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[Canova]

It's clear there won't be a year long shortage like we saw with the Wii. If you want a 3DS, just walk into any shop and you'll find a whole stack of them. In contrast, if you want an iPad 2, you're out of luck. Completely sold out all over Europe.

Just as I thought IPad 2 stealing 3DS's lunch

 

[ClosingADoor]

This is something I've always thought. PSP gets slammed for it's 'failure' but in reality while it is #2 compared to the DS, it has still sold in the region of 60-70 million. PSP was always aimed at a different audience and the fact that Sony have essentially repeated the general PSP design for the NGP is evidence that Sony don't intend on battling on the DS's home territory. There's of course a middle ground, teens are the clashing point.

The market is big enough for two.

I think the problem with PSP is software sales. You can sell a shitload of hardware, but if the software isn't moving that doesn't mean that much.

 

[FoneBone]

This is something I've always thought. PSP gets slammed for it's 'failure' but in reality while it is #2 compared to the DS, it has still sold in the region of 60-70 million.

OK, for about the 5000th time, when people call PSP a failure, it's not because it came in #2 to the DS.

 

[Magicpaint]

These numbers are pretty much in line with my own expectations. I haven't been crazy hyped for the system and just assumed most people were like me. I got the DS on launch day but the 3DS' price seems too much for me at this time.

 

[Sadist]

This thread is heading for the carnival of stupid.

I'm out.

 

[Ridley327]

This is something I've always thought. PSP gets slammed for it's 'failure' but in reality while it is #2 compared to the DS, it has still sold in the region of 60-70 million. PSP was always aimed at a different audience and the fact that Sony have essentially repeated the general PSP design for the NGP is evidence that Sony don't intend on battling on the DS's home territory. There's of course a middle ground, teens are the clashing point.

The market is big enough for two.

The failure of the PSP is often focused on how lousy the software sales ended up being, particularly now as the system limps along to the release of the NGP. The fact that in the US last year, there was only one game that cracked 300k and the rest didn't even break 200k is telling enough.

 

[Acrylic7]

We have a huge stack at Walmart not being sold at all. posters everywhere in our electronics department, and at the main entrance, next to the redbox thingy.

 

[Dabanton]

Isn't this what happened with the original DS launch? Lackluster titles available at launch, pundits saying that PSP was gonna blow it out of the water, etc.

Another problem is they still have their own in house competitor in the DS which has tons of cheap quality software and a base that looks like their content to stay with it for now.

 

[added_time]

We have a huge stack at Walmart not being sold at all. posters everywhere in our electronics department, and at the main entrance, next to the redbox thingy.

What country of Europe are you in?

 

[Effect]

Should we really be judging just a few days worth of sales? I would think it might better to judge an entire month and then compare with the the original DS and PSP. I am curious about the game sales though most of all. Though we have to keep in mind that this is a non-holiday launch as well.

 

[Bossman]

Handheld consoles have never been a big hit here in Europe.

 

[BlazingDarkness]

My casual gamer friends all seem to be talking about how the 3DS gives you headaches/makes you feel sick
So maybe that's a worry at the moment?

 

[Mael]

Always funny to see that Nintendo just can't compete against their own products :lol
Seriously who's idea it was to release a handheld at a higher price than Wii?
I hope someone got fired for that.

Handheld consoles have never been a big hit here in Europe.

Can the clueless people exit the thread please?

 

[FoneBone]

The problem is that they need a new Nintendogs or Brain Training (I'm not talking in terms of actual sequels, though I'm sure Nintendogs + cats will do very well over time), and they just don't have one at present. Mario Kart (and maybe also Animal Crossing) should cut it for the holiday, but beyond that I don't know.

 

[Jocchan]

Just as I thought IPad 2 stealing 3DS's lunch

Canova's wishful thinking is separate from the truth, just so you know ;p

 

[Sadist]

Handheld consoles have never been a big hit here in Europe.

46 million DS units would like to dissagree.

 

[kpeezy]

What do they say about the PS2 and the PS3 then?

I see the point but that's not nearly as confusing as DSoriginal, DSlite, DSi, DSi XL, 3DS.

 

[iidesuyo]

Well there are huge stacks of 3DS available in every electronic store in Germany. Not much interest, lots of discounts, terrible advertising. Nintendo obviously thought it would fly off the shelves by itself... they need some reality check, it's not 2006 anymore.

 

[Plinko]

The best thing that can come from this is Sony taking notes for the upcoming NGP launch. For example, lower the price and have quality first-party software available at launch.

Also, maybe this could influence Nintendo when it comes to their next console release as well.

 

[Magicpaint]

Handheld consoles have never been a big hit here in Europe.

The DS is the biggest selling videogame hardware in Europe.

 

[m.i.s.]

