“We were very excited about 3DS when it launched. [It] was one of the highest market shares we’ve ever had for a Nintendo launch at 45 percent,” said GameStop president Tony Bartel. “We were excited about market share.”

But he added, “I think there have been reports that the numbers are lagging from what the expectations were in the U.S., and I think our results will be in line with that.”

“In [fiscal] Q2 [ending July], we do expect we will fall slightly short of what we expected. We were excited at the launch, but in Q2 we believe it will slightly lag [behind] our expectation,” he said.

Bartel didn’t detail GameStop’s projected sales figure for the 3DS, which launched in the U.S. and Europe in late March. The retailer today reported fiscal Q1 sales of $2.28 billion, a 9.5 percent year-on-year increase driven in part by sales of the 3DS.

The $250 handheld, which boasts glasses-free 3D stereoscopic effects, sold nearly 400,000 units in its opening week in the U.S., along with 303,000 units in its opening weekend in Europe and 371,000 in its first two days in Japan. The large majority of GameStop’s sales come from the U.S.

In April, Nintendo confirmed that it shipped 3.61 million 3DS hardware units worldwide through the end of March, short of its original projection of 4 million units shipped.

Nintendo blamed lagging Japanese sales on March’s earthquake and tsunamis that devastated the country, but admitted the disasters didn’t explain slower-than-expected uptake in Western markets. Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata said the company would address the slower sales by renewing its marketing campaign around the device.

GameStop’s Bartel said the 3DS launch lifted the current profile of the handheld gaming space in general, “but it hasn’t been a significant increase in there. We anticipate the 3DS is going to continue to be the hottest handheld platform for at least the second quarter.”

View the original article here

“This time, we used the 3D for presenting the game, but next time I want to make software that involves 3D in the game design,” Team Ninja leader, Yosuke Hayashi, recently said to Nintendo’s president, Satoru Iwata. “When I read Miyamoto-san’s interviews, I realized that he designs games that can only be accomplished in 3D. Like games that involve jumping into the distance.”

When he said “this time,” Hayashi was referring to Dead or Alive: Dimensions, which will release on the Nintendo 3DS next week. Dimensions is a chronicling of the first four Dead or Alive titles, and while the game’s fighting system has been overhauled, the 3D effect from the 3DS is merely a visual upgrade and has no effect on the way you play the game. Hayashi says he’d like to change this with future projects.

“There’s a particular enjoyment to a game designed specifically for 3D,” Hayashi said to Iwata. “While I don’t know exactly when I will land any such future projects, I think the challenge of the games I make from now on will be quite rewarding.”

He elaborated: “I’m looking forward to playing games by all kinds of game developers. But I’ll be incredibly jealous the moment someone achieves something that until then seemed completely impossible, so I want to find that door and open it myself!”

Another point Hayashi considers important while developing Nintendo 3DS games is to keep in mind the difference between a console and a portable system. Team Ninja are also planning a Ninja Gaiden title for the 3DS, which Hayashi tells us will be “appropriate for a portable system” when they decide to show it off.

Food for thought:

Prior to Dead or Alive: Dimensions, Team Ninja collaborated with Nintendo on development of Metroid: Other M. Iwata appears to want the two companies to work together again, as he says: “We may be able to work together again in the near future, and it would be great if we did something that made you jealous or you did something that made us jealous.”

Nintendo and Best Buy are teaming up to try to improve the 3DS experience.

Starting in June, Best Buy will offer 3DS owners free wireless access inside 1,000 stores. When folks connect to the Best Buy network via the portable’s SpotPass feature, they will find movie trailers, “gaming extras,” and “exclusive offers,” the companies said today.

Nintendo’s SpotPass feature automatically finds wireless hot spots. Once connected, players can access game data, free software, and other content. It also works in sleep mode, so people can add data to their devices without needing to wait for it to complete.

The Best Buy access point is apparently about more than just offering perks to 3DS owners. Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime said that Best Buy will also provide potential buyers with a “firsthand look at the platform with experts to help people understand everything it offers.”

