Analyst: 3DS Sales Have Slowed Considerably Since Launch
by Alex Co, posted on 11 April 2011 / 2,628 Views
While Nintendo can claim that the 3DS is the best-selling handheld they’ve ever released, or that it’s doing well internationally; analysts at Lazard Capital Markets seem to think that 3DS sales have experienced a notable decline.
Colin Sebastian, analyst for the said firm, points out that 3DS sales are already slowing down. "Based on our recent checks, we believe that sales of the 3DS have slowed considerably since the initial launch window.” Although he thinks the Easter holiday could provide a “near-term boost.”
Sebastian further added that the 3DS launch provided "incremental traffic" to game retailers, but also remarked that "the impact of new hardware platforms on software sales is more meaningful after they reach a larger installed base."
For clarification, Nintendo has yet to disclose official sales figures of the 3DS at the time of this writing.
While some can argue that the 3D hasn’t done anything to warrant its inclusion, I like to think it has more to do with the games, or lack thereof that’s slowing down the 3DS juggernaut. In any case, we’ll know for sure once more software is released. This should make the whole NGP vs. 3DS battle that’s going to go down at the end of the year a little more exciting, no?
44 Comments
Nintendo should make pokemon grey for 3DS that would help a lot the sales of 3DS
Who expected things to turn out any differently? The 3DS launch lineup isn't that great and it's priced at a steep price point that would put off Nintendo's main demographic (parents buying handhelds for their children). Nintendo's core audience isn't ready to upgrade just yet from the DS.
NEW Analyst: COD:BO Sales Have Slowed Considerably Since Launch! The analyst pointed out that after a strong first week of nearly 6 million on XB360 and over 4 million on PS3, the sales slowed considerably in the second week. With under 1 million on PS3 and shy above 1 million on XB360, the decline is as sharp as doubleHD. But he also remarks that "the impact of a new COD is more meaningful before they reach a larger installed base" and that probably christmas could lead to a "near-term boost". What do you think? This should make the whole Battlefront vs. COD battle that’s going to go down at the end of the year a little more exciting, no? ROFL
"Nintendo thought they could scam people with that ridiculous price and little to no Useful features" .. hahaha gold!.. wait till the NGP comes!.... it will define what ridiculous price and little to no useful feature means!.. all the dweebs acting like they know how to launch a system better than nintendo lol.. like as if nintendo didnt think things through lol.. 3DS is selling well.. and at a PROFIT! with only 2 first party games.. why should they worry when their OWN DS still selling a ton they not losing any money.. hahaha
Not going to lie, I've mainly been using it when playing Pokemon White. No doubt this is just a symptom of no major games at launch. And no Nintendogs + Cats don't count.
@Tridrakious the really fun stuff is that I was responding to someone who said that I was ranting, so I have the right to defend myself. so if you have fun with that, good for you. I hope you have a nice day.
It's great when someone starts a sentence off with "Sorry but that wasn't a rant, those we're facts". Fun stuff. Btw Pvrespess, the DSi does allow some forms of AR gaming. Like Photo Dojo (I believe is the name) where you take pictures of your friends to turn them into fighters in the game. Similar to Kung Fu Live on PS3, but instead of constantly recording them, you just take pictures of them and put them in the game. You can also record their voice for the fighting moves, stances, etc. Plus there are a few games released for the DSi that makes use of the cameras.
What do you exepct? - ABYSMAL launch lineup. DS, GBA, N64 and even Wii launched with household MArio/Zel;da games(even if they were ports). - All features missing Internet, MOvie player, NEtflix etc.. - Crappy DS player...most DS games are blurry and crappy looking Nintendo thought they could scam people with that ridiculous price and little to no Useful features. 3DS for sure looks to be a great handheld...just not right now. Consumers are NOT stupid, the only peopel buying it right now are fanboys and rich people. Noone is going to buy a 3DS now in this climate when you might as well get a BRICK..put it in your cupboard and it would have the same use. i.e....Nothing at all.
@welshbloke: Sorry pal but that wasn't a rant, those were facts, cause the 3DS has all the features I listed, and the DS not and thats a FACT. That my friend IS a reality. Second we are here to debate, so if are not informed about something, OR don't want to be informed, well, I am not here to convince you cause I don't work for nintendo, I am here to express an opinion. Third, if didn't own a DS, why would I buy a DSi now if the 3DS can do everything the DSi do, and more. just To have to buy a 3DS later? sorry, thats not inteligent. If I do an inversion, I try to do it once. I don't need to convince the ''public'' about the diferences between the 3DS and the DS, because I believe this is a site for informed and experienced gamers. I leave that to nintendo, cause I am just a gamer who likes to play games. Sony games, Microsoft Games, Nintendo games. just a Gamer.
@pvrexpress They may well be differences but in reality nobody sees those difference hell I do not even know what half of them are. What I do know is I can pick up the DSi for £99 on Amazon (UK) today or I could pickup the 3DS for £196. You are going to have to do a lot more than rant to convince the public that it is significantly different enough to justify doubling in price. That my friend is the reality. Also it is worth noting no shortages for either handheld both can be delivered tomorrow. Nintendo have some work to do to convince people of the value.
