3DS sets Amazon.co.uk pre-order record

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 17 March, 2011

Will probably be popular.

The Nintendo 3DS is Amazon.co.uk's most pre-ordered console of all time.

It overtook Sony's PlayStation 3, which launched in March 2007 in the UK.

The 3DS has 20 per cent more pre-orders than the PS3 managed by launch date and 56 per cent more than the Nintendo Wii secured by its 2006 launch.

It has also beat Amazon.co.uk's pre-orders for any other DS console. It has 255 per cent more pre-orders than the DSi managed in 2009.

"It's unusual for a handheld console to attract this amount of excitement in the run up to launch, such high levels of interest are normally reserved for the play-at-home hardware like the ground-breaking Nintendo Wii and last year's Microsoft Kinect," Amazon's director of video games Chris Poad said.

"Nintendo 3DS is launching at a time when interest in all things 3D is incredibly high and with the promise of real 3D graphics without glasses, it's a real breakthrough in handheld video game entertainment."

Here's Amazon.co.uk's top five most pre-ordered consoles/gaming hardware of all-time list:

  • Nintendo 3DS – launching 25th March 2011
  • PlayStation 3 – launched March 2007
  • Nintendo Wii – launched December 2006
  • Microsoft Kinect – launched November 2010
  • PlayStation Move – launched September 2010

Retailers have told Eurogamer the UK should have enough 3DS launch stock to go around - but GAME warned that if excitement builds then sell-outs are a real possibility.

Around 185,000 3DS handhelds are being allocated to the UK, which seems to be the most generous slice in Europe.

Amazon.co.uk has now dropped the Nintendo 3DS price to £187 - matching supermarket Morrisons.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (29) Latest comment 1 year ago

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

  • Prime #1 1 year ago

    Happy Paddys day everyone =D

  • wizlon #2 1 year ago

    I remember on the DS launch that if you didn't preorder a game then it was impossible to just pick it up in store, the only games they had were the really, really, REALLY shit ones so unless you want to pick up Asphalt 3D out of desperation then pre-order your games now. Saying that, my most anticipated game on launch are the AR games that come with the system.

  • RobotRocker #3 1 year ago

    itprintsevenmoremoney.gif

  • Gearskin #4 1 year ago

    Go Japan! This is why their economy will survive the quake. Games. And porn.

  • paulf #5 1 year ago

    remember kids iphone is killing the dedicated handheld (or not)

  • arcam #6 1 year ago

    Can anyone remember the last time a piece of games hardware was released that didn't break records like this?

    *edit: Oh right, PSP GO, yeah.
    Edited by arcam at 17/03/11 @ 13:27

  • TheEarlOfZinger #7 1 year ago

    Handheld console gaming is dying...isn't it?! pffft

    I don't want one until June onwards, so hopefully there will be more by then.
    Edited by TheEarlOfZinger at 17/03/11 @ 13:35

  • Toothball #8 1 year ago

    My 3DS should be on that list. The price cut is certainly welcome too.

  • Stop-gap #9 1 year ago

    How can this be when it's not a smartphone? Mind = blown.


    In all seriousness though, I wouldn't have expected quite such a strong early endorsement. I guess there really is interest in 3D as long as you don't have to wear glasses.

  • TipTop #10 1 year ago

    Current Preorder has gone ShopTo >> Game >> Amazon. Where next?

  • Cataferal #11 1 year ago

    Tesco maybe? They sell it for £189 with absolutely any game, including Pilotwings, SSFIV and Ridge Racer. That's if you use the "3DSPreorder-1" code at checkout, and with £18 cashback via Quidco.

    You also lose a little bit of your soul too. But anything to save a few quid.

  • joelstinton #12 1 year ago

    @stop gap. Also the success of the DS in itself, its no different from upgrading from a ps2-3, xbox- 360 for a lot of people. Combine this with the excellent back catalouge of DS games, its bound to be a winner. Perfect for ds owners, and good for non ds owners looking to get in on the action.

  • Cataferal #13 1 year ago

    Kinect holds the current record for fastest selling electronics device of all time, but i wonder if it'll be usurped after just 5 months on the throne by the 3DS.

  • MavSkipper #14 1 year ago

    The majority of those buyers will be wondering why their R4 cards(or similar) aren't working.

  • MoGamer2006 #15 1 year ago

    @Cataferal

    That's sold to stores, not consumers. I know anecdotal evidence is no evidence, but does anyone really buy into the Kinect success story? I don't know anyone who plays it or even hear people going on about it, certainly not to the same extent there was buzz around, say, the Wii when it launched.

