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Nintendo may have strengthened its reputation as the most unpredictable games hardware company, as images circulating the internet appear to confirm a dual-analogue attachment for Nintendo 3DS.
A sizable controller attachment for Nintendo’s struggling handheld has appeared in Japanese magazine Famitsu.
It is not confirmed that the device, pictured below, is built or endorsed by Nintendo.
The add-on effectively cradles the entire unit and adds a second analogue control stick on the far right of the device.
It also increases the size of the device substantially, suggesting it has the potential to serve as a second battery.
The attachment has been christened the ‘expansion slide pad," and lines up a second analogue stick next to the 3DS’s face buttons. The additional analogue stick appears to be smaller than the 3DS’s own.
Capcom is said to be utilising the expansion slide pad for its upcoming 3DS title Monster Hunter 3G – a hugely popular franchise in Japan that could revitalise the 3DS’s commercial performance.
Nintendo has admitted disappointment with the revenue performance of 3DS, and recently moved to cut the price of the device in half in Japan, and around a third in Europe and the US.
Monster Hunter 3G will be playable at the Tokyo Game Show next week, according to Andriasang. It is likely the new peripheral will be demonstrated. The slide pad expansion is currently without a release date.
