Nintendo fears 3DS price cut backlash

By Tom Phillips Published 28 July, 2011

Worried fans "may lose trust".

Nintendo has acknowledged fans "may lose trust" in the company due to the unprecedented nature of its announced 3DS price cut.

The drop in sale price will see a third sliced off the 3DS' European price. It takes place 12th August, less than five months after the console launched.

"Never in Nintendo's history have we dropped a system's trade price so significantly," the company conceded.

"We are aware this may cause you, the loyal fans who supported Nintendo 3DS from the beginning, to lose trust in us, and this is not our intention in any way."

Nintendo attempted to pre-empt fan backlash by announcing a robust set of rewards for "Nintendo 3DS Ambassadors", or early adopters who bought the 3DS pre-price drop.

Addressing its Ambassadors, Nintendo admitted that "although we may not be able to completely prevent you from regretting purchasing Nintendo 3DS early, we would like to express our gratitude to our special customers like you".

The Ambassador program grants gamers 10 exclusive Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games for free, including Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, WarioWare, Inc.: Minigame Mania and Mario vs. Donkey Kong. All ten will be released by the end of 2011.

That's on top of 10 free NES Virtual Console games, available before the general public get their hands on them, starting 1st September. The list features classics such as Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Jr., Balloon Fight, Ice Climber and The Legend of Zelda.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Phillips

Tom joined Eurogamer in 2010 and has quickly made his mark writing news and columns and coming up with puntastic straplines. Questionable beard. @TomPhillips151 on Twitter.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Phillips archive page.

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Comments (115) Latest comment 9 months ago

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

  • gandhimaster #1 10 months ago

    so if i buy one today, i could claim all those free games???

  • Jonny5Alive7 #2 10 months ago

    The price drop does seem quite desperate so early into a console's life cycle. Its the correct decision though really, that compensation for early adopters is pretty decent too.

  • speedjack #3 10 months ago

    Speaking as an early adopter I'm happy with the payback.

    Seems fair.

  • MiniAmin #4 10 months ago

    Fans lost trust when you sold Rare, and then when you released the Wii.

    / joking

    On a serious note, I think it's a good move, i'm more likely to buy one now, I think it would've been suicide to maintain its initial price with the PS Vita coming out later this year alongside a stellar launch line-up.

  • wizlon #5 10 months ago

    I'm completely fine with it, lower price means more 3DS's in the wild which means more publisher interest which means more original games, which is what everyone wants. That and they are making up with 20 classic games, and by the look of it it's a selection of Nintendo's A game. If only they would give us Ninja 5-0 on the GBA.

  • Crazyreyn #6 10 months ago

    @gandhimaster Yep, until August 12. And at £169 at Amazon you'll most probably be quids in, too.

  • tajd #7 10 months ago

    im so pissed off right now i bought 2 at lanuch for me aqnd my little brother

  • J.C #8 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid over £200 for the machine in may for my birthday.

  • bobiroka #9 10 months ago

    Unprecedented for Nintendo maybe. It didn't do M$ any harm when they dropped the price of the original Xbox.

    It's their own fault for thinking their glasses-free 3D would be enough to sell the thing. And the fact that the only decent game is a remake of an ancient (albeit classic) game doesn't really help.

    Uncharted on PSVita though.... now that's a company talking my language...

  • GingerNathan #10 10 months ago

    I fail to see why any of this isn't in a single article regarding the price cut.

    Oh and bravo on the title, very trash Tabloidesq! :/

  • J.C #11 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid over £200 for the machine in may for my birthday.

  • justMe #12 10 months ago

    Those games are an amazing value!

    Great unexpected treat, it will turn my 3DS into the perfect portable Nintendo gaming machine!

  • Razz #13 10 months ago

    Yeah man, Wipeout and Everybodys Golf look amazing on the Vita also

  • sfp_noodle #14 10 months ago

    Who is honestly surprised by this? Poor sales due to the initital high price and software which just consists of ports and 3D-makes. It doesn't matter if those ports are of good games or not, consumers are reluctant to pay for the same games twice especially when it's on a handheld at the same price of a console game. It's not like the HD collections released on home consoles which have at least 2 or 3 games on the disc and cost £18-25.

