The 3DS is getting a price drop to $169.99! Does this change your mind? - gdgt

Close

x

RP

Question about

Nintendo 3DS

Add tags:

MasterSystem July 28, 2011

The 3DS is getting a price drop to $169.99! Does this change your mind?

www.nintendo.com/whatsnew/detail/fttgI7OsQIB1tZqRM...

For anyone who adopted the system early, Nintendo is giving them 20 free Virtual Console games.

The Nintendo 3DS has only been out for 6 months. Those 6 months have not been kind to the little handheld as sales of the 3DS have not been nearly as successful as Nintendo had hoped (certainly not as close as the original DS).

The price drop comes on the heels of countless 3DS game cancellations such as Mega Man Legends 3, Assassin's Creed, and Omega Five; with many more games being delayed. It seems as if third party developers are shying away from the console. Could it be the competition from mobile phone gaming?

What do you think about the price drop? Are you getting a 3DS now?

answer this question

top answers

community pick

peterto 9 months ago

Until the battery life reaches a reasonable level, meaning 10+ hours, I'm holding off.

mark as good answer

6 people like this answer

sort by

votes
date

14 more answers

groovechicken 2011-07-30 09:42:00

I am sorely tempted. The only reason I wanted it in the first place is Super Street Fighter IV. Virtual Console and Ocarina of Time are nice bonuses. I may end up needing an intervention to stop me. The battery life is the one problem making me hesitant. At the lower price, though, I may be able to justify the extended battery. With such low battery life, though, I am afraid it won't replace my DS, requiring me to keep both. I am not ready to abandon the long list of DS RPGs on my "to play" list.

mark as good answer

4 people like this answer

Isr 2011-07-30 23:43:04

Well, if you play DS titles on a 3DS, the battery last longer. And actually, it is way better to play games like Okamiden (which is awesome, btw) on a 3DS, since it has the analog nub.

MasterSystem 2011-07-31 14:17:16

Out of curiosity, groovechicken, do you carry a smartphone that you also game on? For me, the $40 price point for 3DS games are entirely unappealing especially now that smartphone games are nearly a tenth of that price-- and don't require swapping out cartridges.

The comparably cheaper DSiWare games are, however, absolutely fantastic.

Espiox 2011-07-31 18:35:42

The battery life hasn't been an issue for me, though I mostly play at home. The charging cradle it comes with is great - I just leave it in there when I'm not using it, then I can pick it up anytime and flip it open and it's ready to go.

groovechicken 2011-08-03 13:47:08

MasterSystem, I have an EVO 4G and I don't game on it for 2 big reasons, even though it is a perfectly capable game-playing device:

1. The battery life sucks and playing games drains it in no time flat.

2. I don't like having games on my phones because the phone goes everywhere with me and I get too easily hooked on games, causing me to waste time I should be spending doing other things. I need separate consoles for game playing as a natural limiter to the time I waste on games. If I have games on my productivity devices, it is bad news.

All that being said, I'm pretty disgusted by the $40 price tag on 3DS games, but I am not looking at this equation as: $170 system + ($40 games x ?). To me, the equation is: cheapest and best pocketable way to play Street Fighter against people online = $210.

kris 2011-08-03 15:01:43

I have to agree with groovechicken here; the battery drains too quickly for a good round of gaming, and as an RPG player, I haven't seen enough games on iOS or Android that make me go, "I don't need a dedicated system anymore!" It's not that there aren't good games on phones, it's that we haven't reached the tipping point for me yet.

groovechicken 2011-08-15 07:10:31

I caved in. So far, I like the hardware, but I haven't had a lot of time with it yet. I haven't done much other than play Street Fighter, so I will try to do some other stuff with it and offer my feedback. The battery doesn't seem to be as horrible as I expected. Friday, I played about 45 minutes of online Street Fighter (with 3D turned off), then Saturday I watched about 10 minutes of Start Trek on Netflix to test the player out. When I was done, the battery still showed all the notches filled. I will play some Radiant Historia today at lunch to test the DS playing and report back with battery life news. So far, I am thinking it might not be as bad as anticipated. Keen!

kris 2011-07-31 22:36:54

It's tempting, but my DS Lite still has a lot of life left in it.

