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The Nintendo DS family of game devices will soon have a successor, and its name is the 3DS.

According to Nintendo's Tuesday announcement, the 3DS will boast 3D gaming capability without requiring users to wear "any special glasses" to play titles.

The company said that the 3DS will "succeed [the] 'Nintendo DS series.'" Perhaps most importantly, the 3DS will boast backward compatibility, allowing users to play games originally built for the Nintendo DS or DSi.

Nintendo was stingy with details. It didn't indicate how the 3D functionality would work with the 3DS. It also failed to mention how much the console would cost or what games would ship with it. Nintendo plans to offer full details on the 3DS at the E3 show in June. The company declined to comment further.

The Nintendo DS has been an extremely successful product for the Japanese company, selling 125 million units worldwide through December 2009. This weekend, Nintendo aims to keep that momentum going with the release of the Nintendo DSi XL, which boasts notably larger screens.

Nintendo's decision to offer a 3D gaming device will be controversial. Although the industry is seemingly doubling down on 3D technology, some are skeptical of its true appeal. And whether gamers will want to consistently view 3D games is decidedly up for debate.

Then again, Nintendo has spent the last few years taking routes that were initially scoffed at. When it first announced the Wii game console, critics were doubtful about its broader market appeal. Nearly four years later, the Wii is the world's most popular video game console.

Nintendo said that it plans to launch the 3DS during its next fiscal year, which runs April 1, 2010, through March 31, 2011.

Source: Nintendo Investor Relations Information

This will be sweet. Will the 5th gen be in 3D...? surprised

I don't think the move will be as drastic as in the past. It is still a DS, just something more advance than the DSi. It won't be just some wave that causes games to suddenly switch to the new consul. Also, each Gen is laster longer than the last. With updates possible, there is no need for a new consul to constently come out.

Regardless, the DS Lite isn't going anywhere any time soon. Though, I must ask: What took you so long in getting on in the first place?

If it doesn't have any good 3D games when it comes out then I won't buy it immediately.

I believe it was annouced that Pokemon Gen 5 will actually be released as a DS title, which in on itself is a change of pace from the Pokemon franchise. Whatnot of there only being a new generation at the release of a new system (Gameboy = R/B/Y, GBA = R/S/E, DS = D/P/Pl, etc).

I guess my constant talking to myself of not to include HG/SS appears to have forced me to exclude the best generation of them all, G/S/C. Many apologies to all who had to view that.

I cant say about the internet, but I'm pretty sure it will not have a GBA slot.