Relying upon Best Buy’s help is integral to Nintendo’s plans with the 3DS. As Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata said last month in an earnings call, the company is finding it difficult to convey the appeal of playing games in 3D without the need for special glasses.

“The value of 3D images without the need for special glasses is hard to be understood through the existing media,” Iwata said at the time. “However, we have found that people cannot feel it just by trying out a device, rather, some might even mis-estimate it when experiencing the images in an improper fashion. This makes it more important to give people more opportunities for appropriate experiences of glassless 3D images.”

Those issues in understanding the 3DS’ functionality are hurting sales of the device. According to Iwata, “many people feel that they ‘want’ and ‘want to buy’ Nintendo 3DS.” However, he told investors last month, “not that many people believe ‘now is the time to buy it.’”

Nintendo’s 3DS sells for $249.

View the original article here

Nintendo 3DS, however, has been embraced by two much loved fighting franchises immediately – Street Fighter IV came at launch, and now Dead or Alive: Dimensions has followed. It’s a return to the fast paced, combo jiggling brawler for series fans, the first in the series on a Nintendo format and the first without series creator and previous studio-head Tomonobu Itagaki. With the latest iterations well received on Microsoft’s Xbox 360, how have Team Ninja handled bringing action to the small screen?

Translating something as nippy and responsive onto a handheld might have proved a daunting task, especially on new hardware where the primary focus is outputting in 3D, wherein a separate image is rendered for each eye. The result is a surprisingly pleasant one, particularly for a launch project that isn’t a direct port of an existing game. Dead or Alive: Dimensions has been described as a “greatest hits” package. This is true in many ways, taking core elements from past games, including the lengthy story, and baking a refined, velvety cake that is a delicious treat in more ways than one.

The first thing you’ll notice with the game is that it’s fast, running at a blisteringly 60fps with the autostereoscopic 3D turned right down, or 30fps with the effect on. The reduction in smoothness in animation has been a cause for concern for some, particularly veteran Dead or Alive fans, but still offers a responsive enough system to pound your foes into 3D submission. The 3D isn’t mind-blowing, but is still put to good use in building that extra sense of depth and making characters pop that little bit more from the background. Since Dimensions is a 3D-axis fighter, i.e. you can move in various directions instead of just left or right, it’s harder to get an immediate impression of fore and background, but there is still a feeling that the combat is taking place within a 3D world. Lag isn’t apparent, though the odd bit of slowdown drips in from time to time. Tuning down the picture into a sole image is equally gorgeous, even more reactive and, despite glasses-less 3D being one of the main reasons to own a 3DS game, we must lean ever-so-slightly towards playing the game with it off. Either mode does nicely and it’s a case of finding what works best for you.

In terms of design and art direction, the game essentially follows the established look and feel from past generations, intricately designed environments that span multiple combat areas, from the serene Kyoto in Bloom, with its traditional oriental landscape and blossom trees, to the snowman stained Frozen Peaks, there are a wealth of levels to venture into. Characters are equally well designed, bearing their established looks with a wealth of different costumes to unlock – topless chaps and bikini clad ladies are a rarity despite the series’ past, but developer Team Ninja have poured a lot of care into preserving the style, and Dimensions is one of the best looking 3DS titles to date.

Cutscenes tell the bulk of the four-game tale, and these are generally made up of what Team Ninja dub “static figure movies”, where stills are presented with voiceovers. Major sequences are fully animated 3D. It’s a strange decision, whether it was due to time constraints or purely an art direction choice, but does offer a thorough enough tale and campaign to nip through in a couple of sittings.

Despite being labelled as a story mode, Chronicle really is more like a fancy tutorial mode, with the main bulk of the game derived from the Arcade, Survival, free play and multiplayer modes that have the potential to munch up your game time. Arcade takes a fresh approach to the conventional eight to ten fights you’d expect, opting for a set of six courses that range from easy to hard. What you get are a handful of single round fights that revolve around similar characters each time – you can complete each within minutes. Whilst the approach may not be familiar or meaty enough for fighting fans, it’s a nifty way of getting a quick game in whilst on the move, unlocking pieces of content from time to time.

