So long, Nintendo’s long-living handheld device. We hardly knew ye…

While the Big N hasn’t really declared the device as “dead”, it might as well have based on the latest investor briefing. The company has not announced any new first-party 3DS games and anything regarding the 3DS business in the briefing.

“We have nothing new to announce regarding first-party software for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems,” said Nintendo. “We can confirm that new software is coming from third-party publishers.”

What does this mean? Simple:

• Nintendo will still keep the 3DS and 2DS on sale and on shelves. With a plethora of games on the system, it will still be a hot commodity for players who want a cheaper alternative to the Nintendo Switch. Can you say “discounted 3DS”?
• Speaking of games, there won’t be any new ones from Nintendo. Apart from Kirby’s Epic Yarn, that’s it. All other titles will be third-party fares.
• The rumour about Nintendo releasing a Switch-compatible handheld around June is turning out to be a reality.

While it’s sad that there isn’t going to be any more work done on the 3DS, the handheld has definitely run its course.