Doom 4 dev: 3D needs more time

Legendary first-person shooter developer id Software says gamers will have to wait before 3D gaming will have any serious impact on the industry.

The Doom 4 and Rage developer said the price of 3D tellys will have to come down before it makes sense for videogame companies to invest in the tech.

"Maybe we're getting to the point where the people who have been pushing 3D, or are pushing 3D now, have figured out a way to make it cool and not so nerdy that nobody wants to do it," id Software boss Todd Hollenshead told Eurogamer.

"My most recent, oh, okay, this is really cool experience with 3D was with the movie Avatar, which everybody has seen. Even then, I was a little annoyed that I had to wear these glasses for two hours in a movie. My nose hurt by the end of it.

"I know the stuff in your living room is different. You can get higher quality glasses that fit. But you still gotta sit in your living room wearing these glasses. And then if you're playing games and move your head then it can get out of phase, which is a major issue.

"And, also, the TVs are f***ing expensive. Is there enough content to justify?"

PlayStation 3 manufacturer Sony is pushing 3D gaming more than most, and has already updated its console so it can output games in 3D.

While Sony and a number of other high profile developers including Crysis 2 creator Crytek are enthusiastic about 3D gaming's relevance now, others are less convinced.

Last week EA Sports president Peter Moore told Eurogamer 3D gaming wasn't right for FIFA.

"It's just cool," he said. "Is cool good enough in our world where this is not an inconsiderable expense, and in a world where you expect us to deliver FIFA every single year? Do I have to hire more people to do 3D, and then can I sell more copies of the game?"

Hollenshead echoed Moore's comments.

"At the very uber end of the videophiles, those guys are going to adopt that," he said. "But that's not going to be wide enough adoption to create substantial change within the gaming market.

"It has to be more pervasive and more widely adopted before it makes sense for videogame development companies to invest.

"You may have one or two that are like, oh, we're going to fly the banner of this and we're going to make our name on this one thing. But to have really meaningful differences is going to require some more time. The price is going to have to come down and you're going to have to have more widespread adoption."

id has two first-person shooters in development: Rage, due out next year, and Doom 4, which is without a release date.

The Bethesda-owned studio is yet to confirm 3D support for either title.