The Nintendo Switch is doing great in sales and its smaller cousin the 3DS has been feeling long in the tooth for quite awhile. When Nintendo launched the Switch it looked as thought the 3DS was on life support. Surely sales would drop off quickly for the seven-year-old handheld now a portable console was available? Well, they didn’t, and Nintendo is considering a new handheld to replace it.
Confirmation of that comes from Shuntaro Furukawa, Nintendo’s new president. Furukawa has been an employee of Nintendo since 1994, starting out as an accountant before moving into global marketing, then working as a director with The Pokemon Company, and being involved in Switch development. He took on the role of president last month.
Furukawa recently explained that “the 3DS has certain advantages over the Switch such as ease of purchase and the like” and that Nintendo is “considering various possibilities” for a successor. The 3DS is certainly cheaper than the Switch, which makes it more desirable to those gaming on a budget or to parents with young children. It’s also much easier to slide in a pocket and has battery life Switch owners can only dream of. In terms of sales, the 3DS went past 72 million units in April and new games are planned for 2019.
