14 DAY TRIAL // The Nintendo DSi arrived in the United Kingdom on April 3, which was on a Friday, and the new handheld from Nintendo has really made an impact. Although the numbers are sort of murky, it seems that the release was the fourth biggest the island has seen, as far as gaming hardware goes, after those of the PlayStation Portable, the PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii. The DSi has managed to do much better than the original Nintendo DS and th DS Lite did when they were officially released.
CharTrack is saying that the Nintendo DSi sold about 92,000 units in two days, which shows that players are interested in the console. There are also a lot of pre-orders for the device, which means that the stock in stores might be depleted soon, as people show up to pick up their handheld. Chris Poole from ChartTrack has told Gamasutra that, “For a console that has already been around for some time, the launch figures are very impressive. Especially given the lack of new software released at retail.”
The DSi adds quite a few new things to the already well-know DS brand. The Game Boy Advance slot is gone, which means that users will not be able to play any handheld Guitar Hero on it, but there are two cameras taking its place, with Nintendo promising that they will integrate pictures taken by players into some of the titles it will create for it. The screens are also a bit bigger and the battery has been re-designed to offer an increased play time for the gamer who takes a long commute.
The Nintendo DSi is also noteworthy because it brings digital distribution to the handheld in a big way. The Nintendo DSi Shop is being hyped up as a future source of innovative, small games, which the player can quickly get through Wi Fi and at a low price. The iPhone must be feeling some pressure, as more and more DSi consoles are sold in Japan, Europe and in North America.