More people want to get their hands on a 3DS from Amazon than any other console in the online retailer’s history.
Hey, have you heard about this 3DS thing? Yeah, it’s supposed to be kind of a big deal or something like that. Not only did the 3DS sell out its first shipment in a single day in Japan, but Nintendo UK said it was the most-preordered console in the hardware giant’s long history.
According to Amazon UK, pre-launch hype for the 3DS is bigger than even Nintendo itself had claimed – the 3D-capable handheld has more preorders than any console it’s ever sold. The 3DS has 20% more preorders than Sony’s PS3 did back in 2007, and 56% more preorders than Nintendo’s plucky little Wii. It’s also smashed the numbers held by its closest relatives in the Nintendo handheld family, putting up 255% more preorders than Amazon saw for the DSi.
It hasn’t even hit shelves yet, and the handheld is already on Amazon UK’s top ten bestsellers list.
“It’s unusual for a handheld console to attract this amount of excitement in the run up to launch, such high levels of interest are normally reserved for the play-at-home hardware like the ground-breaking Nintendo Wii and last year’s Microsoft Kinect,” Amazon UK’s director of videogames Chris Poad told VG247.
“Nintendo 3DS is launching at a time when interest in all things 3D is incredibly high and with the promise of real 3D graphics without glasses, it’s a real breakthrough in handheld video game entertainment.”
A good launch is crucial to Nintendo this time around – not only does the 3DS have the NGP breathing down its neck, but it also faces stiff competition in the form of mobile gaming on Android and iOS devices.
(VG247)
Published: Mar 17, 2011 07:22 pm