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New 3DS Model: The 2DS (No 3D, Slate Design, $130, Oct 12)
News reported by 
(Editor)
August 28, 2013, 18:25
 


IGN said:
Nintendo announced the 2DS today, a new entry-level handheld system. The 2DS will be available for $129.99 on October 12th (the same day as Pokemon X and Y) and features a slate-like design rather than the clamshell seen on DS and 3DS models.

The 2DS is fully compatible with all 3DS and DS games but does not include the ability to display games in 3D. It still features all the functionality of 3DS (WiFi, local multiplayer, etc.) and can be put to sleep using a slider that replicates closing the clamshell on a standard 3DS. WiFi can still be turned off, though it’s done via controls in the software rather than with a physical switch.


“Imagine a standard 3DS laid all the way flat, and with the depth slider all the way down,” Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime explained to IGN. “Everything else is there in the system.”

The 2DS will launch in red and blue models to start and will be sold alongside the standard 3DS (still available for $169.99) and 3DS XL ($199.99). It will include a 4GB SD card and uses the same power source as 3DS and DSi. It also includes two cameras on the back side, so AR games still function and players can still take 3D photos -- they simply can’t be displayed on the 2DS, but are still viewable in full 3D if transferred to 3DS. The 2DS only includes one speaker, which plays mono sound, but features full stereo via its headphone jack.

According to Fils-Aime, the idea for the 2DS came from wanting to appeal to younger consumers, as the standard 3DS is aimed at players age seven and up.

“Imagine a standard 3DS laid all the way flat, and with the depth slider all the way down. Everything else is there in the system.

“We’re always thinking about what we can do that’s new, unique, different, and brings more people into this category that we love,” Fils-Aime said. “And so with the Nintendo 3DS, we were clear to parents that, ‘hey, we recommend that your children be seven and older to utilize this device.’ So clearly that creates an opportunity for five-year-olds, six-year-olds, that first-time handheld gaming consumer."

"We’ve always been thinking about, 'how do we approach that as one target?'" he continued. "And that certainly helped spur the idea of the Nintendo 2DS. Let’s have the consumer have access to all of these great games – Mario Kart 7, Animal Crossing – but do it in a 2D capability with a device that has a dramatically lower price point. That’s just an example of how we’re always thinking about, ‘how do we get more people playing games? How do we get more people playing Nintendo games?’”

Keep checking back to IGN for more on the 2DS as we approach its October launch.
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08/28/13, 18:25   Edited:  08/28/13, 20:41
 
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My only "problem" with this is the goofy name. Now I want to see a 3DS with this form factor, and it better be called 3D 2DS.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:19
@Guillaume
That would be so awesome. Confusing, but awesome. I'd also accept the 2DS 3D.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:21   Edited:  08/28/13, 22:22
@Tranquilo

One thing to consider is at this point many people who grew up with Pokemon are now the ones buying these things for their kids. And as we all know, parents love to live vicariously through their children...

So Pokemon isn't just a draw for the youngsters. Nostalgia plays a big part. And tablets (or other handhelds) just don't have that.

Plus if you break a tablet, it's kind of a blow. If you break your game system, oh well, wait until Christmas maybe you'll get another one. People tend to value them less, even if they cost the same.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:21
@ploot

We'll see, I actually don't think Pokemon is as big as it once was. I think older people are more into Pokemon than the younger audiences. And when I say older I mean people in their teens onward.

I'm not saying units won't move, I'm just saying it won't move as many here in the US compared to Japan, relatively speaking (we have a bigger population after all)

@-JKR-

I actually thought about that, but will little Timmy care? His friends are playing Candy Crush saga on their iPad or what have you. So he might want that instead. Remember that kids are a vicious breed, and hunt in packs. The parents will always have a say but most kids will want what their friends think is cool.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:24   Edited:  08/28/13, 22:29
@Tranquilo
Then Timmy needs friends who don't suck.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:29   Edited:  08/28/13, 22:32
@DeputyVanHalen

Lol, it is not that serious. I would love to be proven wrong, but I don't see this taking off the toddler demographic.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:32
@Tranquilo

His friends are idiots for playing that blasted game.

Man... I must have sunk a dozen hours into that worthless piece of garbage before I finally woke up to the madness that it was and deleted the stupid thing.

In all seriousness, Candy Crush is fun and all but it can't compare to a real game like Pokemon. And Pokemon doesn't make you wait 24 hours to play the next level, either. Parents will know that after Timmy blows $50 on in-game bonuses just so he can keep playing and is promptly grounded for seven weeks.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:35
@Tranquilo
Pokemon is big with the kids here in Windsor/Essex County. I haven't been to a school where, during supervision, some kid hasn't been smacked in the face by his friend while pretending to do "tail whip."
They're still into the card game, too. It's pretty crazy.

I do concede that it isn't nearly as gargantuan as it was years and years ago, but it is still going very, very strong.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:38
I don't know... I think I had pretty excellent taste in video games when I was a kid. I would like to think that there are many kids today that also require more than these phone/tablet titles can provide.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:38
Kids are into video games not just for the fun, but for the characters and worlds that they can be a part of. No kid is going to wear a Candy Crush Saga T-shirt. If anything, they'd be more into Angry Birds stuff than some puzzle game.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 22:38
Oh I get it. Five year olds stay five year olds forever now.

You guys really think 3D is bad for kids? I think it's a paranoid myth.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 23:11   Edited:  08/28/13, 23:15
Renjaku said:
Oh I get it. Five year olds stay five year olds forever now.

We're on a Nintendo forum. You have a Snivy icon. The guy above you makes millions of dollars by drawing Escargoon fanart. We're all five year olds.

And I love it!

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 23:51
Apparently it is just one touch screen with plastic in the middle.

Bizarre.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 23:55
Hmmm. If that's the cheaper way to go, I guess it works.

Posted by 
 on: 08/28/13, 23:58
@Hinph

If that is cheaper, they might as well start allowing touch screen stuff on both screens. I always thought that would be the next step for DS but it never happened. Too late for this generation I suppose.

Posted by 
 on: 08/29/13, 00:00
@Zero

Nintendo you are CRAZY.

What the what.

Posted by 
 on: 08/29/13, 00:01
@Jargon It's only cheaper because it is one screen and only one screen because there is no hinge though... this is just a unique situation that only works for this unique piece of handheld hardware.

Posted by 
 on: 08/29/13, 00:10
@Secret_Tunnel

I think your estimates are a little off there!

Posted by 
 on: 08/29/13, 01:03
He was accurate for me. Check my profile, I'm not even five years old yet.

Posted by 
 on: 08/29/13, 01:19
Talk about driving a wedge between your audiences...

Posted by 
 on: 08/29/13, 01:43
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