'd like to see the Nintendo 3DS system be well received by as many people as possible. That's what I think.

Kawamoto

For us, "completed" actually means having it accepted by lots of players.

Iwata

With the Nintendo 3DS system in particular, the degree of player participation is very important.

Suzuki

We'd like players to share the fun with each other. In Face Raiders, we created a mode where you can introduce people and "have them play"; when we had NOE (Nintendo of Europe) translate that phrase for us, they came up with "share the fun."

Iwata

Share the enjoyment, in other words.

Suzuki

When I heard that, I thought, "That's really well put." At first, there you are, having fun, and by sharing that fun with other people, you have more and more fun yourself. I can feel that sort of potential in the Nintendo 3DS system.

Iwata

Thank you very much. The first time I touched a Nintendo 3DS system that had live build-in software on it, I was incredibly excited. I'm looking forward to seeing how the thing that affected me that way is delivered to people around the world, and how they receive it.

I'd love it if lots of people took 3D photos, if lots of people gathered faces and created Mii characters, if lots of people made tables go wobbly, and if walking around with your Nintendo 3DS system and having StreetPass enabled becomes the norm.

Thank you, all of you, for all your hard work.

Everyone

Thank you very much.