3DS sales have picked up lately, but Nintendo‘s financial numbers are still weak. Big N today released [PDF] another set of disappointing results for the first nine months of its fiscal year (April to December 2011). The company lost a whopping US$630 million, compared with a profit of US$635 million in the same time frame last fiscal.

Sales were down 31.2% year-on-year to US$7.2 billion.

Nintendo says there are three main reasons for this performance: weak Wii sales, the unprecedented price cut for the 3DS in spring last year, and losses on its foreign currency holdings coming from the very strong yen.

But today, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata was able to announce good news, too: Iwata said this company is ready to phase out the Wii and to start selling the follow-up console, the Wii U, in Japan, America, Europe and Australia by the “year-end season” 2012.

Japan’s video game industry is the world’s second biggest (after the US), but it’s on a downward streak for the fifth consecutive year. Based on sales, the country’s video game industry has contracted by as much as 8% year-on-year, Japan’s biggest gaming magazine Famitsu is reporting [JP].

Between December 27, 2010 and December 25, 2011, Japanese game companies generated US$5.9 billion in sales. The Famitsu says that sales from hardware makers actually went up 2.4% (thanks to the launch of the 3DS and PlayStation Vita) to reach US$2.3 billion. Software revenues in Japan dropped 13.7% to US$3.6 billion last year.

This is how often the different video game systems sold in 2011 (total sales numbers in parentheses):

1. Nintendo 3DS: 4,135,739 units
2. Sony PSP: 1,960,177 (18,237,108)
3. Sony PlayStation 3: 1,467,261 (7,417,148)
4. Nintendo Wii: 937,451 (12,167,743)
5. Nintendo DS (all models combined): 711,204 (32,835,502)
6. PlayStation Vita: 402,794
7. Xbox 360: 114,075 (1,520,738)

This overview shows the top selling games in Japan in 2011 (total sales numbers in parentheses):

1. Mario Kart 7 (Nintendo 3DS): 1,082,391 units
2. Super Mario 3D Land (Nintendo 3DS): 1,042,511
3. Monster Hunter Portable 3rd (Nintendo 3DS): 1,021,457 (4,502,446)
4. Monster Hunter 3G (Nintendo 3DS): 809,322
5. Final Fantasy XIII-2 (Sony PS3): 697,146
6. Final Fantasy Type-0 (Sony PSP): 696,428
7. Rhythm Heaven Forever (Nintendo Wii): 633,429
8. Tales of Xillia (Sony PS3): 632,151
9. Wii Sports Resort (Nintendo Wii): 612,807 (2,732,655)
10. Wii Party (Nintendo Wii): 584,545 (2,123,773)

They have been fighting against the concept of making customers pay for extra game content for years, but as previously reported, Nintendo has now changed its strategy. According to a report by Japanese business daily The Nikkei, Nintendo has chosen Fire Emblem as the first game on the 3DS to offer paid download content.

Fire Emblem: Kakusei, the latest title in the classic RPG series, is scheduled for release in Japan in spring 2012 (it has been announced earlier this year).

The Nikkei says that players will be able to download additional content for “several hundred yen each time” (100 yen currently translate to US$1.30), payable via pre-paid cards available in various Japanese electronics stores or via credit card. In the case of Fire Emblem, buyers can get additional levels after completing the game, for example.

If the report is to be believed, Nintendo is already planning to release more 3DS games supporting the new billing functionality from summer next year. Apparently, the Wii U (the successor to the Wii that’s set to debut in 2012), will be getting paid download content as well.

The Famitsu, Japan’s (and maybe the world’s) biggest video game magazine, has tested Zelda Skyward Sword (the newest Zelda game for Wii) in their newest issue. And apparently, they liked what they played: as the first game this year, Zelda Skyward Sword scored a perfect 40/40 score.

The four testers gave away ten out of ten points each, making the Wii title the third in the Zelda series to get a perfect total score. In fact, Ocarina of Time for the N64 was the first game ever to get the 40/40 from Famitsu (in November 1998). Zelda: Wind Waker, which went on sale about four years later on the Gamecube, received the same rating.

In the US, Zelda Skyward Sword will hit stores on November 20.

