• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Kimishima: Switch won't replace 3DS, there's "many unannounced titles" in development

Richie

Member
From the latest Results Briefing, which happened just now yet is already up in English:

As for the future of the Nintendo 3DS business, Nintendo 3DS family hardware has continued to spread through our markets, reaching sales of 62 million units worldwide. Our efforts will focus on the opportunities to take advantage of this install base.

We will continue to introduce new titles that players can enjoy for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. We have heard speculation that Nintendo Switch will replace the Nintendo 3DS, as both are game systems that can be played outside the home, but Nintendo 3DS has unique characteristics that differ from those of Nintendo Switch. Furthermore, the price points and play experiences offered by the two systems are different and we do not see them as being in direct competition. We plan to continue both businesses separately and in parallel.

This slide shows the major announced games for Nintendo 3DS that have been recently released or that are announced for release later this year in our markets. We will have several follow-up titles from popular franchises on Nintendo 3DS and we are developing many other unannounced titles to continue to enrich the software lineup going forward.

Some of us expected the Switch to receive all of Nintendo's gaming output going forward (aside from mobile). But certainly looks like Kimishima is serious about keeping the 3DS going for quite some time, and not just with token support either! Makes sense financially, just hoping that doesn't mean Wii U like droughts for the Switch...
 
Of course they will. Why ignored a big install base.

It's the same as when PS4 and Xbox one came out. Games were still being released for previous gen
 

LowSignal

Member
How many times have they said "X is going to be a third pillar" yes there will be 3ds games but it will taper off.
 

Dartastic

Member
If next year at this time I have to still be buying first party games on Nintendo 3DS instead of Switch I'm going to be pissed.
 

Effect

Member
It certainly isn't replacing the 3DS now after what it just did. It's on it's way to possibly reaching DS numbers if they keep supporting it.
 

Lynd7

Member
They shouldn't bother after this year, put everything they have into Switch, 3DS is done overall.
 

Kappa

Member
Haven't they said this a bunch of times already. Obviously switch is console and 3ds is handheld. Is that so hard to comprehend
 

FZZ

Banned
Mario & Luigi

Also slight chance of Stars being on Switch & 3DS

Although I truly hope it's Switch only since that would get so many more people to adopt it
 
I-dont-believe-you.gif
 

Antiwhippy

the holder of the trombone
If they want the switch to succeed they seriously should just take the focus on the 3DS away and focus it on the switch.
 

Berordn

Member
They shouldn't bother after this year, put everything they have into Switch, 3DS is done overall.

They'll need the 3DS to keep them afloat if Switch turns into another Wii U. Takes time to make a successor.

Plus Switch isn't going to be at the 3DS's current price point for a while, and if Pokemon's anything to go by that market's worth keeping around.
 

Gleethor

Member
Does it even matter that much if Stars is also on 3DS? The main draw is going to be actually playing a real Pokémon game in HD and on your TV, which you can't get on the 3DS.
 
I honestly cant see myself buying new 3DS games to play unless its really worth it like Fire Emblem echoes. They should do cross platform because that Switch screen vs 3DSs screen aint gonna be fair....
 

Infest

Member
Depends on for how long, the 3DS is already in its 6th(!) year. I seriously don't want to have to buy first party exclusives on an antiquated hardware like this anymore.
 

tuffy

Member
The price of the Switch isn't conductive for it to be a 3DS replacement right now; Nintendo can't expect a lot of the Pokemon audience to buy a $300 piece of hardware, for instance. But it's hard to envision some sort of 4DS in the future and the Switch seems poised to take over the role of their portable platform if Nintendo can get the price down.
 

Enduin

No bald cap? Lies!
They will maintain a solid amount of support for the system for the next year but after that I think we'll see a steady drop off, how dramatic depends on the success of the Switch, especially this holiday season. In the event the Switch doesn't gain momentum we might see continued support for the 3DS well through 2018.
 

iSnakeTk

Should be put to work in a coal mine.
It makes sense. If the Switch fails they can go back to making a console and a seperate handheld and market it as the successor to the 3ds.

If the switch is a huge success we will never get a separate handheld ever again.
 
Nah. I seriously doubt there are any first party titles entering development any later than early to mid last year. The games that come out on 3ds going forward will have been in development for a while.
 
As a reminder, Nintendo said the DS wouldn't replace the Gameboy Advance.

This is a blanket damage control statement they can fall back on likely because they consider the Switch to be an experiment and they don't want to fully commit to it until it has proven itself to consumers and to themselves. If the Switch explodes in to a fireball, then they can say, "Well we didn't say it was replacing our surefire bet"
 

MattKeil

BIGTIME TV MOGUL #2
If the Switch doesn't take off, the 3DS will be here for a long time to come. I'm sure Nintendo would prefer to transition 100% to Switch in the next three years, but they're certainly not dumb enough to kill a platform with an install base like the 3DS before they're positive they're not going to end up in another Wii U situation.

This is a smart play by Nintendo, not disappointing.

Obvious nothing the switch is also a handheld. That's the entire sales pitch.

The sales pitch is that it's a console you can take with you. The Switch is not being sold as a handheld, that's just the current way the fanbase is trying to excuse its lack of power.
 

VegiHam

Member
Yeah I'm hearing this as: "Kimishima: No worries bro, you don't need to buy a Switch."

Cheers Kimi, thanks for the heads up.
 

AntMurda

Member
Its just new games guys you might like or not but the 3DS is here to stay until the Switch is strong enough to stand on its own,and that will take awhile

The Switch isn't portable enough yet to replace the 3DS. Hopefully they can both co-exist until Nintendo releases a Switch micro a few years down the road.
 
Top Bottom