Survival and free-play are as they say on the tin. The former is a lengthy campaign that tests your survival skills and stamina through a near endless stream of oncoming fighters; the latter is a more relaxed approach where you can simply pick a fighter and do the business. Tag battles also make an appearance, albeit a minimal and confusing one. Unlike past Dead or Alive games, the ability to switch out with another fighter seems to be quickly bolted onto Dimensions. Essentially you pick your player and a computer-controlled ally. You seemingly can’t manually swap players, though your CPU buddy may randomly decide to do so – often while we were being brutally battered on the brink of knockout, so there’s probably some correlation. You cannot control both combatants, and tag battles are absent from the other modes.

Kasumi pounces with multiple spinning kicks and deadly mid range jabs, whilst Christie keeps it low as if a praying mantis, striking when the time is right. Tina, the all-American wrestler forces opponents to the floor with blows from above, with the bizarre Brad Wong specialising in some form of drunken combat. Swag! There are also a handful of bosses throughout the game’s various solo modes that complete the line-up.

Pure ‘button mashing’ has been an element of the franchise that’s been brought up since its conception. However, an intuitive counter system and dedicated block button thwarted continual tappers, or at least allowed a temporary role reversal. In Dead or Alive 3 some felt the counter system was a little too strong and the balance wasn’t quite there. The follow-up, Dead or Alive 4 saw a far tighter counter system that was perhaps a touch too restrictive. Dimensions puts a bigger focus on stringing together combos that do less damage, with stronger moves needing a little more time to pull off. Counters are also simple to pull off, but can certainly be avoided with more considered play.

Essentially it’s a refined system that builds on the core Dead or Alive play, more accessible without dumbing down or overly simplifying. There are dozens of moves per player, varied even by the simple change of direction midway through a combo, and the touch-screen is utilised well by displaying a moves list throughout – like Super Street Fighter IV[ you’re able to tap commands to execute, but it’s far trickier with the nippy fighting tempo. There are two options – manually scroll down the list, or opt for a dynamic approach, with the list showing commands based on the first button pressed. Tap kick and it instantly jumps to the kick-based sequences on the list. Pop in a forward punch and likewise it shifts. It’s a small feature, but essential for those heated scuffles.

Nintendo’s own blonde bombshell Samus Aran makes a quite literally explosive appearance in a level featuring her long-time nemesis Ridley. As Team Ninja collaborated with Nintendo on Metroid: Other M, an ickle tribute has been included in the form of a Metroid inspired level. Ridley hovers around the stage, grabbing unsuspecting foes that are pushed into his range, smearing face onto hot metal before throwing the victim back into the action. Disappointingly Samus doesn’t appear for more than three seconds at a time, occasionally ‘blowing up’ the level. We’ve tried, multiple times, but word on the street is that she isn’t playable. Unhappy faces all around!

If you exhaust the extensive solo and local multiplayer options, online is the next best thing. It’s a mixed bag, and certainly depends on the types of connections you receive. We sampled combat against around fifteen different players – most had a decent enough signal for a solid match but the best we received was ever-so-slightly slower than standard play with 3D switched on. Slowdown, especially over wireless, is to be expected, especially with the fast paced nature of the game. That said, other fighters like Super Street Fighter IV have done it far more reliably and with a consistent connection speed, so a smooth online fighting experience is technically feasible. It’s an option worth tapping into from time to time, but it’s luck of the draw as to whether you’d have an experience as a smooth as Ayane’s…hair or rough as Gohyakumine Bankotsu-bo’s bottom.

Beyond the standard fighting modes, you’re able to collect hundreds upon hundreds of character trophies – each striking a pose – to pop into scenery to take pictures of. It’s a worthy bonus that keeps you playing with practically every mode unlocking trophies and costumes. StreetPass is also used in a neat way, letting you exchange your play styles with passers by, gradually building a profile. Received challengers can then be emulated by the CPU and fought for a varied and more human approach instead of tackling the built-in AI all the time.

View the original article here

After a knockout launch in Japan, the Nintendo 3DS is now scheduled to release in the U.S. on March 27. What makes this handheld device interesting is that you don’t need glasses to enjoy its three-dimensional effects. Plus, a 3D slider makes it easier to create a 3D depth that works best for you.

