Cave Story 3DS Preview

Red cap? Does he plumb?

The 3DS has had some kick-ass games announced in its pre-birth lifespan, but as much as I want to see Street Fighter IV in 3D on a portable, I always want to go back to my roots. What better way to do that then pop in a new multi-dimensional platformer? Enter in a Japanese gaming heart-throb with a red cap that explores side-scrolling levels and... wait, it’s not Mario? Nope, it’s Cave Story... in 3D!

For the uninitiated, you play as Quote (who looks to me like a pale, skinny kid in Terry Bogard’s baseball cap) in a cave with no memories of your past, and a mystery out in the world put in front of you. As you take control and start to explore, you pick up new weapons, solve environmental puzzles, and hop around in some old-school platform action.

It’s unknown right now just what the classic formula will do with the 3D of Nintendo’s new handheld, but with as little as we know right now about the game, what might happen is pure speculation. The few screenshots have been damn pretty, and should be a welcome sight for Nintendo’s new little juggernaut. At first glance, it actually reminds me of the overhaul that Rocket Knight experienced a while back.

At this point, we don’t know a whole lot about how CS3D players (other than that it’s still a side-scroller, but will it be that way throughout?), as nothing was playable at the event NIS was putting on, but from the initial shots and level scans it should be damn pretty. That’s what happens when you go from a single programmer/artist/musician/everything man to a full team ready to take the reigns. If it truly plays like its predecessors, it should be pretty simplistic but deep enough in play to make two buttons feel like all you need.

There is no release date quite yet, but this should be one to watch for the retro crowd. It has some potential to be a rockin' throwback… you know, if you're into that sort of thing.