Honestly like some already mentioned, it's much better for Nintendo to launch the NX in March with hardly any competition, vs the crowded holiday season where there's going to be tons of competition as well as the usual Black Friday type sales and bundles for the X1 / PS4.  No need to rush the console out for the holidays... just make sure it actually has games this time, and not gimped ports because of weak hardware (compared to the other current gen consoles).

What I'm bummed about though is the fact that once again Zelda is going to be a simultaneous cross-gen release, when it should be NX exclusive built specifically for the new hardware.  No reason to release an inferior version on the Wii U just because a vocal minority of gamers want to feel justified for dropping $300+ on a dead console.

Nope 3DS launched Q1 across all regions, PS2 launched in March, DS launched in March in the PAL regions N64 did the same, Xbox launched Q1 in both PAL and Japan. March is not an uncommon launch period.

3DS is my bad I confused it with the original (I imported one at the Japanese launch)

PS2 had November Western release and manufacturing issues (Japan used to get hardware a full year of more before the West so could still have been delayed from the intentional launch.)

It's not uncommon but I don't think it's the desired period.

The PS2 first launched in March in Japan which at the time was still a very strong region for consoles, it all comes down to the strategy being employed, launching in March is often an approach to get early adoptors on board first than build up for the holiday season later that year. It can arguably be much better than releasing in the holidays with 1 or 2 games than having nothing until Spring, at that point releasing in a desired period can be nothing more than a fleeting daydream.

I think the weak launch lineup Nintendo fears is in large part on the third party side. With a questionable 2016 user base and little time to work with the hardware, it might be tough to get 3rd parties entirely on board. If they reveal the final model later this year, developers will have a full year to port. They can also gauge consumer interest and have a larger user base for 2017.

Nintendo is not in the same place as Sony and MS. Third party support can not be assumed, and neither can mainstream consumer interest. They need to earn both, and earn it fast. A March 2017 release gives time to build hype and sell the concept of the machine.

It also means that another potential delay is possible if needed. If there is an issue with producing the hardware or if something else needs tweaking, they can do that and still hit Christmas 2017.

lol i know that, I was simply being facetious :) I guess it didn't pass well in text form

i'm neither expecting a great hardware from Nintendo nor have any excitement at all for any Mario game, but find humorous all this speculation around the console. but hey, it'll be fun to watch what it turns out to be

Who says Nintendo has trouble with developing games??? Games need time to make as you mabe know, and i guess they need more time to make them ;)

Well, then I'm on the same page for sure...

I hope it will all be for the best - time of the year doesn't bother me....

lack of games does!

Did the Xbox 360 got a release date in spring as well?