Nintendo: 3DS is "really good value"

The Nintendo 3DS is going to set you back somewhere in the region of £230 when it goes on sale in March. Some of you reckon that's rather steep. Nintendo? Well, the platform holder believes you're actually getting a great deal.

Nintendo UK chief David Yarnton told Eurogamer that the price tag reflects the system's unique entertainment offering.

"It's still really good value," he insisted. "The fact it's a 3D entertainment device – you can't get anything that's 3D at that sort of price without having to wear glasses as well. Get that one in."

Yarnton went on to explain that he believes the price of the new handheld stands up favourably against the iPhone and other smartphone devices.

"If we go back a few years, when we first launched the DS in 2004, 2005, people looked at us and said, wow, this is unusual, it's got a touch screen. Who's going to buy this at whatever price it was at the time?

"It was the same with Wii. People looked at that and said it's all in a different direction. Now with 3D we've been disruptive again and innovative.

"To me, people will look at [the 3DS] and say this offers something I can't get anywhere else. It's the same with all the other products we had. It was an experience they could have with our products that they wouldn't get anywhere else.

"As much as there's a plethora of devices out there for all sorts of things, you can't get a 3D gaming experience on anything else apart from the 3DS," he continued, before adding that Nintendo's gaming credentials also helped set the machine apart from smartphone competition.

"It's not just that. It's the other parts of it, too. If you look over time, we've never professed to be anything else apart from a gaming company. That's what our expertise is: developing, we think, really good games and consoles for them to be played on."

Elsewhere in the interview, Yarnton explained why Nintendo had chosen to let retailers set the price rather than announcing a universal RRP.

"It's just that we don't set the retail price. Someone can sell our products for whatever they want to. We don't control that," he said.

"But we've had a look online. We've been talking to retailers and they've been told their cost prices now. They've established price and we've been told, looking online, that it's anywhere from £220 to £229."

The 3DS is due to launch in Europe on 25th March.