Nintendo Drops Pricing of DS by $20

Nintendo announced Tuesday it was dropping the price of its portable DS gaming device to $129.99 USD. The $20 discount will go into effect on August 21, one day before Nintendo unveils its much-hyped Nintendogs, which has sold over 700,000 copies in Japan. But it's not clear whether caring for a virtual dog will be a hit among U.S. gamers.

"The new price and the arrival of a mega hit like Nintendogs give Nintendo DS a one-two punch that will thrill consumers," says Reggie Fils-Aime, Nintendo of America's executive vice president of sales & marketing. Nintendo is also preparing a number of other games for the second half of 2005, including Metroid Prime Pinball and Mario & Luigi 2.