Nintendo Responds to 3DS “Black Screen of Death,” Headache Complaints

Posted 03/28/2011 at 3:40pm | by Nathan Grayson

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Nintendo's eye-popping portable powerhouse may be the talk of the town, but not all of said talk has been positive. Foremost, early adopters have reported trouble with the novely named Black Screen of Death, which kicks users to an ominous, sadly 2D error message that prompts an immediate reset. For some, however, problems have persisted to the point of angry marches back to the retailer, receipt in hand. Before you toss a brick through Nintendo's window over your bricked portable, however, let's hear the console-maker's side of the story.  

"If anyone is experiencing any problems with their Nintendo 3DS console, we recommend that in the first instance they download and install the latest system update, now available online," Nintendo said in a statement to Eurogamer. "If the problems still persist we recommend they contact their local Nintendo Customer Service centre to investigate the problem further."

So then, we assume your 3DS is now in perfect working order forever, and that's the end of tha-- a headache? Well, we fix computers – not people. But you know what? We'll make an exception just this once. For you. Because we care. 

“We have shown Nintendo 3DS at multiple events around the world to literally hundreds of thousands of people and have received very few negative comments,” said Nintendo UK PR boss Rob Saunders. “As with anything that requires focus, from reading to staring at a computer screen, taking frequent breaks is always recommended. When viewing any kind of 3D images (TV, movies etc.), some people might experience minor discomfort.” 

“The effects are short term and have no lasting effect, in fact most players can continue after taking a short break. The Nintendo 3D was designed with a 3D depth slider that lets users adjust the 3D effect to a level that suits them for optimum enjoyment.”

So, that's Nintendo's stance. Granted, we doubt we'd hear the creator of something called the 3DS saying, “Oh, that 3D stuff? Yeah, that'll ruin ya.” Our take? Ignore your gadget lust for a month or two and see how things shake out. After all, early adopters tend to get the short end of the stick, and we make a point to steer clear of things that prominently feature the words “headaches” and “death.”