After a rocky start, the Nintendo 3DS is tops in Japan (Digital Trends)

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata must be breathing a sigh of relief. After a tough start for the Nintendo 3DS, the handheld hardware is showing steady growth, and is currently the most purchased piece of gaming hardware in Japan.

Following the release of the 3DS in Japan, the sales were encouraging. The device sold out 400,000 units, and despite slow software sales, things were looking good. Then the sales flatlined and it soon became apparent that longtime Nintendo fans were willing to try the new hardware, but it was not reaching the wider audiences that Nintendo had hoped for. So then came the price cuts.

Originally debuting at $249, the 3DS’ price was then cut 30-percent to $170, effective August 12. It attracted plenty of new fans, but also enraged those that paid the full price. Many felt that Nintendo was punishing them for their loyalty, something Iwata took very seriously. Iwata issued a personal apology to those fans, and offered them the Ambassador Program, featuring 20 Game Boy Advance and original NES games for free. The results were almost instant. 3DS sales exploded in Japan and Nintendo sold more than 215,000 units in a week—a steep increase from the 30,000 or so it was selling per week prior to that. The results were seen in North America too, where despite a major drop in industry sales in general, the 3DS saw a 260-percent increase.

A month later the sales seem to be remaining constantly strong, especially in Japan where the 3DS sold 58,837 units and led the week in hardware sales, according to figures compiled by Media Create and shared through Gamesindutry.biz. This isn’t the first time that the 3DS has been at the top, but it is the first time that it took the top spot without the benefit of having just launched, or the recent price drop. The sales appear to be steady, which is good news for Nintendo.

It is also somewhat telling that even with good hardware sales, the 3DS’ software sales are still suffering. With only one title in the top 10, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D (which is a remake to begin with), Nintendo must be concerned.

But there is good news on the horizon. Several major titles are due soon for the 3DS, including Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7. With the 3DS’ internal software finally caught up (Netflix is active, the e-Store is finally ramping up, etc.), the price at a point that people are accepting it and a handful of major titles on the way, the 3DS might finally have found its groove.

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Nintendo seeks to rev up 3DS with holiday games (AP)

TOKYO – Nintendo is readying an array of video games for the holidays in an aggressive attempt at catch-up for lost time from the sales delay of the 3DS portable machine last year.

Nintendo Co., which makes the Wii home console and Super Mario and Pokemon games, showed some of the gaming titles featuring glasses-free three-dimensional technology at a packed Tokyo event hall Tuesday.

The year-end holidays and the New Year's gift-giving season will be a key test for the 3DS portable. Game companies make up more than half their annual sales during those months.

Analysts say it cost the Japanese video game maker potential momentum when the 3DS was not ready for Christmas last year. It did not go on sale until February in Japan, and March in the U.S. and Europe, forcing Nintendo to slash its profit forecasts by more than half.

Adding to the woes, the overall gaming business has hit the doldrums recently, as the initial momentum wore off from the Wii and DS handheld, both megahits from Kyoto-based Nintendo — partly because of a scarcity of hit game software, but also because of the advent of other mobile entertainment, such as cellphone gaming and social networking like Twitter.

Yusuke Tsunoda, analyst for Tokai Tokyo Securities Co., was pessimistic about the potential for 3-D gaming on the tiny screen of a portable.

Nintendo also needs to introduce more 3-D games if it hopes the 3DS will catch on, he said, noting that there were no surprises in games shown Tuesday.

"It is OK to sit down and watch 3-D," Tsunoda said, referring to 3-D movies at theaters and 3-D on TV sets. "But when it comes to playing 3-D games, it can get tiring on your eyes the more you play."

Nintendo has sold just 4.32 million 3DS machines around the world so far. Nintendo has sold nearly 150 million DS machines since they went on sale in 2004, outpacing the Sony PlayStation Portable, which went on sale about the same time, and whose cumulative global sales total 71 million.

President Satoru Iwata showed video footage of games in the works, including the popular Super Mario series, that were for 3-D playing without the special glasses usually required for 3-D TVs.

Iwata said the company was doing its utmost to offer a satisfying selection of games to play on 3DS.

He has always said machines never become a hit unless there are hit games people are going to want to play on them.

