Natsume, who is most renowned for developing entries for the Harvest Moon series, believes that all focus is now on the Nintendo Switch and that customers aren’t interested in DS or 3DS titles anymore due to the popularity of Nintendo’s newest console. In a recent interview with NintendoLife, Hiro Maekawa at Natsume stated:
Nintendo has now shifted their energy to Switch. At this point, I don’t think they are interested in DS titles. And our customers aren’t interested in DS titles either. They are losing their interest in 3DS titles as well, simply because of Switch. Everybody’s talking about Switch, Switch, Switch! So Switch will be not only the next big handheld, but also a console platform. Either way.
What do you think? Nintendo has publicly said in the past that they’re still very much pushing the 3DS. Sales for the handheld are still very strong and continue to show signs of immense profitability for Nintendo.
Uhh… Duh!! The 3DS is on it’s last legs, the Switch is the new hotness, why is this news? I think this should be obvious to everyone.
We got until next year.
At least. They probably won’t announce anything unless they have some sort of replacement. Completely focusing everything on one console… that doesn’t seem like the wisest idea. :/
I love my 3DS! I hope they are wrong!
Personally i loathe the switch, reminds me of a more compact wii u game pad with a bit more power but more portability.
I wouldn’t take one even if they gave it to me
So you wouldn’t play a mainline pokemon game on the switch, even if you could take it on the go?
“What do you think? Nintendo has publicly said in the past that they’re still very much pushing the 3DS.”
They also publicly said they were going to keep the Gameboy brand running alongside the DS………until the DS took off and the no longer needed the Gameboy safety net. If they are serious in pushing the Switch as a portable platform, rather than as a console with minor portable features, they will absolutely drop the 3DS line.
Yeah, here’s something you don’t understand: Switch, is a home console, first and foremost, alright. I don’t care how much you point the to trailer and how much it showed it being taken about, that literally, means nothing to reality. The Switch performs it’s best when it is in the dock. Higher PPI, infinite battery life, and all the benefits of playing on a larger screen. So now that we have established this. Lets move on to why it’s a handheld second, at best.
It only has 3 hours battery life out of the dock, has to sacrifice fidelity and screen size to be portable enough to carry around in a bag, cause there’s no way in hell you’re carrying it in your pocket, and what’s more, the only way you’re doing multi-player with 4 people is if you own enough Joy-Cons for the occasion, or someone brings their own.
Let me make this, stupidly clear: portable mode is a feature, not the product.
Well, says you. I thought I’d be playing both modes equally, but I’m almost exclusively portable. Part of the reason is the dock being horribly designed. But most of it is not having the time at home so I play during my commute on the train twice a day. So really, it’s become my latest portable console that happens to be able to hook up to the TV. Nintendo even said they track how people use it, and some are exclusively docked, some exclusively portable, and some a mix of the two. Portable mode is half the product. It is a HUGE feature. You may not use it that way, but it is. That’s how it was designed. And yeah, I play it more than my 3DS now. And it’s sad, because I love the 3DS. I actually wish the Switch had a 3D screen. I wouldn’t mind seeing a 3DS successor, but seeing the 2DS and 2DS XL, if there is a next handheld, I don’t think it’ll be 3D. I almost expect and/or hope a new Game Boy would come out, with all their retro mini consoles coming out it’d probably be huge.
Also, here’s another point – if there’s no big innovative feature for the next handheld, it’ll just be a portable Switch. It has to have something that makes it unique. Without that, there’s no point in having a console that doubles as a portable system, and a portable system. Being able to play at home then on the go makes me invest more in a game. I usually don’t play a console game and a handheld game at the same time. If I play a game, I play one, beat it, move onto the next. And I’m not gonna carry two portable systems with me everywhere. I’ll pick one. I may alternate, but again, I’ll likely choose the Switch since I can play it anywhere. People at work bring theirs all the time and they play 4-12 player MK8. It does happen. It’s designed to do that, without a TV, and sharing the Joy-Cons. It is very portable and convenient, even if it doesn’t fit in your pocket. I never carried any GameBoy or DS unit in my pocket, always a carrying case. So that is irrelevant to me and probably many others. This is quite small, fits in a laptop bag and can be setup in literally no time when sharing with friends. It is very much a hybrid console/handheld.