Oh and I want to add to my list of diferences that the DS does not have motion sensors.
I feel like the 3DS is a case of too early, too few. I should be a success nevertheless, but hardly one as big as the DS.
I wanted to say in the last part of my last post that software sales hardware, not that "software says hardware" sorry for that.
@UltimateUnknown: you nailed it in the head man. you are really, really correct sir. I keep hearing 2 stupid things 1) The 3DS is just DS with a 3d screen.............WHAT??????. Does the DS has sreet pass? NO. Does the DS has spot pass?? NO. Does the DS has or will have a virtual console? NO. Will you be able to watch 3d movies via netflix on your DS? No. is the DS as powerfull as the 3DS? HELL NO. The DS has augmented reallity right? NO. The DS has a 3d camera? NO. Will you be able to play resident evil revelations, Mario Kart 3d, Kid Icarus Uprising, and the next generation of pokemon games on your DS? NO. The DS has good online features right? NO........OH YEAH BUT THEY ARE THE SAME. 2) 3d is a Ginmick..........AND HIGH DEFINITION NOT??????????? cause last time I checked it was optional....... Software says hardware people, is that simple. just wait for the software....... Sorry for my bad English.
hahahaha new "buzz" word for nintendo system.. "Gimmik 3D" im cool coz I call 3D a gimmik! .. I play HD games! my mum says I rule!
Normal DS is a VERY strong system and people wont understand the difference just yet. PSP is cheap also and has a few intersting games. Nintendo used to play the same with NES / Super NES and even GBA / DS. Once the 2nd and 3rd batch of games arrives, it will pick up (should also get a price drop before Christmas). In 2012, 3DS Lite will launch and colide with NGP. God knows what will happen.
@AnthonyW86, Yes, but both Sony and MS are under performing too. Your mention of stock price btw, in relation to investor confidence, does not bloody work with game companies, because investors largely know absolutely nothing about the industry (or the fact that Pokemon has sold 10 million copies in a month).
I think that it just doesn't have the games for people to buy it yet. Once Mario hits I think it will start selling. SSB if they make it would make it sell. Zelda, I actually don't think would sell it as much as we would think. Mario Kart is another big one.
Seriously people, 3D is NOT a gimmick, 3D is here to stay, and Nintendo has taken the first step into ensuring that 3D is accessible to the broader audience by making it glasses free. Granted the tech is not as fine as it could be, but Nintendo and other developers need a little time with it, once that happens, I am more than certain this device will blow up just as the DS did, maybe not to the same extent, but still. People keep on arguing that 3D is just an optional thing in the 3DS as 2D is included, so its a gimmick. In that sense, HD in your PS3/Xbox 360 is also optional as they include standard definition in there as well, but does that make HD a gimmick? No, because the games are best enjoyed in HD but if anyone wants to, or only has the option to play in SD, then they can. Its the same with the 3DS, most if not all games in the platform in the future will utilize the 3D and will be best played in 3D and with other great functionalities that 3DS has to offer.
The 3DS is slowing down because its just a DS and the 3D element cannot justify the price difference and yes it could be said it is the line up as its pretty much the same as the DS with some old faithfulls dragged out of retirement given a wodden 3D finish and viola! Slow sales.
Let me get this right, some guy down in the comments says that if the 3DS only sales 1.3 of the sales of the DS then it will be considered a success, but yet the PSP has sold more than 1/3 of the DS total sales and its considered a failure? I tell you, some people are just thick, anyway, the sales for the 3DS are slowing down because of the crap game line up, once the games start coming, the sales will pick up again, also, speaking as a current DSXL owner, I really see no reason to upgrade. I think that a lot of people that have a DS already feel the same way. Yes better games are coming, but the 3D is a total gimmick, Nintendo made sure of that by telling developers to make every game in 2D and 3D, that pretty much ensures that we will not see any games that use the 3D effect as a core part of gameplay, and that means that it will always be a gimmick and nothing more. For that reason alone I probably won't upgrade, I am very happy with my DS. I think that most current DS owners feel the same way and the console itself is just not that impressive as the original DS, it just doesn't have the same wow factor that the original did. So, I don't think that the 3DS will match the DS in sales, let alone surpass it, I think that after holding the 3DS in my hands and playing around with it for a couple of days (my wife bought one, her DS had been broken for a good six months now, and we decided to wait until the 3DS to get her a new one instead of just buying another DS), I can say that the whole NGP vs. 3DS indeed it just got a lot more interesting.
"I like to think it has more to do with the games, or lack thereof that’s slowing down the 3DS juggernaut." I agree strongly.
@AnthonyW86 So, Nintendo's stocks haven't been this low since the year they sold 24 million Wiis? Good omens.
