Iwata promises no 3DS game drought

By Fred Dutton Published 10 January, 2011

Nintendo won't repeat Wii mistakes.

Unlike the Wii and DS, the 3DS will have a steady stream of new software arriving post launch, Nintendo has promised.

Speaking with the Japanese Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper, as translated by Andriasang, Nintendo CEO Satoru Iwata said, "It's important that you be able to supply software with no pause.

"With the DS and Wii, following the titles that were released at launch, the momentum dropped when there was a gap in software releases. We're making plans so that this type of thing won't happen."

Judging by the impressive array of software announced so far for the new handheld, this might not just be an empty promise.

This weekend we learned that the console will launch in Japan next month with eight titles, with Street Fighter IV, Nintendogs + Cats, Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle, Ridge Racer 3D and Samurai Warriors: Chronicle among the big names.

However, there's a long, long list of other stuff due in the months that follow, including Kid Icarus: Uprising, Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, two Resident Evil games, Starfox 64 3D, Pilotwings Resort, Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D, Mario Kart 3D and a new Paper Mario, to name but a few.

By comparison, the Wii launched with Red Steel, Zelda: Twilight Princess, Call of Duty 3 and Wii Sports, among others, in December 2006. Something of a dry spell followed until things started to pick up with Metroid Prime 3: Corruption in August 2007.

Nintendo is due to announce 3DS launch details for the rest of the world on 19th January.

Picture of Fred.

About Fred Dutton

Fred Dutton is Eurogamer's US news editor, based in Washington DC.

Read more articles from Fred by visiting the Fred Dutton archive page.

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Comments (21) Latest comment 1 year ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • TheNinkyNonk #1 1 year ago

    Is this like there wouldn't be a Wii drought after the Gamecube one?

  • xandaca #2 1 year ago

    Nintendo have been steadily improving in this regard to be fair to them. The Wii droughts weren't good, but nothing compared to those that had to be endured on the Gamecube or, worse still, the N64.

  • dirtysteve #3 1 year ago

    @TheninkyNonk, i think you beat a lot of us long-timers to the punch there. How often have we seen this now?

  • MattEdWithCheese #4 1 year ago

    i don't get it! release of software on a new platform is generally scarce. the wii has had a steady stream of good games since crimbo 08 including during the mid year droughts that ps360 get.

  • Vanmunt #5 1 year ago

    aaggggghh stop with these 3ds articles, I am doing my best to convince myself I don't want anymore handhelds...

  • FenderMaster #6 1 year ago

    i don't get it! release of software on a new platform is generally scarce. the wii has had a steady stream of good games since crimbo 08 including during the mid year droughts that ps360 get.

    Christmas 2008 - Animal Crossing and Wii Music...

    Nintendo handhelds are generally immune to game droughts, it's their home consoles that they need to get their act together on, or at least make a console capable of getting current gen multiplatform ports so third parties can contribute without having to make exclusives...

  • MORZTAN #7 1 year ago

    If they keep this promise, I'm pretty sure I'm a one-console owner from thereon. I have all three home consoles, but with two little kids, and hardly anytime to game, the DS is always my first choice to game when I (rarely) get a break.

    With the 3DS the compromise on graphics seems a lot more reasonable.

  • retr0gamer #8 1 year ago

    Can some one please find out if the system is region locked?

  • nuanimal #9 1 year ago

    To be fair the handhelds from Nintendo have a load of games going for them, but they do tend to dry up for the home consoles :(

  • udders #10 1 year ago

    No animal crossing 3D :(

  • Razz #11 1 year ago

    Just release a new f zero, or f zero x remake with track editor and online multiplayer.

  • paul_haine #12 1 year ago

    He sits on a throne of lies!

  • MagnificentDuke #13 1 year ago

    I believe Nintendo are telling the truth for once. The 3DS is an amazing bit of kit and most developers can't wait to implement their ideas on it. I think we are going to be playing some fantastic games that genuinely use 3D as an important game mechanic and not just a gimmick. So there will always be new games coming out. I for one can't flipping wait! This is genuinely the first console I have been excited for in a fair few years! Roll on March!

  • dirtysteve #14 1 year ago

    @MagnificentDuke - that sounds like a nintendo soundbite! The devs are always excited, but it's usually up to Nintendo themselves to lead the way, hopefully there'll be less shovelware than the motion/gesture systems seem to generate,

  • menschenfracht #15 1 year ago

    I've liked 2004 Iwata's words more:

    “For games, it is absolutely meaningless if your console doesn’t have a battery life of 10-20 hours.”
    highlighted in red in the end of the interview.

    “I actually don’t think you can’t use the DS for things other than gaming.

    However, to make it do all kinds of things, and to give it all kinds of functionality, you end up pushing up the price, making it bigger, and reducing the battery life – this is a mistake, I think.”

  • rock27gr #16 1 year ago

    Well if Nintendo starts releasing more games on their consoles, you'll get all the third parties complaining even more about "unfair" competition from the platform holder, and releasing even less games on Nintendo consoles.

    Its a vicious circle for Nintendo.

  • L0cky #17 1 year ago

    and one that's never really been a problem on their hand helds though.

    @MagnificentDuke "This is genuinely the first console I have been excited for in a fair few years!"

    because it's the first console to be released in a fair few years?

    @Razz

    If I didn't have one already I'd pick one up as soon as an F-Zero was released. I wouldn't be surprised if a track editor was only released in Japan though; why you do that Nintendo?!


  • MagnificentDuke #18 1 year ago

    @L0cky If you really want to be that pedantic then know this. "a fair few" or "quite a few" are idioms that refer to more than one of something or even many. So my statement is correct and I can only hope that Nintendo release even more Brain Training games for you to ignore.

  • L0cky #19 1 year ago

    I know what "a fair few" means; I wasn't correcting you at all. I was simply pointing out that the 3DS is the first new console to be released in years, which may be contributing to your excitement...

    untwist your knickers man!

  • SpaceMonkey77 #20 1 year ago

    Sorry, I just don't trust those snakes at Nintendo anymore. They've broken promises too many times, by putting off devs with their silly and expensive practices, laced on cheesy hardware. I'll get a 3DS, but not a new one, as that price tag is too high, and I care not for their 3D gimmick cheese.

    Sure, we all want more games on a system. Nintendo have always had success in the hand held arena. Perhaps they should worry more about getting their crappy home systems in check, so dev/pubs can work with them again there, where it really counts. That game over graphics/hardware excuse, might have held water once to a degree, but years on, its proving Nintendo really lazy and lacking vision.

  • MagnificentDuke #21 1 year ago

    @L0cky sorry, I was drunk and indeed very excited. Lol