I think the question there is: how many iPhone users bought the iPhone BECAUSE of it's gaming.
Even if they didn't, they sure are buying a hell of a lot of games for the thing.
Maybe. But comparing the number of devices sold between the two isn't the right way to go with that. Because I know people that buy that phone just because it's hip to do that now.
Again, the issue is developers/publishers, not the consumer. Smartphone users by a lot of cheaply made crap. From a publisher perspective this leads to huge profit margins and a lot less risk. With handheld game devices, the budgets are much higher, margins are lower and the risk is higher. Publishers aren't going to wait for a system to slowly take off the way the DS and then PSP did. It's in a way a microcosm of the industry as a whole. You find cheap games and big budget 5+ million sellers doing well while the mid budget games are struggling to match sales with the rising budget. This is true on all systems. The problem the 3DS/Vita face is that they are designed for nothing but mid budget games which means they need to sell lots and quickly to maintain support.
Rakai on
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]XBL: Rakayn | PS3: Rakayn | Steam ID
I think the question there is: how many iPhone users bought the iPhone BECAUSE of it's gaming.
Even if they didn't, they sure are buying a hell of a lot of games for the thing.
Maybe. But comparing the number of devices sold between the two isn't the right way to go with that. Because I know people that buy that phone just because it's hip to do that now.
The moment they bring one home, though, they are part of the potential market for the games. They may not have bought the phone for the games, but once they see someone else playing something that looks interesting, that original reason for buying into the platform doesn't mean a thing.
I really want to want the 3DS. I played it at PAXEast and really liked the 3d effect. I recently picked up a PSP and have gathered about 30 games for it, and I'm sure I could get enough on craiglist or a local shop as tradein to get me a shiny 3DS. At this point though, I just can't justify it - I'm too concerned with the build quality issues I've heard on these boards, and frankly I just don't think I'd play the games on it given the current library.
As of right now, every game I'd play on the 3DS is already done better on my DSLite or PSP.
Is there a store that does some kind of price matching? Say, buy the 3DS a week or two before the drop, go to the online shop to register as an "Ambassador", then when the price drops, get the difference back from the retailer? I know Circuit City did this, but they're long gone now.
Found the answer to this question. Best Buy does it, even on their website. Looks like you can get access to this magical content and pay what everyone else is paying for your 3DS. Too bad I'm waiting for the purple one to come out.
PSN: MegaSpooky // 3DS: 3797-6276-7138 Wii U NNID: MegaSpooky
I just don't get how a smartphone replaces a gaming console when my smartphone playing Angry Birds drains my battery insanely quickly. It's slightly better when I play only on one screen, but still kills it pretty quickly, and anything with 3d rendering is much, much worse. I like to keep my gaming on a separate device so my phone is free to be a phone when I need it.
I never considered a 3DS over a smart phone (although, I don't know why anyone would) simply because the 3DS can only do "one" thing.
"Entertain you" being that one thing. It can do high profile games, cheap app-style games, Netflix, internet browsing, music playing, cheapo photography...but you can't call people, which means it only does one thing, rather than two.
EDIT: And I don't mean to imply that it does any of these things better than a smartphone, just that it does them in a serviceable manner. Mainly the statement shouldn't be that it does "one" thing, but that it does "one" thing that you personally consider to be of high enough quality that you'd call it a selling point.
I've never really considered a smart phone an option because how on earth could I justify paying 20-30ish dollars a month in data fees when I have wi-fi in my home, school, work, around town in places like Borders and Starbucks...it seems like an absolutely insane waste of money to me. That said, the iPod touch is a pretty nifty device.
As much as the high price has been a point of contention for a lot of people, and as much as Nintendo was probably going to want to drop the price to undercut the Vita anyway, I can't help but feel like this is maybe a little premature. No matter what they do to the price, I don't see the 3DS really taking off until the thing has a lot more games than it currently does.
I mean, what are the big-name titles for the system at the moment? Ocarina of Time, Street Fighter IV, and half a dozen other fighting games? It's perilously close to 100% ports and remakes, and spread across very few genres at that. A lot of people are just not going to care. By the time Paper Mario comes out next year, there will be enough good games that I'd have happily paid the full $250. But the way things are today, they could set the price of the system at 50 bucks and I'd still wait a couple of months before bothering to pick one up.