Not too shabby!!! )

The ads are darn right awful.

They really are....hideous.

Considering that this is the launch period, the question now is how will it do from here on out? I think most are agreed 3DS is not a game changer in the same way the original touch screen was?

 

[zomgbbqftw]

Handheld consoles have never been a big hit here in Europe.

not sure if serious...

 

[iidesuyo]

Handheld consoles have never been a big hit here in Europe.

Really? When I was a kid (early 90's) everyone had a Game Boy.

 

[Adamm]

Well there are huge stacks of 3DS available in every electronic store in Germany. Not much interest, lots of discounts, terrible advertising. Nintendo obviously thought it would fly off the shelves by itself... they need some reality check, it's not 2006 anymore.

Isnt this what happened with the PS3?

Huge price, no games, bad advertising - Sony Nintendo hoping it will sell on brand name alone?

 

[Mael]

Really? When I was a kid (early 90's) everyone had a Game Boy.

That's the joke.jpeg

They've always been very successful, it's either grass ignorance or a joke.

Isnt this what happened with the PS3?

Huge price, no games, bad advertising - Nintendo hoping it will sell on brand name alone?

how long till they offer a bounty for each system found unsold?

 

[Mr. B Natural]

The Wii ads were great and oversold the concept just like the kinect does, but the 3ds doesn't have that luxury because you can't display the main (and imo lame) pull of on a tv set or ad. It's an impossible sell. It's word of mouth or nothing for the 3ds.

 

[Effect]

Always funny to see that Nintendo just can't compete against their own products :lol
Seriously who's idea it was to release a handheld at a higher price than Wii?
I hope someone got fired for that.



Can the clueless people exit the thread please?

When said hand held appears to be able to potentially have better looking games and have a bit more tech then the Wii it doesn't seem that crazy of a thing to do.

 

[Acrylic7]

What country of Europe are you in?

derp, North Carolina...

 

[zomgbbqftw]

Isnt this what happened with the PS3?

Huge price, no games, bad advertising - Sony Nintendo hoping it will sell on brand name alone?

Yes. It is a long road back from this position, just ask Sony.

 

[Mael]

When said hand held appears to be able to potentially have better looking games and have a bit more tech then the Wii it doesn't seem that crazy of a thing to do.

GAF should really drive this through their collective skulls, no one gives a shit about the tech. EVER.

 

[DR2K]

When said hand held appears to be able to potentially have better looking games and have a bit more tech then the Wii it doesn't seem that crazy of a thing to do.

It has neither of those things.

 

[StealthGoblin]

I think most are agreed 3DS is not a game changer in the same way the original touch screen was?

Well that's certainly how I view it. When I get my 3DS it'll be for Pokemon et al, not the 3D. I'm going to have it off at all times unless Nintendo find a way for the 3D to be a part of the gameplay mechanics.

People (older demographic) are also used to using much better touch screens now. The Ipod Touch, Ipad, Iphone and soon the NGP all have better touch screens.

The software will sell the device. As it stands it looks horribly overpriced for me because I simply won't be using the gimmick that has drove the price up.

 

[1-D_FTW]

When said hand held appears to be able to potentially have better looking games and have a bit more tech then the Wii it doesn't seem that crazy of a thing to do.

That's not really an argument when the Wii technology is over 10 years old. You'd have to actively commission custom hardware that was seriously gimped to drop below that performance level in the year 2011.

 

[m.i.s.]

When said hand held appears to be able to potentially have better looking games and have a bit more tech then the Wii it doesn't seem that crazy of a thing to do.

Point taken, but that advantage will disappear or be reduced (depending on the price) when NGP launches.

Likely Sony will almost certainly have better third party support than Nintendo - particularly from Western companies.

 

[ViralMarketingDrone]

If you'd have seen the german tv-spots you'd know why they only sold 50.000 3DS.
I'd fire that whole PR-department. The commercials are the epitome of awkward acting and don't do a very good job at raising interest.
That fucker looks downright bored with his 3DS:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYFqcHSbqjI

 

[ZoddGutts]

Point taken, but that advantage will disappear or be reduced (depending on the price) when NGP launches.

Likely Sony will almost certainly have better third party support than Nintendo - particularly from Western companies.

I'll have a launch title from Falcom, that alone makes the NGB third party lineup better that what the 3DS had.

 

[Captain Chaos]

If the battery life isn't good on this, do you think little kids taking this on the go will have issues. In order for the system toget beat up, you probably need to take it out of the house. With 3 hours battery life, this seems to present a problem. I think these sales have more to do with a combination of iPad 2 launching, weird marketing, and a name that doesn't differentiate itself from the previous renovations of the DS than battery life.

What are you talking about?

Why would the launch of the Ipad2 have anything to do with the sales of 3DS?

