I don't think my heart could handle OoT and Skyward Sword coming out on the same day. I would literally die trying to decide what to play first. Yes, literally.
I kind of wish Nintendo would have taken advantage of the fact their games are on flash cartridges and allowed some sort of wifi connection to "patch" games with new systems. Official support of the analog stick in N64 ports is one of those things that seems easily patched. But then again re-releasing a hit game the 9th time and collecting money on it does seem to be the financially sound option.
specialmias on
0
Warlock82Never pet a burning dogRegistered Userregular
I kind of wish Nintendo would have taken advantage of the fact their games are on flash cartridges and allowed some sort of wifi connection to "patch" games with new systems. Official support of the analog stick in N64 ports is one of those things that seems easily patched. But then again re-releasing a hit game the 9th time and collecting money on it does seem to be the financially sound option.
Eh, that's a really, really bad idea. Anything that has potential to "brick" the software is really risky. Besides, allowing them to be writable is just opening the door for hackers to come in and mess with their stuff.
I don't think my heart could handle OoT and Skyward Sword coming out on the same day. I would literally die trying to decide what to play first. Yes, literally.
Really? It seems like a pretty easy decision to me. New game first, remake can wait.
Nintendo issued a patch for the GBA Pokemans via the Pokemon Stadium games for GameCube.
Any game could have a way of patching even if they just had a place to save data on the cart. Game itself can still be on ROM. You just have to be a competent developer.
Eh, that's a really, really bad idea. Anything that has potential to "brick" the software is really risky. Besides, allowing them to be writable is just opening the door for hackers to come in and mess with their stuff.
If that were a major concern, they could do it the same way they do save files. Right now if you load a corrupted save, at the worst the game would stutter and freeze, but powering off and on would at least get the game working again. There could be a main menu option for "load patched version," and if something went wrong you'd just restart it.
GiantBomb were making the point that Nintendo hasn't brought their A-Game to handheld releases on launch since the Game Boy. Not sure as to the truth of that statement, but it's interesting.
Also that Reggie, what a guy
Game Boy Color Nintendo Launch Titles:
Game & Watch Gallery 2
Pocket Bomberman
Just for reference.
But Link's Awakening DX came out within days of the GBC's release.
I thought it was cool to watch and see some of the stuff we can look forward to (or not) on the VC. I didn't have a Gameboy until really late in its lifespan, and I'd never seen or heard of a lot of these games. I learned a few things:
1. there's quite a bit to look forward to!
2. there's quite a bit to avoid
3. there are some really competent-looking NES ports on there
4. we put up with a lot of crap in the old days, like severe slowdown
5. Megaman looks pretty dang awesome
6. the GB has at least four freakin' Batman games, all totally different
I thought it was cool to watch and see some of the stuff we can look forward to (or not) on the VC. I didn't have a Gameboy until really late in its lifespan, and I'd never seen or heard of a lot of these games. I learned a few things:
1. there's quite a bit to look forward to!
2. there's quite a bit to avoid
3. there are some really competent-looking NES ports on there
4. we put up with a lot of crap in the old days, like severe slowdown
5. Megaman looks pretty dang awesome
6. the GB has at least four freakin' Batman games, all totally different
I'll be perfectly honest here - Game Boy really didn't have that many good games. It had a LOT of games, and it had some REALLY good ones, but the ratio of good to crap leans heavily on the crap side.
There are a handful of gems though. Nintendo titles aside, Final Fantasy Adventure is really fantastic. It's basically "Secret of Mana 1" (with the actual SoM being Seiken Densetsu 2) and plays a bit like a Zelda game with more RPG elements. Story is very basic but it's a lot of fun. Sword of Mana on the GBA was a remake of this game, but did a really shitty job of it.
I also highly, highly recommend Donkey Kong (1994), which is the precursor to the Mario vs. Donkey Kong games (but much better than them IMO). I really, really hope this thing finally emulates the Super Gameboy enhancements as well, because this was more-or-less a GBC title before GBC existed, and yet no classic Gameboy players since (i.e. GBC, GBA, that GC addon) has actually emulated this stuff and treats the game as a standard GB title. Real shame.
