Five Games Already 3D Equipped (Or Will Be Soon)

16 Comments Posted December 1, 2009 - By Patrick Klepek

Five Games Already 3D Equipped (Or Will Be Soon)

3D is the new thing, if you're to believe the gospel of movie director James Cameron. His latest action epic, Avatar, was filmed under the premise 3D is going to revolutionize all forms of entertainment. Games are included under that umbrella. Avatar: The Game will be the first console game to support stereoscopic 3D, but it's not the only 3D game available, especially if you're talking about the PC.

If you're one of the lucky out there with a 3D-equipped HDTV -- they do exist, they're just not what you would call "cheap" -- or have some NVIDIA 3D Vision glasses, here's how you can get your 3D on.

Avatar: The Game (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC)

Five Games Already 3D Equipped (Or Will Be Soon)

Just as 20th Century Fox is banking on Avatar opening big at the box office, Ubisoft is hoping that translates into a video game blockbuster. Ubisoft has pushed the 3D angle for Avatar: The Game since E3, giving the press its first glance at Avatar: The Game in front of a massive 3D television. The 3D was certainly impressive, but once you realized most will never experience the game that way, it's somewhat diminished. At least with the movie, most consumers can head to the movie theater.

(For more on Avatar: The Game, make sure to check out our review!)

Resident Evil 5 (PC)

Capcom was a surprisingly strong supporter of the PC platform in 2009, even adding features to its PC versions. With Resident Evil 5, Capcom collaborated with NVIDIA to incorporate support for NVIDIA 3D Vision glasses. Technically, the glasses add the third dimension into most modern PC games (there's a compatibility list on NVIDIA's website), but only a handful were designed to take advantage of the glasses. Like Avatar: The Game, it does require a 3D compatible monitor, adding to the entry cost.

Wipeout HD (PlayStation 3)

Five Games Already 3D Equipped (Or Will Be Soon)

There exists a fully 3D version of WipEout HD...but you can't have it! Yet, anyway. So far, Sony has restricted WipEout HD to technical demonstrations, with this tweaked version of the downloadable racer showing up at various conventions in the past year. Sony has announced plans to release a firmware update for all PlayStation 3 owners that would add some level of 3D support to all games on the platform. No specific date for the firmware has been set, other than sometime in 2010.

Invincible Tiger (Xbox Live Arcade / PlayStation Network)

Five Games Already 3D Equipped (Or Will Be Soon)

The debut of stereoscopic 3D on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 came from an unlikely place: a downloadable brawler. Namco Bandai released Invincible Tiger on both platforms in August with full stereoscopic 3D support, though it went largely unnoticed. I had a chance to experience Invincible Tiger in 3D earlier this year, but came away largely unimpressed. While the 3D added a layer of depth to the action, after a few minutes of gameplay, it became dizzying to follow. The promise was there, though.

Batman: Arkham Asylum (PC)

Batman: Arkham Asylum Sells Nearly 2 Million Copies, More DLC Packs Coming

Like Resident Evil 5, the caped crusader was given a bonus 3D treatment for the PC version of Batman: Arkham Asylum, courtesy of compatibility with NVIDIA's 3D Vision glasses. Given how rad Batman's detective mode in Batman: Arkham Asylum looked in 2D, I can only imagine the sexiness that comes from the added dimension. Alas, like many others, I am stuck in the world of 2D. Pity us.

[wipeout hd image credit: engadget]

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Tags: Movies, PC Gaming, PlayStation 3, Videogames, Xbox 360

Comments

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Gamelife1

I'm really liking this early support for 3d, it gives me confidence that several years from now once it's more widespread we will see some really cool 3d stuff. Oh and just for the record Avatar the Game is also on PS3.

Posted: December 1, 2009 11:45 AM | Reply | Report

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edgeofblade

Honestly, Batman's Bat-vision would be more visually striking if it was displayed in 2D while the game un-enhanced was displayed in 3D.

Posted: December 1, 2009 12:42 PM | Reply | Report

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SteveKB

I really want to get a 3D equipped tv and try out that nvidia thing *put's on next years christmas list* it's on next years so that it can develop more :3

Posted: December 1, 2009 12:57 PM | Reply | Report

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Hallowethe

So let me get this straight...to the gaming community in general, let's say, 3D is a good evolution for video games, but motion control (like Natal) isn't?

...I don't get people.

I find 3D cool sometimes, but it can get really annoying, really fast.

