Nintendo returns to the casual market for next 3DS push

The key to rejuvenating the 3DS in the market place could be a return to the mainstream markets, Nintendo has said.

Much of the 3DS’ pre-launch hype centred around the many hardcore-centric IPs that would be arriving on the system. This in itself was a direct response to the perceived ‘dumbing down’ seen with the DS and the number of disgruntled Nintendo fans it created.

However, while 3DS sales are tracking ahead of DS it’s safe to say that the handheld has fallen short of nearly all expectations.

Now American Nintendo boss Reggie Fils-Aime has told the AOL games blog that a strategic shift will be revealed after the New Year.

My expectation is that, come E3, I think we’ll be showcasing a range of different titles that, for a more casual consumer, they’ll see reasons to jump on board with the Nintendo 3DS,” he insisted.

For all of the success we’ve had with DS, 50m units here in the US, content with a bit more of an edge from key third party publishers really never came to the platform.

So, one of the first things that will differentiate the 3DS is that we are getting that type of content. And probably the best example of that is the Resident Evil game that will come out next year from Capcom. Beautiful game, and if you love Resident Evil, it’s everything that you want.
In terms of other genres, absolutely we will continue to push the envelope with new, unique, differentiated experiences that you can only get on the Nintendo 3DS and that widen the consumer demographic.

So, will there be content to appeal to consumers 50 plus the way Brain Age did? Absolutely. Will there be content that’s going to appeal to women the way we are able to do with the DS? Absolutely. I can’t go into the details of what exactly those titles will be, but stay tuned. There is information that we’ll be sharing prior to E3, plus a lot of information at E3 as well.”