Thu, Jan 20, 2011 | 08:25 GMT
The western 3DS launch: What you need to know right now in text and audio form
See that giant, Nintendo-shaped mess on the internet? Ignore it. This is everything you need to know right now about 3DS’s launch in Europe and the US in both written and audio form.
- Nintendo held 3DS launch press conferences in New York and Amsterdam yesterday.
- 3DS will launch in America on March 27.
- The US 3DS was priced $250 in the conference.
- 3DS will launch in Europe on March 25.
- No European price was announced in Holland, but it’s to cost about £210-£230 in the UK and about €250 in the rest of Europe.
- More than 30 games will release in a “launch period” stretching from release to E3 in June.
- Nintendo plans on allowing more than 500,000 Brits to physically play a 3DS between now and April.
- Games have now been priced by retailers in all territories. They’ll cost about £40 in the UK and $50 in the US.
- Nintendo UK said the 3DS launch will be its biggest ever.
- Australian 3DS launch details will be announced on February 8.
- 3DS will have a revamped Friend Code system. This is important because it does away with a major obstacle in playing online games on Nintendo platforms.
- Major third-party 3DS launch supporters are Capcom, Konami and Ubisoft.
Those are the major headlines. Check our 3DS page for the minutiae, and listen to the recording below for an audio wrap-up.
9 comments
#1
Mike
20/01/11, 8:33 am
Can’t…take…more…info…
#2
chronoss2
20/01/11, 8:42 am
uurrrrghhhh, can’t take more either…
I’ll wait for a 3DS Lite cause this one is too big and super ugly, like the first DS.
#3
orakaa
20/01/11, 9:06 am
… AND region-lock…
(so I won’t buy it until there’s an adaptator/R4 card that enables to play imported games… or I just won’t buy it at all)
#4
Erthazus
20/01/11, 9:44 am
This is going to be the first Nintendo Handheld fail… They are doing exactly what Sony did with PSP in the past.
Low spec machine for the unjustified price with cheap home stereoscopic 3D and cheap ports with games that cost 39.99 GBP (Look at Game.co.uk) compared to iPod Touch or iPhone games that cost not much.
this is going to cost Nintendo reputation. No doubt about that.
#5
Gekidami
20/01/11, 10:06 am
^
How was the PSP “low spec” considering its release date (2004)? It was one of the most powerful handheld devices to be created at the time. Again, classic Erthazus verbal diarrhea.
And you’re calling that crap you get on iPhone & iPod “games”? The games you find on actual portable consoles are in another league, infact your statment is even more invalid when you look at the fact that portable consoles do sell “i”-style app games for the same price you’d find them on Apples or Androids app stores.
#6
FabioPal
20/01/11, 11:05 am
@5 I think Erthazus was talking about PSP go…
By the way, even if “i”-games cannot be considered games at all (well, at least the majority of them) the price is something like 1£ for iGames to 40£ for “proper” handheld games.
This is completely wrong imho.
But they will however sell billion piececes of everything I think.
#7
Erthazus
20/01/11, 12:09 pm
@5 i talked about how PSP was launched. The launch of PSP was screwed in most cases.
It’s the same here. + the price.
It was exactly the same.
#8
Crysis
20/01/11, 1:10 pm
The psp was launched for less than the DS here in Aus, hasn’t changed since, PSP Go costs $199, a psp 3000 costs $219, a DSi costs $244 & DSi XL costs $288.
The Go also comes with 10 half decent games.
#9
theevilaires
20/01/11, 6:21 pm
whos more famous? Mario or Michael Jackson. I really would love to see Nintendo go a hardware gen without whoring out the little Italian plumber.