Nintendo shares rally, 3DS changes coming?

Nintendo shares rose 8.4% to 13,100 yen on Tuesday trading after rumors surfaced that changes are in store for the company's 3DS handheld gaming system. Short-covering may have also contributed to the outsized move as short sellers withdrew their bearish bets on the embattled video game maker. Dogged by slow sales of their latest handheld wunderkind which was supposed to have taken over the world by now, Nintendo's leadership is taking a closer look at the 3DS according to French technology website 01net.

One of the changes mentioned by 01net is the development of a second analog stick to be mounted on the right side of the 3DS. As improbable as that sounds, if Nintendo does proceed with a hardware enhancement, it would likely have to be included free with future games that support the controller as an in-game-freebie for wide adoption. 01net also mentions a new Nintendo handheld gaming system that is set to replace the 3DS next year which again, sounds highly suspect for Nintendo to abandon the 3DS platform so quickly instead of following the usual 5-7 year life-cycle of gaming platforms. Can Nintendo pull an HP, who dumped the HP Tablet only 7 weeks after the release? Both rumors from 01net get the "HIGHLY UNLIKELY" stamp along with flashing lights on the B.S. meter.

In addition to the rumors sprouting from 01net, Dow Jones Newswires reports that Nintendo will host a 3DS trade show that is taking place next month in Tokyo. Investors may be heartened by Nintendo's proactive steps to shore up the 3DS after the company's stock has taken a drubbing this year.

Nintendo 3DS cut from $249 to $169

Nintendo debuted the Nintendo 3DS in North America on March 27, 2011 to much fanfare but a mere four months later, the price of the 3D-capable handheld is being slashed from US$249 to US$169. If you're one of the 830,000 early adopters who bought a 3DS on launch day and in the past few months, don't feel  too bad. Nintendo is consoling owners of the 3DS with a choice of 20 free games that may be downloaded from the Nintendo eShop. The generous move is called the Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Program and the company's statement reads as follows:

Starting Sept. 1, Nintendo 3DS Ambassadors will be able to download 10 NES Virtual Console games at no charge and before they are available in the Nintendo eShop to the general public. These games, including Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Jr., Balloon Fight, Ice Climber and The Legend of Zelda, are slated to become paid downloadable games, but Ambassadors get them early for free. Once the paid versions of the games are posted to the Nintendo eShop later in the year, the updated versions will be available to Ambassadors for download at no cost.
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. 

The new price of US$169 for the Nintendo 3DS takes effect on August 12, 2011. Nintendo recently reported a 25.5 billion yen (US$328 million) net loss and 37.70 billion yen ($485 million) pre-tax operating loss in its quarterly report for the April to June 2011 period. The company also slashed its annual profit forecast from 175 billion yen (US$2.25 billion) to 35 billion yen (US$450 million). Nintendo president Satoru Iwata told reporters, "we feel the price change and several prominent software releases by the end of the year will definitely change the situation."  Nintendo expects to meet its  target of selling 16 million 3DS systems by March 31, 2012 which is the end of its fiscal year.

NYC Nintendo 3DS Launch Event

Reggie Fils-Aime mingles with the crowd at NYC Best Buy Nintendo 3DS Launch event.

Nintendo unveils 3DS launch lineup

    Nintendo has announced 18 games will be released with the 3DS on March 27, 2011. The software lineup is as follows:

* Asphalt 3D
* Bust-a-Move Universe
* Combat of Giants: Dinosaurs 3D
* LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars
* Madden NFL Football
* nintendogs + cats
* Pilotwings Resort
* Rayman 3D
* Ridge Racer 3D
* Pro Evolution Soccer 2011 3D
* Samurai Warriors: Chronicles
* The Sims 3
* Steel Diver
* Super Street Fighter IV 3D
* Super Monkey Ball 3D
* Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Shadow Wars

Steel Diver (3DS NYC Preview Event 2011)

Legend Of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D Boss Fight (3DS NYC Preview Event 2011)

