Nintendo Releases New 3DS Color: Flame Red

It’s time to see red.

By Andrew Hsieh. Posted 08/11/2011 00:34 2 Comments     ShareThis

Nintendo’s making sure to supplement its new price plan with a new color for its 3DS system– Flame Red, to accompany the present Cosmo Black and Aqua Blue systems. We’ve seen this color before in promotional materials, but of course those are always suspect (pink Wii systems, anyone?), so it’s nice to see that the 3DS will indeed come in a color previously shown on DS (with its Mario Kart DS bundle back in 2005) and Wii (with New Super Mario Bros. in 2010). The color releases on Sept. 9, so there’s no last-minute purchasing possible here if you still want to be an Ambassador, unfortunately. (Besides, the system update time limit is tonight by  11:59 P.M. EST– make sure to go on the eShop or perform a System Update before then if you’re a 3DS owner!)

Speaking of ambassadorship, Nintendo’s also released rough release dates for Super Mario 3D Land as well as Mario Kart 7— the former in November, the latter in December– and reminds us that Ambassadors may download 10 free NES games starting September 1 before the general public, and download “updated” versions once they’re out for free. What these updates involve hasn’t been detailed yet, though. Furthermore, Nintendo promises again that 10 free GBA Virtual Console games will be supplied to Ambassadors by the end of 2011, and will not be available to the general public.

What do you think about the new color? Will it make you finally buy a 3DS system? It’s releasing Sept. 9 alongside Star Fox 64 3D, so if you’re into that kind of thing, go for it. Or maybe you can buy one and pretend it’s an official Nintendojo-colored system. Now that’s marketing.

Read the full press release below:


Nintendo Gets Fired up for the Holidays with New Flame Red Nintendo 3DS

New Color, New Price and Great Games Make Nintendo 3DS a Must-Have

NOTE: Multimedia available here

REDMOND, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Nintendo is making sure the holidays are hot this year with a new Flame Red version of its portable Nintendo 3DS system. The new color launches Sept. 9 alongside the new Star Fox 64 3D game, and comes on the heels of a new $169.99 suggested retail price, which goes into effect Aug. 12 in the United States. Flame Red joins Cosmo Black and Aqua Blue, so now shoppers have three distinct and fashionable colors to choose from.

“Nintendo 3DS is poised to be on fire for the holidays, with its new suggested retail price, great games and our new Flame Red color,” said Nintendo of America President Reggie Fils-Aime. “With major upcoming releases in the Star Fox, Pokémon and Mario series, in addition to downloadable offerings from Nintendo eShop, Nintendo Video and Netflix, the system offers new and fun experiences to owners on a daily basis.”

On the software side, third-party developers have lined up to deliver great new experiences that make use of the unique features of Nintendo 3DS.

“Nintendo 3DS is an amazing piece of technology that offers players incredible 3D games without the need for special glasses. Beyond that, it’s an affordable dedicated gaming machine. Simply put, Nintendo 3DS is a fabulous device,” said Laurent Detoc, President, North America, Ubisoft. “Ubisoft has been a big supporter of Nintendo 3DS since the beginning with eight Nintendo 3DS games released to date and another eight games coming out before the end of calendar year 2011.”

Retailers are also anticipating a strong showing from Nintendo 3DS this holiday season.

“The new, lower Nintendo 3DS price combined with a hot new color and big-name games will entice even more Target guests to get their hands on this first-of-its-kind 3D gaming experience,” said Nik Nayar, vice president of Merchandising, Target.

“GameStop customers were excited about the Nintendo 3DS launch, and this lower price point should spark additional demand,” said GameStop President Tony Bartel. “With a solid back-half game lineup, the Nintendo 3DS price drop is well timed to drive consumer interest and purchases through the holiday season.”

Flame Red 3DS shot small

Nintendo is planning the release of two upcoming games starring its famous hero, Mario, this holiday season. Super Mario 3D Land will launch in November, while Mario Kart 7 becomes available in December. Super Mario 3D Land is a new platforming game that takes full advantage of 3D graphics to deliver new puzzles, more precise jumping action and a remarkable new visual perspective on the Mushroom Kingdom. The game also marks the return of Mario’s fan-favorite Tanooki Suit, which allows him to strike enemies with his tail and slowly descend after jumping. Mario Kart 7 is a new racing game that includes multiple characters from the Mushroom Kingdom, Kart customization and intense multiplayer action. Players can now race on land, sea and air, sail through the sky with the new hang glider feature and drive underwater in some stages. Both games are completely new and are designed specifically for the Nintendo 3DS system.

Since Nintendo 3DS launched in the United States on March 27, more than 830,000 units have been sold in the U.S. alone. Nintendo 3DS owners represent some of Nintendo’s most loyal customers, and Nintendo is rewarding them for getting in on the action early with 20 free downloadable games from the Nintendo eShop.

These free games are available to anyone who owns a Nintendo 3DS system and uses a wireless broadband Internet signal to connect to the Nintendo eShop at least once or performs a system update before 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on Aug. 11. These users will automatically be registered in the Nintendo 3DS Ambassador program. The program contains two elements:

  1. Starting Sept. 1, Nintendo 3DS Ambassadors will be able to download 10 NES Virtual Console games at no charge and before they are available in the Nintendo eShop to the general public. These games, including Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Jr., Balloon Fight, Ice Climber and The Legend of Zelda, are slated to become paid downloadable games, but Ambassadors get them early for free. Once the paid versions of the games are posted to the Nintendo eShop later in the year, the updated versions will be available to Ambassadors for download at no cost.
  2. By the end of 2011, Nintendo will provide Ambassadors with 10 Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games. These include games like Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$ and Mario vs. Donkey Kong. These games will be available exclusively to Ambassadors, and Nintendo currently has no plans to make these 10 games available to the general public on the Nintendo 3DS in the future.

For more information about the Nintendo 3DS Ambassador program, visit http://support.nintendo.com/3dsambassador. More details about this program will be announced in the future.

Remember that Nintendo 3DS features parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about this and other features, visit http://www.nintendo.com/3ds.

*Online features require a broadband Internet connection. Netflix content is available to Netflix members who have an unlimited streaming plan.

Source: Nintendo

2 Responses to “Nintendo Releases New 3DS Color: Flame Red”

  • 360 points
    M. Noah Ward says...

    Swwweeeet! It’s not purple or orange, but I think I’ve found my 3DS color.

    (because let’s face it, purple and orange will either never come out, or not for another 3 years)

    (…but if they do I WILL get one. I WILL!)

  • 360 points
    M. Noah Ward says...

    Also I’d like to point out that “Flame Red” is very complementary to Nintendojo’s signature color, so if you love us, you should totally get one just on that principle alone. :)

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