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MDMAlliance on 20 June 2013
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TheLastStarFighter said:
MDMAlliance said:
However that's not true.  Assuming that Nintendo won only because of a price drop and Monster Hunter is not even close to true.  The price drop didn't increase sales to where it is today.  If you look back at the sales record, the price drop helped the 3DS about as much as it helped the Vita.  Sure it may be a relatively big increase, but nonetheless it is not nearly enough to make it "acceptable" sales.  Also, Monster Hunter is only Japan.  The handheld market cannot be sustained just with Japan's sales.  Also, the 3DS got a Monster Hunter game that has been remade quite a few times and the new one coming out isn't even out yet.  The PS Vita also got a game similar to Monster Hunter but that didn't save it either.

Also, the console side you're talking about has just about the same amount of impact as it does on handhelds.  The only difference REALLY here is that there are only two major players in the handheld market, which makes the difference SEEM bigger for things like this, but it isn't really.  

The REAL market differences for handhelds and consoles come with how they are priced, what games they should get, what genres are good for it to sell the consoles, and advertising strategies.  There may be a few more but these are the big ones.

I didn't say it's the only reason that Nintendo won, I said it's the only things they needed to do.  This is because the markets are different.  Nintendo has a stranglehold on the market in handhelds.  The DS sold 150 million units.  Nintendo owns all of the biggest handheld franchises save Monster Hunter.  3rd parties are not major players in handhelds, and the only direct competition for Nintendo is Sony, which puts most of its efforts in consoles.  In consoles, MS, Sony and 3rd parties are major, major players.  This is a very different market.


That is also incorrect.  Do you really think that the price drop really changed that much?  The 3DS would be selling Vita levels everywhere except for Japan (with Monster Hunter) without the actual GAMES that sold it.  The only place the 3DS would be winning in is Japan if that happened.  

Also, Nintendo does not automatically have a "hold" on the market as you're making it seem.  Otherwise the launch of the 3DS would have been fine.  If the price really were such a big deal, then why are more people buying a 3DS XL?  It's $200, while now the PS Vita in Japan is also at that price.  

Saying 3rd parties are not major players in handhelds, that may only apply to North America and Europe, and mostly due to the fact that Microsoft isn't also playing a huge role in it.  However, since you wanted to bring up Japan, handhelds are well-supported by 3rd parties there.  Also, Nintendo products in general aren't supported well in the West, plus the Vita isn't doing well at all in Europe or North America so 3rd parties in the West probably just ignore it completely because of that.  

A lot of what you're saying is just circumstantial.