The Mega Man GB games are decent for the most part. Essentially 1-4 are watered-down ports of the NES games that are mashed up a bit and with some new elements in there. Just as an example, Mega Man 1 (GB) features four robot masters from MM1, four from MM2, and a new one (Enker, whom you may have seen as DLC in Mega Man 10). They all pretty much continue this trend (i.e. MM2GB is 4 from MM2, 4 from MM3, and a new one - Quint, etc)
Mega Man V (GB) however is really worth a look as it's all original material and pretty excellent all around. Also, it has a robot cat so it is instantly awesome (I miss Tango)
What pisses me off is that one E3 Nintendo somewhat quietly showed off a GC/GBA link cable game that was basically Donkey Kong '94 with a full-featured level editor. Yeah. I guess this turned into Mario vs. Donkey Kong, which is sort of a shame. It's probably also the reason all the ones with "minis" in them have level editors (personally I hate the minis though, give me back the god damn original DK mechanics, not Lemmings-rippoffs!)
I wonder what exactly Nintendo is going to change for the 3DS ports. Super Mario 64 DS set kind of a ridiculously high standard, which I don't expect any future games to match.
I don't think my heart could handle OoT and Skyward Sword coming out on the same day. I would literally die trying to decide what to play first. Yes, literally.
Really? It seems like a pretty easy decision to me. New game first, remake can wait.
Yeah, I know, and I would probably go the same way. But then again, OoT is my favorite game ever, and the prospect of playing an improved version is just so right.
Now that I think about it, I think I had a similar dilemma when Metroid Prime and Fusion came out on the same day. 2d Metroid which needs no justification, or a whole new, apparently incredible experience? I'm not sure if I died that day, though.
I don't think my heart could handle OoT and Skyward Sword coming out on the same day. I would literally die trying to decide what to play first. Yes, literally.
Really? It seems like a pretty easy decision to me. New game first, remake can wait.
Yeah, I know, and I would probably go the same way. But then again, OoT is my favorite game ever, and the prospect of playing an improved version is just so right.
Now that I think about it, I think I had a similar dilemma when Metroid Prime and Fusion came out on the same day. 2d Metroid which needs no justification, or a whole new, apparently incredible experience? I'm not sure if I died that day, though.
I think that if both came out on the same day and I purchased them both on said day, I would boot up Skyward Sword on the Wii and play OoT 3DS during the cut scenes and then switch back to Skyward Sword whenever a cut scene wasn't going on. But then I wouldn't get the full Skyward Sword experience . . . argh!
Maybe Skyward Sword by day and OoT 3DS by night when away from my TV. Yeah!
Take a Wii with Skyward Sword constantly running and fuse it into an IV machine, hook me up to that thing, and I could wheel that around with me while I played OoT 3DS on the go or while plugged into a wall.
Take a Wii with Skyward Sword constantly running and fuse it into an IV machine, hook me up to that thing, and I could wheel that around with me while I played OoT 3DS on the go or while plugged into a wall.
That might result in a Zelda overdose though.
Nonsense. You can never have too much Zelda. Only too little.
hi5. Got the game a couple days after the GBC itself though (started with Pokemon Blue).
I am wondering if I should save up for a 3DS or just get a Lite or DSi now.
I'm in a similar boat on trying to decide whether go for a 3DS or just getting a DSLite now. I'm planning on getting a 3DS at launch, but if I can't get my hands on one I'll buy a cheap used DSLite and wait for a revision and price drop on a 3DS.
Still cheaper than buying two generations of 3DSes!
I don't see how the first gen 3DS could be improved in any great way. I'm sure there is a way to make it better but nothing like GBA -> SP or DS -> Lite. Something more along the lines of the PSP revisions or Gameboy -> Gameboy Pocket.
Dritz on
There I was, 3DS: 2621-2671-9899 (Ekera), Wii U: LostCrescendo
hi5. Got the game a couple days after the GBC itself though (started with Pokemon Blue).
I am wondering if I should save up for a 3DS or just get a Lite or DSi now.
I'm in a similar boat on trying to decide whether go for a 3DS or just getting a DSLite now. I'm planning on getting a 3DS at launch, but if I can't get my hands on one I'll buy a cheap used DSLite and wait for a revision and price drop on a 3DS.
Still cheaper than buying two generations of 3DSes!
Buying a DS Lite now is like buying a PS2 now: gives you access to a MASSIVE library of great super-cheap games that could keep you busy for years.
I don't see how the first gen 3DS could be improved in any great way. I'm sure there is a way to make it better but nothing like GBA -> SP or DS -> Lite. Something more along the lines of the PSP revisions or Gameboy -> Gameboy Pocket.
