14 DAY TRIAL // An email from the Japanse branch of Nintendo has suggested that the 3DS handheld will be region locked, meaning that those who are planning to import hardware from one territory to another will not be able to get access to content that is released in their own area.
The information comes from an email from the customer support department of Nintendo of Japan.
The email, which was translated by user farnham on the popular forum NeoGAF, says, “The Region Codes are installed in each games and the 3DS itself. If the codes don't match, you can't play.”
Nintendo has not offered clear information on the issue until now but its past also points to region locking, with both the Nintendo DSi and the XL version being segregated based on region, while the older original DS and Lite version were free to move from one country to another.
Region locking will affect those fans of handheld gaming that were interested in getting a Nintendo 3DS from Japan when it is launched on February 26.
If they do so then they will have to get Japanese versions for all the content they are aiming to play on their new device, which can be costly and, in the case of some games, impossible.
Nintendo has probably chosen to implement region locking in the 3DS handheld because it plans to continue its practice of releasing some titles exclusively or early in Japan, for which it has long been criticized by gamers.
Nintendo also seems interested in region locking some color versions of its new device, with red apparently not available in Australia and black not present in New Zeeland.
More options for console color could appear closer to launch date.
The Nintendo 3DS will be a big change in the world of mobile gaming, allowing players access to three dimensional experiences that at the moment are only available on the PC or on home consoles, with the use of specialized glasses.