Beginning August 12th, the Nintendo 3DS will be $80 cheaper, a desperate move by Nintendo to increase sales after a disappointing launch. The 3DS is an upgrade from the DS in Nintendo's long line of of handheld video game consoles called Gameboy.

People who bought the device at full price shouldn't fret, however. Nintendo is offering 20 free title games to anyone that connects their 3DS to the Nintendo 3Shop before 11:59pm on August 11th, calling it the Ambassador Program. The 20 titles include 10 NES games and 10 Gameboy advanced games, with such hit titles as The Legend of Zelda and Super Mario Bros.

Nintendo's Ambassador Program is a ploy in hopes that they can sell a few more full priced 3DS' before the August 12th deadline. However, with the new price cut and the addition of the Ambassador Program, Nintendo is still left with some rather large weaknesses in their new portable game console. Game developers have yet to release a game that gamers will go crazy over.

On top of a poor game lineup, the addition of 3D to the DS is still seen as a gimmick and even caries a possible danger that might be deterring customers. Last Year, Nintendo released a warning for parents over the possibility of eye injury to young children.

"We will recommend that very young children not look at 3D images," [Reggie] said. "That's because, [in] young children, the muscles for the eyes are not fully formed... This is the same messaging that the industry is putting out with 3D movies, so it is a standard protocol. We have the same type of messaging for the [1990s Nintendo virtual reality machine] Virtual Boy, as an example."

Nintendo's move could also be seen as a desperate tactic to head off Sony's new portable gaming device, the Vita set to be released this fall. If Sony were to release the Vita while Nintendo is down during the holiday season, it could seriously impact Nintendo's bottom line.

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