Battery life, onboard storage capacity, and improvements in 3D screen tech come to mind, but yeah I'm not expecting anything major.
Take a Wii with Skyward Sword constantly running and fuse it into an IV machine, hook me up to that thing, and I could wheel that around with me while I played OoT 3DS on the go or while plugged into a wall.
That might result in a Zelda overdose though.
Nonsense. You can never have too much Zelda. Only too little.
Alright, so I read that and thought of an even better scenario, although one that would require some obvious effort. Find a girl that looks like Zelda, tell her that she needs to come back with you as you have an important quest for her, and have her give you head while you play OoT 3DS while plugged up to the Skyward Sword IV machine. And if she gets mad at you for not paying attention to her, you can be all like "well excuuuuuuuse me princess!" and go back to what you were doing.
I guess if you are a girl you could do essentially the same with someone who looks like Link. That would probably be even easier because well, that guy is a sucker! He bought the aliens being abducted by cow thing that one time? I mean, come on!
Sega ditch plans to release movie tie-in on PSP, opt for 3DS instead.
Sega have decided not to release upcoming title Thor on the PlayStation Portable, and are re-directing resources towards making a 3DS version.
The movie is out on April 27th, so Sega are putting out the game a few weeks earlier – April 9th. It’ll be released on Wii, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. A week ago, you could have added the PSP to that list, but development of that version has now been permanently halted.
So what about the 3DS edition? Can we add it to the 30+ titles Nintendo are promising for the 3DS’ launch window?
Sega might be quick at churning out movie tie-ins, but they’re not that quick! There’s no release date yet, and even if they manage to pull off a relatively straightforward Wii port, Thor 3DS will be out a long time after the film has left cinemas.
I don't see how the first gen 3DS could be improved in any great way. I'm sure there is a way to make it better but nothing like GBA -> SP or DS -> Lite. Something more along the lines of the PSP revisions or Gameboy -> Gameboy Pocket.
Battery life, onboard storage capacity, and improvements in 3D screen tech come to mind, but yeah I'm not expecting anything major.
Iwata: The first thing (Nobuo) Nagai-san10, who's in charge at the Uji plant, said to me when he looked over the designs for Nintendo 3DS before mass production began was "This time it's fully packed right from the start."
Sugino: Oh, really? (laughs) But he was right. That's why we don't have any short-term plans for creating a more compact version of Nintendo 3DS like we did with Nintendo DS Lite. (laughs)
Iwata: Yeah. (laughs) When making Nintendo 3DS, we used all our tricks for Nintendo DS Lite—and more—for cutting down on size right from the start.
Also, some more battery life news:
Umezu: We announced the other day that the battery duration for playing Nintendo 3DS games on it is about three to five hours. When I measured it by playing several Nintendo games, with the backlight set to the brightest level and the power save mode turned off, battery duration was about three hours. But if you use the power save mode under the same conditions, it gets about 10-20% longer. And if you set the backlight to the darkest setting, the battery lasts five hours, but the power save mode makes less of a difference then.
Iwata: In other words, the brightness of the backlight has the greatest effect on battery duration.
Umezu: Right. What's more, with the backlight set as high as it will go, battery life changes about 25% according to whether you're playing in 2D or 3D.
Iwata: Yes, 3D is a battle against power use. How about wireless use? Some players may be worried about that.
Umezu: In StreetPass mode, the system isn't always communicating, so there isn't much of a drain on the battery, but games that communicate a lot through local play and online play—with the backlight set to high—have an over 10% effect on the battery.
180 minutes at max brightness + 25% + 10% = 4.05 hours at max brightness in 2D with wireless off
300 minutes at min brightness + 25% + 10% = 6.75 hours at min brightness in 2D with wireless off
Both completely acceptable numbers... I'm really not even sure what the big deal about the minimum battery life is anyways... Longest drives/flights I typically take are < 3 hrs anyways, and I carry one of those batteries that you can charge any USB chargable device off whenever I travel, so for me anyways, it doesn't seem like 3-5 is really a problem.