Nintendo 3DS is already available for pre-order at various stores in two colors: Aqua Blue and Cosmo Black.

As far as the cost is concerned, many think the console is a little too pricey. According to Nintendo, it is going to price the U.S. customers $249 for the 3DS itself and a wide range of games (18, to be specific) is also offered at a price of $39.99 each. Now, that’s expensive!

Also, Nintendo restricts the 3D mode for children under age six, as it can affect the player’s vision, reported The Japan Times.

Now the question is: who’d want to spend hundreds of dollars on a gaming device that isn’t appropriate for their children, in the long-run? Wouldn’t it be a good deal to wait just a little more and see a modified version of Nintendo 3DS? After all, nothing is everlasting in the Tech World.

Photo Source: Digital Trends

View the original article here

They are now listing the pre-order price of the Nintendo 3DS at 187 GBP which is currently the lowest in the UK, even undercutting online retailers.

To secure the handheld at Morrison’s they requires a 10 GBP deposit at your local supermarket.

Play.com, GAME and HMV all have their online price of the 3DS as 196.99 GBP.

Thanks Official Nintendo Magazine.

View the original article here

Nintendo Co. this week said it will hold a Nintendo 3DS Demo Tour in the U.S. to offer consumers the chance to test drive the new handheld.

Nintendo 3DS Demo Pods and Demo Squads will be in select U.S. cities beginning Mar. 11 to allow users to try built-in software, launch titles, and new Augmented Reality games.

Locations include the New York City Grand Central Terminal between Mar. 11 and Mar. 30; the Chicago Citygroup Center between Mar. 11 and Apr. 3; San Francisco Pier 39 between Mar. 11 and Apr. 3; and the Los Angeles Third Street Promenade between Mar. 11 and Apr. 3.

Nintendo in Mar. said the Nintendo 3DS hardware will include the ability to stream content from Netflix Inc. and Wi-Fi Hotspot functionality via AT&T Wireless networks.

Additionally, the company announced a new 3D ‘Super Mario’ is in development for the Nintendo 3DS hardware.

Nintendo in Feb. said the Nintendo 3DS handheld will launch with 18 software titles Mar. 27.

First-party titles include Pilotwings Resort, Steel Diver, and nintendogs + cats.

Third-party titles include Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition, The Sims 3, Madden NFL Football, Pro Evolution Soccer 2011, LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars, Ridge Racer 3D, Super Monkey Ball, Bust-A-Move Universe, Samurai Warriors, Asphalt 3D, Combat of Giants, Rayman 3D, and Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon Shadow Wars.

Titles will carry an MSRP of $39.99 each.

The company said a total of 30 titles will be available by June.

The Nintendo 3DS handheld will be sold in the U.S. Mar. 27 at $249.99.

The hardware will be sold in Cosmic Black or Aqua Blue at $249.99 each.

The Nintendo 3DS will include two screens, a 3D Depth Slider, a Circle Pad, and a 2GB SD Card.

Functionality includes StreetPass to exchange game data between owners who pass one another.

Additionally, the hardware will include the Nintendo 3DS Camera software, Mii Maker, and the Nintendo eShop to download new software.

Nintendo 3DS will include 3-D display technology that does not require the use of special glasses.

In addition, the 3DS will be backwards compatible with Nintendo DS and DSi games.

The company expects to ship four million units by the end of Mar.

View the original article here

March 8, 2011

Visitors to this year’s PAX East event will get more than just a glimpse into Nintendo’s all-star lineup of console and hand-held video games. Running March 11-13 in Boston, the festival also marks an opportunity for U.S. consumers to experience the new Nintendo 3DS™ portable system in advance of its March 27 launch. Featuring 3D visuals that don’t require special glasses, built-in applications and software, and distinctive wireless features like StreetPass™ and SpotPass™, Nintendo 3DS offers veteran and first-time gamers a remarkable new way to play.