Really? Analysts are so lacking in anything to say that they have to comment on how the 3DS is slowing down despite the fact that it hasn't even been out for two months worldwide? It'll be fine, especially once the OoT remake hits
This article is biased crap that doesn't really say anything concrete and seems included here to give the sony fanboys something (else) to whackoff over. Other reports say the 3ds is doing just fine so I guess it all comes down to who you choose to believe. As for the launch lineup...what console hasn't had a crap launch lineup? The original ds had a much worse launch lineup and it went on to rule the world. Comparatively speaking, the 3ds lineup aint that bad. I think some people are watching too closely and it's obvious which way they swing.
What has slowed it down is the fact that you can't play on the 3DS for extended periods - the polar opposite of what it's audience wants to do.
@ nolgan "3DS R.I.P. NGP rulez" @Albion "NGP win's its official =) lol" these are gold comments!.. hahaha will see what happens when the NGP comes out.. ill start ripping it a new ahole.. clearly sony and its fans have not learnt any lesson.. DS was announced d.o.a when psp came.. and to this day they were right!.. oh wait.. ima sit back and watch the 3DS is doom articles and comments.. its just too good! even malstrom is getting into it.. hahaha
Jumpin your wrong. It had the highest sales for a nintendo handheld the ps2 launch is still number 1 with I belive 2 million. Reason why this thing has a slow start is that it had a weak launch with only one game to buy and the software people are really looking forward too is much after it's launch. I really don't belive the price tag hurt the sysytem much.
Even if sales start slow, Nintendo has the product out there, taking sales from the future PSP2. I mean PS3 sales started slow, and now they are on top. I think the 3DS will sell around 150 million, and we will see sales really pick up come fall 2011. That's when the first set of "real" games will start to come (like Mario Kart and Resident Evil).
It's the same deal that happened with the DS; didn't launch with great games, thus, it didn't start with great sales. Once some of the stronger titles start coming, assuming they do, sales will match that.
Fact is, even the people who have financial ties with Nintendo seem to be losing faith. Nintendo stocks are now at their lowest point since 2008, so i would say to everyone saying everythings fine: put your money where your mouth is and buy some stocks if your so confident about it ;).
The article ignores the fact that the 3DS just launched with the highest numbers of any console launch in history. If it sold at launch rates perpetually, it would surpass the Wii by the end of the year.
Nintendo is DOOOOMED bla blubb bla... The 3DS is just doing fine, it sold around 1 million in 2 weeks, even if the 3DS just reaches 1/3 of DS sales, it is still a big hit! The problem is, that a lot of people still think, smartphones could make games happen. I will take some more time, to convince the stupiest, but you can't enjoy HQ games with a smartphone device or a tablet. 3DS works, it is affordable with a price 1/2 or 1/3 of a smartphone, the PSP was more expensive! McDaniel-77 P.S.: The 3DS needs more backup, like 3D-Movies with the eShop, exclusive 3DS games etc..
NGP win's its official =) lol --- Hey, Sony fan boys, have you realized that the PSP was outselling the original DS until the DS finally started to gain some game? Of course not because you are blind.
This kind of articles is moronic. There is 3 big reason at as to why the 3DS is not selling as much as expected, all are totally valid. 1 - the marketing is not that big. Yes, it doesn't make much sense, but in Europe, and from what could gather in US aswell, there isn't a big marketing for the handheld. 2 - It was relased in a weird timeframe, March, which is not a big month for gaming hardware 3 - And most important, there are no great launch games. A gaming platform doesn't sell if there isn't a big reason for it, that means games, and there aren't many good ones out there so far, the only one being SSFIV, which everyone interested in it and with a HD console already has it. Even the browser and online store still haven 't been released Bottom line is, let's wait for the holidays and the release of Super Mario 3D, and then we talk...
Fact is that people were expecting this to sell like hot cakes... We just need to wait and see if this thing is going to take off. I tried it for the first time today and I am a very loyal Nintendo fan but, after playing it i was not interested enough to even purchase it at this time. Granted I have not played the new SSF4 3DS. I will try that out before i truly decide to wait.
In every store I've been to over the past couple of weeks there's been a MINIMUM of 6 3DS's sitting behind the cabinets or on the shelves, sometimes more than a dozen. People just aren't going to spend $250 on a system just because of its gimmicky 3D features. Nintendo should have waited till summer or fall, when they'd have a greater quantity of high quality games ready for it as well as a substantial amount of units ready to ship with a steady supply for the holidays, and launch the system at $199. As it stands, I don't see this thing flying off store shelves priced at $250, even during the holidays when (presumably) they'd have some AAA games out for it. 3D updates of N64 games like Ocarina of Time and StarFox 64 do not make system sellers, and the build in features of the 3DS and included software aren't enough to spark word-of-mouth raids on inventory the way that Wii Sports did when the Wii was first launched.
Personally, I think people aren't that interested in 3D. They are also not convinced on the improvements the 3DS has over the DSi, I believe. With time and games, many will upgrade from the DS to the 3DS. The latter won't sell as well as the DS did though.
