3D poised to hit gamers later this year

Sony, Nintendo battling it out to get games out in the new format, but you may not need glasses for Nintendo.

After taking over the big screen, 3-D is poised to hit the small screen via video games.

Sony Corporation and Nintendo Company presented duelling versions of 3-D gaming on Tuesday at the opening of the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, where attendance was expected to reach 45,000.

Both companies are investing heavily in 3-D video game technology to drive the next wave of consumer spending in an industry that generates roughly $45 billion (Dh165.2 billion) in sales worldwide. Sony showed off a number of game titles it hopes will prompt players to don glasses and enter the third dimension, including Gran Turismo 5, a much-anticipated racing game debuting on November 2, and Killzone 3, an adrenaline-soaked shooting game that is due out in February.

New technology

The 3DS, unlike Sony's 3-D games, does not require glasses, an advantage that Nintendo hammered home at its Tuesday news conference at the Nokia Theatre. "Man! Those glasses!" Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime exclaimed in mock horror. In an effect similar to lenticular images, the Nintendo 3DS projects an illusion of three dimensions on its 3.5-inch screen. The result is a picture comparable to 3-D with glasses.

The 3DS is similar to the current DS console, except that the top 3.5-inch screen will display 3-D images while the bottom, slightly larger display is a touch screen. Equipped with three cameras (two on the outside casing), the DS lets players take 3-D pictures and share them with other 3DS owners via a Wi-Fi internet connection. A slider lets viewers adjust the extent of the 3-D effect, including the ability to turn off the 3-D feature entirely.