    Plus ports and remakes should be in ADDITION to NEW software on a new console. They shouldn't be the bread and butter. No-ones going to buy a console which costs upto £200 strictly to play games they played 15 years ago with some gimicky 3D tacked on. Nintendo's ignorance of their audience and arrogance due to the double success of the original DS and Wii put them in this position.

    This price drop is designed to address 3 issues. First, it was priced way too high WORLDWIDE, not just in the UK. It's now priced how it should have been all along. Secondly, and your truely gullible if you don't expect this, but Ninty wants to get rid of the dead wood before a hardware revision is launched sometime next year. Thirdly, and perhaps crucially, the price-point, software and all-round positive reception surrounding the Vita has got Ninty scared and on their toes.

    For the first time there is a real threat to their handheld business. The original PSP did very well to steal a chunk of marketshare from Ninty, but even then it did just under half the numbers of the DS. This time there's a far greater difference in power and a much smaller difference in price. Plus the Vita brings the big guns on DAY 1. Software ultimately sells hardware and the Vita has titles covered for every genre from the get go. None of them are ports or re-makes. It's going to be very interesting seeing the two battle it out this Christmas. (Providing Sony launch the Vita in time that is!)

  • arcam #15 10 months ago

    What other companies offer early buyers compensation when their products drop in price? I think Nintendo have handled themselves very well here.

  • Spooke #16 10 months ago

    They just need to get some friggin games out!

  • P1GEONPOO #17 10 months ago

    If they had a much stronger launch line up I dont think they would have needed to do this.
    EDIT. Also, I feel sorry for people who have bought one say yesterday or day before or even this morning for that matter.
    Edited by P1GEONPOO at 28/07/11 @ 11:49

  • gamefan #18 10 months ago

    "Never in Nintendo's history have we dropped a system's trade price so significantly,"

    they seem to have forgot about the N64 - in UK at least went from £249 to £149 VERY quickly after launch. At least this time their is a decent compensation package.

  • Kami #19 10 months ago

    Seems so ghandimaster.

    As for the backlash - Nintendo genuinely cannot win with this; People moaned it was too expensive. Price drops? Complaining it's a sign of weakness. Not enough VC/GBA games - get announced? Not good enough/enough.

    There's a real sense that people WANT this to fail - they want Nintendo to suffer, and this is something that has been going through the internet for several years now, even before the Wii. And Nintendo always prove people wrong, and then the next console we start the cycle all over again, kicking it as hard as possible to justify our opinion that Nintendo "Isn't for us".

    The hilarious thing is - this is going to do what Nintendo want, and scare Sony instead. If they can sell it at that price, half the Vita price, and do some good bundles in the future (Mario Kart 3DS Bundle for Xmas will see a LOT of sales), the 3DS will sell a lot more.

    It's just funny. The hate Nintendo get is totally uncalled for half the time - because no matter what they do, the complainers won't change their opinion - and if what they want is 3rd party Nintendo on Sony - Nintendo first party games tend to outsell a lot of other exclusives. The last thing EA, Ubisoft, Activision et al will want is Nintendo as a fully games-related company... they'll dominate the software instead.

    And you can bet your ass people will still moan at that. C'est la vie.

  • Porcupine_I #20 10 months ago

    the ten free games scheme surely worked for the PSPGo!

  • BBIAJ #21 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid over £200 for the machine in may for my birthday

  • joelstinton #22 10 months ago

    The right decision (Even though i am a 3DS owner), although maybe a massive over- reaction to solid sales figures. Its not as though the machine as only sold a couple hundred thousand. I think Nintendo are caught between two markets and not sure about how to mould them into one. The machine launched 6 months to early, but this time next year, the games will be more frequent, and hopefully the over zealous commenting, and tabloid headines will be put to bed.

  • TeeHee #23 10 months ago

    If you buy ANYTHING on launch day then you are probably insane.
    Edited by TeeHee at 28/07/11 @ 11:50

  • StolenGlory #24 10 months ago

    I don't think they have anything to worry about. They made a price cut and squared up with the early adopters by giving them a crapton of games for free.

    Being an early adopter, i'm quite happy with Nintendo right now if i'm honest.

  • abigsmurf #25 10 months ago

    An early price drop is never a good sign. However it was desperately needed. The console simply doeesn't provide good value for money at the currently price.

    The fear Nintendo will have now is that they don't repeat the Gamecube where the very heavy, fast price cuts seems to give people the impression that it was cheap because it was low quality and toyish.