180 minutes at max brightness + 25% + 10% = 4.05 hours at max brightness in 2D with wireless off
300 minutes at min brightness + 25% + 10% = 6.75 hours at min brightness in 2D with wireless off
Both completely acceptable numbers... I'm really not even sure what the big deal about the minimum battery life is anyways... Longest drives/flights I typically take are < 3 hrs anyways, and I carry one of those batteries that you can charge any USB chargable device off whenever I travel, so for me anyways, it doesn't seem like 3-5 is really a problem.
Am I missing the point?
No, not really. Anything at 4 hours or above is acceptable.
It was only really a big deal in the days of AAs since you had to shell out for a new set every 6 hours.
Sega ditch plans to release movie tie-in on PSP, opt for 3DS instead.
Sega have decided not to release upcoming title Thor on the PlayStation Portable, and are re-directing resources towards making a 3DS version.
The movie is out on April 27th, so Sega are putting out the game a few weeks earlier – April 9th. It’ll be released on Wii, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. A week ago, you could have added the PSP to that list, but development of that version has now been permanently halted.
So what about the 3DS edition? Can we add it to the 30+ titles Nintendo are promising for the 3DS’ launch window?
Sega might be quick at churning out movie tie-ins, but they’re not that quick! There’s no release date yet, and even if they manage to pull off a relatively straightforward Wii port, Thor 3DS will be out a long time after the film has left cinemas.
I'm guessing between the inevitable release of the PSP2 and the 3DS in two months, the original PSP is more or less been Gamecube'd and will pretty much be barren or releases for the rest of its lifespan, huh?
Sega ditch plans to release movie tie-in on PSP, opt for 3DS instead.
Sega have decided not to release upcoming title Thor on the PlayStation Portable, and are re-directing resources towards making a 3DS version.
The movie is out on April 27th, so Sega are putting out the game a few weeks earlier – April 9th. It’ll be released on Wii, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. A week ago, you could have added the PSP to that list, but development of that version has now been permanently halted.
So what about the 3DS edition? Can we add it to the 30+ titles Nintendo are promising for the 3DS’ launch window?
Sega might be quick at churning out movie tie-ins, but they’re not that quick! There’s no release date yet, and even if they manage to pull off a relatively straightforward Wii port, Thor 3DS will be out a long time after the film has left cinemas.
I'm guessing between the inevitable release of the PSP2 and the 3DS in two months, the original PSP is more or less been Gamecube'd and will pretty much be barren or releases for the rest of its lifespan, huh?
Speaking as a PSP owner, it's been barren of releases for most of its lifespan up to this point, so how would you tell the difference ;-)
Seriously, the talent Sony has for taking an on-paper-win and turning it into a desolate wasteland of failure is unparalleled. Even with the occasional worthwhile exclusive, I can probably count on my fingers how many times I've charged my PS3 controller in the year and change I've owned my PS3.
180 minutes at max brightness + 25% + 10% = 4.05 hours at max brightness in 2D with wireless off
300 minutes at min brightness + 25% + 10% = 6.75 hours at min brightness in 2D with wireless off
Both completely acceptable numbers... I'm really not even sure what the big deal about the minimum battery life is anyways... Longest drives/flights I typically take are < 3 hrs anyways, and I carry one of those batteries that you can charge any USB chargable device off whenever I travel, so for me anyways, it doesn't seem like 3-5 is really a problem.
Am I missing the point?
It's only a big deal if you don't already charge your device every single night. I'm used to plugging in my iPhone and PSP constantly, but with my DS, I didn't have to worry about charging it all of the time. Really, the only reason people are grating at the 3DS's battery life (well, other than the cognitive dissonance of people who once berated the PSP for it) is because every other Nintendo handheld has had a better time of it. It's just a change in routine, though having the induction charger/dock will make it pretty painless to do so. I actually just got one of those goofy "charging station" things for Christmas, and now that it's set up it does make my nightly routine of "plugging shit in" a good deal easier.
It's not a deal for you because you're also willing to carry around another device specifically for charging. A lot of people just throw things into their pockets or bags and don't want to carry around other things. If they provide some kind of aftermarket extended battery for the 3DS, I'd be all up ins.
Sega ditch plans to release movie tie-in on PSP, opt for 3DS instead.
Sega have decided not to release upcoming title Thor on the PlayStation Portable, and are re-directing resources towards making a 3DS version.
The movie is out on April 27th, so Sega are putting out the game a few weeks earlier – April 9th. It’ll be released on Wii, Xbox 360 and Playstation 3. A week ago, you could have added the PSP to that list, but development of that version has now been permanently halted.