Here’s a list that shows all titles that have received a perfect score from Famitsu so far:

1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time (1998, for Nintendo 64)
2. Soul Calibur (1999, for Dreamcast)
3. Vagrant Story (2000, for PlayStation)
4. The Legend of Zelda – The Wind Waker (2003, for GameCube)
5. Nintendogs (2005, for the DS)
6. Final Fantasy XII (2006, for PlayStation 2)
7. Super Smash Bros. Brawl (2008, for the Wii)
8. Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots (2008, for PlayStation 3)
9. 428: Fusasareta Shibuya de (2008, for the Wii)
10. Dragon Quest IX (2009, for the DS)
11. Monster Hunter Tri (2009, for the Wii)
12. Bayonetta (2009, for PlayStation 3/XBox 360)
13. New Super Mario Bros. (2009, for Wii)
14. Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker (2010, for PSP)
15. Pokémon Black and White (2010, for Nintendo DS)

Hulu Plus has long been missing from the Wii leaving Netflix as the only major streaming service on the gaming console. But that changes soon. Nintendo just announced that Hulu Plus will soon be available on both the Wii and the 3DS. The exact launch data wasn’t announced, but the release states that that the service will hit “both systems by the end of the year.”

This comes as Nintendo is prepping for the next generation Wii, the Wii U. But that system isn’t going to launch for months and Nintendo still has to move Wii units while fighting off the 360 and PS3. Adding a major new streaming service like Hulu Plus will certainly keep some owners happy.

The Hulu Plus service costs $7.99 a month and opens access to content from ABC, NBC, Fox, Comedy Central, MTV and more. The service is often criticized for having a limited selection but more content is constantly being added. Between Netflix and now Hulu Plus, the Wii’s streaming lineup will be rather complete but still not has robust as the PS3 and Xbox 360, which got into the streaming game a lot earlier. Nintendo isn’t moving slowly again.

Neflix was already announced for the 3DS. Now, with Hulu Plus, the 3DS has an early lead on the PS Vita, which doesn’t have any 3rd party streaming support yet. Netflix or anyone else has yet to announce support for Sony’s next-gen portable, leaving some wondering if it will ever come. Nintendo, however, has both Netflix and soon Hulu Plus streaming to its portable system, which might help the company move several more units.

I remember the time when you were either a Nintendo kid or a Sega kid — assuming you were lucky enough to have one of the consoles at all. You’d ask your friend if they had played Super Mario Bros 3 warpless, and they would respond that no, they were still trying to beat their Casino Zone times in Sonic 2. Things would be a little tense after that. And this was a prejudice that I felt would never be mended. But when Sega went all-software after the Dreamcast (R.I.P.), things changed.

Sure, we’ve had Sonic games on Nintendo systems — have for years. But a Sonic-blue Wii? According to my inner child, they’ve finally crossed the line.

The reason is normal enough: it’s a Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games bundle. The Wii itself is of the new, slightly crippled variety (doesn’t have wi-fi or play Gamecube games) but it’s a perfect little collaboration for the upcoming Olympics — if you lack the soul of a gamer. To anyone who grew up in the 80s, this is a gross dereliction of fanboy duty by the obsessively self-centered Nintendo.

It also comes with a sticker sheet. I have to assume that someone at Nintendo threatened to disembowel themselves if Sonic were permanently placed on a Wii.

This abomination will be available in Europe starting November 18th. Or as they might say, 18 November.

Ever heard of the Wavit remote? It’s totally okay if you haven’t; that’s not what this story is about. The Wavit Remote’s makers on the other hand… Well, they’ve decided to up and sue Nintendo over the Wii. Not only that, but they’ve included other retailers and manufacturers — including WalMart — in the complaint as well. And they’ve chosen the setting most likely to yield a win: the U.S. District Court of the Eastern District of Texas.

Now, that’s not to say that Wavit makers ThinkOptical will get a win, but this particular court circuit tends to favor the patent holder over all else.

The patent in question, U.S. Patent Number 7,796,116, is titled “Electronic equipment for handheld vision based absolute pointing system.” ThinkOptic’s primary argument in the case is that Nintendo had previous knowledge that the Wii would infringe based on the Trademark Office’s rejection of certain claims in Nintendo-filed patents, reports Law360.