Posted: December 1, 2009 1:00 PM | Reply | Report

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Kallazar

Pass on 3D. I've got to figure it will make games way more expensive to develop and I just don't see it adding anything to the experience. You will still be looking at the screen, in one direction. It may pop out a little more, but I don't see it being any more emersive than what we have now.

Posted: December 1, 2009 1:27 PM | Reply | Report

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JonnieLasVegas

Not into 3D at all. Not movies, games, or any other content. Mainly because I'm blind in one eye, so 3D is impossible for me. Cry me a river, right, lol.

Posted: December 1, 2009 2:03 PM | Reply | Report

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Wozman23

I don't care. Ask me again once they figure out how to do 3D without the dumb glasses.

Posted: December 1, 2009 3:08 PM | Reply | Report

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doodle_billy

3d didnt that die in the 80's, why is it back now and why should anyone care? from my expierence 3d sucks. every movie have seen with 3d has been crap. the movie has to revolve around it so much the it draws from every thing else in the movie. or its only a 10 min opening scene. its just a cheap gimmick to get to the intellectually devoid to see cruddy movies. it will die off in a few years.

Posted: December 1, 2009 3:56 PM | Reply | Report

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grek176

3d glasses would be cool but at this point in time not a lot of people can afford to upgrade to a 3d tv and gamelife it says that avatar is on PS3

Posted: December 1, 2009 4:53 PM | Reply | Report

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hoof_hearted4

dislike

Posted: December 1, 2009 7:26 PM | Reply | Report

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Mavadoefc09

3D might water down the creativity in games in the long run, so I'm not thrilled or excited. Games like MW2 and Uncharted 2 proved that gaming doesn't need 3D to get people into games more than they already are.

Posted: December 1, 2009 8:11 PM | Reply | Report

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Enterfrize

Hi Patrick,

I really appreciate the attention you are giving to stereoscopic 3D gaming, and I'm sure your impressions will improve with time and more experience. S-3D gaming is really something that should be customized for each individual player for the best effect. This is easily done, and is one of the competitive advantages S-3D gaming has over film.

Is it possible that you don't see 3D the way everybody else does? What are your experiences like with S-3D movies?

That said, there are some errors in this article we would like to see corrected:

In the PC gaming world, it's a very diverse industry. While NVIDIA GeForce 3D Vision is a valued member of the industry, and they have had great marketing success, they represent just one of many viable solutions available. DDD, iZ3D, and NVIDIA GeForce 3D Vision are all equal players in this field.

Just because a game developer has a working relationship with one manufacturer, does not mean the game exclusively supports that solution. Capcom's Resident Evil 5 and Batman Arkham Asylum are also compatible with iZ3D and DDD solutions. Even Ubisoft's Avatar offers native S-3D support for iZ3D, interlaced monitors, NVIDIA GeForce 3D Vision, and more.

Here are some related links for your review:

http://www.mtbs3d.com/cgi-bi n/rss.cgi?news_id=370 (based on DDD experience)
http://www.mtbs3d.com/cgi-bi n/rss.cgi?news_id=245
http://www.mtbs3d.com/cgi-bi n/game_reviews.cgi?news_id=66< br />http://www.mtbs3d.com/cgi-bi n/game_reviews.cgi?news_id=64< br />http://www.s3dga.com/endorse ments.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch ?v=By04FtZRE14

Make a point to go to CES this year and expect lots of S-3D action!

Regards,

Neil Schneider, Executive Director
The S-3D Gaming Alliance
http://www.s3dga.com

Posted: December 1, 2009 9:26 PM | Reply | Report

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flipfreak

new 3d rocks old 3d sucks im going 3d when i get my taxs back cant wait for left for dead 2 in 3d saw the rev u did on it about 3 months or so ago and bin druling ever sens on my forth bib

Posted: December 1, 2009 11:24 PM | Reply | Report

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ilove3D

What's this 5 games business? The vast majority of games out there already work with Nvidia's 3D solution and have for ages. Nvidia's 3D works damn good on my old 22\" CRT (which is precisely why I've keep my CRT around, much better response times - which you need for 3D). If you're using a CRT it needs to be at least 100Hz though.

Posted: December 2, 2009 4:31 AM | Reply | Report

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DukeOfDownTown

Pssshhhh!!! 3-D is old news. Holograms are the future!

Posted: December 2, 2009 11:44 AM | Reply | Report

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sewageking

Will I have to wear the 3D glasses over my actual glasses, and more importantly, will they make my eyes fall out?

Posted: December 7, 2009 6:17 PM | Reply | Report

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