The 3DS is possibly the most anticipated gaming machine ever. The handheld, which is a successor to the 130 million selling Nintendo DS, is capable of displaying stereoscopic 3D without the need for 3D glasses, boasts an improved ad seamless online infrastructure, is probably more powerful than the Wii, and has impressive third party support, from Kojima’s Metal Gear Solid 3 to Capcom’s Resident Evil Revelations. Most notably, the handheld marks Nintendo shifting focus to the core gamer yet again, after nearly half a decade of wooing the casual market.
Naturally, the price of a system as loaded as the 3DS is going to be the topic of much speculation. Analysts like Pachter, who’re never right by the way, believe that the handheld could cost upwards of $250- and still sell millions.
However, today Nintendo provided us with an ‘official hint’ (whatever that is), as to just how the 3DS may be priced.
“On price, we haven’t made any kind of announcement at the moment, but the Nintendo DSi is available for around £129.99,” said UK marketing manager James Honeywell.
“The Nintendo DSi XL, with the larger screens, is around £159.99. So obviously, it’s going to fit, kind of, somewhere within that kind of architecture.”
As you can see, he gave us no indication of whether it’s going to be costlier than the XL. However, he did tell us it would be somewhere around that price range. I’d hedge my bets at $199.
The official announcement of the 3DS’ launch date and price is due 29th September.