Nintendo's 3rd Tier

[Iron Tiger]

Remember at the launch of the DS how Nintendo said they wouldn't be killing off the GBA line, but expanding their portfolio with a 3rd tier?

Well, GBA's long been dead, and Wii is taking on the form of some exercise machine/toy. Is there a chance that Nintendo may still stretch their focus between 3 separate platforms? Sony has kept the PS2 going, even with another top tier on the market.

Would it be a good idea to drop backward compatibility from such a machine, keep the Virtual Console exclusive to the Wii, and focus the new machine on the future? Would a new HD machine with motion inputs canabalize Wii sales or confuse consumers? Should Nintendo even bother trying to keep the HD crowd and "enthusiast" gamers in their flock?

 

[I.S.T.]

The DSi might be an attempt at a third tier, given it's not replacing the Lite but complementing it.

 

[eastmen]

The DSi might be an attempt at a third tier, given it's not replacing the Lite but complementing it.

the dsi will replace the ds. Its only a matter of time.

I think they will wait and see what sony does with a psp2 or a redisgned psp. If sony does something worth paying attention to then i'm sure the gameboy will make a come back

 

[fearsomepirate]

I think the whole "third pillar" thing was just them saying they were hedging their bets and would continue with the traditional Game Boy if DS failed or didn't really take off.

 

[ninzel]

I can't even think of where another would fit in and make sense.
I don't see the DS and DSi existing side by ide for too long. I think Nintendo will be succesful at transitioning DS to DSi ownership.