"We know the hurdle is high," he said. "We will do our utmost to make the 3DS as widespread as its predecessor DS machine."

Iwata noted the DS and Wii had proved popular with women — a characteristic he seemed to think was unique for Nintendo products, unlike offerings from rivals Sony Corp. with its PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable and Microsoft Corp. and its Xbox 360.

But he said the 3DS had not been so far as popular with women. He said a pink-color model was going on sale later this year in an effort to woo women.

It was perhaps telling of Nintendo's fading confidence in its in-house games that the climax of the demonstration was for a game by Capcom Co.

Capcom, a Japanese game developer also behind the "Biohazard" games, is readying a spectacular 3DS version of its popular "Monster Hunter" game.

Nintendo usually pushes its own games, but Iwata showered Capcom with praise as bringing out the best in 3-D features.

Sony is scheduled to outline its strategy for portable gaming Wednesday, ahead of the Tokyo Game Show in a suburb, opening to media Thursday. Nintendo generally does not take part in the Tokyo Game Show.

Nintendo has already slashed the price of its 3DS. Starting last month, it cost 15,000 yen in Japan, down from 25,000. In the U.S., the price dropped to $169.99 from $249.99.

Such a major price cut so soon after a product launch was unprecedented for Nintendo, underscoring 3DS' struggles.

Once next year rolls around, Nintendo will face competition in portable gaming from Sony, which is putting on sale its PlayStation Vita handheld early next year.

That will cost $249 in the U.S., and 24,980 yen in Japan, for a Wi-Fi only version, and $299 and 29,980 yen for a version that will also have a cellphone service.

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Follow Yuri Kageyama on Twitter at http://twitter.com/yurikageyama

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Nintendo 3DS getting right thumbstick, but will you? - ZDNet (blog)

Summary: Nintendo confirms to CNET that photos of the cradle-like Circle Pad for the 3DS are legit, which brings up more questions than answers.

Earlier this week, a scanned page from the Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu surfaced online showing a right thumbstick embedded into a cradle-like attachment for the Nintendo 3DS. It turns out this “Circle Pad” is an official Nintendo accessory that it will be introducing it “at a later date,” as told to CNET by Nintendo via email.

Since the text accompanying these photos describes Capcom’s Monster Hunter 3G, a 3DS expansion of the popular Wii and PlayStation title in Japan, the peripheral will probably be bundled with that game when it launches in Japan, rather than become an essential attachment that current owners must purchase separately.

There is speculation that the peripheral signals a 3DS redesign in the works just months after the handheld console was launched, and that early adopters should be given this updated cradle for free or will cost a nominal $10, but Nintendo has not confirmed anything else beyond acknowledging this attachment is legit and not just a Photoshop project. I can’t speak to Nintendo’s future plans but from the upcoming 3DS titles I got to preview for this holiday season, none of them require this Circle Pad so I find it hard to believe Nintendo would be further risking the ire of customers by making them buy a new accessory for their relatively new device. Besides, I don’t know how practical this design is considering I have yet to break open the cradle that came bundled with my 3DS; after all, who wants to hold onto extra bulk when playing on a mobile device?

[Source: CNET, CNET Crave Asia]

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ZDNet Coverage:

Gloria Sin is a freelance journalist based in New York City.

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Nintendo 3DS' price drop ups sales by 260% in US - ZDNet (blog)

Summary: Nintendo’s price cut for the 3DS seems to be working, with the glasses-free handheld console topping sales charts in the U.S. and Japan, but will it last?

After slashing the price of the recently launched Nintendo 3DS from $250 to $170 on August 12, Nintendo’s gamble to move the handheld console out the door (even if at a loss) ahead of new game releases seems to be working. Not only did the 3DS become the second best-selling console in America last month with 235,000 units sold; 185,000 of those devices were sold after the price cut kicked in, which is 260-percent more than the same time period in July, says the NPD Group. Combined with the 830,000 sold prior to the price cut, that means the U.S. has moved just over 1.06 million 3DSes since launch.

