first year 3DS sales better than DS's first year

[+SpiceWare]

Nintendo says it has sold 4.5 million 3DS handhelds in the U.S. during its first year of availability.

...

The sales figures are well ahead of the original DS handheld, which sold 2.3 million during its first 12 months on the market.

 

 

http://usat.ly/zTj0EJ

[atarian63]

Cool!

[GKC]

That's very surprising. To me anyway. The price drop of the 3ds really gave it a shot in the arm. That and it finally got some games. I'm really hoping that the 3ds and Vita succeed.

Edited March 7, 2012 by GKC

[Skarrj]

I had realy realy low expectations when i first tried the 3ds....I love this thing now.

[Cebus Capucinis]

I'm interested, but I'd still like to see another price drop before I take the plunge. To be honest, Nintendo's "heavy hitter" IP (Mario, Zelda, et al) have not been appealing to me as of late, and any new games with these mascots (which are supposed to be considered the "highest quality" Nintendo has to offer in a given console) just sort of seem stale and old hat. As soon as there is significant innovation, I will plunge, but until then, I personally don't see the point when I can get similar fare on either my phone or tablet for $4.99 or less vs. the minimum $19.99 price tag for a 3DS game, if not more.

 

Nintendo really needs to come up with something new to pull in disenchanted consumers like me. I think the 3DS hardware is great, but without solid software to back it up I'm reticent to commit my wallet to it.

[MagitekAngel]

For the industry as a whole, I am happy that these products can still flourish in a post-iPhone market.

 

I, on the other hand, will not invest in either handheld anytime soon. I suppose I can "see" the 3D effect, but for whatever reason I have an extremely hard time focusing on the screen when it is engaged. Couple that with an underwhelming battery life, an ergonomically criminal design and control setup, and a library that thus far remains heavily dependant on mascot experiences I can get on home consoles, and I'm not a customer for 170 bones.

 

As for the Vita, I'm not in a rush to pay a premium for a portable PS3 experience when I've already got the latter.

[Skarrj]

I hear this "I can game on my iphone argument all the time". Please tell me what iphone games will give you an immersive and truly great gaming experience as you can get on a console. (emulators aside)

And this is why the iphone will never be taken serously as a gaming device for anyone other than the casual bejewled or angry birds gamer.

Edited March 7, 2012 by Skarrj

[thegamezmaster]

I'm glad to hear it. Great little system. Just hope it gets more third party support. One of the few things that I've liked in a while. Just wish they'd have more games for the older crowd and better games for coins or wish they had download points for coins.

[GKC]

I hear this "I can game on my iphone argument all the time". Please tell me what iphone games will give you an immersive and truly great gaming experience as you can get on a console. (emulators aside)

And this is why the iphone will never be taken serously as a gaming device for anyone other than the casual bejewled or angry birds gamer.

 

Yup. I tried Sonic CD on the iPad and without a physical d-pad and face buttons it didn't work very well. Your last sentence is the reason I hope that the 3ds and Vita succeed. If they aren't successful game makers will stop making the immersive games and all we will be left with is the Angry Bird games of the world.

[Skarrj]

I hear this "I can game on my iphone argument all the time". Please tell me what iphone games will give you an immersive and truly great gaming experience as you can get on a console. (emulators aside)

And this is why the iphone will never be taken serously as a gaming device for anyone other than the casual bejewled or angry birds gamer.

 

Yup. I tried Sonic CD on the iPad and without a physical d-pad and face buttons it didn't work very well. Your last sentence is the reason I hope that the 3ds and Vita succeed. If they aren't successful game makers will stop making the immersive games and all we will be left with is the Angry Bird games of the world.

 

Hell, a part of me would like to see some better games on the ipad. The ICADE is fantastic but the support for it is pathetic.

[Reaperman]

IIRC DS had a slower than optimal start because GBA was only a bit over 3 years old or so and was still going strong when it came out. (though it slowed greatly right before DS launched)

 

DS was probably still going a bit strong when 3ds came out, but I think a lot of people skipped DSi waiting for 'the next one.' I know I don't have a DSI (yet) and that's pretty odd for me. I think there was a crowd ready for new hardware and the massive price cuts really dropped it into their range.

Edited March 7, 2012 by Reaperman

[Rev]

I just bought these 3DS games on ebay:

 

Pac-Man Galaga Dimensions

Bit Trip Complete

Nano Assault

Frogger 3D

Centipede Infestation

 

Im also planning on getting that new Metal Gear game too.

[Pixelboy]

I hear this "I can game on my iphone argument all the time". Please tell me what iphone games will give you an immersive and truly great gaming experience as you can get on a console. (emulators aside)

And this is why the iphone will never be taken serously as a gaming device for anyone other than the casual bejewled or angry birds gamer.

 

I'm rooting for Nintendo and for the 3DS to succeed as well, but these days, when I'm travelling on the bus or the subway, I rarely see people with 3DSs or PSPs, most people play with their phones. The thing is, most people today aren't really looking for an "immersive and truly great gaming experience" in their handhelds. They just want to pass the time while they wait for something. Games like Bejeweled and Angry Birds fit the bill just fine for short gaming spurts.

 

Before the widespread adoption of smartphones by the general populace, handheld gaming followed a different paradigm: It was really looking to offer the same kind of gaming experience as the consoles, only on a small screen, and as a result, we got some great games that required some serious play time to complete. Now the paradigm has completely changed: People need to carry cellphones with them at all times, so if their smartphones offer some games to play, they won't bother carrying two electronic devices in their pockets, they'll just stick with their phones, even though the non-phone gaming devices (3DS, PSP) offer better games.

