Sam Oliver
The Nintendo 3DS, which first hit the market in the U.S. in late March for $249.99, will see its price drastically reduce to $169.99 starting August 12. The announcement of the price cut, just four months after the handheld went on sale, came as the company posted a loss of 25.5 billion yen, or $324 million, for its first fiscal quarter.
Poor sales of both the new 3DS, which features a screen that allows for glasses-free 3D, and the motion-sending Wii consoles have both been attributed to Nintendo's struggles. The company revealed on Thursday that it has sold 830,000 3DS handhelds in the U.S. since it launched.
The major changes from Nintendo come as Apple continues to find success with its iOS-powered devices and inexpensive games available on the App Store. Games consistently dominate the list of top paid applications available for both the iPhone and iPad.
Just this week, the chief executive of major game publisher Electronic Arts revealed that the iPad has become the company's fastest growing platform. He also revealed that dedicated gaming consoles, like the Nintendo 3DS, have slipped from 80 percent to 40 percent of the gaming industry, while multipurpose devices like the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch have become major players in the market.
Nintendo and Apple will also face new competition this fall, when Sony releases its own next-generation portable gaming system, the PlayStation Vita. Sony surprised the industry in June when it revealed the Vita will be priced at $250 in the U.S., positioning it against both the 3DS and the iPod touch.
Like the iPhone and Nintendo 3DS, the PlayStation Vita will also feature a touchscreen. It also features traditional buttons for tactile feedback, and a unique touch-sensitive back panel that game developers will be able to utilize.
Nintendo's newly announced price cut makes it the least expensive option when compared to the iPod touch and PlayStation Vita. For early adopters who paid the full $249.99 price, Nintendo will reward their investment with 10 free downloadable NES Virtual Console games, including "Legend of Zelda" and "Super Mario Bros.," and 10 exclusive Game Boy Advance titles, including "Metroid Fusion" and "Mario Kart: Super Circuit."
Apple began promoting the iPod touch as a game-playing device in 2009, when it declared the device the "funnest iPod ever." Since then, advertisements for the device have focused greatly on the wide selection of game titles available on the App Store, and Apple has also offered social networking support with the release of Game Center last year as part of iOS 4.
-m.jpg)
Sponsored Content
Wesley Hilliard
Malcolm Owen
Christine McKee
Amber Neely
61 Comments
Yes, Apple is doing well on the mobile gaming front, but the 3DS is still mostly in competition with the PSVita. The price drop is almost certainly due to the fact that the PSVita debuted with hardware that the typical gamer is more willing to pay for. Since the 3DS debuted when the iPad had alread been on the market for quite some time, I think Nintendo would have already taken that into consideration when it announced its original price point.
Yes, Apple is doing well on the mobile gaming front, but the 3DS is still mostly in competition with the PSVita. The price drop is almost certainly due to the fact that the PSVita debuted with hardware that the typical gamer is more willing to pay for. Since the 3DS debuted when the iPad had alread been on the market for quite some time, I think Nintendo would have already taken that into consideration when it announced its original price point.
... or it could have something to do with Nintendo's $328 million loss.
I'm sorry, I don't think this has anything to do with Apple, and is just AI's attempt to bash another company while propping up Apple.
Instead, I think this is simply because the product SUCKS and Nintendo is on a downward spiral (I predict another flop for the Wii U).
I'm sorry, I don't think this has anything to do with Apple, and is just AI's attempt to bash another company while propping up Apple.
Instead, I think this is simply because the product SUCKS and Nintendo is on a downward spiral (I predict another flop for the Wii U).
Really? So you think that the fact that dedicated gaming consoles have dropped to 40% from 80% of the market has nothing to do with Nintendo's struggles?
I'm sorry, I don't think this has anything to do with Apple, and is just AI's attempt to bash another company while propping up Apple.
Instead, I think this is simply because the product SUCKS and Nintendo is on a downward spiral (I predict another flop for the Wii U).
It's not just Apple, but Nintendo is losing their old handheld market to iOS & Android devices, in much the same way that the PMP market dried up and the point & shoot camera market shrank.
Even if Nintendo had made the bestest little handheld console that ever was it would still be seeing shrinking sales.
If Nintendo isn't willing to cannibalize itself, which would mean making a DS smartphone, its best hope is that somebody who does make smartphones buys it for the games catalogue.