A Shocking Revelation

Are you standing up?  You might want to sit down.  Are you sitting down?  You might want to stand up.  Do a few stretches, maybe a jumping jack.  (A few calisthenics never hurt anyone.)  Ok, sit back down: I'm about to drop a big reveal on you ---

I got a 3DS for Christmas.  You may recall Debbie's take on the 3DS being a money suck, and my opinion that, although Nintendo is my soul mate, I wasn't behind the 3D thing.  At all.  And that leads us to the next big reveal ---

The 3DS hasn't sold me on it one bit.

It's pretty, but there's not much behind the looks.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not hating.  I am glad to be a 3DS owner.  In fact, there are a lot of things that I really like (I'll get to those in a moment) - but the fact of the matter is the "draw" is supposed to be the 3D aspect, and it kind of sucks.  If it is on you have to be holding the DS at the perfect angle to see it, blah blah, all the things you have already heard.  It's a total pain.  And if anyone else is playing and the 3D is on and you try to peek over their shoulder and see what's up, prepare yourself for some vertigo, my friend.

Of course, stacked on to those issues is the fact that physiologically I can't see 3D.  When I first got it, charged it up, and turned it on I tested out the 3D capabilities.  I couldn't tell a difference.  My hubby and brother-in-law could see it though, so if you are not dimensionally-challenged it'll be a better experience for you.  That said, my 3D dial is firmly in the "off" position.  I went into parental controls and blocked it, but then every time you want to load a game you have to enter the pin number and that is a total pain, so whatever.  I think my kids only turn it on by accident every now and then.

On other bummer before I get on to the things I like: I didn't get any games with the system, so I've depended on the downloadables and, finally, got Nintendogs & Cats (full review to come later).  I wanted a game to really see the 3D effects but, as I stated, it doesn't change much for me.  I suppose there are a few more shadows?  Idk.  I have been scouring stores to get Super Mario 3D Land but it's sold out everywhere.  If you have a copy, give it to me.

Face Raiders - shooting your friends is fun!

Ok - things I like:  The browser is convenient, especially if you're familiar with the Wii.  The one thing I don't like is the loss of the little slider so you actively have to scroll through each page to go through the icons.  Whatever.  And I love the games it came with.  The AR Cards are neat to play around with and having a game or your favorite characters come to life in your living space is so fun.  Face Raiders is also enjoyable, and comes to life in the space around you, although it can be a little dizzying to play.  But can I just say that I lost the system to my children the minute they found out it had Netflix capabilities?  So cool.  I think my littlest is under the impression I bought it so that she could watch Tangled over and over.

I originally planned to talk more about Nintendogs in this blog, but like I said, the full review will just have to come later.  My thoughts on the 3DS have overtaken me.  I like the system, am glad to have upgraded, and can't wait to get my hands on upcoming titles like Paper Mario and Luigi's Mansion 2.  Hell, I can't wait to get my hands on current titles.  Super Mario 3D Land you will be mine.

This Needs Achievements

Ok, I was just playing Hexic (yes, you read that right, Hexic.  A game that, according to my timeline on the dashboard, I hadn't played since approximately 2008)... And I had a great thought.  Netflix needs achievements.

Now you might say: "How did you think of such an awesome idea?!"  Well...clearly my greatest ideas come to me when I am zoning out playing a puzzle game instead of sleeping.  Duh.  What can I say?  Those little colored hexagons hypnotize me.

So the second thing you might say to me is: "Isn't achievements for Netflix taking it a little too far?"  And for that I'd say, No.  The possibilities are endless, and hilarious!

Achievement unlocked!  10 gamerscore: You have watched 30 Tom Hanks/Tom Cruise/Bruce Willis movies!

Achievement unlocked!  5 gamerscore: You have watched 24 hours worth of 1980's television sitcoms

Secret Achievement unlocked!  50 gamerscore: You have watched (insert your favorite cult classic) every day for 30 days!

What achievements would you unlock on Netflix?

Also: While searching for thing link for Hexic I just learned that the game is FREE.  So get on Xbox and download it.  You can even use that link I posted earlier, heck, I'll even post it again here, and go to Xboxlive.com and put it in your queue.  If you like Tetris, you'll like Hexic.  It's super fun.