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[Neoxon]

No. Look at the device in your hand right now. That's the future.

So a 3DS (I'm playing Rhythm Heaven Megamix)?

 

[Luigiv]

No. Look at the device in your hand right now. That's the future.

A Microsoft Wireless Mouse 1000?

 

[TheWorthyEdge]

So a 3DS (I'm playing Rhythm Heaven Megamix)?

Yes. Everything in your hand is what will continue to be the future.

 

[The End]

No. Look at the device in your hand right now. That's the future.

Yep.

Whatever the 3ds successor is going to be, it's almost certainly too far along to cancel, but I don't expect any sort of ambassador-program level heroics to save it if it isn't a huge hit right away.

 

[Raysoul]

No. Look at the device in your hand right now. That's the future.

PC Mouse will definitely replace all existing controllers regardless of the consoles.

One thing is for sure: Nintendo will still produce several handheld devices even if it won't sell like Smartphones.

 

[Neoxon]

Yep.

Whatever the 3ds successor is going to be, it's almost certainly too far along to cancel, but I don't expect any sort of ambassador-program level heroics to save it if it isn't a huge hit right away.

Which is why Nintendo really needs to get it right the first time with the next handheld.

 

[Aranjah]

I hope not.
It'll be a terrible day for gaming when mobile gaming becomes exclusive to smartphones.

As someone with the "wrong" kind of smartphone

Spoiler

Windows Phone represent!

, I strongly fear this.

But Nintendo is pretty slow to get with the times, so they'll probably try at least one more time after their next handheld.

Jokes aside...honestly I don't know. I would like to hope there will continue to be enough demand for handheld games on devices that have physical buttons to keep it financially-viable to make them, as those allow for gameplay that swipes and shakes aren't precise enough to do justice to, and they let you play without obstructing visibility of the screen with your fingers. However, it seems the average mainstream consumer increasingly doesn't share that sentiment and couldn't care less about those "oldfangled", unintuitive buttons.

 

[Foffy]

If it's the end, it's the end. If it isn't, it isn't.

One can perhaps see it go either way.

 

[Kyzer]

No. Look at the device in your hand right now. That's the future.

Nobody's ever called it a device before. *blush*

 

[ChrisMahoney]

PC Mouse will definitely replace all existing controllers regardless of the consoles.

One thing is for sure: Nintendo will still produce several handheld devices even if it won't sell like Smartphones.

Until they stop making hardware and become a pure software company. Nintendo handhelds will sell fewer and fewer every generation. They will eventually make their AAA games for smartphones.

Kids these days don't play Nintendo handhelds. They play iOS games.

 

[Foffy]

No. Look at the device in your hand right now. That's the future.

A computer mouse?

 

[Az987]

Nope. I could see Nintendo abandoning their home console hardware before handhelds.

Say what you want about smart phones eating handheld sales but IMO there is a large enough group of consumers that want dedicated gaming handhelds to keep it going, especially if it's just one console.

Sure, smart phones ate up DS and PSP - 3DS and Vita sales numbers but not as much as PS4 and XBox ate up Wii U sales.

Direct competition will continue to hurt Nintendo much more than indirect competition so abandoning a platform where there is no direct competition would be stupid.

 

[Sterok]

Funny thing is that there's a good chance Sun and Moon will be the best selling handheld games in 5 years. Maybe even a decade. Wouldn't change anything even if it did happen, but it's nice to get these sorts of bumps once in awhile.

 

[abbyabs]

I don't see why people would consider Nintendos next handheld to be their last one? The 3DS has sold very well and made them lots of money they have great software library to back it up.

 

[Ninja Scooter]

With the success of Pokémon GO, I thought that it would be a great time to bring this thread back to discuss Nintendo's future in the dedicated handheld market.

As for me, I still stand by my point that there will be another dedicated handheld from Nintendo. And while I could see people wanting it to work with Pokémon GO, an issue may arise with giving the next handheld 4G capabilities & charging for it.

The Pokemon Go audience and the dedicated Nintendo handheld audience, aside from some overlap, strike me as fairly separate. One doesn't have to be a conduit to shuffle people into the other. What Pokemon Go should tell Nintendo is that there is a fairly sizable segment of people who you can make money off of despite them having no interest in buying dedicated hardware. Pokemon Go stripped away the barriers to entry and baggage.

 

[tr1p1ex]

Yep they are the only handheld game in town. Their handheld business is stronger overall than their console business (which is ironic considering the rise of mobile) but sales of the 3ds did fall alot more relative to the DS in the US and Europe than in Japan.

Right now the 3ds is at 66% of what the DS sold in Japan.

But the 3ds is not quite 33% at what the DS sold in the US and in Europe.

The DS did get half of its sales in the US after the 4 year mark compared to Japan where less than 25% of DS sales happened after 4 years. IN other words DS sales were a lot more back loaded in the US than in Japan. Europe was similar to the US in this regard.

And so the 3ds could have 2 more years of decent sales left in it especially in the US and in Europe. Nintendo did just lower the price (of the 2ds) to $80 with a game. And they have a new Pokemon game this xmas plus are still pumping out quite a few other quality 3ds titles.