Topic: New 3DS Add-On in the Works? Redesign on the Way?

[Bman87301]

The DS brand is too successful to dump, and I would say that the Game Boy Micro hurt the brand at least a little.

You could have said the same thing about the 'Game Boy' brand seven years ago. Besides, they wouldn't necessarily be 'dumping' it-- just putting it on hiatus like the 'Game Boy' until they need it again.

And you're kidding yourself if you think the Game Boy Micro hurt the brand at all-- the Game Boy Light certainly didn't affect the Game Boy Color, nor did the short lived top-loading NES affect the Super NES. A lackluster model of otherwise successful hardware won't hurt the brand's reputation for the very reason it failed to catch on in the first place-- the general public can't recall it ever existing.

[Crimm]

We don't need to go back to a single screened handheld. That's a step backwards.

Indeed. Call it GameBoyz to denote the multiple screens.

[ShyGuy]

What if a third party is bundling a game with the second analog snap on? Like Halo 3DS?

[Adrock]

I know! If anything, there should be even more screens. 2 screens? Too mainstream, I say! I'm thinking 3 to 5 screens, maybe even a clock display next to the front facing camera.

[Crimm]

I know! If anything, there should be even more screens. 2 screens? Too mainstream, I say! I'm thinking 3 to 5 screens, maybe even a clock display next to the front facing camera.

We call it Game Crew, yo. We got six screens.

[Bman87301]

We don't need to go back to a single screened handheld. That's a step backwards.

Well obviously, a redesign of 3DS hardware  couldn't be single screened.

Keep in mind why 'Game Boy' brand wasn't used for the DS-- because its premise was so unusual, the chance of it being a failure was too high to risk presenting it as the GBA's successor.  It certainly wasn't because the 'Game Boy' name couldn't still apply to a dual screened system.

They just called it a 'third pillar' platform, so if it did fail they could still just release a true successor to the GBA. If the 3DS does turn out to be a failure, they can't get away with releasing another DS without it being associated with the 3DS.

But since they always officially kept the DS line separate from Game Boy...

[Enner]

...
Actually this was already done, quite successfully I might add, with Motion Plus on the Wii. Is there really any reason to doubt this could happen when Nintendo has already done it before with Motion Plus?

We need to sit down and talk about your definition of Success.  Motion Plus is a flop, Period.

Considering how many units of Wii Sports Resort sold, other publishers and developers wish they had more of such flops.


It is a shame that there aren't many games that take advantage of the accessory.

[Ceric]

...
Actually this was already done, quite successfully I might add, with Motion Plus on the Wii. Is there really any reason to doubt this could happen when Nintendo has already done it before with Motion Plus?

We need to sit down and talk about your definition of Success.  Motion Plus is a flop, Period.

Considering how many units of Wii Sports Resort sold, other publishers and developers wish they had more of such flops.

It is a shame that there aren't many games that take advantage of the accessory.

No, Wii Sports Resort is a success.  Motion Plus is a flop.  An accessory needs to be useful beyond one game when its meant to be a general Accessory.

Skyward sword might make it not so much but an accessory is all about how much penetration it has.  If say 50% of Wii users own a Motion Plus then I say it is a success I doubt that number is hit.

[TJ Spyke]

Wii MotionPlus may not be the huge success Nintendo hoped for, but by no means can it be considered a flop.

[Oblivion]

Ceric, I own five games that use WiiMotion Plus. If there are people like me, then I wouldn't consider it a flop.

[Stogi]

I love this rumor. Only because it shits on every 3DS owner again.

[Ceric]

Ceric, I own five games that use WiiMotion Plus. If there are people like me, then I wouldn't consider it a flop.

UncleBob owns every E-Reader card so is that not a flop either?

[ejamer]

Wii Motion Plus was a moderate success despite receiving limited support.

There are at least a half dozen good games that either require Motion Plus, or are enhanced in meaningful ways by having the accessory. It's also sold in decent numbers and is now included by default in every new Wii controller. Not sure how you can really qualify the Motion Plus accessory as a failure unless you mean that you just didn't like it.




*Edit: But seriously, how many motion games do you want anyway? Outside of golf and tennis games, I have very little use for motion controls personally. Pointer controls I still like though.

