Nintendo's attempt to rescue its failed 3DS handheld games gadget failed to dispel market gloom, triggering a 5 percent share slide and stoking deep worries for an iconic brand desperate to win back users.
On Tuesday, President Satoru Iwata introduced what he said was an unprecedented range of games, aimed at attracting everyone from hardcore gamers to fashion-conscious girls and fans of the long-running Mario series.
The Japanese company also announced on its website a new 1,500 yen ($19) slidepad accessory needed for certain games.
But analysts and investors dismissed the line-up as lackluster and largely irrelevant in the face of cheap or free games played on the likes of Apple's iPhone and iPad and Google-powered Android devices.
Look, ma!
Doom article!
o god can we atleast wait till the big hitters come this holiday and then saying it is doomed or the end of an era if they sell poorly!!!. Nintendo hardware always moves on their solid first party lineup.
"Nintendo faces end of era after 3DS flop" Yeah I don't think so.
Nintendo may have made some pretty bad mistakes with the 3DS but I doubt they're going to just leave it at that, once the redesign 3DS is released and we getter some decent games then we'll see how much of a flop it is.
I wonder what had more articles this week the 3ds DOOMED! or that damn gta4 mod.
The 3DS won't be lacking in games. That much I'm not worried about. The problem isn't even games with the 3DS anymore. It's about Nintendo's absolute mishap with the hardware. The design, although nice and fitting well into my pocket, is dated and the worst thing is that Nintendo arrogantly ignored the age of 24hr Connectivity through social networking/apps and online gaming. The 3DS does none of these things to the level a mobile/handheld device should do in 2011.
You can disagree all you want, but if connectivity and online capabilities weren't such a big thing in the portable space, then why, after watching Sony's TGS Conference, do you see how much Sony is trying to unify the networking experience with Vita. Networking and Online connectivity is the cornerstone of portable electronics. Not 3D screens. Sure I'll enjoy the games that I'll be playing on my 3DS this christmas and beyond, but that's not going to help Nintendo sell 3DS to the casual crowd who flocked to the DS for brain training and touch controls. They're off playing angry birds and hitting up Twitter on their shiny new iPhones. For them, THAT is where it's out with portable devices. And Nintendo completely failed in realising that.
People will say, you can't compare 3DS games to iPhone games. Which is true, there's no competition. But to the casual that only goes for cheap, time wasters, whats more appealing? A 3DS that only plays games that are £30-35 or the Phone that does 10x more that plays games for 50p? The answer for gamers is obvious. The answer for your average consumer is also obvious.
As such, the 3DS is just a device for us die-hard gamers which, although will help, it won't help the 3DS be the success the DS was. And even the, Vita as a gaming device runs circle around the 3DS. I hope the 3DS continues to sell well and grow because I enjoy mine. But only a fanboy would deny that Nintendo made mistake after mistake with the way they handled the development and proceeding first 6 months of the 3DS' life.
The 3DS is by no means doomed. The line up for this holiday alone is insane. Got a few games on pre-order myself. But it's relevence in the portable devices market is declining