“The rejection of [...] applications — assigned to Nintendo Co. Ltd. — based on the ’116 patent is proof that the Nintendo defendants knew or should have known of the objective risk that one or more of their products infringed at least one claim of at least the ’116 Patent,” said ThinkOptic in its complaint.

ThinkOptic included two other patents in the case, as well — one called “Handheld Device for Handheld Vision Based Absolute Pointing System” (7,852,317) and the other titled “Handheld Vision Based Absolute Pointing System” (7,864,159). These two, coupled with the ’116 patent make up the basis for the Wavit Remote.

According to ThinkOptic, just about every part of the Wii infringes these patents in some capacity. That includes the gaming system as a whole, Wii controllers, the sensor bars, and even the games. ThinkOptic also gave Nintendo, and the court, a heads-up on the Wii U: apparently that, too, infringes on ThinkOptic’s patents.

Other big names listed as respondents in the suit include Imation, Nyko Technologies, GameStop, RadioShack, and JC Penney. ThinkOptic is asking for an injunction against violating products, as well as royalties, attorney’s fees, and damages for lost profits. As of now, all we know moving forward is that a jury trial has been requested.

The Tokyo Game Show 2011 is just ten days away, but Square Enix preferred to hold a separate press conference in Tokyo to announce their next big game, Dragon Quest X [JP]. Perhaps the biggest surprises, after months of anticipation, are that the tenth installment in the 25-year old RPG series will be an online RPG and available on both the Wii and the Wii U.

The full title of the game is “Dragon Quest X: Awakening of the Five Tribes Online”, with Square Enix planning to release it next year on the Wii (a date for the Wii U hasn’t been fixed yet). Players will be exploring the same world on both consoles and can transfer game data to their 3DS and share it with other players via Streetpass.

This is the first official screenshot:

Square Enix hasn’t revealed too much as to what the game will actually be about, but it looks like players can form parties with others online, choose between five races and explore the five continents of a world called Astortia (for offline players, there will be NPCs, too). Unlike Dragon Quest IX and VIII (which were created by Level-5), X is being developed by Square Enix alone.

As previous Dragon Quest did make their way out of Japan, you can expect X to hit the US and other places after the Japan release, too (even though no official announcement has been made yet).

Here’s a first (unofficial) trailer in Japanese:

Nintendo is prepping a slightly retooled Wii for a pre-holiday release. This streamlined model sits horizontally (as a game console should) instead of vertically like the original. It’s also slightly smaller, lacks the ability to play Gamecube games, and will likely hit at a lower price.

This move has standard procedure for game makers ever since the original NES. In an effort to revive sales and take advantage of new, lower-priced hardware, game makers will release an “updated” version of a particular console. This of course is the last act for that particular system as most of the time its replacement has already been announced. In this case, Nintendo announced the Wii U at E3 2011.

The Wii has had a stellar run. In a sense it relit excitement around gaming and taught older generations to loosen up and have fun. The Wii was released in November of 2006 and has since sold over 87 million units, which puts it on top for the best-selling game console of all time. The Xbox 360 is still making a run at that record with solid sales even six years into its life. This is thanks in part to the revival caused by the Kinect.

The updated Wii is only official for the UK right now. But Nintendo doesn’t traditionally out new hardware for just one region. Chances are this smaller, more petite Wii will hit worldwide rather shortly. In a strange twist the front of the redesigned Wii looks rather similar to the front fascia running the Wii U. It’s not be a stretch to assume the redesigned Wii will help usher in the next generation.

Pricing hasn’t been announced, but the system will come bundled with Wii Party, Wii Sports, a Wii Remote Plus and a Nunchuk. This system is reportedly not able to play classic Gamecube games. If you don’t mind a taller Wii, you may want to scoop up one of the $150 Wii Mario Kart bundles before the supply is exhausted. (or pulled)

While I haven’t heard any popular outcry regarding the Nintendo 3DS price drop – a quiet that, is, in a way, the most interesting part of the entire affair – Nintendo has decided that it’s time to explain itself to the early adopters. Satoru Iwata, CEO of the company, stated that the move was, in fact, unprecedented, but Nintendo had some very good reasons for cutting the 3DS price:

This unprecedented timing for a price cut is because the situation has changed greatly since we originally launched the 3DS. We decided it was necessary to take this drastic step in order to ensure that large numbers of users will continue to enjoy the 3DS in the future.

