If ever there seemed a banker in the games industry, it was that the Nintendo 3DS was going to sell like crazy. Nintendo shifted nearly 150 million Nintendo DS units (counting all normal DS, DS Lite, DSi, and DSi XL units), and this was a DS WITH GLASSES-FREE 3D. How the bejeezus could it fail?
Well, it might. That is, the 3DS is in danger of failing compared to its obscenely successful predecessors. While the launches seemed to go reasonably well – a sellout of all 400,000 3DS launch units in Japan, and 500,000 units sold in the U.S. in the opening five days – analysts claim 3DS sales are dropping fast. Here’s Lazard Capital Markets man Colin Sebastian:
“Based on our recent checks, we believe that sales of the 3DS have slowed considerably since the initial launch window, although the Easter holiday could provide a near-term boost.”
In my position of Analyst for Noone, I’m going to make the WILD PREDICTION that the 3DS will live a full and unspectacularly healthy life, but come nowhere near the success of the other DS consoles. Nintendo’s arrogance over smartphone gaming and lack of an Apps Store rival have ensured that.
[Via CVG ]