Noticed this at the end of the Nintendo announcement:

"By the end of 2011, Nintendo will provide Ambassadors with 10 Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games. These include games like Yoshi's Island™: Super Mario™ Advance 3, Mario Kart™: Super Circuit, Metroid™ Fusion, WarioWare™, Inc.: Mega Microgame$ and Mario vs. Donkey Kong™. These games will be available exclusively to Ambassadors, and Nintendo currently has no plans to make these 10 games available to the general public on the Nintendo 3DS in the future."

Note that last part. What's the point? To try and get people to buy 3DS systems before the price drop? 10 exclusive games aren't really a compelling enough reason to buy one if you don't have one already, and all it serves to do is piss off people who buy a system later.

mark as good answer

4 people like this answer

dave 2011-07-28 18:53:07

This is something I've thought about, but I don't want to carry yet another device around with me. For most of the things I need, my phone is enough. Plus, it's more convenient to use to play a quick game while waiting in line, traveling on a bus, etc.

Sorry, Nintendo. :(

mark as good answer

3 people like this answer

cass 2011-07-28 18:43:22

I haven't seen any compelling games out for it just yet, so I think I'd have to pass. I also agree with Peter regarding the battery life. I'm looking forward to the next iteration of the 3DS.

mark as good answer

2 people like this answer

andrewkalies 2011-08-01 12:53:58

Nope, still have my old DS Lite and it's still kicking. Besides, $170 for a system that doesn't have very many games that interest me is a bad purchase.

mark as good answer

2 people like this answer

Dpmt 2011-07-28 18:53:15

The thing that will change peoples minds is Super Smash Bros. Everything else is just a side note.

mark as good answer

1 person likes this answer

MarkPharaoh 2011-07-30 01:00:57

Awesome price drop, but the game catalog just isn't there for me to shell out that money. Rather hold that cash to buy a SGSII that's looming around the corner for the USA launch.

I will stick with my DSLite and wait to see how much they improve the 3DS for their next hardware launch.

mark as good answer

1 person likes this answer

| add reply

leigh 2011-08-10 13:44:29

Nope. I'm not really into 3D stuff and my son seems to be even less so. He said it seemed cheesy and distracting and opted to stick with his current set up.

mark as good answer

1 person likes this answer

| add reply

MartinsSciFi 2011-07-28 19:12:30

I have one. I've played around with it for a while and it was fun.
However I'm not sure I would buy a 3DS again - even at the reduced price.
While technically solid, 3D does not seem to work very well for me. Additionally I am underwhelmed by the game offering.
And last but not least: compared to the game offering on iOS the value for money preposition of the games is rather poor.
I find I hardly ever carry my 3DS around, but I always have my iPhone with me. And if I go on a trip I usually take my iPad as well - and rarely additionally the 3DS.

mark as good answer

0 people like this answer

| add reply

pikamookie 2011-07-30 13:59:32

The 3D is cool but after awhile it makes my brain hurt. :D

mark as good answer

0 people like this answer

Keitel 2011-08-02 20:50:02

I think with a more tempting line of games, perhaps, because of the ds capability

mark as good answer

0 people like this answer

| add reply

bwbass 2011-08-10 16:30:26

Well, my son is a die-hard Nintendo fanboy, and we skipped the DSi, so the only things this changes are how much yard work he has to do to earn it (less), and how severely he'll get beaten if he loses it (also less). Seriously though, it was a little unnerving to think of a > $200 console in the hands of the kid who loses everything... the price drop eases my mind quite a bit.

mark as good answer

0 people like this answer

| add reply

ShadowStaarr 2011-08-14 18:05:18

Is it worth it? I don't know. I ended up springing for one because of the price drop and I figured it might be worth it just for the Virtual Console.

mark as good answer

0 people like this answer

DannyDefinit 2011-08-18 00:37:36

I just bought one after the price drop. Still slightly underwhelmed, and expect this to be a hand-me-down to one of my younger siblings.

mark as good answer

0 people like this answer

| add reply

follow this question

Related questions

19 users following this question:

This question has been viewed 156 times.
Last activity 2011-08-18 00:37:36.

Tips for giving the best answers

Sometimes it's just little details that separates a great and not so great answer! Here are a few simple tips to keep in mind:

1: Be complete and thorough. Don't skimp on the details!
2: Try not to answer with a question. Because that's not really an answer, right?
3: A little research goes a long way. Back up your claims and assumptions!
4: Try to be patient, tech questions can be complicated.
5: You are awesome for both reading this and answering questions.

It looks like you have JavaScript turned off, so gdgt may not work. You should enable JavaScript to fully experience gdgt.