Nintendo Considering Parental Locks for 3DS

The Nintendo 3DS is possibly the next big thing in gaming. The handheld, which is the successor to the 130 million selling Nintendo DS line of handhelds, features the ability to display 3D graphics without 3D gaming, apart from some other features, such as the inclusion of an analog slider, accelerometer and gyroscope, 3D cameras, significantly beefed up processors that put the system squarely into Wii territory in terms of visuals, and improved online infrastructure.

However, a handheld focussed on 3D gaming, which the 3DS is, can be taxing on the eyes. With experts pronouncing that there is no way of determining just how harmful such a system might be to children’s eyes, Nintendo seems to be going out of the way to assure anxious parents that the 3DS will be a perfectly safe system.

More specifically, Nintendo head Iwata has recently stated in a shareholders meeting that Nintendo are seriously considering putting in several measures to ensure that kids are not exposed to prolonged periods of 3D gaming.

“Nintendo once seriously considered adopting a function which would force games to stop mandatorily, to prevent children from playing the game, at the time that parents had previously decided. However, we also considered how the players would feel if the game suddenly stopped during an exciting part. We finally determined to integrate a function to record the playing time instead of making the game shut down.

“Unfortunately, Nintendo DS does not have such function because it was developed two years earlier than Wii, but in the case of Nintendo 3DS, we are contemplating incorporating some kind of system. Whether it will be similar to the one for Wii or we may add something more has not been decided, and I have nothing concrete that I can share with you today. However, Nintendo is seriously considering such measures – probably the most earnestly in this industry.”

Not very specific, but it seems that after the debacle of the headaces inducing Virtual Boy, Nintendo are seriously looking at a safe and healthy for the eyes experience.

The Nintendo 3DS is due to launch before March 31, 2011. Exact specifics, including launch price and date, will be given in September.