Nintendo will delay the introduction of its highly-anticipated glasses-less 3D handheld game machine until Feb. 26 in Japan and March 2011 in the U.S. and Europe.
The company, which stirred up lots of excitement for a planned fourth quarter introduction of the autostereoscopic 3DS portable player at E3 earlier this year in time for Christmas, announced Wednesday that the company is slashing its profit forecasts for the year.
Nintendo President Satoru Iwata said the company would not be able to supply enough units if it launched this year.
Demand for Nintendo’s Wii game console and DS handheld is fading, which led to the first slip in earnings growth in five years, and which reflects the overall slowdown in the videogame market, according to The Wall Street Journal.
Some of the decline is due to competition from games being played on smart phones and Web games accessed via handheld devices.
Autostereoscopic 3D, which can be viewed on small screens without wearing glasses, is also expected to be introduced on cell phones later this year and early next year for viewing movies, TV shows, and games.
The 3DS has two screens, one of which is a 3-D display. The system also includes a slide bar to increase or decrease the illusion of depth so it can play both 2-D and 3-D games.
Nintendo said it aims to sell four million 3DS devices and 15 million software units for the device during the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2011. It plans to sell the 3DS for about 25,000 yen ($298) in Japan. Prices and launch dates for the U.S. and other markets will be announced later.
— By Scott Hettrick