Why 2013 is the Year to Own a Nintendo 3DS

Leviathyn.com | With a list of great games both released and forthcoming in 2013, there’s no better time to be a 3DS owner than right now.

[PrimeLantern]

Its a great system that took a while to get going. Hopefully the Vita and Wii U have the same fortune.

[Canary]

It wasn't luck that turned around the 3DS. It was a massive push by Nintendo. They solved their immediate problem with a price cut and offering a fistful of free games to encourage early adoption, and then quickly got out some system sellers (e.g. Mario) to sustain the sales spike.

That salees spike encouraged further 3DS game development and localization. Even now, the 3DS isn't really in ideal shape, as the larger part of its "must play" library consists of first-party titles, like Fire Emblem, 3D Land, Zelda, etc.

Nintendo had a huge problem with the 3DS at launch; they recognized it, and they fixed it.

...

Thing is, there's no clear indication that they so much as recognize the problem with the Wii U, nor does Sony seem to recognize the problem with the Vita--and Sony, in particular, has a history of failing to recognize and react to problems until they're till late. All Sony has really done is expand the PS+ options, but all that does is reward early-adopters; it does not do much to incentivize new sales.

So, like I said, it's not a matter of luck. It's a matter of Sony and Nintendo waking up.

Personally, I'm fairly interested in a Wii U, but Nintendo hasn't done enough with it to make me want to buy it; I think my Vita is quite possibly the best gaming device ever made, but Sony really hasn't done much to build the library. Both Sony and Nintendo really need to wake up.

And we can either hope for "good fortune," or risk the ire of fanboys by pointing out where Sony and Nintendo (and, soon, Microsoft) inevitably fall short, because consumer criticism is the only too we have to encourage improvement.

[NinjaCube]

There's a bunch of games coming out for the Wii U in the fall, Wind Waker HD, a 3D Mario, Mario Kart, Smash Bros., etc., but the only the only thing Sony has done to try to boost Vita sales is by passing it off by a Wii U ripoff.

[Automatic79]

The 3DS had the same situation early on that the WiiU has now. The difference is console competition and portable competition are two different things. Right now the 3DS is doing well because of the software lineup. If the WiiU starts to bring the games people will go and purchase it. My fear is that they need to do it sooner then later because PS4 has been announced and eventually Microsoft successor will be to. Its still to early to tell. Lets see what a full year brings for WiiU.