At this year's Electronics Entertainment Expo — the biggest game convention all year — both Sony and Microsoft have tried to wow crowds with each companies' take on motion controlled gaming. Nintendo, of course, has had the Wii for years. And now? They've got handheld 3D, too.

Despite all the flak the idea of 3D entertainment has attracted in movies, televisions and gaming, Nintendo has managed to neatly sidestep all the criticism. That's because when you're playing on the 3DS you're not going to need to use glasses for the effect to work. Of course, this cuts down on the unit's viewing angle, but we'll gladly pay that price if we don't have to wear the shades.

The real kicker, though? Nintendo has positioned itself so that there's no middleman between itself and the consumer. You don't need to go buy an expensive TV to play 3D games, you only need to pick up a 3DS.

Sony, while the company has announced a heavy lineup of 3D games coming to the PlayStation 3 in the near future, still can't enable the effect without a capable television — which, right now, require glasses. Then again, Sony will also have 3D-ready Bravia HDTVs for sale, so the company probably hopes you'll pick up one of those. Sony's own handheld, the PSP, has had no mention of going 3D.

Microsoft, for its part, seems disinterested in 3D, which could prove wise or unwise depending on how this all shakes out. You can be sure of one thing, however: Nintendo is probably looking at another winner.

Via NYT and Joystiq