Of course, these numbers are no match for the popularity of the device in Japan post-price cut, with 196,077 units sold in just the first week according to Gamasutra. The 3DS is now the best-selling console in Japan for the fourth consecutive week, beating the more established and powerful Sony PlayStation 3 — with over 1.7 million 3DSes sold, compared to just 852,514 PS3s so far this year — per NeoGAF.

With the launch of Star Fox 64 3D and the “Flame Red” 3DS going on sale today, sales figures for the 3D handheld console could go up still. (Because the system is backwards compatible, it can even play the upcoming DS title, Kirby Mass Attack.) It’s great to see more people are giving the glasses-free device a chance so that Nintendo and its partners won’t be abandoning the system before the most anticipated titles like Super Mario 3DS and Mario Kart 7 have even launched. Frankly, this holiday season is Nintendo’s to lose (on the handheld console front) now that the Sony PlayStation Vita has been delayed till next year. If Nintendo can’t get the dedicated gaming console into more hands this year, then I’m afraid the 3DS may not survive the battle with Vita in 2012. What do you think?

[Source: NeoGAF via Gamasutra, Gamasutra, Nintendo press release]

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Gloria Sin is a freelance journalist based in New York City.

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Here Are the Nintendo 3DS's Biggest Mistakes - Kotaku

It was a great day when the Nintendo 3DS went on sale in Japan on February 26. It was also a great day when it launched in North America the following month. Shame the rest of the 3DS's timeline hasn't been so great. It's been awful.

Here is a list of Nintendo's 3DS blunders (so far).

Mistake 1: Satoru Iwata mentioned a DS successor to the Asahi Shimbun. Nintendo later said Iwata's comments were "misinterpreted". The Asahi Shimbum stood by its story, saying it was correct. This looked messy.

Mistake 2: Nintendo suddenly announced it was working on a Nintendo DS successor via a rushed press release. The press release revealed the successor had the temporary name "Nintendo 3DS". Apparently, Nintendo was worried a Japanese news outlet was going to break the news. Even though this had already happened.

Mistake 3: Nintendo issued a health warning for players under six about the optional 3D effect, echoing sentiments made to Kotaku at E3 by Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime. The warning itself was not a mistake; however, it lead some to wonder how family-friendly the 3DS was.

Mistake 4: 3D in gaming handhelds is largely untested on a mass market scale. Nintendo took the leap, and in the process, made some people sick.

Mistake 5: The 3DS is a power drain, and the battery life is weak—weaker than the Nintendo DS's, making it appear regressive.

Mistake 6: In Japan, Nintendo priced the 3DS at ¥25,000. For a company that has spent this console generation triumphing value for money, the high price seemed out of character. Ultimately, the 3ds got a sudden (and unusual) price drop.

Mistake 7: In the U.S., Nintendo priced the portable at $249.99. Like Japan, the international price was cut. Nintendo did offer free games to those who purchased the machine before the price cut, a smart move.

Mistake 8: Save for Nintendogs + Cats, Nintendo didn't have the games and demos it showed at the 2010 E3 gaming expo available at launch.

Mistake 9: The launch games weren't so good. Actually, most of them stunk.

Mistake 10: The games are region locked, and that sucks. The DS' games weren't, and that was awesome.

Mistake 11: The 3DS e-Shop was delayed (twice) and was not ready at launch. This only added to the perception the handheld had been rushed.

Mistake 12: Countless game delays and cancellations. Not all of the delays and cancellations were Nintendo's fault, of course, but they still had a negative impact on the 3DS' launch.

Mistake 13: The new add-on 3DS thumbstick looks tacked-on, and it makes the 3DS seem like it wasn't thought-out. It also doesn't exactly inspire confidence in the current model. Why buy one now when an inevitable redesign seems right around the corner?

Nintendo's rollout for the 3DS is one of the sloppiest product launches in recent memory. Nintendo, a company that prides itself on polish and perfection, seems to have bungled the 3DS. But there's still hope. Nintendo has big titles waiting in the wings, and next week, the Kyoto-based game maker is holding a 3DS press conference. Nintendo can still right all its wrongs. Look at how the DS Lite improved the DS and ended up one of the best consoles this generation. The same thing can happen again.