It just seems like it would have made more sense to let Super Mario or Mario Kart or whatever come out first and see what that does for sales (maybe with a bundle deal to help things along) before slashing the price like this. Though I guess if the Vita winds up coming out before those games do it might not be worth the risk of losing a bunch of customers.
Having an iPod touch and an Android smartphone are what made me decide to get a 3DS. The "games" on those devices are awful, and really made me realize that I've always loved my dedicated handhelds.
I just don't get how a smartphone replaces a gaming console when my smartphone playing Angry Birds drains my battery insanely quickly. It's slightly better when I play only on one screen, but still kills it pretty quickly, and anything with 3d rendering is much, much worse. I like to keep my gaming on a separate device so my phone is free to be a phone when I need it.
I honestly don't play game-apps on the go, except for Tiny Tower, and At&t has taught me not to rely on their 3GS signal. Also, it's not like you're playing on a Turbo Express, you'll still have a decent amount of battery life after playing a game and "serious" use before it goes back into your pocket. Besides you could play a game longer on a 3DS, but what happens if/when you get bored of the games you're carrying? Do you go to GameStop? And it doesn't have the benefit of exploiting your curiosity (web, social networks) without the need of a hot spot, which you'd need a subscription to use anyway.
I love games, but I've forgotten how often I had to "plan" before carrying my DS outside. I had to choose a few tiny cartridges, I had to swap things out, I had to protect cartridges not in use. Now a days I can play Order & Chaos, Resident Evil 4, Capcom Arcade, Sonic 4 blah blah blah... and as many as I can fit onto a 16gb drive and not think about it. It's more convienient and the content is out there and still coming.
Also, Giant Bomb just did a Quick Look of a 3DS game today and I'm not convinced about buying into the 3DS, and I don't think I'm going to be...
I never considered a 3DS over a smart phone (although, I don't know why anyone would) simply because the 3DS can only do "one" thing.
"Entertain you" being that one thing. It can do high profile games, cheap app-style games, Netflix, internet browsing, music playing, cheapo photography...but you can't call people, which means it only does one thing, rather than two.
Yeah, but you need a hot spot for those. And where's the global positioning, office apps and PDF readers? Where? (edit:) I will not be happy until Nintendo knows where I am every moment of everyday.
Shadow Wars is one of the best games on the system, and that's not an insult to the quality of the library at all. It's just plain awesome.
I love Modern Combat and Shadow Guardian these are DS/PSP quality games for sure, they may not have the "pedigree," but we're not raising dogs or paying $30.00 for each one either.
(edit:) Oh man, and "free-games!" And Sales! Tiny Tower and Shadow Era. I know for a fact that a game like Shadow Era would run me no less than thirty for a game of similar quality on a DS.
In the end the primary reason that I'm not terribly concerned about handheld gaming is that at my core I still need buttons on my system. It's probably an old fashioned hangup, but it's there for me. Just like I had a hard time with the loss of joysticks back in the NES days, to me there are times when I just need a physical controller.
My favorite genres - 2d/3d platformers, fighting games, tetris style puzzlers, just really demand some form of off-screen controls and I've found myself dissatisfied when my phone tries to pretend to have a dpad on the screen. Now, if the next iPod touch had a flip out dpad/buttons, I could see a very real concern for Nintendo/Sony.
I know there's that PlayStation phone, but it's probably destined to be a niche market similar to my two screened Echo.
I mean, what are the big-name titles for the system at the moment? Ocarina of Time, Street Fighter IV, and half a dozen other fighting games? It's perilously close to 100% ports and remakes, and spread across very few genres at that. A lot of people are just not going to care. By the time Paper Mario comes out next year, there will be enough good games that I'd have happily paid the full $250. But the way things are today, they could set the price of the system at 50 bucks and I'd still wait a couple of months before bothering to pick one up.
I'd definitely pick it up for $50. I can't guarantee that I'd play any actual 3DS games on it this year other than Shadow Wars though.
I love Modern Combat and Shadow Guardian these are DS/PSP quality games for sure, they may not have the "pedigree," but we're not raising dogs or paying $30.00 for each one either.
Gameloft games are bargain brand DS/PSP titles at best. And shameless ripoffs, too. They only exist and make money because of the novelty factor.