So what about the 3DS edition? Can we add it to the 30+ titles Nintendo are promising for the 3DS’ launch window?
Sega might be quick at churning out movie tie-ins, but they’re not that quick! There’s no release date yet, and even if they manage to pull off a relatively straightforward Wii port, Thor 3DS will be out a long time after the film has left cinemas.
I'm guessing between the inevitable release of the PSP2 and the 3DS in two months, the original PSP is more or less been Gamecube'd and will pretty much be barren or releases for the rest of its lifespan, huh?
You say that as if the release schedule was non-barren for the majority of the system's life. But yes, now more than ever.
Posts
Either that or some kind of marketing dovetail.
Or maybe it's just not ready yet? It could take a while to hammer it out into the three dees.
Eh, that's a really, really bad idea. Anything that has potential to "brick" the software is really risky. Besides, allowing them to be writable is just opening the door for hackers to come in and mess with their stuff.
Really? It seems like a pretty easy decision to me. New game first, remake can wait.
Any game could have a way of patching even if they just had a place to save data on the cart. Game itself can still be on ROM. You just have to be a competent developer.
If that were a major concern, they could do it the same way they do save files. Right now if you load a corrupted save, at the worst the game would stutter and freeze, but powering off and on would at least get the game working again. There could be a main menu option for "load patched version," and if something went wrong you'd just restart it.
Hypothetically.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdFBaNzI55g&feature=related
I thought it was cool to watch and see some of the stuff we can look forward to (or not) on the VC. I didn't have a Gameboy until really late in its lifespan, and I'd never seen or heard of a lot of these games. I learned a few things:
1. there's quite a bit to look forward to!
2. there's quite a bit to avoid
3. there are some really competent-looking NES ports on there
4. we put up with a lot of crap in the old days, like severe slowdown
5. Megaman looks pretty dang awesome
6. the GB has at least four freakin' Batman games, all totally different
I'll be perfectly honest here - Game Boy really didn't have that many good games. It had a LOT of games, and it had some REALLY good ones, but the ratio of good to crap leans heavily on the crap side.
There are a handful of gems though. Nintendo titles aside, Final Fantasy Adventure is really fantastic. It's basically "Secret of Mana 1" (with the actual SoM being Seiken Densetsu 2) and plays a bit like a Zelda game with more RPG elements. Story is very basic but it's a lot of fun. Sword of Mana on the GBA was a remake of this game, but did a really shitty job of it.
I also highly, highly recommend Donkey Kong (1994), which is the precursor to the Mario vs. Donkey Kong games (but much better than them IMO). I really, really hope this thing finally emulates the Super Gameboy enhancements as well, because this was more-or-less a GBC title before GBC existed, and yet no classic Gameboy players since (i.e. GBC, GBA, that GC addon) has actually emulated this stuff and treats the game as a standard GB title. Real shame.
The Mega Man GB games are decent for the most part. Essentially 1-4 are watered-down ports of the NES games that are mashed up a bit and with some new elements in there. Just as an example, Mega Man 1 (GB) features four robot masters from MM1, four from MM2, and a new one (Enker, whom you may have seen as DLC in Mega Man 10). They all pretty much continue this trend (i.e. MM2GB is 4 from MM2, 4 from MM3, and a new one - Quint, etc)
Mega Man V (GB) however is really worth a look as it's all original material and pretty excellent all around. Also, it has a robot cat so it is instantly awesome (I miss Tango)
Switch: 6200-8149-0919 / Wii U: maximumzero / 3DS: 0860-3352-3335 / eBay Shop
Give us the little palette maker thing too, dammit.
What pisses me off is that one E3 Nintendo somewhat quietly showed off a GC/GBA link cable game that was basically Donkey Kong '94 with a full-featured level editor. Yeah. I guess this turned into Mario vs. Donkey Kong, which is sort of a shame. It's probably also the reason all the ones with "minis" in them have level editors (personally I hate the minis though, give me back the god damn original DK mechanics, not Lemmings-rippoffs!)
Now that I think about it, I think I had a similar dilemma when Metroid Prime and Fusion came out on the same day. 2d Metroid which needs no justification, or a whole new, apparently incredible experience? I'm not sure if I died that day, though.
[EDIT] Meant to post this in the Zelda thread... but I guess this works.
