As with all electronic devices, the Nintendo 3DS went through a prototyping stage. Thing is, the unused prototype unit you see here looks way better than the final, retail design.
Shown off in a new āIwata Asksā Q&A session on Nintendoās Japanese website, the image on the right is of a 3DS prototype that appears starkly modern and minimal, taking design cues from Apple and Nintendoās own Wii rather than the āmake it look like a DSā theme the final design has going for it.
Itās a real shame Nintendo didnāt go with this. Sure itās pointy, and maybe it didnāt even work that well (the developers point out its clean design and small form comes partly from the fact the cameras hadnāt been added yet), but a problem the 3DS is going to have to overcome is that its logo and design make it look more like a DS 1.5 than a true successor to Nintendoās dual-screen handheld.
Itās not, of course, but looks are important in big business, and that white design looked great.
It was one of two prototypes shown off, the other being this curious ācustomisableā version of the 3DS, which would let users swap the position of the d-pad and thumbstick, depending on the kind of game they were playing and which felt more comfortable.
[Nintendo]
