2DS wasn’t a change of heart, still no plans for smartphones
In the same Q&A, the 2DS’s lack of 3D functionality was brought up as a change of heart on the original 3DS console’s vision. According to Satoru Iwata, the console was planned way ahead as an entry level option for the launch of Pokémon X/Y. Each console takes a year and a half to plan and design before release, so the 2DS was no fleeting change of mind, being a very deliberate decision.
And again, Iwata was asked about plans to release their games on smartphones, given the perceived threat on handheld consoles. With 5 million 3DS consoles sold in the last year, and a projected 5 million again in the next year, Iwata tried to make it clear there is no perceived threat within Nintendo, with strong software releases on their own hardware only making their platforms stronger. The full Q&A session can be found here.
Will people ever stop asking about smartphones? Or Nintendo still ‘doomed’? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
I always enjoy the smartphone “threat” which will apparently destroy Nintendo’s strongest division. Nintendo have got handhelds downpat as long as they can keep making great games (and as long as the Pokemon Company keep doing that fantastic thing they’ve been doing for the last 16-17 years). It’s their home console that is worrying at the moment.