    Ultimately though, the console needs games. Poor launch line up and not a great wealth of titles until late autumn/winter.

  • 5lectro #26 10 months ago

    I wish people would stop saying the 3DS is on its last legs... does anyone remember how crap the original DS launch was?

    We all know how that turned out.

  • wizlon #27 10 months ago

    How do I get the free games? I paid over £200 for my Missus in may for my birthday.

  • pinhead #28 10 months ago

    i wish they would just release some decent software for the device! Mariokart and supermario NOW! Mine has been collecting dust since near launch.

  • scouserfuller9 #29 10 months ago

    I'm quite happy with the offering of these games :-) After all, think how much they'd have cost to download!

  • MiniAmin #30 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid over 20, 000 yen for the machine in may for my birthday.

  • JayG #31 10 months ago

    To register for this programme, Nintendo 3DS owners need to connect to the Nintendo eShop before the 12th of August.

    The free software will then be made available at a later stage.

    from the other article. Course as usual I'll prob get this is not available in your area.

  • Schmoke-n-a-pancake #32 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus sold her virginity on ebay to buy me the machine in may for my birthday.

  • X201 #33 10 months ago

    "The Ambassador program grants gamers 10 exclusive Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games for free, including Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, WarioWare, Inc.: Minigame Mania and Mario vs. Donkey Kong. All ten will be released by the end of 2011. "

    Can I have a box of Ferrero Rocher instead?

  • Ryze #34 10 months ago

    One thing that I believe Sony has done INCREDIBLY well, is that they've designed Vita to allow the easy porting of content from the PS3. If this has been done as effectively as they state, then we can expect a ton of content to come along really quickly, and hopefully it'll all be different enough to warrant a purchase of both games, or will sometimes come as a value-added bonus with the PS3 version.

    This could really be a shot in the arm for them, along with full PSP compatibility. I KNOW I'd be interested in grabbing a few PSP games for a Vita, once the price is right.

    edit@X201

    Eccellente.
    Edited by Ryze at 28/07/11 @ 12:00

  • TonyHarrison #35 10 months ago

    @sfp_noodle "This time there's a far greater difference in power and a much smaller difference in price."

    The PSP and DS were £100 apart. The 3DS and PSV are already around £50 apart. If this 3DS price cut is as big as suggested, it's going to be a gap of around £100 again with the base Vita model sat at £230.

  • Sabreman64 #36 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid over £200 for the machine in may for my birthday.

  • CallousB #37 10 months ago

    I'd have prefered £50 in credit to spend in the eshop (or free copies of Mario Kart 7 and Super Mario 3D Land :-P)..but it's not a bad offer.

    I never owned an NES (and didn't buy any NES virtual console games) and only bought 3 GBA games (mainly due to being an early adopter who bought the borderline unplayable non backlit GBA...now that was a shitty bit of hardware)....so most of the announced freebies are looking pretty damn good.

  • superstu1337 #38 10 months ago

    With the 3DS failing and the Wii U causing stock to drop on its announcement, I honestly don't see Nintendo lasting another 5 years. At least not with hardware. 3DS has a total lack of any games worth buying, 3D is a bubble already about to burst and the price was horrendous. The Wii U will be totally blown out of the water by the Xbox 3 and PS4 leaving Nintendo back where they are now with the Wii. The downward sprial is only just beginning.

  • slippysloppy #39 10 months ago

    As an owner since launch it's clear the biggest problem for Nintendo is people don't appreciate the 3D screen until they see it, and many wrongly assume it's a standard DS with a 3D screen. The new advertising campaign clearly shows this is the case, focusing heavily on the "power" of the console and doesn't even mention its 3D aspects.

    The release of Zelda, a price drop, improved advertising campaign and a Mario game or 2 could be exactly what the 3DS needs if it's to compete with the iPhone, its 69p apps and the looming PS RyVita.

  • TeeHee #40 10 months ago

    @X201

    Oh Mr Ambassador, with these free games you are spoiling us!

  • Spooke #41 10 months ago

    let's be honest, they aren't compensating us, they are giving us old games. If they were actually compensating us they would give us vouchers to choose new games, but that would cost them money where as this is a virtually free way to pretend they are giving something back.

  • ryandsimmons #42 10 months ago

    What a load of shit. As least PSPGo owners got some actual decent games that aren't from fucking old consoles.

