Nintendo developed into a video game company, becoming one of the most influential in the industry, and Japan’s third most valuable listed company, with a market value of over US$85 billion. Also, Nintendo of America is the majority owner of the Seattle Mariners Major League Baseball team. Nintendo may be AWOL on the TGS show floor (as usual), but that’s not stopping Capcom from strutting the big-N’s hardware in its stead — we dropped by its booth for a gameplay-free handling of the 3DS extended slide pad add-on. The control-extending cradle is every bit as bulky as it looks, killing any hope we had of cramming the rig into our pocket. The trade-off? It’s much more comfortable to hold than the naked 3DS, giving our meaty hands a smooth, contoured surface to grip. The new right-hand circle pad feels just as solid as the handheld’s dedicated pad, and didn’t significantly obstruct our access to the 3DS’ face buttons. All in all, the cradle is a comfortable, if awkwardly large extension to the 3DS that doesn’t seem to compromise the handheld’s existing input.
