Kimishima on 3DS hardware / software sales, Pokemon GO effect
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS system hardware sellthrough in Japan from April 2016 through the second week of October compared with sell-through for the previous period. The Nintendo 3DS family had already reached an installed base of over 21 million units in Japan by the end of March this year, and sell-through for this period has continued at a comparable pace. We also introduced Nintendo 2DS to the Nintendo 3DS family hardware lineup in Japan last month, aiming to further expand the base for this platform. Nintendo 2DS is offered at an even more affordable price and children can easily enjoy playing with it as their first game system. The previously-released New Nintendo 3DS and New Nintendo 3DS XL systems have also continued to sell without any major slowdown and have brought in new customers. Nintendo 3DS hardware overall continues to show strong sales trends.
Note 1: Nintendo 3DS hardware includes the New Nintendo 3DS, the New Nintendo 3DS XL, the Nintendo 3DS, the Nintendo 3DS XL and the Nintendo 2DS.
Note 2: FW: Week number in the fiscal year (the first week of April is FW1)
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS software sell-through trends in Japan compared with sell-through for the previous period. The sell-through includes titles from other software publishers. It is down this period compared to the last period, which saw the release of new entries in popular series, such as Rhythm Heaven Megamix, Fire Emblem Fates: Birthright/Conquest, Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer and Pokémon Super Mystery Dungeon.
Next, this graph shows Nintendo 3DS hardware sellthrough trends in the U.S. compared with sell-through for the previous period. In the U.S., the previously released Nintendo 2DS was dropped to an even more affordable price, and promotional activities aimed at children and parents were effective in increasing sales. The release of Pokémon GO on July 6th also led to a major increase in sales of the Nintendo 3DS family systems, where consumers can enjoy past titles in the Pokémon series. The trend here is higher than that for the previous period, and we are maintaining this momentum as we head into the holiday season.
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS first-party software in the U.S. compared with sell-through for the previous period. In the U.S., promotional activities aimed at children and parents were effective in increasing sales, and there was solid growth in sales for evergreen titles and Nintendo Selects games such as The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D. The release of Pokémon GO also provided a bump in sales for the Pokémon series, and as a result, sales here have also surpassed those in the previous period.
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS hardware sell-through trends in Europe compared with sell-through for the previous period. As in the U.S., the release of Pokémon GO across Europe starting in July spurred momentum for hardware sales.
This graph shows Nintendo 3DS first-party software sell-through trends in Europe compared with sellthrough for the previous period. In the European market, we again see the boost in Pokémon series titles in July, but this is supported by new titles such as Kirby: Planet Robobot, Fire Emblem Fates Birthright/Conquest, and Monster Hunter Generations, for which Nintendo provided distribution in Europe. Evergreen titles and Nintendo Selects titles also sold well. Overall software sales are vigorous, outpacing the previous period.
In Europe, the first title in this series, Yo-Kai Watch, was released this year on April 29, with Nintendo of Europe managing distribution. This graph compares the sell-through in the European market with the earlier release in the Japanese market. It is easy to see that Europe is off to a strong start, outpacing the sales figures of the Japanese release. I am told that the YoKai Watch toys are selling well in Spain and France as well, so we anticipate further demand as we head into the holiday season.
