10th April 2011, 5:24 PM
You can't see the back of 3D objects in the real world either without a mirror.
Yes it's an optical illusion, but it's based on how we see in 3D to begin with. The entire way we see in 3D is an optical illusion. It combines two 2D images together to artificially create a 3D image. All our 3D seeing is an optical illusion. So what? If it appears identical to viewing real 3D objects (which it does), then you'll be able to use that information to judge distances. It should work so well that the "optical illusions" in rooms like the "big small" portrait room in SM64 probably won't work on the 3DS.
Your argument is like arguing that since motion on display screens is an optical illusion (remember, all screens simply show still frames in rapid succession to give the illusion of movement) then you can't judge where something is going to be based on where it was before in games where you need to predict the patterns of bosses or bullet bills or whatever. That's clearly silly. Further, colors other than red green and blue are optical illusions, so arguing that any color puzzles in a game that don't use those specific 3 colors won't work. Of course that's ridiculous. So long as the 3D on the 3DS uses the exact same mechanism our eyes use to see any kind of 3D (it does) then it works just as well.
Truth time, there is one important distinction. The "difference" between the two images your eyes see is determined by how far apart your eyes are from each other. This is simulated in any 3D imaging system, but unless you're very lucky, the positioning of the two images in 3D movie or game isn't going to be the same distance apart as your actual eyes are, and this is going to force your brain to adapt to that new distance and "re-learn" how to gauge distances. Typically, I did this pretty quickly on the Virtual Boy. It is something to be aware of though. I conjectured that the 3D camera could be made to work in tandem with games by determining the exact positional relation between your eyes in a photo, making a profile based on it, and all 3D games could be designed to use that profile to determine the placement of the in-game "cameras" to match it. I'm not sure if Nintendo is going to attempt that, but my hypothesis is if they did that, the 3D would require no time to adapt to.
Yes hitting a block by moving under it's direct spot shadow is easy. Now try something that isn't a straw man, like my ACTUAL example. I'm not talking about the easy stuff, I'm talking about the hard stuff, like gauging the distance between two platforms when you are jumping forward. In cases where the cues aren't immediately obvious, this can be tricky. It can also sometimes be tricky to jump on enemies moving around under you unless you are very familiar with their size in relation to your character, or there's a big spot shadow. Lots of games going for realism these days are trying to eliminate the "directly under your character" spot shadow. That's proving a little difficult since it gives little frame of reference in jumping.
Yes it's an optical illusion, but it's based on how we see in 3D to begin with. The entire way we see in 3D is an optical illusion. It combines two 2D images together to artificially create a 3D image. All our 3D seeing is an optical illusion. So what? If it appears identical to viewing real 3D objects (which it does), then you'll be able to use that information to judge distances. It should work so well that the "optical illusions" in rooms like the "big small" portrait room in SM64 probably won't work on the 3DS.
Your argument is like arguing that since motion on display screens is an optical illusion (remember, all screens simply show still frames in rapid succession to give the illusion of movement) then you can't judge where something is going to be based on where it was before in games where you need to predict the patterns of bosses or bullet bills or whatever. That's clearly silly. Further, colors other than red green and blue are optical illusions, so arguing that any color puzzles in a game that don't use those specific 3 colors won't work. Of course that's ridiculous. So long as the 3D on the 3DS uses the exact same mechanism our eyes use to see any kind of 3D (it does) then it works just as well.
Truth time, there is one important distinction. The "difference" between the two images your eyes see is determined by how far apart your eyes are from each other. This is simulated in any 3D imaging system, but unless you're very lucky, the positioning of the two images in 3D movie or game isn't going to be the same distance apart as your actual eyes are, and this is going to force your brain to adapt to that new distance and "re-learn" how to gauge distances. Typically, I did this pretty quickly on the Virtual Boy. It is something to be aware of though. I conjectured that the 3D camera could be made to work in tandem with games by determining the exact positional relation between your eyes in a photo, making a profile based on it, and all 3D games could be designed to use that profile to determine the placement of the in-game "cameras" to match it. I'm not sure if Nintendo is going to attempt that, but my hypothesis is if they did that, the 3D would require no time to adapt to.
Yes hitting a block by moving under it's direct spot shadow is easy. Now try something that isn't a straw man, like my ACTUAL example. I'm not talking about the easy stuff, I'm talking about the hard stuff, like gauging the distance between two platforms when you are jumping forward. In cases where the cues aren't immediately obvious, this can be tricky. It can also sometimes be tricky to jump on enemies moving around under you unless you are very familiar with their size in relation to your character, or there's a big spot shadow. Lots of games going for realism these days are trying to eliminate the "directly under your character" spot shadow. That's proving a little difficult since it gives little frame of reference in jumping.
"On two occasions, I have been asked [by members of Parliament], 'Pray, Mr. Babbage, if you put into the machine wrong figures, will the right answers come out?' I am not able to rightly apprehend the kind of confusion of ideas that could provoke such a question." ~ Charles Babbage (1791-1871)