There is absolutely nothing weird about their marketing.

Why would Nintendo want to get rid the DS brand/name for its new portable - seeing as the DS was one of its most lucrative machines they've ever produced?

 

[Lovely Salsa]

I'm not surprised at all at the sales numbers. I paid 270 euro for mine and got SFIV, which I've played to death. Now I'm sitting here and waiting for new game releases.....

Me and my "I gotta buy it at launch!" mentality....

 

[Wazzim]

These numbers seem good to me. This is why I can't tell if if people are being serious or using sarcasm with the "bomba" comments. Remember we are talking non-holiday here. Were people expecting 500K to 1-million plus in the first night or something?

500k in the first 3 days for the follow-up to the best selling platform in the EU sounds about right.

 

[Adamm]

Why would Nintendo want to get rid the DS brand/name for its new portable - seeing as the DS was one of its most lucrative machines they've ever produced?

Because Nintedo have had the DS, DS Lite, DSi & DSXL

People will just assume this is another DS & not a new console

 

[wrowa]

It's clear there won't be a year long shortage like we saw with the Wii. If you want a 3DS, just walk into any shop and you'll find a whole stack of them. In contrast, if you want an iPad 2, you're out of luck. Completely sold out all over Europe.

You've shown right now why artificial shortages aren't necessarily a bad idea.

 

[added_time]

derp, North Carolina...

Yes I know you are. That was my whole point since this thread is discussing European sales numbers.

 

[charlequin]

These sales are definitely somewhat uninspiring, but anyone who can't tell that the 3DS is a new system rather than a DS revision shouldn't be let out of the house unsupervised lest they wander into oncoming traffic or fall down an open sewer drain.

 

[Neki]

These sales are definitely somewhat uninspiring, but anyone who can't tell that the 3DS is a new system rather than a DS revision shouldn't be let out of the house unsupervised lest they wander into oncoming traffic or fall down an open sewer drain.

yet all those people still manage to survive the dangers of the world, somehow.

 

[Lovely Salsa]

These sales are definitely somewhat uninspiring, but anyone who can't tell that the 3DS is a new system rather than a DS revision shouldn't be let out of the house unsupervised lest they wander into oncoming traffic or fall down an open sewer drain.

I think its because of the software. The only game worth buying is SFIV....

 

[Captain Chaos]

Because Nintedo have had the DS, DS Lite, DSi & DSXL

People will just assume this is another DS & not a new console

Sir,

Can I point you towards Nintendo's other line of portable machines, the Game Boy.

Good day to you.

 

[Mael]

I think its because of the software. The only game worth buying is SFIV....

Bingo.

Seriously it's not hard to understand that people buy hardware for the software

 

[Deku]

I'm assuming 300-400k NA launch. That puts 3DS at 1.5 ~1.6 million by the end of their fiscal year.

It's good they launched early because there will be plenty of time to tweak things and they haven't blown their proverbial software load yet, with many titles still to be unveiled at E3 and other conventions, but this should be a wake up call for them unless they plan a slow rollout.

 

[wrowa]

Because Nintedo have had the DS, DS Lite, DSi & DSXL

People will just assume this is another DS & not a new console

They don't have to get rid of the brand. On its own right the name 3DS is actually a pretty good one - it sounds good and it portrays the main feature of the new hardware in a clever way. It just isn't doing enough to differentiate the 3DS from it's predecessors - if they would have chosen the simple road and called it "DS2" most people would have been immediately aware that it's a totally new platform. Differentiation through numbers is well-known (and logical), differentiation through new pre- and suffixes on the other hand is confusing when there is already a "lite", "i" and"XL".

I'm not of the opinion that DS2 would have been a better name, though. 3DS does a better job at describing the hardware; it'll just take some time until people notice what the 3DS really is.

If people decide to dislike the 3D effect then Nintendo will have a problem, though

 

[Cosmonaut X]

These sales are definitely somewhat uninspiring, but anyone who can't tell that the 3DS is a new system rather than a DS revision shouldn't be let out of the house unsupervised lest they wander into oncoming traffic or fall down an open sewer drain.

Indeed.

Even though they sometimes refer to it as the "3DDS", my step-children all know that this is the "next" DS and it's not just a bigger/smaller/lighter/etc. revision. They are - anecdotally - all wanting one, and were sold on it after seeing how good the glassless 3D is, and getting a go of the AR Games and Face Raiders in action, so I think waiting to see what kind of "viral" effect we get is perhaps wise.

At the moment, price, a bit of uncertainty about the 3D and lack of compelling software is holding it back. Will be interesting to see whether - as I expect - the latter two will be taken care of once more people get to see the device and realise what's packed in with it (and, incidentally, Nintendo should be advertising the hell out of their pack-in software...)