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Analysts comment on lagging 3DS sales, mobile competition, high price, lack of major 1st party games
“The price of the 3DS is too high. It is in Nintendo’s nature to put the screws to early adopters and then ultimately lower prices around the holidays. They could also bundle more attractive software with the device to increase sales. The anemic launch title lineup is also a factor for the light early sales numbers. Once there are some killer apps, consumers will trade in their DS for 3DS and there are plenty of DSes out there to be traded in.” - Panoptic Management Consultants analyst Asif Khan
“The lagging sales of the 3DS are primarily due to a lack of recognizable first-party content and the continue onslaught by the mobile market. I believe it is imperative for Nintendo to launch at least three major first-party titles this year on the 3DS, at least one this summer and two during the holiday. And yes, one of them must be an original Mario title.” - EEDAR’s Jesse Divnich
“I’m not sure that the PSP is the issue, it’s really the smart phone/iPod Touch that is killing handhelds. I’m not sure that software will do it, as I think handhelds have lost a lot of their appeal to casual gamers. There will always be hardcore gamers who buy the devices, particularly when there are Mario/Zelda/Kid Icarus type games, but the casual market is migrating to Angry Birds.” - Wedbush Securities’ Michael Pachter
“I think that portable consoles are facing much stronger competition from mobile devices now. That is why I was not surprised to hear Nintendo’s complaints about mobile gaming devaluing the market. I don’t think it’s devaluing the market but it is definitely making it more competitive. It is more important than ever to have titles that define portable consoles. Nintendo should definitely use its most valuable assets, like the Mario franchise.” - Pietro Macchiarella of Parks Associates
“I think expectations are a bit high for video game sales, particularly for hardware. So far, 3DS uptake is very similar to DS uptake at launch, and DS launched in fourth quarter. 3DS is a new handheld at a high price with software still building in, while PSP hardware sales in Japan are abetted by low prices and very popular software like Final Fantasy and Monster Hunter. Yes, 3DS needs better software, and Ocarina of Time will help. Let’s see how 3DS does through Q4 2011.” - M2 Research analyst Billy Pidgeon