If the software creators and those on the retail side are not confident that the Nintendo 3DS is a worthy successor to the DS and will achieve a similarly broad (user) base, it will be impossible for the 3DS to gain popularity, acquire a wide range of software, and eventually create the product cycle necessary for everyone to be satisfied with the system.

You can read the whole note below but Nintendo clearly believes that the lack of 3DS content is a developer issue. While this could be the case, I think there may also be a bit of console fatigue, especially with the upcoming launch of the Wii U and, to a lesser extent, the release of the Playstation Vita.

Regardless, we now return to your regularly scheduled CEO groveling session:

To Those Customers Who Bought A Nintendo 3DS Before The Price Change

Greetings, everyone. This is Satoru Iwata from Nintendo.

Thank you very much for purchasing a Nintendo 3DS.

We have just announced a price drop for the Nintendo 3DS system effective on August 11 [August 12 in North America].

In the past, there have been price drops for video game systems some time after their release in order to broaden the user base further. However, never before has Nintendo chosen to issue such a dramatic price drop less than 6 months after a system release.

We are all too keenly aware that those of you who supported us by purchasing the 3DS in the beginning may feel betrayed and criticize this decision.

This unprecedented timing for a price cut is because the situation has changed greatly since we originally launched the 3DS. We decided it was necessary to take this drastic step in order to ensure that large numbers of users will continue to enjoy the 3DS in the future.

If the software creators and those on the retail side are not confident that the Nintendo 3DS is a worthy successor to the DS and will achieve a similarly broad (user) base, it will be impossible for the 3DS to gain popularity, acquire a wide range of software, and eventually create the product cycle necessary for everyone to be satisfied with the system.

Those customers who purchased the 3DS at the very beginning are extremely important to us. We know that there is nothing we can do to completely make up for the feeling that you are being punished for buying the system early. Still, we would like to offer the following as a sign of our appreciation to you.

[3DS Ambassador program details]

We feel a strong responsibility to develop the 3DS as a platform — to ensure that, in the end, everyone is satisfied; we will make every effort to do so.

Additionally, we know everyone is waiting for Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7. They are scheduled for release in November and December, respectively, so we ask for your patience until then.

Thank you again, and we look forward to your continued support.

Although his statement could be an elaborate prima aprilis prank, Nintendo COO Reggie Fils-Aime stated that the Wii U would be arriving after April 1, 2012 and would co-exist on the market alongside the Wii, DSi, and 3DS. In a Forbes interview Fils-Aime said that the two major Nintendo consoles would be on the market simultaneously until they stop supporting the quickly aging original Wii.

The Wii U, announced at E3 this year, will consist of an HD console and a unique handheld controller with touchscreen. The entire package is compatible with older Wii games and the HD graphics and high-speed processor should bring Nintendo back into the pantheon of high-end home consoles currently populated by the PS3 and the XBox 360.

Fils-Aime made it clear that the Wii U controller is not a “tablet” but a new way of interacting with new and familiar games. For example, users can send a currently running game from the TV to the controller, allowing parents or significant others to watch Extreme Makeover: Home Edition while the gamer keeps playing.

via BGR

Now, however, Lenovo is skirting the ban by selling a home entertainment device called the iSec. The iSec is described as having Kinect-like controls and, if that’s the case, could the real Kinect, PS3, and Wii arrive on China’s shores (legally, and not in the grey market) sooner than later?

“Somehow they’re getting away with this where the other console companies are not,” Lisa Cosmas Hanson of game consultants Niko Partners told Reuters. “Let’s say you’re touting this product as a competitor to the Kinect, then why doesn’t Kinect qualify?”

The decision to allow Lenovo to sell the iSec smacks of protectionism but could lead to wider availability of consoles and titles in the China. Considering the original ban cannot be maintained thanks to illicit sales of consoles and software, it’s only a matter of time before the Great Console Wall crumbles.

via Reuters via Kotaku

In a recent interview (translated in part by Nintendo World Report), Iwata said that he felt doing two such collector’s editions two years in a row wouldn’t be Nintendo-like (translator’s words). I guess I can see that, but really, a quarter century is a serious thing, and a collection of the early games (perhaps with commentary or extras, something the Mario release lacked) seems to be a perfect way to celebrate that. Gamers would love it. It would sell like hotcakes. And it could be a standard thing for the core franchises.

