Nintendo projects 5m 3DS sales in Japan this year

The dedicated handheld gaming market is more than fine, according to Nintendo president Satoru Iwata.

Bloomberg reports on a Capcom event in Tokyo today, where Iwata announced that Nintendo is projecting 5m 3DS sales in Japan this year.

"There are more and more media reports suggesting that things aren’t going very well for the dedicated gaming hardware business," Iwata said. "But that’s not true, at least for the 3DS in Japan."

Iwata also noted that the Nintendo DS has been the only other system to top 5m units sold in Japan in one year. Nintendo sold 5.5m 3DS units last year, bolstered by the arrival of the 3DS XL redesign.

The company expects 3DS sales to hit 18m worldwide for 2013, up from last year’s 13.95m, thanks to a solid holiday line-up that includes Pokemon and Zelda titles.