In addition to the fun of included Nintendo 3DS software such as Mii Maker™ and AR Games™, PAX East attendees can get a firsthand look at upcoming first- and third-party games for the system. Interactive demo stations will give players a chance to try Nintendo’s Steel Diver™, Kid Icarus™: Uprising, Pilotwings Resort™, nintendogs™ + cats and The Legend of Zelda™: Ocarina of Time™ 3D. They can also check out LucasArts’ LEGO® Star Wars® III: The Clone Wars™, TECMO KOEI’s DEAD OR ALIVE® Dimensions, and CAPCOM’s Super Street Fighter® IV 3D Edition and Resident Evil®: The Mercenaries 3D.

Nintendo’s PAX East booth (#412) will also give fans a chance to experience the latest installments in two of the world’s favorite game franchises. The new Pokémon™ Black Version and Pokémon White Version games for the Nintendo DS™ family of systems offer new battle modes, a new region to explore and more than 150 new Pokémon to catch, battle and trade. Meanwhile, Mario™ Sports Mix for the Wii™ system injects four different sports – volleyball, basketball, dodgeball and hockey – with a dose of Mushroom Kingdom fun, adding wild power-ups and letting players put their customized Mii characters at the center of the action.

Remember that Wii and Nintendo 3DS feature parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about Nintendo, visit http://www.nintendo.com.

View the original article here

The Nintendo 3DS is giving Shigeru Miyamoto the opportunity to fulfill a wish: remake Star Fox 64. In the newest installment of Iwata Asks, Nintendo president and CEO Saturo Iwata sat down with Miyamoto to talk about the two upcoming N64 remakes for the 3DS – Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and Star Fox 64. According to Miyamoto, not only has enough time passed to make the remakes relevant, but the hardware has finally caught up to his ambition for an update.

As for the issue of time, Miyamoto acknowledges that a lot of gamers coming to the 3DS are perhaps too young to have played Star Fox 64 on the N64 when it originally released in 1997. Miyamoto cites the successful re-releases of Super Mario Bros. as another good reason for Star Fox 64 to make a comeback.

“Super Mario Bros. has been made many times over for all different types of hardware, but every time, both first-time players and people who are already familiar with it come together and enjoy playing it. That makes me really happy.”

In 1997, Star Fox 64 was highly praised and is still recognized as a fun adventure – as well as one of the better entries in the series. (It’s also the genesis of “Do a barrel roll!”) We’ll have more on the Star Fox 64 remake in the coming weeks, but what do you think about Nintendo raiding its archives for 3DS games? After all, Star Fox 64 joins Ocarina of Time as N64 games bound for the 3DS. Do you want more of these? If so, which games deserve the 3DS treatment next?

View the original article here

In addition to sporting a cutting-edge glasses-free 3-D display, Nintendo’s 3DS handheld also offers a number of other features, including built-in Wi-Fi support and the innovative new SpotPass, which allows the device to seek out Wi-Fi signals and download content while it’s in sleep mode. DLC has the potential to be a big thing for the 3DS, something which we’re already seeing the first signs of in Team Ninja’s plan to support “Dead or Alive: Dimensions” with daily updates, at least for a time.

The developer told Famitsu (via Andria Sang) that in addition to downloadable costumes being made available daily via SpotPass, there will also be a release day-only costume as a treat for the people who make their purchase on launch day. 28 costumes in all will be gradually released for download to your 3DS, though only a limited list has been revealed so far.

The seven characters pictured above are actually all wearing “Dimensions” DLC costumes. From left to right you’ve got Cheer Girl Lei Fang, Personal Clothing Kokoro, Ninja Attire Ayane, Personal Clothing Kasumi, Personal Clothing Hitomi, White Cat Costume La Mariposa and White Cat Costume Tina. Famitsu also shared screens and artwork (which you can check out at Andria Sang) featuring Genra, Alpha-152, Kasumi Alpha, and Tengu, all of whom will be playable for the first time in “Dimensions,” along with Leon, Bass and Zack.

Some of the fine details of exactly what the 3DS is set to offer were lost in Nintendo’s initial announcement, largely because so much media attention was focused on the glasses-free 3-D display. Features like SpotPass are easy enough to describe, but it takes actual object examples such as this one to really give you a sense of what the potential is.

View the original article here