Twitter 3DS: 0860 - 3257 - 2516
The reason is probably that it's still in development. A good one I'd say, although many developers would disagree.
Pokémon HGSS: 1205 1613 4041
I think that if both came out on the same day and I purchased them both on said day, I would boot up Skyward Sword on the Wii and play OoT 3DS during the cut scenes and then switch back to Skyward Sword whenever a cut scene wasn't going on. But then I wouldn't get the full Skyward Sword experience . . . argh!
Maybe Skyward Sword by day and OoT 3DS by night when away from my TV. Yeah!
That might result in a Zelda overdose though.
Nonsense. You can never have too much Zelda. Only too little.
I got this with my GBC.
Was so awesome.
hi5. Got the game a couple days after the GBC itself though (started with Pokemon Blue).
I am wondering if I should save up for a 3DS or just get a Lite or DSi now.
Twitch | Blizzard: Ianator#1479 | 3DS: Ianator - 1779 2336 5317 | FFXIV: Iana Ateliere (NA Sarg)
Backlog Challenge List
Still cheaper than buying two generations of 3DSes!
Buying a DS Lite now is like buying a PS2 now: gives you access to a MASSIVE library of great super-cheap games that could keep you busy for years.
Alright, so I read that and thought of an even better scenario, although one that would require some obvious effort. Find a girl that looks like Zelda, tell her that she needs to come back with you as you have an important quest for her, and have her give you head while you play OoT 3DS while plugged up to the Skyward Sword IV machine. And if she gets mad at you for not paying attention to her, you can be all like "well excuuuuuuuse me princess!" and go back to what you were doing.
I guess if you are a girl you could do essentially the same with someone who looks like Link. That would probably be even easier because well, that guy is a sucker! He bought the aliens being abducted by cow thing that one time? I mean, come on!
Here is this:
Thor PSP Abandoned in Favor of 3DS Version
Sega ditch plans to release movie tie-in on PSP, opt for 3DS instead.
This is a convenient topic of discussion! New Iwata Asks:
Also, some more battery life news:
180 minutes at max brightness + 25% + 10% = 4.05 hours at max brightness in 2D with wireless off
300 minutes at min brightness + 25% + 10% = 6.75 hours at min brightness in 2D with wireless off
Both completely acceptable numbers... I'm really not even sure what the big deal about the minimum battery life is anyways... Longest drives/flights I typically take are < 3 hrs anyways, and I carry one of those batteries that you can charge any USB chargable device off whenever I travel, so for me anyways, it doesn't seem like 3-5 is really a problem.
Am I missing the point?
No, not really. Anything at 4 hours or above is acceptable.
It was only really a big deal in the days of AAs since you had to shell out for a new set every 6 hours.
Switch: 6200-8149-0919 / Wii U: maximumzero / 3DS: 0860-3352-3335 / eBay Shop
I'm guessing between the inevitable release of the PSP2 and the 3DS in two months, the original PSP is more or less been Gamecube'd and will pretty much be barren or releases for the rest of its lifespan, huh?
Switch: 6200-8149-0919 / Wii U: maximumzero / 3DS: 0860-3352-3335 / eBay Shop
Speaking as a PSP owner, it's been barren of releases for most of its lifespan up to this point, so how would you tell the difference ;-)
Seriously, the talent Sony has for taking an on-paper-win and turning it into a desolate wasteland of failure is unparalleled. Even with the occasional worthwhile exclusive, I can probably count on my fingers how many times I've charged my PS3 controller in the year and change I've owned my PS3.
It's only a big deal if you don't already charge your device every single night. I'm used to plugging in my iPhone and PSP constantly, but with my DS, I didn't have to worry about charging it all of the time. Really, the only reason people are grating at the 3DS's battery life (well, other than the cognitive dissonance of people who once berated the PSP for it) is because every other Nintendo handheld has had a better time of it. It's just a change in routine, though having the induction charger/dock will make it pretty painless to do so. I actually just got one of those goofy "charging station" things for Christmas, and now that it's set up it does make my nightly routine of "plugging shit in" a good deal easier.
It's not a deal for you because you're also willing to carry around another device specifically for charging. A lot of people just throw things into their pockets or bags and don't want to carry around other things. If they provide some kind of aftermarket extended battery for the 3DS, I'd be all up ins.
You say that as if the release schedule was non-barren for the majority of the system's life. But yes, now more than ever.