It's becoming too pricy to play potable games on game centric consoles. Sony Vita and the next DS will both make use of the 3G's (or 4G's, or whatever), then I have to cover these additional consoles individually on my phone bill? Bull-spit! It's not worth it. It's the high cost to play a game and use a device that is mainly designed with gaming in mind vs the value of something that is designed to do more universally, while doing whatever you want it to do, these things are just not comparable.
I love Modern Combat and Shadow Guardian these are DS/PSP quality games for sure, they may not have the "pedigree," but we're not raising dogs or paying $30.00 for each one either.
Gameloft games are bargain brand DS/PSP titles at best. And shameless ripoffs, too. They only exist and make money because of the novelty factor.
Tthe crazy thing is that the Gameloft games, though shameless ripoffs of pretty much everything, are actually pretty darn good and an excellent model of how to do "deeper" games with touch controls.
I love Modern Combat and Shadow Guardian these are DS/PSP quality games for sure, they may not have the "pedigree," but we're not raising dogs or paying $30.00 for each one either.
Gameloft games are bargain brand DS/PSP titles at best. And shameless ripoffs, too. They only exist and make money because of the novelty factor.
No, they make money because they are very well done shameless ripoffs and the properties they are ripping off don't actually exist on the iOS platform.
iOS gamers don't pay $7 just to own a novelty. In fact, $7 is considered an extremely high price for an iOS game. If the Gameloft games weren't actually good, they wouldn't sell.
I love Modern Combat and Shadow Guardian these are DS/PSP quality games for sure, they may not have the "pedigree," but we're not raising dogs or paying $30.00 for each one either.
Gameloft games are bargain brand DS/PSP titles at best. And shameless ripoffs, too. They only exist and make money because of the novelty factor.
Hey man, just because these games were raised on the opposite side of the tracks doesn't mean they are less deserving of anyone's respect. I will not tolerate video game intolerance. They will have more than 15 minutes of fame!!! They are well made games too, which is not something people can say about every DS game, including ones that are part of popular franchises.
My favorite genres - 2d/3d platformers, fighting games, tetris style puzzlers, just really demand some form of off-screen controls and I've found myself dissatisfied when my phone tries to pretend to have a dpad on the screen. Now, if the next iPod touch had a flip out dpad/buttons, I could see a very real concern for Nintendo/Sony.
I know there's that PlayStation phone, but it's probably destined to be a niche market similar to my two screened Echo.
The fact is that some of the games are much more expensive (ex: Plants vs Zombies) on DSiWare, so I can see why some consumers would rather buy an iPod touch over a 3DS. Some games, like Puzzle Quest, have far inferior controls though. Still, if more games come out on both platforms with the same price discrepancy, I can see Nintendo potentially taking a hit.
That is a crazy price drop. It might swing me getting a 3DS instead of a Vita around Christmas. Especially if the game line up is better for next year.
I've never really considered a smart phone an option because how on earth could I justify paying 20-30ish dollars a month in data fees when I have wi-fi in my home, school, work, around town in places like Borders and Starbucks...it seems like an absolutely insane waste of money to me. That said, the iPod touch is a pretty nifty device.
I was in the same boat until recently when the perfect storm hit me...
- My phone at the time wasn't able to hold a charge
- Was able to pick up an (entry level?) Android phone on the very cheap
- My cell provider started to offer pay as you go data plan (disabled the data feature as soon as I learned how)
The last point led to a fun experience dealing with a customer support goose, but I've derailed the thread enough.
TheSonicRetard, I read your posts and I have to ask - how is it you're on a forum like Penny-Arcade and you don't understand how to use the internet to do product research?
You're angry at Nintendo because you bought the 3DS and it didn't have any games you wanted, and you're angry that you went to the store THREE times and couldn't find any games you wanted.
See that link right there? That tells you just about every game that's coming out for the 3DS in the next 12 months, give or take a few unannounced titles with short development times.
There are DOZENS of other sites that can give you that same kind of information.
Now go. GO! And use your new-found powers of rudimentary consumer research.
When I first started playing N.O.V.A. 2 on the iPad, I literally laughed out loud when I realized the Halo-themed game had gone so far as to feature a Cortana-esque holographic, blue female directing your actions. And yet, I had to admit, I was having fun, and was actually enjoying an FPS on what really should be the very worst-possible platform for one. I still don't really approve of such blatant copying – I mean, N.O.V.A. could be even better if they actually put their originality budget above 0.
TheSonicRetard, I read your posts and I have to ask - how is it you're on a forum like Penny-Arcade and you don't understand how to use the internet to do product research?