  • kinky_mong #43 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid over £200 for the machine in may for my birthday, instead of that course for simple Google skills.

  • MARKIV #44 10 months ago

    The same thing happened with the N64, I remember getting a free joypad as recompense. I must admit I'm not happy with what their offering this time. They should either offer a free full priced game or 2. Or at least the 6 3D classic games that are coming out, Xevious etc etc.
    Edited by MARKIV at 28/07/11 @ 16:32

  • Monkey_Puncher #45 10 months ago

    I'd be more worried about the future of the handheld to be honest. There's barely any software available right now, and other than 1st party titles, there doesn't seem to be much to get excited for in the future :/

  • sfp_noodle #46 10 months ago

    @TonyHarrison

    "The 3DS and PSV are already around £50 apart. If this 3DS price cut is as big as suggested, it's going to be a gap of around £100 again with the base Vita model sat at £230."

    The Vita price hasn't officially been confirmed yet but it'll be £200-230 with at least one game thrown in. Also, if you must make comparisons then last gen Ninty had all the software. It's the other way round this time. Sony has all the big names and you don't have to wait around for them either. The Gamecube was at least £100 cheaper than the PS2 at launch, but that didn't do it any favours did it? The GC also had very good software yet still couldn't compete. This time they don't have that. The Vita's launch line-up alone will equal the 3DS' total software line-up to date. That's not good for Nintendo.

  • kinky_mong #47 10 months ago

    @Spooke: Considering the current line up of 3DS games I'd much rather have the GBA games which are all absolute classics. But then I already have them on the GBA carts which luckily still work with my DS.

  • Vanmunt #48 10 months ago

    still don't want one.. gave my DS away, and haven't missed it one bit.

  • Ryze #49 10 months ago

    @MARKIV

    But you fantards are the only ones who'll buy that stuff! Why would they give it you for free?

    /runs

    I jest!

  • ZizouFC #50 10 months ago

    how do i get the free sex-games? I paid over £200 for a missus in may for my birthday.

  • CHAZBIGPOTATO #51 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus killed me and danced on my grave for the machine in may.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #52 10 months ago

    Why the price cut won't work:

    [link url=http://wosblog.podgamer.com/2011/07/28/panic-on-the-streets-of-kyoto/
    ]http://wosblog.podgamer.com/2011/07/28/p...[/link]

    Unleash the neg frenzy!

  • chrisjm #53 10 months ago

    How do I get the free games? My cheryl cole shrine used £200 from my credit card and bought me a 3DS for my birthday.

  • 32768Colours #54 10 months ago

    Perhaps this will serve as a painful lesson for when they release the Wii U, and ensure that that they release it with at least one or two AAA titles.

    Had they released the 3DS with a brand new Mario game, and drip fed big 1st party titles each month for the first 6 months, you can guarantee the console would've sold better, and they wouldn't have needed to make such a huge price cut.

    But then Nintendo have always been terrible for releasing games in a timely fashion, and in Europe particularly, we've always had to wait ages for the good stuff, if we even get some of it at all!

  • Sonic_D #55 10 months ago

    Well you should have priced it sensibly at launch to avoid this scenario. I wanted one, but was not going to pay the launch price, especially without any stand out games available for it.

  • Thunderbolt #56 10 months ago

    It's not the vita that's the threat its the iphone

  • vtl #57 10 months ago

    By the way how do I get the free games since your missus bought it for my birthday in May. Sorry I meant how do I get the games.In May.On the free missus.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #58 10 months ago

    'It's not the vita that's the threat its the iphone"

    Actually it's both. The 3DS is going to be squeezed from both ends, which isn't as much fun as it sounds. The Vita will hoover up the self-styled "hardcore" with its big screen and dual analogue sticks, while the "casual" market the DS served so well has long since headed for the 69p pastures of the App Store rather than being fleeced for £40 for ports of old N64 games.

  • Daeltaja #59 10 months ago

    Wow, ok.. So the chinks are beginning to show in Nintendo's armour? The 3DS has been selling way below expectations and it's easy to see why. Too expensive at launch, rubbish games bar a remake and 3D that nobody really wants. The casual market don't want to have anything to do with it at the moment. The casual market are fickle. They've turned to 69p apps for their gaming fixes. €40 3DS games? Lol.

