We’ve said previously that Super Mario 3D Land is a platforming revolution and a system seller for the 3DS. I wanted to put this to the test with a real family.
So this week I took Family Gamer TV to the Pestridges and joined Vanessa’s first blush with the 3DS and Super Mario 3D Land. Although I wasn’t sure how she’d take to it, I think moms are often the toughest audience, I thought it had a good shot at winning her over.
I was interested to see that she was immediately drawn to the game. Whereas the DS had been left to the kids to play and Vanessa really wasn’t that interested, the 3DS seems to be something they all want to get their hands on. But it wasn’t only the 3D aspect that surprised her, being able to look around the work with the binoculars was just as unexpected.
As she played and we chatted it became apparent that she thought the 3DS was just a 3D version of the DS. “Why are the graphics so different, is that just the 3D?” she asked.
I explained the differences between the 3DS and the DS and started to realize how confusing this is for new gamers, or those of us who don’t pay very close attention to these things. The DS, DSlite, DSi, DSiXL and 3DS all have different features and price points.
Once she got the basic benefits of the 3DS (and that they could play their old DS games on it) Vanessa was sold, although she thought it would take a while for her to get used to controlling Mario with the little Circle pad.
While she played Super Mario 3D Land on the 3DS, her daughter (6) tried out Kirby Mass Attack on their old DS. Here, the stylus controlled platform action seemed to suite the younger player well. I’ve found the same with my kids — stylus only platform games like Pac n Roll or even Zelda are easier for them to pickup than those that use the D-pad and lots of buttons.
We’ll check back with Vanessa and the Pestridge family to see how they get on with the 3DS, but so far it’s a thumbs up from Mom.
