Nintendo president Tatsumi Kimishima shared info on the 3DS family of consoles with a look at regional sell-through trends and expectations for the handheld to reach the 70 million unit mark soon.
This graph shows the total Nintendo 3DS family weekly sell-through rates for Japan, the US, and Europe from the first week in 2017 to the second week of October. Even after the New Nintendo 2DS XL launch shown in blue, sales of other 3DS family hardware remained stable. Week 30 shows particularly high growth, and this spike was driven by the release in Japan of the Square Enix title Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age.
Note 1: The other systems in the Nintendo 3DS family include New Nintendo 3DS, New Nintendo 3DS XL, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo 3DS XL, and Nintendo 2DS. Note 2: New Nintendo 3DS LL and Nintendo 3DS LL are sold outside of Japan as New Nintendo 3DS XL and Nintendo 3DS XL, respectively.
Even after Nintendo Switch sales began, sales of the Nintendo 3DS family remain stable, as you can see here.
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS hardware and software sell-through rates in the US market from the first week of April 2017 through the second week of October in a year-on-year comparison for the past 2 years. The Pokémon series had a major impact on hardware and software sales in FY2017, resulting in a year-on-year decline in sell-through for FY2018.
Note: FY = Fiscal year (April through March of the following year)
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS hardware and software sell-through trends for the European market. Although the figures for FY2018 are not as good for those of previous years, they are still firm overall.
These are the figures for the Japanese market. For this graph alone, we include titles from other software publishers in the sales figures for software. In the domestic Japanese market, Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age helped drive hardware sell-through upwards year-on-year.
Nintendo 3DS sales in each region for both hardware and software have experienced no significant drop-offs, as shown above, and maintain the positive momentum we expected.
We expect to reach the 70 million unit mark for cumulative series sell-in numbers for the Nintendo 3DS family soon. We will continue to work to make sure our business leverages this installed base this holiday season.
We have continued to introduce software titles to maintain the Nintendo 3DS business momentum. As you can see, multiple titles, including download-only titles, were released in September, well in advance of the holiday season.
From October onward, additional new titles include Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga + Bowser’s Minions, Nintendo Presents: New Style Boutique 3 – Styling Star, Kirby Battle Royale, and Mario Party The Top 100.
Note: There may be difference in the release titles and timing, depending on the region.
The latest entries in the Pokémon series will be released in November as well.
We’re striving to maximize our business as we head into the holiday season with a wonderful combination of evergreen titles and new titles.
There will also be new color options and specially designed hardware for New Nintendo 2DS XL, expanding consumer choices.
Note 1: The black and lime, and white and lavender color combinations, as well as the Pikachu special edition, have been announced for sale within Japan. Note 2: The Pikachu special edition hardware will only be sold at Pokémon Center stores.