    The price drop might remedy this, but it won't be anywhere near a success as previous iterations. We'll be back to square one then, third party publishers won't put titles out for it and all we'll have is shovelware and the odd Ninty game to look forward to.

    With this and the Vita, (Fantastic kit, but won't garner the necessary support from third parties, again) we might be on the last round of dedicated portable gaming devices.

    I can see a similar fate for the Wii U. Casual market have had their fill with Wii, they won't be so quick on the uptake with another similarly gimmicky console, especially when the large majority have dusty Wii's lying around the TV.

    I still don't want one - there is just no incentive whatsoever. A brand new Zelda game might have swayed me, but we'll be waiting until at least next Christmas for that. Mario and Mario Kart don't do enough for me anymore. Nor do N64 remakes.

    We have an interesting year ahead, at least.
    Edited by Daeltaja at 28/07/11 @ 12:49

  • Schmoke-n-a-pancake #60 10 months ago

    @Thunderbolt!

    Bingo!

    It's getting really tedious reading threads where people think the "failure" of the 3DS will directly correlate to the "success" of the Vita.

    It simply doesn't work like that.

    They are not only up against similar products like the iPhone and iPad, but also the home consoles, all other forms of entertainment, clothes, food, putting petrol in your car and paying your rent or mortgage.

    Even if the 3DS sinks, the Vita has a hell of fight on its hands to convince people its worth investing in. It's got the exact same marketing pitch as the original PSP had.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #61 10 months ago

    "It's getting really tedious reading threads where people think the "failure" of the 3DS will directly correlate to the "success" of the Vita.

    It simply doesn't work like that."

    I agree that there's no direct correlation, but I have a suspicion the Vita is going to do pretty well. Remember, despite every conceivable handicap the PSP sold a fuckton of machines, and only looks like a failure beside the astonishing DS. The formula of a handheld that appeals to the hardcore console crowd is a viable one, especially with twin analogues and a touchscreen and easy online functionality.

    If it's true that the hardware is going to make it pretty easy to port PS3 titles, I can easily see the PSV carving itself a pretty successful niche, and a lack of serious competition from the 3DS certainly won't do it any harm.

  • Gaol #62 10 months ago

    "By the end of 2011, Nintendo will provide Ambassadors with 10 Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games... These games will be available exclusively to Ambassadors, and Nintendo currently has no plans to make these 10 games available to the general public on Nintendo 3DS in the future."

    Why would you bother converting some of the best GBA games and then not release them to the general public? I'll be getting them free and think it's great recompense - Fusion and Super Circuit are both excellent - but I have no desire that they be exclusive to early adopters. If they have this lot ready for release, why are we getting just ancient monochrome GB titles every week? Put the things up for sale!

  • StolenGlory #63 10 months ago

    "The Vita price hasn't officially been confirmed yet but it'll be £200-230 with at least one game thrown in."

    Um, yes it has.

    £229.99 for the Wifi only SKU and £279.99 for the Wifi+3G SKU with some variation between £10-£20 depending on where you look.

    Given the pricepoint too, if there was going to be a free game, it would likely be whatever 'me-too' tat of the week Ubisoft decide to come up with anyway.
    Edited by StolenGlory at 28/07/11 @ 13:15

  • Schmoke-n-a-pancake #64 10 months ago

    @Rev. Stuart Campbell

    Certainly boils down to what the barometer for "success" is. Some people's success will be making a profit, others will be attaining market leadership, and others will consider success to be critical acclaim.

    I personally like the look of the PSVita. It has games I will play. I also like the 3DS. It has games I play.

    How wide a market the Vita's games will resonate with is still a wide open question to be answered in my opinion. We'll only know when it's out there on the market.

    To reiterate my original point, I simply don't think the futures of the 3DS and Vita are anywhere near as intertwined as a lot of others here seem to pertain.




  • Dizzy #65 10 months ago

    Tbh region locking killed it for me. Sorry Nintendo.. I wanted to buy your product.

  • ubergine #66 10 months ago

    Insultingly high price to begin with.

  • BOFH_UK #67 10 months ago

    To those who say the sales figures are okay, drop the first five or so weeks of sales out of the equation. That was the usual built-up demand from, well, the same loyal fans Nintendo mention here as they rush to buy it. They may indeed have shipped 3.6 million in that period but those sales are a distant memory right now as they sold just 710,000 between April and June. That's a pretty drastic drop-off by Nintendo's standards.

