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Nintendo to answer DS sales slump by following iPhone model

wants to make DS a lifestyle tool, not just games console

Nintendo to answer DS sales slump by following iPhone model
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So many big corporations these days seem to think it's more important to save political face with absurd denials than to admit what's really going on. And the truth is, gamers think more of a company that's open and human about its trials and tribulations than those which adopt the King Canute approach to public relations.

Nintendo has issued its share of denials when it comes to competing with the iPhone, though recently it seems to have made an effort to talk to consumers on a more personal level, acknowledging that the competition is out there, and it's tough.

Hardware sales of its Wii and DS consoles has been hit hard by the recession, dropping almost 50 per cent across the globe. Which makes it doubly important that Nintendo lets gamers know that it's on top of things.

President Satoru Iwata has announced the company's intention to begin a whole new sales push for the DS by positioning it as a personal lifestyle device, like a mobile phone. An iPhone, for example.

In a separate interview, game design guru Shigeru Miyamoto spoke of the virtues of digital distribution, and while there is undeniably a significant difference between the DS and the iPhone, it's very reassuring to hear that Nintendo is shifting its stance to face this change in the portable games industry head on.

Spanner Spencer
Spanner Spencer
Yes. Spanner's his real name, and he's already heard that joke you just thought of. Although Spanner's not very good, he's quite fast, and that seems to be enough to keep him in a regular supply of free games and away from the depressing world of real work.