Nintendo 3DS Price Slashed To $170

Nintendo has slashed the price of the 3DS glasses-free 3D games console, less than four months after the handheld went on sale in the US, bringing the price down to $169.99. Launched in late March at $249.99, from August 12 you'll save $80: money that Nintendo is hoping you'll spend on one of its flagship games released in the run up to the holiday season, Star Fox 64 3D, Super Mario 3D Land, Mario Kart 7 and Kid Icarus.

Star Fox 64 3D will go sale on September 9, with Super Mario 3D Land coming in November. December will see Mario Kart 7 make its debut, with and Kid Icarus: Uprising promised just for sometime "during the holiday season." Of course there's also the recently updated Nintendo Download, along with the 3DS Shop containing various remastered "3D Classics", Game Boy and Game Boy Color "Virtual Console" titles in original 2D, and over 350 Nintendo DSiWare games.

Nintendo claims that over 830,000 3DS have been bought in the US since the console launched. Nonetheless, the company has been disappointed by sales demand, expecting the glasses-free 3D system to be more of a draw than gamers actually found it to be. Part of the reticence, Nintendo execs suggested, was the relative dearth of 3D games, something the company is obviously hoping to address with the new flagship titles for Q3/Q4 and the various 3D-remastered options for download.

For more on the Nintendo 3DS, check out the full SlashGear review.