Iwata claims 3DS delay was to ensure stock levels

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has claimed that the delay in launching the 3DS, which has been pushed back to a date of February 26, 2011 in Japan and March in Europe and the US, was a conscious decision to avoid stock shortages.

During the first few months of the Wii being on sale, suppliers experienced repeated shortages of the console, forcing Nintendo America president Reggie Fils-Aime to respond to accusations that the shortage may have been engineered by Nintendo to increase publicity and demand.

"At first we thought it would be desirable to launch the 3DS within the year, so we made our forecasts on that basis. At this point it is clear that if we launch within the year, we will not be able to supply enough units," said Iwata to a conference of analysts yesterday.

During the conference, Iwata also reassured investors that Nintendo would be focusing more on third-party support for 3DS than it has for previous consoles, a position supported by the large range of third-party launch titles planned for the machine.