The morning started a bit awkwardly for Reggie Fils-Aime, but by the end of his presentation, announcing the launch details of the Nintendo 3DS at a Gamasutra-attended press conference in New York, he was firmly in charge.
Walking out to a dead teleprompter, the normally unflappable president and chief operating officer jokingly accused Wedbush game analyst Michael Pachter of having unplugged the monitors.
Before long, he was going strong, teasing the media and analysts in attendance with developer testimonials videos and a feature rundown of the device before ultimately announcing what everyone was here to hear: The 3DS
will go on sale March 27 for $249.99 in the U.S.
"This is the next big step in the modern era of video games," said Fils-Aime. "The Nintendo 3DS is 3D games, plus 3D video, plus 3D photography. There are no special glasses or skills required to enjoy it... And above all, the Nintendo 3DS is distinct. It's a breakthrough. There's nothing else like it. It is truly a category of one."
Analysts in the audience were happy with the price point, saying it was affordable enough that consumers wouldn’t suffer from sticker shock -- but high enough that the company was likely to make a profit from hardware sales.
Fils-Aime played up the mass market potential of the 3DS, emphasizing titles like
Nintendogs and Cats. He also focused on the social aspects of the device, including the StreetPass feature and SpotPass -- an online mode that adds WiFi functionality.
The company did not follow-up on hints it dropped at E3 about working with Hollywood studios to offer 3D theatrical releases for viewing on the 3DS, with Fils-Aime only saying "more to come" when asked after the event. However, Nintendo made it clear that gaming was not the end of its aspirations for the 3DS.
"While Nintendo is recognized by so many people as a game company, we’ve always seen ourselves as a part of a much larger entertainment industry," he said.
The 3DS will be supported by a marketing campaign that's nearly on par with what Microsoft threw for Xbox 360's Kinect sensor. Nintendo plans to have 5,000 units in retail stores to let consumers experience the 3DS. It will also have mobile units on the streets of major cities to boost awareness. Fils-Aime said the company hopes to get the device in front of 400,000 people in its first eight weeks on shelves.
Building on the momentum the company has built with the Wii and its
Wii Fit software, Nintendo is also extending fitness aspects to the 3DS. One game on display --
Steel Diver -- foregoes the use of the D-pad and other hand controls and relies on the player to physically move to change the onscreen view.
The system also comes with an activity log that tracks users' physical movements (as well as virtual actions) and a pedometer that encourages users to walk -- and rewards them with play coins that can be used to buy bonus content in games.
"The system …offers more than enough for people who have never played a video game before," said Fils-Aime. "Right off the bat, it’s mass market ready."
That might not be exactly what core gamers want to hear, but it's a strategy that has been the key to Nintendo's success over the past seven years. And it's one the company is hoping is strong enough to fend off the growing threat from Apple, which has been luring potential customers away with the low-priced, bite-sized games on the iPhone and iPod Touch.