But no! Not Nintendo-like. Ah well.

[via Eurogamer]

A Sega marketing exec, speaking to Gamespot, blurted out that the Wii U will probably launch spring/summer of 2012, a proposition that sounds a bit fishy. We could see Nintendo announcing availability at E3 2012 and then selling it around the holidays, thereby sewing up 2012 and 2013 in terms of console sales, but a spring launch just doesn’t make much sense.

He could also be trolling or talking out of his rear, so who knows. Anyway, feel free to mark your calendars with your favorite Yoshi sticker.

via Kotaku

My impressions? It’s surprisingly light, the movement is much more responsive than the Wii, and the screen looks nice. There weren’t any demonstrations of the touchscreen, though I asked about the resistive/capacitive thing and got a non-answer. It’s just too early for them to commit to any technical details, it seems.

What would you do if you were Nintendo, sat on a 5-year old console and were about to announce its successor? You would probably lower the price to boost sales, and that’s exactly what Nintendo in the US today did with the Wii.

For $149.99 (down from $200) you get a Wii console in either black or white, Mario Kart, and a matching colored Wii Wheel. Not a bad deal (the previous package came with two games, Wii Sports and Wii Sports Resort). Before you rush to the nearest game store: the new price is effective May 15.

On the same day, Nintendo plans to launch the so-called Nintendo Selects collection for Wii, which includes The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Animal Crossing: City Folk, Mario Super Sluggers and Wii Sports (each priced at $19.99/see above).

There are reports that the new console only has 8GB of storage. I’m not sure how I feel about this, because putting too much on external storage (SDXC cards, for instance) is asking for piracy and media-mounted hacks. This spec could easily refer to system storage and not a “mandatory add-on” like a hard drive unit.

Game discs are rumored to hold 25GB of data. The only discs in production capable of doing that kind of density are Blu-ray; I doubt Nintendo secretly developed an entirely new disc format, and micro-DVD-DLs would likely be even more expensive. And I’m pretty sure we’re definitely getting discs. It’d be cool if it were not 25GB of disc space, but 24GB of solid state space, but with 32GB going for around $30 in bulk, that’s just not going to happen.

And let us not forget about the Vitality Sensor! I was there when they announced it (though we couldn’t report it due to bad wi-fi), which was some time ago, and Satoru Iwata says that it has not been forgotten. The delays are Nintendo working to make it work with as close to 100% of the population as possible. Due to “large individual differences in the biological information of humans,” compatibility is not as high as they’d like, so they can’t give a release date.

Similarly, Iwata declined to put a date on the new Mario and Mario Kart games — but said they would come out this fiscal year, or else they won’t meet their hardware sales goals. Iwata’s full remarks on this and other stuff can be found here, it’s actually interesting reading. He’s very articulate when there’s time to translate properly.

Nintendo posted a new financial report today, and in a nutshell, things aren’t looking too good. The company’s net profit dropped a whopping 66% to $944 million in the fiscal year that ended March 31, compared with $2.78 billion in the same period a year earlier. Revenue in the same time frame fell 29.3% to $12.2 billion.

Nintendo actually posted a drop in full-year net profit for the second straight year, as the company saw weaker sales of the Wii and DS.

“Just” 3.61 million units of the 3DS were sold by March 31, for example, below Nintendo’s forecast of 4 million units (sales of the non-3D model fell by close to 10 million units to 17.5 million). Worldwide Wii sales dropped to 15.1 million units, down from 20.1 million last fiscal.

But here’s the good news: Nintendo officially announced a Wii successor, which will be unveiled (as a prototype) on June 7 during the E3 in Los Angeles and is scheduled to go on sale next year.

The Wii was launched in 2006 and has been sold 86 million times so far, but the Nintendo financials show it’s definitely time for a new model.

Image credit: Kaynil / deviantArt

Looks like a Wii price cut is incoming. Reports late last night surfaced about a May 15 move to $150 (down from $200), and today internal documentation~! from K-Mart also shows the console moving down to $150.

Nintendo’s been fairly lax with Wii price cuts, but that’s probably because the thing keeps selling no matter the price. And considering the Wii is more or less a GameCube with a coat of shiny new wax applied then it’s safe to say the company has made a few yen this generation.