by Louie Villalobos The Arizona Republic February 4, 2010 12:00 AM
If you play video games, it might not be enough to just shoot the bad guys or save the world. You might want to do it in 3-D.
And though people have been able to play video games in 3-D for a couple of years, gaming developers and hardware producers say the technology and consumer interest have reached a point where it could be in more homes this year.
NVIDIA, a leader in computer-graphic cards, was one of several companies pushing 3-D gaming at the International Consumer Electronics Show that recently wrapped in Las Vegas.
The graphics-hardware developer, based in California, showcased its 3-D Vision products during the show. Company officials touted the ability to provide gamers the same quality from 3-D gaming that they get watching a 3-D movie in theaters.
It's not, they said, the 3-D experience made popular by red and blue glasses.
"Consumers think it's awful because they're using outdated paper technology," said Bryan Del Rizzo, a spokesman for NVIDIA. "That's not what consumers want. They want something that looks like 'Avatar' 3-D in the movie theater."
It's a sentiment that two game developers echoed after the show. Both partnered with NVIDIA to feature 3-D technology in their games. Both did so on the PC.
For a game about flying, sights like this are the rarity.
Dark Void is a new intellectual property that was published in January by Capcom, a major publisher of video games across all platforms. The game is set on the brink of World War II and focuses on a commercial pilot who crash-lands in the Bermuda Triangle. What ensues is a game that creates a science-fiction shooter with a hero who uses alien weaponry and a jetpack.
It was demonstrated at CES in 3-D, running on NVIDIA's technology. Morgan Gray, senior producer on the game, said he hopes rendering his game in 3-D will help bring the gamer closer to the game world.
"It does provide a layer of depth to the game world," he said. "Getting that depth of the environment and sense of scale is a huge addition."
Not everybody is convinced, however. Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo are the industry leaders when it comes to console games. Only Sony, maker of PlayStation 3, has made any significant announcement when it comes to 3-D gaming.
Sony plans to release a firmware upgrade for the console as part of its expected lineup of 3-D televisions and content. Sony also showed a couple of games in 3-D during CES.
Microsoft, in a comment after the show, said it is not focusing on the technology. Nintendo is remaining focused on the motion-control experience of the Wii. Del Rizzo said the PC market is just now starting to catch mainstream momentum because of the evolving display technology of monitors and televisions. NVIDIA offers a range of 3-D-gaming products for the PC.
People with 3-D-compatible computers, including the graphics cards, can simply purchase 3-D glasses. Others can get the entire setup, including a computer.
Gray said game developers have realized that proactively coding their products for 3-D can add to the experience. His game was released last month.
Another game that is being optimized for 3-D technology is Battlefield Bad Company 2, a military shooting game that features both a campaign and online-player mode. That game releases on March 2 in North America and March 4 in Europe.
Patrick Bach, senior producer for the game, said putting the technology to the PC version of his game adds a sense of place when the player is in the middle of the action. The challenge, he said, is to get gamers to realize the benefits of how the game looks and feels.
Bach's game is being published by Electronic Arts, which also puts out the John Madden and Tiger Woods games franchises.
"It's like explaining color to a blind person," Bach said. "You need to see it to believe it."
But just how many people will see it in the near future is up to how well the companies using the technology can market it.
NVIDIA's products, matched with the specially optimized video games, will start to push the technology. But all three people interviewed said it's still a predominantly PC-based experience. Del Rizzo said his company's technology renders just about any game in 3-D out of the box. There are plans to release a new 3-D product later this year. For now, people with a quality monitor and computer can get a 3-D-vision kit for $199. Or get the monitor and glasses kit for $598.
Both Gray's and Bach's games will be available for PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. But the 3-D experience will only be on the computer. They each said the move to the console is just now starting to gain traction. It could take years to fully mature, they said.
"It takes several years before a new technology becomes a mass-market thing, but it will come to the consoles as well," Bach said.
