Oh, that's easy. DS pretty much monopolized the handheld market for a few reasons: First, Nintendo has a long tradition in the handheld market, so there's brand recognition and the experience in how it's done. Second, it tried some fairly fresh things, such as the two screens and the stylus. Third, it had little competition, since by the time PSP came out, the DS already had a chokehold on the market. Fourth, it provided a variety of games that appealed to both the hardcore and the casual gamers. Basically, it did everything a handheld console should do right and was at the right place at the right time.Caliostro said:
3DS isn't likely to repeat that success, though. First of all, there's more competition, with the iPhone and other Smartphones taking a bite out of the handheld gaming market, PSP slowly crawling its way to something resembling a market share and Nintendo's own DS filling the rest. Yes, the DS might screw over the 3DS since many people might be content with it and not upgrade to the new one.
However, call it a gimmick if you will, but the 3D aspect is a pretty good sales point. People like 3D, but are put off by the cost and the glasses. 3DS does away with both. The built-in disk drive that you can install games on is a nice touch. Also, it's a pretty powerful little bugger, if the hardware specs I've seen are any indication. It's probably even stronger than the Wii.
Overall, it looks like it'll be a home console in a portable format. Something for people who want something new and don't want to shell out metric fucktons of money for a 3D HDTV, several sets of glasses and a half dozen Move hardware pieces just to try something new.