  • AceGrace #16 1 year ago

    But what are the preorder numbers, 55?

    Smells of prerelease hype to me.

  • Ror1984 #17 1 year ago

    Well I decided to pay for my pre-order a couple of weeks ago, so if that doesn't automaticaly guarantee me one, heads will roll. In auto-stereoscopic three-dee

  • EARTHBOUND1990 #18 1 year ago

    The hypes pulling me in. Should I get one? Do I need one?
    I have a stack of games to get through already...oh no!

  • Dr_Z #19 1 year ago

    I would imagine that with the recent price cut, this will only increase further in the next week?
    It's amazing the psychological effect a £10 saving can have on some people...that and the previous £30 probably helped too.
    surely this is getting to a price point now, where even the initial value skeptics are starting to reconsider?

  • L0cky #20 1 year ago

    None of this really means much.

    All of the console producers know they have to be 'the biggest selling launch of all time'. This generates buzz that the product is in high demand.

    Because of this, they plan their launch around manufacturing to ensure that they launch when they have just enough units to meet that target; no less. Retail then stop their preorders when their allotment has been fulfilled.

    That means we'll never know the real demand. It could be ten times more; a hundred times more; or only 5 units more than what they shipped.

    If they don't meet that target; or if you can pick up a unit midway through launch week without a preorder, then you know it isn't selling well. Otherwise you only know the minimum demand.

  • Dr_Z #21 1 year ago

    @cataferal: surely the ipad 2 has blitzed anything released in the last 10 years?
    can't see the allure myself, but this isn't the place

  • Epcotman #22 1 year ago

    Can't wait. Moved my pre order from Shopto to Tesco. Their any game for £10 deal was too good. But for that I do lose the peace of mind that it will actually turn up on the 25th. Gulp...

  • wizlon #23 1 year ago

    @Epcotman: I'm absolutely shitting myself that it won't arrive on time, very sad I know but when I'm shelling out 200 bones on something I expect it prompt. Still, that tesco offer was far too good to refuse.

  • geeza2020 #24 1 year ago

    good luck to everyone trying to get hold of one of these. Its gonna be crazy hard to get one. Luckily for me, I'm far too scared of having something shiny and new like a 3DS nicked while on a commute to rape my wallet of £189 or whatever it is the kids are paying these days. I'll entertain myself on the train with memories my old gameboy colour......

    edit: negged eh? I really dont understand the people that use this website.
    Edited by geeza2020 at 17/03/11 @ 16:52

  • Cataferal #25 1 year ago

    @MoGamer2006 - Me neither. I keep hearing of these legendary, mythical Kinect owners, but have yet to meet one. Much less one who's 100% satisfied with the game line-up.

    @EARTHBOUND1990 - I'm personally determined to hold off. The hype hurricane is in full force right now, which makes this week the biggest test of any enthusiast gamer's will-power. If you go down to a local HMV or Gamestation, having a fiddle with a demo unit helps take the bite off its "novelty gadget" appeal, and you realise the pre-installed software probably won't hold your attention for more than an hour.

    That puts you at the mercy of the quality of the launch titles, and poses the question: do you really need to pay £200~ to play a portable version of Ridge Racer or SSFIV? It may very well be that you value those franchises enough to want them present at all times on your commute, but for me, the answer is no. I'm pretty sure my patience will pay off by Christmas.

  • Whitster #26 1 year ago

    I put my £10 down the instant they announced the launch date, I damn well better get mine.

  • Epcotman #27 1 year ago

    @wizlon Ha! I know what you mean. Wouldn't surprise me if Tesco tell us the day before that they don't have enough stock! Let's think positive thoughts like those superstitious half wits on Deal or no Deal.

  • BonzoBanana #28 1 year ago

    If its the most pre-ordered console and destined to be in short supply why cut the price? Surely if demand is so great they would still sell at £230. I don't understand the demand myself but if the demand is there why cut your own throat by discounting heavily?

    Personally I suspect there will be signficant returns when people get bored of it within a few days anyway. There's got to be at least 5-10% who are going to see past the hype in a few days of using it and realise its pretty limited for gaming.

  • Schwabing #29 1 year ago

    "the ground-breaking Nintendo Wii and last year's Microsoft Kinect"

    Clear Nintendo bias in this article!

    Shock! Outrage! Dismay! etc.