    As for the timing of the price drop while I'm sure the Vita (and current poor sales) is a factor I can't help but wonder if Nintendo are casting nervous looks at the iOS / Android / WP7 mobile gaming market. Yes, I know, suggesting that there's competition between the traditional consoles and mobile phones is a tad unpopular round these parts but I genuinely think that competition DOES exist, especially in Nintendo's case. They've built up a huge following in the last few years but are more dependent than Sony or Microsoft for the 'casual' gamers. If that market shifts to other platforms (and there's a lot of indications that this may indeed be happening) it could be a big problem for Nintendo.

  • CaptainTrips #68 10 months ago

    They are giving me the greatest 2D platformer ever made (Yoshi's Island) for free? I forgive them.

  • Toothball #69 10 months ago

    "Never in Nintendo's history have we dropped a system's trade price so significantly," the company conceded.

    What about when the N64 went from £250 to £150 within three months of launch?

    Edit: Oh, beaten to it a couple of times.
    Edited by Toothball at 28/07/11 @ 13:38

  • Geordiemp #70 10 months ago

    Its not just the 3DS console price that is hard to swallow, its the full £ 30 £ 40 for re-hash games that people have already played.

    The VITA will be able to play PS2 games without breaking into 2nd gear, now that is a back catalogue, and I bet they will be reasonably priced as well.

  • rudedudejude #71 10 months ago

    Make some decent game ninty and people will buy the thing!

  • Nanakai #72 10 months ago

    That's definitely worth it to me. Game Boy games on the 3DS shop are £3 and above. So let's say 5 of those - £15. If Game Boy are that much, then GBA games will probably be £8 and above. So let's say 5 of those - £40. Then 10 NES games, let's say they're £3 aswell - that's £30. So we'll be getting about £80 worth of games (at rip off Nintendo Shop prices).

    I paid £170 for my 3DS, and they're still £190. Even if stores go as low as £130 (which they won't), I definitely didn't lose out on anything, and neither will someone who buys it at todays RRP.

    However, I definitely won't be buying a Wii U at launch after this.

  • retr0gamer #73 10 months ago

    It's the N64 all over again!

  • Rodster #74 10 months ago

    I don't see the big deal. Ninty thought they were on a roll and ripped a page out of the Sony PS3 playbook thinking people will buy it if it's from Nintendo. Lesson learned and at least they are not as arrogant to think people will buy it at an inflated price. So they are dropping the price from $249 to $169 and if you bought it prior to the price drop they are giving you 20 free games.

    I'm definitely buying one when the price drops along with Zelda 3D. I just wish there were other colors to choose from. :/

  • septimus #75 10 months ago

    Thing is, why would you want any of these free games? A couple of gems but that is it.

  • StolenGlory #76 10 months ago

    "Thing is, why would you want any of these free games? A couple of gems but that is it."

    Because different people have different tastes?

  • Schmoke-n-a-pancake #77 10 months ago

    @septimus

    You've answered your own question.

  • Bigmac1910 #78 10 months ago

    The price on new releases must come down, (£40 in retail) is the same as for the big consoles, it's just too much for a handheld game.

  • Sabreman64 #79 10 months ago

    Don't worry, Nintendo, your fanboys won't lose trust in you. Your fanboys won't mind that they were ripped off by buying a 3DS at launch. And they won't mind that all the games you're giving them as compensation they already own anyway since they are, you know, fanboys.

  • Rufus #80 10 months ago

    "Never in Nintendo's history have we dropped a system's trade price so significantly," the company conceded.

    I bought the N64 the day it came out at Nintendo's RRP of £250. Two months later (on my birthday I might add) Nintendo dropped the price to £150.

    So yeah, they have dropped a systems trade price that significantly before.

  • cowell #81 10 months ago

    "The Ambassador program grants gamers 10 exclusive Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games for free, including Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, WarioWare, Inc.: Minigame Mania and Mario vs. Donkey Kong. All ten will be released by the end of 2011."

    From [link url=http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/game-boy-games-exclusive-to-3ds-ambassadors/082522
    ]http://www.mcvuk.com/news/read/game-boy-...[/link]
    "Interestingly, Nintendo reckons all these titles will be available exclusively to Ambassadors and that it has “no plans” to make them available to the general public."

