Hands On Hidden 3D Pictures: There It Is

You saw the amazing demo video of Hidden 3D Pictures: There It Is, but how does it play?

Pretty good, actually! I downloaded Hidden 3D Pictures from the DSiWare shop and started my letter hunt. Before I began I had to calibrate the game the DSi’s camera. A setup screen has players capture their face with as little background “noise” as possible. You know you did it right if splotches of red pixels only cover your face. Bright backgrounds and sunlight affect how well the face tracking software works.

In the first level a rabbit called Rittamiru guides you through the rules. Your goal is to find all of the hidden letters to clear a stage. Searching for hidden pictures and coins are optional. Coins are used to purchase hints that detail where letters and pictures are located. These clues are, of course, in Japanese.

To find letters, you need to turn your head or tilt the Nintendo DSi to alter your viewpoint. These are often disguised with figure-ground techniques and sometimes with moving parts in the background. I’m going to explain this in more detail, but it will spoil a few solutions. You might want to stop reading now if you’re worried about that kind of thing.

OK, ready? Take a look at the picture below. See if you can spot the “D”.

Check the top left… see the arc? Tilt the DSi to the right and the wooden beam plus the arc make a “D”. Look for the next letter the “O”.

The “O” is trickier. You can’t see it now because the castle guards aren’t in position. When they march forward the U-like and semi-circle pikes form an “O” for a few seconds. You have to quickly scroll over with the d-pad when the parts are in place to find the “O”. Now for the actual donkey.

This one is easier, it’s in the background. Do you notice any coins in the picture?

Maybe not because they’re like little dots in the screenshot, but there are a few in plain sight. Check the rooftop in the top right hand corner.

You can’t really “see” the “K” at this angle, but I want to point it out so you get a feel for the game. Its made from the flag, white ledges on the red building, and pole. Tilt the DSi up and all of the pieces come together. A letter is always made out of a solid color and looks as it appears in the menu.

That’s a little bit on Hidden 3D Pictures. The 500 DSiWare point ($5) game came out yesterday in Japan, but has not been announced for North America. Since the game uses English letters it shouldn’t be hard to localize.