You're angry at Nintendo because you bought the 3DS and it didn't have any games you wanted, and you're angry that you went to the store THREE times and couldn't find any games you wanted.
See that link right there? That tells you just about every game that's coming out for the 3DS in the next 12 months, give or take a few unannounced titles with short development times.
There are DOZENS of other sites that can give you that same kind of information.
Now go. GO! And use your new-found powers of rudimentary consumer research.
So you've never gone into a store on a whim without doing internet based research first, just hoping to find "something"? Riiight...
Posts
Even if they didn't, they sure are buying a hell of a lot of games for the thing.
Maybe. But comparing the number of devices sold between the two isn't the right way to go with that. Because I know people that buy that phone just because it's hip to do that now.
If they also let you do surveys, you get 200 points/surveys.
Speaking of which, the Nintendo stock is at an all-time low.
BUY BUY BUY!
The moment they bring one home, though, they are part of the potential market for the games. They may not have bought the phone for the games, but once they see someone else playing something that looks interesting, that original reason for buying into the platform doesn't mean a thing.
PSN:RevDrGalactus/NN:RevDrGalactus/Steam
why does this matter, though? the fact is, they own the device, a publisher can sell them games
As of right now, every game I'd play on the 3DS is already done better on my DSLite or PSP.
So this Ambassador thing is just fucking awesome. For me.
I was a sucker and bought a ton of it when it was $38/share. I'm really hoping they bring it back up to at least that.
Wii U NNID: MegaSpooky
This is precicely my thoughts on the matter.
Nintendo Network ID - Brainiac_8
PSN - Brainiac_8
Steam - http://steamcommunity.com/id/BRAINIAC8/
Add me!
Team Fortress 2 Backpack: Someone you love
Found the answer to this question. Best Buy does it, even on their website. Looks like you can get access to this magical content and pay what everyone else is paying for your 3DS. Too bad I'm waiting for the purple one to come out.
Wii U NNID: MegaSpooky
"Entertain you" being that one thing. It can do high profile games, cheap app-style games, Netflix, internet browsing, music playing, cheapo photography...but you can't call people, which means it only does one thing, rather than two.
EDIT: And I don't mean to imply that it does any of these things better than a smartphone, just that it does them in a serviceable manner. Mainly the statement shouldn't be that it does "one" thing, but that it does "one" thing that you personally consider to be of high enough quality that you'd call it a selling point.
I mean, what are the big-name titles for the system at the moment? Ocarina of Time, Street Fighter IV, and half a dozen other fighting games? It's perilously close to 100% ports and remakes, and spread across very few genres at that. A lot of people are just not going to care. By the time Paper Mario comes out next year, there will be enough good games that I'd have happily paid the full $250. But the way things are today, they could set the price of the system at 50 bucks and I'd still wait a couple of months before bothering to pick one up.
It just seems like it would have made more sense to let Super Mario or Mario Kart or whatever come out first and see what that does for sales (maybe with a bundle deal to help things along) before slashing the price like this. Though I guess if the Vita winds up coming out before those games do it might not be worth the risk of losing a bunch of customers.
Twitter 3DS: 0860 - 3257 - 2516
I honestly don't play game-apps on the go, except for Tiny Tower, and At&t has taught me not to rely on their 3GS signal. Also, it's not like you're playing on a Turbo Express, you'll still have a decent amount of battery life after playing a game and "serious" use before it goes back into your pocket. Besides you could play a game longer on a 3DS, but what happens if/when you get bored of the games you're carrying? Do you go to GameStop? And it doesn't have the benefit of exploiting your curiosity (web, social networks) without the need of a hot spot, which you'd need a subscription to use anyway.
I love games, but I've forgotten how often I had to "plan" before carrying my DS outside. I had to choose a few tiny cartridges, I had to swap things out, I had to protect cartridges not in use. Now a days I can play Order & Chaos, Resident Evil 4, Capcom Arcade, Sonic 4 blah blah blah... and as many as I can fit onto a 16gb drive and not think about it. It's more convienient and the content is out there and still coming.
Also, Giant Bomb just did a Quick Look of a 3DS game today and I'm not convinced about buying into the 3DS, and I don't think I'm going to be...
http://www.giantbomb.com/quick-look-tom-clancys-ghost-recon-shadow-wars/17-4606/
Team Fortress 2 Backpack: Someone you love
Yeah, but you need a hot spot for those. And where's the global positioning, office apps and PDF readers? Where? (edit:) I will not be happy until Nintendo knows where I am every moment of everyday.