    Albeit that its available on historical consoles, Nintendo is making this stuff exclusive to us early adopters. Not only free but exclusive. Hats off to Nintendo. Personally I think they're going above and beyond the call here.

  • Showmeyomoves #82 10 months ago

    I'm just looking forward to having more people to StreetPass with.

  • Scopeh #83 10 months ago

    Well at least i know what im getting my little sister for her B'day at the end of August. Price cut couldnt have come at a better time.

  • WinterSnowblind #84 10 months ago

    Bought mine day 1 (for £170) and I'm very happy with the free games. Far better than what Sony were offering us on the Welcome Back package, which was nothing but very old games that all had sequels coming out in the very close future (yes these are even older games, but classics and ones that aren't available by other means yet)

  • playgen #85 10 months ago

    I think it would be better if they gave you a REAL game, and not just some ROMS that you have to download yourself. Hell a GBA collection on a fully packaged 3DS cart would have been very cool - and a collectors piece if it only went to the early adopters.

    Basically this is a cheap way for them to get out of bad publicity and keep gamers on side. The previously mentioned free controller the N64 price drop gave, and the original Xbox free controller AND games when it dropped are more like it.

    And the Gamecube dropped in price a lot too quite early on in its life, that's the only thing that saved it as retailers were on the verge of ditching it completely.

  • Gaol #86 10 months ago

    @cowell

    Why does it being exclusive to early adopters excite you? I said exactly the opposite further up - if it's available for us, then future customers should be able to buy it. There is nothing to be gained by preventing later adopters access to the same content, especially when the currently available stuff pales in comparison.

    It shows up Nintendo's online strategy tbh, they would be better releasing GBA and GBC stuff faster and at more competitive prices - they should reinvest some of their massive profits of recent years in improving the online aspect of their business.

  • Raiko101 #87 10 months ago

    I don't give two craps about which consoles succeed or fail, just as long as there are a good number of games for sale, for the console I buy, that I enjoy. The 20 free games will go a long way to aiding that goal. Especially with the likes Metroid Fusion, which i've never had the pleasure to play through! Throw in Zero Mission and I couldn't care less what the other 18 games are. I'll be a happy chappy!

  • el_pollo_diablo #88 10 months ago

    Idea for Nintendo:

    Release some games, then release a 3DS R4, then watch people buy your machine.

  • dunbain #89 10 months ago

    @el_pollo_diablo

    Despicable. You are an embarrassment to gaming.

  • Rack #90 10 months ago

    Wow, 20 old roms. My cup runneth over.

  • plastickitty #91 10 months ago

    "Never in Nintendo's history have we dropped a system's trade price so significantly," the company conceded.

    Erm I distinctly remember the N64 dropping by £100 after a couple of months from release.

  • gm_al #92 10 months ago

    Its the last gen for portable game machines. Just live with it.

    In the age of quadcore smartphones with games for a few bucks it is going to drive whatever PSPs and NDSs you throw at the market into the trashcan of history.

    And it isnt helping that big N just keeps refreshing the same old brands over and over and over and over again. Mario *Insertanynameornumberhere* - yawn....

  • el_pollo_diablo #93 10 months ago

    @dunbain

    I was joking you complete prannet.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #94 10 months ago

    "I was joking you complete prannet."

    Many a true word spoken in jest, however.

  • cawley1 #95 10 months ago

    @"I was joking you complete prannet."

    This comment is actually spot on, though - PSone and DS certainly benefitted in terms of both being piss easy to mod/flashcart, hence loads of hardware sales as everyone started playing copied games (as with the 8-Bits and 16-Bits back in the 80's with TDK90's and floppy swapping).

    While everyone bangs on about how piracy is a terrible thing, I don't remember a lack of games or the market dying early on Speccy/C64/Amstrad/ST/Amiga and then PSone or DS!*

    If an R4 turned up for 3DS tomorrow, I reckon a fair few would sell based on the chance of getting games for free...

    *And I say this as a guy with literally hundreds of retail bought games in my collection...
    Edited by cawley1 at 28/07/11 @ 16:12

  • cowell #96 10 months ago

    I've said this before and I'll say it again. R4 will sell more consoles, but it'd be a completely short termist approach and would ultimately do more harm than good. Yes, Nintendo would sell a shed load of consoles, but there's next to no profit in the sale of consoles for Nintendo. Do you think 3rd parties would be very happy if it happened? I'd say not and its in N's interest to keep EA, Activision et al as sweet as possible. Previous Nintendo platforms have suffered or failed because of weak 3rd party support.

