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Nintendo will release a new version of its Flipnote Studio animation program for Nintendo 3DS, president Satoru Iwata announced today in a new Nintendo Direct. The downloadable software, Flipnote Studio 3D, will be more powerful than its predecessor and feature new sharing options.
Flipnote Studio 3D will support stereoscopic 3D images with up to three layers of depth and artists can now use up to six colors in their animations. The new software will let animators export their work in AVI and GIF format, enabling the easier sharing of Flipnote Studio creations.
In Japan, Flipnote Studio 3D users will be able to share their animations with friends registered through Nintendo 3DS for free. To post animations online through the Hatena World Flipnote Gallery community, Nintendo will charge a small fee and offer a free 30-day trial.
Flipnote Studio 3D will be released in Japan through Nintendo's eShop this summer. The software is not currently announced for release outside Japan. Polygon has reached out to Nintendo to see what its North American plans for Flipnote Studio 3D are.
The original Flipnote Studio was released for Nintendo DSi as a DSiWare title. The software released in Japan in December 2008, then in August 2009 for North America, Europe and Australia.
Update: Nintendo released an English language version of the Flipnote Studio 3D Nintendo Direct, confirming a summer 2013 release of the free software. Iwata also confirmed that Flipnote Gallery: Friends and Flipnote Gallery: World, the software's paid community service, will be available outside of Japan.