Oh, one last thing – the only way you’re doing 4 players is not if you own enough Joy-Cons. You can play online. Again, at work, it connects right to the internet, and you can play a couple people on the console with more people online as your opponents. It’s very seamless and doable.
I mean in the end it’s all up to those who buy the games, but I can say for myself, I will still be playing my 3ds when I buy a switch, but that’s just how I am. I still think it’s a little to early to say goodbye to the 3ds. I still play ds games on my 3ds and love them as well. But hey, guess we’ll see.
Its a little too soon if you ask me. I wish we can go back to 2011 since we got our 3DS on that year. I just wish.
Keep in mind it didn’t do that well during initial release.
Maybe your right.
natsume is only saying this due to the fact they turned harvest moon into minecraft with out monsters and world
building
Yup. Of course players aren’t interested in *their* 3DS games, seeing the quality of their Harvest Moons.
As someone else said Nintendo’s 3DS support is just a safety net while they see how the world reacts to the Switch. Hiro Maekawa is spot on as far as I’m concerned, since getting the Switch my interest in the 3DS has diminished greatly. I might try to pick up Monster Hunter Stories to say I want to keep seeing the series on Nintendo hardware and maybe Pokemon depending on what they are doing with it but apart from those two I’m done with the 3DS outside keeping it around to pull out if I get an itch for one of my older games and anything new that comes out are either Switch or bust.
Well, we have until 2018 next year once the 3DS system discontinued.
Respectfully disagree but with the caveat that they’ve changed their target audience somewhat.
maybe
Ooooh… looks like we have a Sherlock Homes here…
There’s no way customers can lose hope for the 3DS titles just because Nintendo Switch is very popular now and days.
We’re actually just not interested in mediocre Natsume games. Give us a proper Harvest Moon and people will probably buy it.
Translation:
“Our games suck and no one wants them.
I lost interest in the 3DS two or three years ago.
Turn the 3D ON on your New 3DS. There, problem solved.
People just don’t want to buy their “Harvest Moon” games. Story of Seasons continues to sell well when their new series won’t. Also Natsume was only the publisher of Harvest Moon games up until they lost the rights to the series and created a different series under the same name :| come on MNN
Off topic but I posted this on my page on tumblr on your bday as a gift nintenmau, I didn’t think you had a chance to see it but I’ll post it here for you.
Happy late bday earth child!!
https://beau-chan.tumblr.com/image/162669893463
Also I do hope 3ds is in its last stages. It’s time to move on. And people need to accept it. Regardless if it was a success.
||I’m sure the Ambassador will be quite satisfied by your gift…||
Well Nintendo did say their making a separate successor for the 3DS. Nintendo 4DS here I come, and make it waterproof and/or water resistance. *plays in bathtub*
They said they are thinking about plans it. But not currently making one
I suspected the Harvest Moon crowd was moving to Switch. I’m not into the games, and I prefer the 3DS. Nintendo said they’ll making a separate successor for the 3DS, and later confirmed that they are making new Hardware. Not to mention that there are several technologies that would be great to add for a more immersive experience to go with the stereoscopic 3D. The 3DS makes up 90% of 3DS family of systems that have sold…take into account that the 2DS is a $49 3DS with no 3D and $30 Mario Kart 7 pre-installed, and it shows that people want stereoscopic 3D…the Mummy made over $200 while Power Rangers made$140, only the 3D movies are making money since 2016 in every country in the world. Pokémon Go got as many people who would buy a 2DS to do so; last year, so I don’t think the 2DS has an audience left to sell to anymore, and the 2DS XL at $150 with no games will not do well. I’ve seen for myself, that the 3DS is the only system left with an audience to sell to; people who want to play in stereoscopic 3D. Which makes the New 3DS XL the only promising system left to be selling this year.