(edit, edit:) Also, I'm screwed if I can't scare bears:
http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/262597/january-26-2010/tip-wag---creigh-deeds---scarebear-trail-companion
You can't scare bears with a 3DS, but you could make them blind, but that would require being a little more adventurous.
Team Fortress 2 Backpack: Someone you love
You boot up one of the games you've downloaded (soon to be a minimum of 22). If none of those catch your fancy, you go online and buy another.
Shadow Wars is one of the best games on the system, and that's not an insult to the quality of the library at all. It's just plain awesome.
You're probably judging by visuals alone here...visuals that don't even represent what you see when you're actually using the system.
I love Modern Combat and Shadow Guardian these are DS/PSP quality games for sure, they may not have the "pedigree," but we're not raising dogs or paying $30.00 for each one either.
(edit:) Oh man, and "free-games!" And Sales! Tiny Tower and Shadow Era. I know for a fact that a game like Shadow Era would run me no less than thirty for a game of similar quality on a DS.
Team Fortress 2 Backpack: Someone you love
My favorite genres - 2d/3d platformers, fighting games, tetris style puzzlers, just really demand some form of off-screen controls and I've found myself dissatisfied when my phone tries to pretend to have a dpad on the screen. Now, if the next iPod touch had a flip out dpad/buttons, I could see a very real concern for Nintendo/Sony.
I know there's that PlayStation phone, but it's probably destined to be a niche market similar to my two screened Echo.
Eventually we might have virtual star trek buttons that work perfectly each time, then a tablet does in fact make perfect sense for a gaming portable.
Right now it is ideal for certain low impact games, games that work well with gyro/touch controls, and the like.
Right here. I use it for browsing/gaming WAY more than as an actual phone.
I'd definitely pick it up for $50. I can't guarantee that I'd play any actual 3DS games on it this year other than Shadow Wars though.
Zeboyd Games Development Blog
Steam ID : rwb36, Twitter : Werezompire, Facebook : Zeboyd Games
Team Fortress 2 Backpack: Someone you love
Tthe crazy thing is that the Gameloft games, though shameless ripoffs of pretty much everything, are actually pretty darn good and an excellent model of how to do "deeper" games with touch controls.
No, they make money because they are very well done shameless ripoffs and the properties they are ripping off don't actually exist on the iOS platform.
iOS gamers don't pay $7 just to own a novelty. In fact, $7 is considered an extremely high price for an iOS game. If the Gameloft games weren't actually good, they wouldn't sell.
Hey man, just because these games were raised on the opposite side of the tracks doesn't mean they are less deserving of anyone's respect. I will not tolerate video game intolerance. They will have more than 15 minutes of fame!!! They are well made games too, which is not something people can say about every DS game, including ones that are part of popular franchises.
Team Fortress 2 Backpack: Someone you love
The fact is that some of the games are much more expensive (ex: Plants vs Zombies) on DSiWare, so I can see why some consumers would rather buy an iPod touch over a 3DS. Some games, like Puzzle Quest, have far inferior controls though. Still, if more games come out on both platforms with the same price discrepancy, I can see Nintendo potentially taking a hit.
- My phone at the time wasn't able to hold a charge
- Was able to pick up an (entry level?) Android phone on the very cheap
- My cell provider started to offer pay as you go data plan (disabled the data feature as soon as I learned how)
The last point led to a fun experience dealing with a customer support goose, but I've derailed the thread enough.
You're angry at Nintendo because you bought the 3DS and it didn't have any games you wanted, and you're angry that you went to the store THREE times and couldn't find any games you wanted.
Let me show you something:
http://ds.ign.com/index/upcoming.html
See that link right there? That tells you just about every game that's coming out for the 3DS in the next 12 months, give or take a few unannounced titles with short development times.
There are DOZENS of other sites that can give you that same kind of information.
Now go. GO! And use your new-found powers of rudimentary consumer research.
PSN:RevDrGalactus/NN:RevDrGalactus/Steam
So you've never gone into a store on a whim without doing internet based research first, just hoping to find "something"? Riiight...
Don't ask questions assuming you know the answer. I would never do what you described there.
Twitter 3DS: 0860 - 3257 - 2516