GameCyte

While the big stereoscopic gaming news out of today’s 3D Entertainment Summit was most assuredly the existence of a middleware solution for true S-3D console gaming, day two of the event tomorrow will include something else that may be of interest to GameCyte readers: the preliminary results of advocacy group Meant to be Seen’s U-Decide survey.

But why wait until tomorrow? Thanks to our friends at MTBS3D, GameCyte has the data right now — and you can revel in the results with us.

Do even existing S-3D gamers abhor those pesky glasses? What’s the knee-jerk reaction of 2D gamers like to the notion of seeing through their flatscreen? Can both parties agree that S-3D is the place to be? The preliminary answers to all of these — plus facts, figures and colorful graphs — await you just after the jump.

Though there are a number of potential statistical concerns with the MTBS study, most importantly that of self-selection (i.e. respondants likely chose to take the survey because it involved 3D gaming) the response from a sample of over 500 2D and existing S-3D gamers is overall a resounding yes.

Yes to S-3D gaming: even among 2D gamers, nearly 90% said that S-3D technologies were suitable for games, while 96% of those familiar with the tech offered their support.

Yes to official support for 3D gaming: Only 7% of 2D gamers thought that the technology didn’t deserve attention from game developers, and the vote among existing users was nearly unanimous.

And perhaps surprisingly, yes to 3D glasses as well. Over 80% of those who claimed to not own a modern 3D stereo solution were still willing to wear one while playing games or watching movies, and 70% even considered glasses for S-3D television. Among S-3D gamers, these numbers jump to 97%, 96% and 88% respectively.

But by far the most interesting preliminary result, to my eye, is the one MTBS obtained from 2D gamers right at the beginning of the survey: their gut reaction when confronted with the idea of 3D gaming.

Despite years of complaints about headaches and eyestrain seemingly lingering in general popular opinion, under 10% of those taking the survey had a negative initial reaction to the idea.

What do all these numbers really mean? Well, without knowing whether respondents took the survey because they already liked S-3D technology or were just interested in its future potential, there’s no way to say for certain… but if the latter, and if game developers get wind of an unserved market clamoring for their support as in Figure 2 above, well… it could mean we’ll be using our depth perception that much sooner as a result.

Press release:

Los Angeles, California – December 2nd, 2008 – Meant to Be Seen, the foremost authority group on stereoscopic 3D (S-3D) gaming and home entertainment has announced the preliminary results of the U-DECIDE Initiative, an ongoing study of what customers think of 3D entertainment technologies and why.

Stereoscopic 3D refers to the ability to display true volumetric 3D content through 2D media. Examples include explosions that pop out of the screen, and a sense of depth that makes viewers think they can reach inside the screen.

Made possible with the assistance of AMD, iZ3D, Blitz Games Studios, The Game Creators and Guild Software, U-DECIDE has become the most credible determination of what customers think of 3D entertainment with hopes of dispelling the leading myths and assumptions about the technology.

The U-DECIDE Initiative was designed to capture customer opinions in two separate online surveys. One was for traditional gamers who don’t yet own 3D equipment, and the other was for experienced stereoscopic 3D gamers and consumers. Each respondent was required to answer 26 multipart questions.

“3D is often judged before being seen. We wanted to learn how far apart the opinions were of traditional 2D and experienced 3D customers so our industry can have a reasonable measure of where we are, and how far we can go. Currently, the number of completed surveys is nearly equal between the customer types, and this makes the data invaluable,” said Neil Schneider, President & CEO of Meant to be Seen.

Information learned from 2D and 3D customers include 3D hardware quality expectations, perceived deterrents to 3D technology, motivators or messages that connect with customers at a marketing level, brand awareness for leading products and companies, gaming performance expectations depending on game type, and much more.

The first finding is that only a minority of 2D customers think that 3D is tacky or uncomfortable. Nearly 26% of respondents think 3D is a “must have” technology, and over 65% find it “intriguing”. Less than 4% think 3D is “tacky”, and just over 5% think 3D “sounds uncomfortable”.

For inexperienced 2D and existing 3D customers, wearing comfortable 3D glasses is an insignificant barrier to the technology for some types of content. Only 12% of 2D customers object to 3D glasses for video games, while this climbs to almost 30% for 3D broadcast television. Experienced 3D customers are more forgiving with a 3% objection level for video games, and 12% for broadcast television. Blu-ray movies fall in-between with 16% glasses objection for 2D, and 4% for experienced 3D customers.

All respondents are nearly unanimous about one market. Stereoscopic 3D is most suitable for video games with an 87% suitability rating by 2D, and nearly 97% rating by experienced 3D gamers. Without yet owning the technology for themselves, 93% of 2D customers want game developers to officially support true 3D in their games, and this climbs to 99% amongst 3D gamers.

“The customers have spoken, and it is clear that game developers have a real consumer need that requires answering. These findings will help them get it right the first time,” said Schneider.

Suitability ratings varied widely for Blu-ray, sporting events, and broadcast television. In-depth analysis will be announced in the formal U-DECIDE Initiative report.

“Success in the at-home 3D cinema and content markets is going to be more selective, and this new data will help ensure that 3D efforts tie in with customer demand for the best sales results,” Schneider explained.

The findings are still considered preliminary, and the surveys will remain open until January 1st, 2009. Participating respondents will qualify for a draw to win one of nearly 60 prizes including iZ3D 3D monitors, ATI GPUs, and a wide selection of video games by Blitz Games Studios, The Game Creators, and Guild Software. Gamers of all experience levels are encouraged to participate at www.mtbs3d.com/udecide.shtml.

Preliminary graphics charts are available for download from mtbs3D.com in the U-DECIDE sub-menu, and the complete report is expected to be available for purchase in January, 2009. Committed MTBS partners and qualified game developers who accept complementary MTBS Certification can get the report for free.

To date, leading game developers on record for MTBS certification include Epic Games for Unreal Tournament 3, The Game Creators for DarkBasic Professional, and Unigine for their game engine by the same name - the first modern game engine to natively support S-3D hardware solutions without a driver. More announcements are pending.

Meant to be Seen is made possible by unrestricted education grants from iZ3D LLC and TDVision Corp. Non-proprietary in nature, MTBS welcomes additional industry involvement to help grow the popularity and effective use of consumer stereoscopic 3D technologies.