Kid Icarus Uprising 3DS Gameplay (3DS NYC Preview Event 2011)

Nintendo 3DS Software Lineup Video from Nintendo of America

Nintendo 3DS - Hardware Trailer

Nintendo 3DS North American Details

   The Japanese version of the Nintendo 3DS is being released on February 25, 2011 but Nintendo has finalized the details for the North American release of the 3DS. Nintendo is pricing the 3DS in N.A. at a suggested retail price of US$249 and the handheld ships on March 27, 2011. The 3DS will be available in Cosmos Black and Aqua Blue and each retail package includes the following items:

» Nintendo 3DS handheld and Stylus
» Charging Cradle and AC Adapter (120V)
» SD Memory Card (2GB)
» Augmented Reality Cards (6 units)
» Instructions Booklet and Quickstart Sheet

A single camera is positioned inside the Nintendo 3DS which points at the user and two cameras are mounted on the outer shell. Built-in software programs include Nintendo 3DS Sound, Mii Studio, a selection of augmented reality games for use with the AR cards, and more.

The battery life of the Nintendo 3DS stands at 3.5 hours for 3DS games and 5-8 hours for standard DS and DSi software.

The Nintendo 3DS is Region Locked and Another Nintendo 3DS Has Been Stolen

Dude travels to Japan and video-blogs...

From the video's description:
Transcript:
Hey guys, David here from nintendo 3ds blog dot com with a quick news update.

Nintendo's Japanese support team has confirmed that the Nintendo 3DS is region locked.

This means that if you try to play imported games on hardware with a different region code - like playing a Japanese game on a US system - it just won't work.

I'll still be picking up a 3DS in Japan, because I always expect the 3DS to be region locked, but it's still a shame that importing games will be a hassle.

And yet another 3DS has been stolen.

A Taiwanese fellow has got his hands on the device and posted a ton of photos, having pulled apart the unit and shown off all of its insides. Hopefully the exact technical specifications will leak soon, so you should check out the blog for those details.

But that's it for now. We're still traveling through Japan and I'm hoping I can attach short montages to the end of these videos, so stick around after this videos to see that. And I'll talk to you later.

[Nintendo World 2011] Eighth Presentation - Level 5's 3DS Games

Level 5 presents their upcoming games for the Nintendo 3DS at Nintendo World 2011: Professor Layton and the Mask of Miracle, Fantasy Life, Kyabajoppi, Inazuma Eleven 4, Time Travelers and Professor Layton vs. Ace Attorney.

Paper Mario 3DS trailer at Nintendo World 2011 [Full HD]

Not the best quality from the Nintendo World 2011 exhibition but it's good enough.

New Nintendo 3DS Software Lineup Video at Nintendo World 2011 - Paper Mario, Kingdom Hearts 3D

Can someone get this dude a tripod? Ignore the shakiness and check out the Nintendo 3DS lineup which is impressive.

Stage Show | Resident Evil: The Mercenaries, Revelations for Nintendo 3DS at Nintendo World 2011

If you're only interested in checking out the trailer, go to 14:18 and enjoy the show.

Stage Show | Super Street Fighter IV: 3D Edition for Nintendo 3DS at Nintendo World 2011

The stage show is comprehensive because it looks back at the history of Street Fighter and ultimately unveils a sweet 3D version of Street Fighter IV which runs on a handheld.

Stage Show | Mii Studio and Augmented Reality for Nintendo 3DS at Nintendo World 2011

I debated whether to include this video because of the Japanese language content but the demonstration of augmented reality starting at 20:50 was the deciding factor.

Stage Show | Kid Icarus: Uprising for Nintendo 3DS at Nintendo World 2011

The entire Kid Icarus: Uprising (N3DS) presentation that was shown at Nintendo World 2011.

Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D - Stage Show Nintendo World 2011

The entire Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D stage show from the Nintendo World 2011 event.

Nintendo 3DS Walkthrough from Nintendo World 2011 Japan

Japanese language walkthrough of the Nintendo DS from the Nintendo World 2011 event.