Japan Buys Half a Million Copies of Super Mario 3D Land

Dang. And who said the 3DS was a failure? Phooey to them

One swallow doesn't make a summer, my dear boy!

Let's be positive James Shouldn't we all be happy that 3DS is finally doing good ?

Yep, but let's not get carried away; its biggest challenge is on the way next year!

The fat man's still got it...

I wonder what MK7 sales will be like...

I think the 3ds will do fine next year. And better

Nintendo pretty much has a game for 3ds each month next year- or mayber every two months, plus, they may announce new games ahead of E3. And there's that Pokemon announcement... And the 3rd party games such as RE Revelations and Heroes of Ruin... Oh, and them downloadable games.

That's thinking positive

I've just read that GamesMaster gave 91% to RE:REVELATIONS so that is a very good start for 3DS in 2012. It will also get PAPER MARIO and METAL GEAR plus many many more - I'm very optimistic.

the 3DS will be great next year. I have no doubts about that.

Everythings going to be aaaaaaallllllllllll right....

I love the 3D look at this game. I never turn the 3D slider down for this one.

@james: One swallow doesn't make a summer, my dear boy!

james! you must take into account how your alleged negativity will affect the grand scheme of nintendo! if the 3ds fails it will all come down to your post re: a swallow.

think of the power you wield, lad! please use it responsibly.

I just want my R button back...

After finishing Super Mario 3D Land, I'm sad to say that I was a little disappointed. It was fun, a decent length and challenging (near the end), but I couldn't help but feel like the concept was extremely stale.

And even though the difficulty picked up around world S7/S8, I still beat game with 150+ lives stored up. What is the point of lives when the game saves after every level? Nintendo is living in the past and played it too safe with this game.

As fun as Mario and Zelda games are, nothing would leave more of an impression on Nintendo fans and the gaming community if the 3DS wasn't just a system that got a whole bunch of remakes, but a system that brought entirely new concepts and games to the table. I can't think of one 3DS game (at the moment) that isn't a remake or sequel...

I can't wait to see how many copies of MK7 sold, really!

@lex0plex
"[...]I can't think of one 3DS game (at the moment) that isn't a remake or sequel..."

Let me refresh your memory:
-Pushmo
-Mutant Mudds
-Sakura Samurai
-Beyond the Labyrinth
-Heroes of Ruin
-Kid Icarus Uprising (not actually a sequel or remake)
-The Rolling Western
-Code of Princes
-Guild 01 (actually counts as 4 different games)

• Rhythm Thief & The Emperor’s Treasure

That are the ones I can recall at the moment.

@ OrionBelt: I'm excited for a few of those!

There is more than Nintendo out there and many people (including me) only have enough spending money to buy 9/10 rated games regardless of the system. Usually on a Nintendo console, that means it was developed by Nintendo, which means it is probably a well known franchise.

I was just saying that Nintendo should continue to broaden the types of games they make. I wasn't referring to 3rd party developers. Don't get me wrong I do hope the games you mentioned turn out well!

@13
Cover the R button completely with your lips and blow as hard as you can. Or send it back.

I guess that depends if we're talking about an African or a European swallow.

@lex0plex re: I was just saying that Nintendo should continue to broaden the types of games they make. I wasn't referring to 3rd party developers. Don't get me wrong I do hope the games you mentioned turn out well!

i hear ya. it's great they have their mario, zelda, metroid etc but it would be good for nintendo to branch out more and try making a different type of game. something they haven't attempted (properly) before.

@lex0plex

Your comments remind me of an old folk song... @ 0:42
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZEqkBcj5qlA

It seams like MK might have a bigger sale. I could only get one, i chose Mario Kart. With the online and everything it wouldnt be surprised if it beat SM3DL

@lz20XX (post 1): The 3DS itself set a week 1 record then performed very poorly prior to the price drop. Early sales only make a fraction of the total over the life of the system.

I think we should see the glass half full instead of half empty. We've got some great titles already and I can't wait for the Ambassador games to come (very soon, I hope.) James is right by saying next year will be the biggest challenge... What games are on the horizon for next year that will leverage the system the way that Super Mario 3D Land did? Perhaps that Zelda original 3DS game will do the trick?

@pryce
haha that vid made me laugh despite your obvious dig.

Way to go Japan!