 

This doesn't mark some kind of rebellion against Nintendo, Sony or any other gaming hardware company, it's just people being practical about the electronic stuff they carry with them. In the end, the fact that smartphones offer sub-par controls for gaming (compared to game-centric handhelds) is irrelevant. Even if smartphones can't be taken seriously as a gaming platform, they can still push the likes of Nintendo out of the handheld gaming market.

[Skarrj]

until you can play modern era god of war, cod, mario, metroid, zelda games, playstation and nintendo handhelds are not going to be pushed from anywhere.

[Pixelboy]

until you can play modern era god of war, cod, mario, metroid, zelda games, playstation and nintendo handhelds are not going to be pushed from anywhere.

 

In saying this, you're implying that people can't get enough of those franchises, to the point where they need to play them on the go. I can't fully agree with you there. If I can get my Mario or Metroid fix on my console at home, I won't mind playing Bejeweled in short spurts when I'm away from home.

 

Of course, you'll find plenty of serious gamers out there who take their handheld gaming seriously enough that they will spit on smartphones at every opportunity. So it all comes down to plain demographics: How many people prefer gaming on smartphones (mostly for practical reasons) versus how many choose to remain faithful to dedicated gaming handhelds? In the end, the market is just a single big pie.

[Lord Helmet]

I just don't do enough mobile gaming to make a 3DS or Vita necessary. My iPhone is good enough for that. I did buy a 3DS for my daughter and she plays the hell out of it. Nifty little system.

[+SpiceWare]

I suppose I can "see" the 3D effect, but for whatever reason I have an extremely hard time focusing on the screen when it is engaged.

Have you tried adjusting the 3D slider (found to the right of the top screen)? Before I got used to the display, I had problems if the slider was all the way up.

[+SpiceWare]

Hell, a part of me would like to see some better games on the ipad. The ICADE is fantastic but the support for it is pathetic.

pathetic? Almost 100 apps have been updated to support it. I expect that will rapidly increase once the new, less expensive, iCade controllers come out (especially that 8-bitty listed over at Think Geek).

[Skarrj]

Hell, a part of me would like to see some better games on the ipad. The ICADE is fantastic but the support for it is pathetic.

pathetic? Almost 100 apps have been updated to support it. I expect that will rapidly increase once the new, less expensive, iCade controllers come out (especially that 8-bitty listed over at Think Geek).

 

 

And? the aps are nothing that would make me chose them over my console. I have an icade, i love the icade..i want better games for the thing.

 

JFC, the ipad could be shooter heaven just like the sega saturn, but most of the shooters are generic crap. So much potential wasted on stuff like cyborg livestock (which im rated #7 on) and AAA. Of that list of games there are maybe a dozen that are decent.

So yes, when you have a dozen decent game with icade capabilty out of a few hundred thousand, I belive that quantifies the pathetic label i gave it.

Edited March 7, 2012 by Skarrj

[+SpiceWare]

Have to told those companies that you find them pathetic for not supporting the iCade? They may not realize their customers desire that.

 

What I suspect is that the iCade's price ($100) means it hasn't sold enough for the app companies to think it's worth supporting it. When the more affordable versions come out (the 8-bitty is listed at $30) is when I think that will change - I know I'll be buying a few 8-bittys to give to my nephews.

[ninjarabbit]

The DS was a bit of a slow burner, it really didn't get popular until the DS Lite came out.

 

I think Nintendo dropped the ball a bit by making Pokemon Black and White DS titles instead of 3DS titles, that would have been the killer ap that would have moved 3DSs off the shelf.

[Cebus Capucinis]

I hear this "I can game on my iphone argument all the time". Please tell me what iphone games will give you an immersive and truly great gaming experience as you can get on a console. (emulators aside)

And this is why the iphone will never be taken serously as a gaming device for anyone other than the casual bejewled or angry birds gamer.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aVttB25oPo

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0otLM4gkBI

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqWSHy2XqEU

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzP7lgSQ3TI

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Cm7aNipXnU

 

I'm sorry, I can't hear you over all these "casual bejeweled and angry-birds" style games I'm playing here.

 

The fact is, more and more "serious" developers and studios are developing for the Android and iOS markets, and that growth is only bound to continue due to the easy platform and open-hardware abilities with the market. If you think all the games available on these devices are "casual baby's first game", you're not paying attention to the development in the market.

 

Don't get me wrong, I like the 3DS and would love to see it succeed, but I think handheld consoles are going to be VERY hard pressed to sway me in their direction when games of this quality are available for less than the $50 price tag a 3DS game commands.

[Skarrj]

Imho....tech demos with shitty controls

Edited March 9, 2012 by Skarrj

[atarian63]

I recently got an ipad2,a customer return that had a password, it was for disposal. I reset the Ipad2 and not have had a couple weeks to compare it. My son and I took our 2-3ds units,an iPad 2 and an Android zoom with us on vacation. We used all at different times for different purposes, like using Androin xoom for stram a movie to a large tv, ipad for some snowmobile trail nav and of course some games. I am not sure that either market is exclusive. We found the Android most useful followed by the ipad, however for real gaming with real controls we kept coming back to the 3ds. I dont see why folks would not have both or all for that matter.