[Chozo Ghost]

Wii MotionPlus may not be the huge success Nintendo hoped for, but by no means can it be considered a flop.

Agreed. Multiple games make use of it so its not a one hit wonder. Plus the upcoming Zelda game will require it and that alone prevents it from being a flop because Zelda is a big deal.

There aren't as many games that make use of it as there could be, but then again that's a problem for the Wii as a whole and not just for Motion Plus.

[marty]

is the Wii Motion+ a flop?  It didn't come close to being the standard and it sure as hell didn't expand the market or extend the life of the system.  It's not a game changer like the balance board, that's for sure.

[Oblivion]

Ceric, I own five games that use WiiMotion Plus. If there are people like me, then I wouldn't consider it a flop.

UncleBob owns every E-Reader card so is that not a flop either?

Read my post again. I said "IF there are people like me...blah blah blah..." so I was saying that if there are people like me who own that many wii motion plus than it isn't a flop.

[Chozo Ghost]

It didn't come close to being the standard

It went beyond close. It is the standard. You can't buy a new Wii system or Wiimote without it integrated into it. The problem is mainly there just isn't a lot of new Wii games coming out period. Whether they make use of it or not...

[Bman87301]

Calling WiiMotion Plus a flop is like calling Dual Shock for PS1 a flop--  most games didn't use it, only one game actually required it, but plenty of games still supported it and it ultimately became the standard.

Motion Plus is the exact same thing. Besides, just because a feature isn't overly used doesn't mean it's a flop-- if it were then that would make the DS microphone and the SELECT button both flops too.

[alegoicoe]

It makes sense since nintendo needs to start making money on 3DS again, and a redisign with dual analog might give nintendo a reason to price the 3ds system at 199.99 and start making money on the system again, and with good games on the shelves by the time the new system comes out, it should sell much better than the current 3ds.

[TJ Spyke]

It would be a huge blunder. Either you make it so that so few games use the right analog stick that you might as well not bother as a developer (like how the DSi has almost no exclusive game), or you segment the market by making it impossible for millions of people to play your game (and the only real solution would be for Nintendo to let you send your 3DS in to them and be replaced).

[marty]

It didn't come close to being the standard

It went beyond close. It is the standard. You can't buy a new Wii system or Wiimote without it integrated into it. The problem is mainly there just isn't a lot of new Wii games coming out period. Whether they make use of it or not...

You're reaching.  There's what... 1 WM+ title that's used the remote and sold in any respectable sense?  There are only a handful more titles that even utilize the WM+ at all.  You can't call something that no one uses a standard.

[Adrock]

It's doable as long as the second slide pad is not required to play any games, required being the operative word. And if developers didn't use it (though I see no reason why they wouldn't), I wouldn't classify that as a blunder, just a waste.

A second slide pad should have been present from the beginning so we shouldn't even be having this conversation. I'm not sure what Nintendo was thinking. I believe Miyamoto said something about using motion controls for the camera but that doesn't explain why anyone wouldn't want the right slide pad anyway. Ultimately, I think a revision with an additional slide pad and other upgrades could work with minimal damage for reasons already stated. However, while the second slide pad will make some games better, it will NEVER make a bad game good. You can't save a **** lineup by throwing an extra slide pad at it.

[Chozo Ghost]

You can't call something that no one uses a standard.

Yeah you can because that's not how a standard is defined. There's very few things which make use of USB 3.0 at the moment, but USB 3.0 is a standard. It may not be used much, but it is a standard. And so is Motion Plus.

[marty]

You can't call something that no one uses a standard.

Yeah you can because that's not how a standard is defined. There's very few things which make use of USB 3.0 at the moment, but USB 3.0 is a standard. It may not be used much, but it is a standard. And so is Motion Plus.

Well, if you feel that something that goes unused by 99.99% of games is a standard, well... good luck with that.

WM+ isn't used widely now and never will be.

[NWR_insanolord]

Motion+ came along too late in the system's life to have any chance of being treated as the standard. It has, however, significantly improved a good number of games, and something like Skyward Sword wouldn't be possible without it, so don't dismiss it.

Ceric, I own five games that use WiiMotion Plus. If there are people like me, then I wouldn't consider it a flop.

UncleBob owns every E-Reader card so is that not a flop either?

-1 for insulting the eReader.