When I was at PAX East last month, the amount of content
that one could write about was anything but bare. I could write about my
experiences with new games like Steel Battalion, Heroes of Ruin or Borderlands
2; but that would just be repeating the same things you could read anywhere
else. Another option could be discussing the panels I attended, like Penny
Arcade Report’s Ben Kuchera running an excellent long-form journalism panel,
but I would rather write an example
of what I learned. There's no better example of my experience of PAX East than the reason I barely remember it, The StreetPass Mii Plaza.
What is the StreetPass Mii Plaza?
The StreetPass Mii Plaza is built-in to the Nintendo 3DS and it
exists for two reasons: to show every owner what StreetPass is and to primarily
go back to it. StreetPass is a feature when two 3DS’s enter each other’s
wireless range and swap data for certain, compatible games. Some games award players
with in-game items such as ammo for Resident Evil Revelations, while some allow
replayability ala Mario Kart 7’s swapping of ghost data. The idea to make it a
console-wide feature was due to Nintendo falling in love with Square-Enix’s
successful implementation of a similar, more primitive feature within their big
DS RPG’s like Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies and The World Ends
With You.
The second point of the StreetPass Plaza is the reason you
open it - Puzzle Swap and Find Mii. The first, Puzzle Swap, simply has you
completing puzzles by grabbing pieces acquired by other Miis. These puzzles
unlock 3D pictures of various Nintendo franchises like Mario, Zelda and Pikmin.
Find Mii is more of an endeavor, using those Miis to rescue you in a
surprisingly engrossing and complex RPG that could last years. This free RPG
takes lengthy factors into every battle your friends get into, such as the
Mii’s shirt color, the number of times you passed that Mii and whether you can
team up with other Miis that you acquired at the same time.
That’s the addicting part of StreetPass, every Mii you gain
in your plaza means further completion of those games. Miis can only fight one
time in Find Mii until the next time you pass them while puzzle pieces are only
obtained one at a time. For some players, these ventures will never end while
some will blow through most of it in a single weekend at a convention. Players
can cheat using Play Coins, currency acquired by walking around with your 3DS,
but it still proves a purpose. Furthermore, Nintendo has updated these games
via firmware updates to add more content so it doesn’t end until the 3DS’
lifespan ends.
That brings us to PAX East. The reason I was always taking StreetPass breaks every 15 or so minutes instead of allowing them to accumulate is because the system only saves ten
Miis at a time. In a convention of over 50,000 people who love video games, a
few of them were bound to carry their 3DS hoping for similar results. My
constant StreetPass obsession is not anything new since PAX is the fourth
convention I attended since the 3DS’ launch. While I indoctrinated 600 unique
Miis in 900 passes within the system’s rookie year, PAX East alone gained
another 700 Miis and 800 passes.
Why would Nintendo include software like the StreetPass
Plaza?
Nintendo has stated many times that they don’t directly
compete with Microsoft, Sony or Apple. While those companies are no-doubt
adversaries, Nintendo’s main competition is everything
that takes up your free time. Web browsing on your PC, watching TV, talking on
the phone, shopping or social networking: these are the true, wide-spread
threats to traditional gaming and these are the reasons of some of Nintendo’s
features and designs. It's why the Wii U has the option to continue playing
by streaming the display to the controller and that’s why the StreetPass Mii
Plaza exists for 3DS. What better way to get people to keep their handhelds on them than to reward them with StreetPassed Miis or Play Coins to spend? Seems to work since I always keep my 3DS on hand in order
to further myself within the plaza, Resident Evil
or Dead or Alive: Dimensions.
Bravo Nintendo, you made me use my 3DS all weekend while I
was surrounded by the spectacle of PAX East. I’ll chalk that up to good design
on Nintendo’s part versus my lack of self-control.
