Handheld Gaming Devices Still Relevant Among Smartphones, says Nintendo

In a market of increasing competition, Nintendo says that both handheld gaming devices like its own 3DS can succeed next to Apple’s iPad. While initial sales figures of the 3DS would say otherwise, President Satoru Iwata says that handheld gaming devices, specifically the 3DS, will still live on.

“Last summer, when the sales pace of the Nintendo 3DS was slow, there were extreme remakrs saying, ‘With the penetration of smartphones, will there still be a market for handheld hardware?’ which was almost equal to ‘handheld hardware is not necessary anymore,” said Iwata. “I believe we proved that such opinions are incorrect.”

The initial launch of the 3DS was accompanied by a hefty $250.00 USD price tag, which was later cut to $170.00 following dismal sales. Nintendo’s own words called the sales “unsatisfactory” before the price drop in August.

Following the revised price tag and a new crop of software like Mario Kart 7 and Super Mario 3D Land, the 3DS finally began to take off in earnest. However, despite reaching global sales of about 15 million units, Iwata said forecasts for the system haven’t been reached.

Via Gamespot.