(Top photo: Nintendo & Luke Plunkett)Related Stories

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Nintendo 3DS sales spike above PSP post price cut in Japan - Punch Jump

Sales for Nintendo Co.’s Nintendo 3DS spiked in the latest retail data in Japan pending a price cut for the handheld.

Media Create Co. this week said the Nintendo 3DS sold 196,077 units between Aug. 8 and Aug. 14 to rank as the No. 1 game hardware for the week.

By comparison, the hardware sold 4,132 units the week prior.

The 3DS ranked two titles in the top 10, including Pokemon Rumble Blast at No. 2 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D at No. 6.

Meanwhile, the Nintendo DSi LL sold 4,213 units to rank No. 5, the Nintendo DSi sold 3,531 to rank No. 5, and the DS Lite sold 102 units to rank No. 9 in the same period.

The PSP sold 40,409 units for the week to rank at No. 2 in Japan.

The PSP go sold 20 units to rank No. 10 for the week.

The PSP ranked four titles in the top 10, including Pokemon Hunter Diary at No. 1, Uta no Prince-Sama at No. 5, J League Pro Soccer Club 7! at No. 7, Toriko: Gourmet Survival at No. 8.

Nintendo in Aug. price cut the Nintendo 3DS handheld to $169.99, 33 percent off the current $249.99 MSRP.

The Nintendo 3DS Flame Red SKU will sell Sept. 9 at $169.99.

The company said the hardware, which began sale Mar. 24, has sold 4.32 million units worldwide and 830,000 units in the U.S.

Nintendo DS sales fell to 1.44 million in Q1, down from 3.15 million one year ago.

New titles expected to boost 3DS sales include Super Mario 3D Land in Nov. and Mario Kart in Dec.

The Nintendo 3DS includes 3-D display technology that does not require the use of special glasses.

The PS Vita, to be sold in 2012, will include the dual analog sticks, a 5-inch multi-touch OLED display, 3G & GPS, front and rear touch panels, and a compass on three axes. It will utilize flash-memory game cards.

Hardware specifications include an ARM Cortex A9 4-core CPU, front camera, rear camera, built-in microphone, and Bluetooth 2.1.

The company will partner with AT&T to allow current customers to access Wi-Fi hotspots nationwide.

The PSVita Party mode will allow users to chat with nearby owners. In addition, near will allow users to play with friends using their PSN ID.

The Wi-Fi only model will sell at $249.99. The 3G model will sell at $299.99.

Sony in May began sale of the Limited Edition PSP Entertainment Pack, which includes the PSP-3000 handheld, 2GB Memory Stick Pro, Gran Turismo, and MLB 11 The Show at $199.99.

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Nintendo 3DS Sales Soar in Japan After Price Cut - PCWorld

Sales of Nintendo's 3DS handheld game console soared in Japan last week when its price was cut 40 percent, according to data released Tuesday.

The gaming device had its best seven-day run of sales since its launch in February, moving 214,821 units, said Japanese publisher Enterbrain, which tracks the gaming market.

That total for the week through Sunday, Aug. 14 marked a significant jump from previous weeks despite including just four days at the newly reduced price. In the week through July 24, the last full week before Nintendo announced the new pricing, only 32,381 were sold in Japan.

On Aug. 11, Nintendo lowered the price of its flagship handheld from ¥25,000 to ¥15,000 (US$325 to $195). The drastic move came less than six months after the 3DS was launched, after a tepid reception from gamers and in an attempt to build market share before the launch of Sony's PlayStation Vita handheld, which is due out late this year in Japan and early next year elsewhere.

Before it launched, Nintendo heralded the 3DS for its use of a three-dimensional screen that doesn't require users to wear special glasses. Sales started strong after the Feb. 26 launch, when gamers formed long lines and snatched up 371,326 of the devices, according to Enterbrain.

But the hype faded fast, and no week of sales came close to that until last week's price cut. Sales of the dual-screen portable have also been weighed down by a lack of popular software.

Nintendo has stuck to its global 3DS sales target through March of 16 million units. It has so far sold about 1.5 million in Japan, Enterbrain said.

The company is also facing fading sales of its iconic Wii console, and last month announced total sales revenue in the April to June quarter was down by half from a year earlier. Nintendo also cut its sales target for the Wii and lowered its annual net profit target by over 80 percent.

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