14 DAY TRIAL // It's clear that the future of handhelds is now linked to delivering three dimensional gaming without the use of any glasses. The Nintendo 3DS has been well received after its unveiling at the E3 trade show and it's pretty obvious that at the moment Sony does not have an answer with the PlayStation family. One big question linked to the new Ninendo device is whether the company price it attractively in order to lure gamers into the 3D revolution or whether the device will only appeal to a small number of early adopters when it first comes out.
The company has not talked about pricing or launch dates until now but James Honeywell, who is the boss of the marketing division at the United Kingdom section of Nintendo, has told website Electricpig that, “Price, we haven’t made any kind of announcement at the moment, but for everyone who already knows, you know, the Nintendo DSi is available for around £129.99”, before adding, “The Nintendo DSi XL, with the larger screens, is around £159.99. So obviously, it’s going to fit, kind of, somewhere within that kind of architecture.”
The under 200 Pounds price point he mentions currently translates to about 315 dollars, which is quite a high price for a device that is designed for on the go gaming and does not offer other services. Nintendo has announced that on September 29 it will hold an event in Japan during which pricing will be announced and when a launch date for the home market will be set in stone. The company has already confirmed that Europe and North America will be getting the 3DS in the spring of 2011.
The three dimensional gaming technology will be used to power a variety of gaming experiences. Nintendo has confirmed that its biggest franchises, like Mario and Zelda, will be coming to the 3DS while other publishers like Capcom and Konami talked about bringing over Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil.