Reviews for the long-awaited 3DS are coming in as Nintendo prepares to release the the handheld 3D games console in North America this Sunday.

FORBES: Morning Tech Wrap: Nintendo, Apple, Color

Nintendo announced Tuesday it will introduce a handheld console that plays games in 3-D without the use of special glasses.

CNN: Nintendo to unveil 3-D gaming console

Surging sales of these three videogame franchises have helped insulate Activision Blizzard (ATVI, 12) from the effects of the recession, and driven shares of this publisher of online, PC, console and handheld games 40% higher from lows hit in early January.

FORBES: Game Stock Hero

After all, Skylanders has been enormously successful, spawning two major console releases, two handheld games on the Nintendo 3DS, and a bevy of mobile iterations including one that utilizes its very own Bluetooth Portal of Power.

FORBES: An Interview With 'Skylanders' Senior Game Designer Ray West

Because of the differences in technology and controls we have got used to handheld games being quirky or scaled down versions of the console game.

FORBES: 7 PlayStation Vita Games That Break the Portable Gaming Mold

Gaikai's technology is also being used to allow PS4 games to be streamed and played via the PlayStation Vita handheld console, which may boost its sales.

BBC: PlayStation 4 console announced by Sony in New York

The company said it has also created new connections between the PlayStation 4 and its handheld videogame console, the PlayStation Vita, allowing customers to play games running on the PlayStation 4 on the mobile device.

WSJ: Sony Announces PlayStation 4 Videogame Console

Milton Bradley, a company then better known for Hungry Hungry Hippos than video games, has the distinction of being the first to introduce a handheld video game console with interchangeable cartridges with its Microvision.

ENGADGET: A Brief History of Handheld Video Games