    From my experience, Nintendo makes more from the sale of 2 3rd party games than it does from one console. They have every reason to protect their platform from piracy. Similar story for retail
    Edited by cowell at 28/07/11 @ 16:23

  • zztopp #97 10 months ago


    Sony started these price wars by deciding to sell the Vita at a loss. I bet Nintendo is still making a profit on the 3DS at this price. Its a win win for consumers !

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #98 10 months ago

    "R4 will sell more consoles, but it'd be a completely short termist approach and would ultimately do more harm than good. Yes, Nintendo would sell a shed load of consoles, but there's next to no profit in the sale of consoles for Nintendo."

    Yeah, because Nintendo made no money at all from the vastly-pirated DS...

  • Chickenflange #99 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Miss US paid over $200 for the machine in may for my birthday.

  • jonsaan #100 10 months ago

    Ooh nice news on the free games. How do I prove I am early adopter.

  • cowell #101 10 months ago

    @rev Stuart

    Nintendo made alot of revenue from DS. Not alot of profit.

    Profit lies in it's own first party software sales and in the licence paid by third parties.

  • martmart #102 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus repaid me with sexual favours when I spent less than £200 in may for her birthday

  • MrVengeance #103 10 months ago

    An amazing deal for all concerned it has to be said.

    I got my 3DS at a knock-down price in HMV a few months back, and absolutely adore it. My only problem with the proposed line-up of GBA games is I already have the whole lot pretty much! And as a collector, I'd rather boxed games than virtual ones, but hey, they're free so there's no point in complaining.... Its pretty cool having the games physical and digital in fairness...

  • silversun #104 10 months ago

    Was going say would not be to upset about it but nintendo are going beyond whats required , kinda like what sony did.
    So thank you nintendo, nintendo europe atm is really great, sorry usa fans.

    On another note why are nintendo not doing a brain training or similar type game that uses the 3d effect , that would get a few more people to buy it.
    Edited by silversun at 28/07/11 @ 19:38

  • scouserfuller9 #105 10 months ago

    Alot of people think it's failed because of it's lack of games with is true however I think what has put many people off it is the fact they see it as a DSi with 3D graphics. After all the name 3DS doesn't make it sound much of an advanced hand held console does it? Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 will help but Nintendo needs to show it's more than just a 3D console.

  • gjgjg #106 10 months ago

    well its made me decide to get one!

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #107 10 months ago

    "Nintendo made alot of revenue from DS. Not alot of profit."

    Okay, I don't normally correct grammar on the internet - it'd be like trying to mop up the ocean with kitchen towels - but "a lot" is TWO SEPARATE FUCKING WORDS and it's one of the most annoying things illiterate people do.

    And secondly, Nintendo made mindbogglingly vast amounts of profit in the period the DS was selling. Where do you think it all came from, a lemonade stand in the head-office car park? Sober up.

  • el_pollo_diablo #108 10 months ago

    Juan Sheet does Plenty, Rev.

  • neilka #109 10 months ago

    how do i get the free games? Missus paid £250 for an N64 only for it to drop to £150 two months later (not sure if anyone's mentioned that yet).

  • cyber_nicco #110 10 months ago

    "The price drop does seem quite desperate so early into a console's life cycle."

    It's a hand-held, not a console. If you must lump everything together, I guess it would be a platform.

    Sorry for being so nitpicky...

  • Sicho_666 #111 10 months ago

    I purchased my 3DS for £200 from Gamestation bundled with Ocarina of Time for free so I didn't really mind having paid that price when I'll be rewarded with so many games.

  • Rev.StuartCampbell #112 10 months ago

    "It's a hand-held, not a console."

    A hand-held what?

  • KanePaws #113 10 months ago

    "That's on top of 10 free NES Virtual Console games, available before the general public get their hands on them"

    Assuming I didn't "get my hands on them" when they were released - like, 10+ years ago. >_>

  • Lankysi #114 10 months ago

    Yeah but how do I get the free games? My mrs nicked a 3DS off a little kid to give to me for my birthday in May

  • rhona24 #115 9 months ago

    Hi, I bought the nintendo 3ds in April and I am finding it really difficult to claim the 23 games compensation for an early purchase. Please help....