Nintendo shares climb as 3DS redesign rumours emerge

Pinches of salt at the ready.

French site 01net, which has a mixed history of reliability in these matters, has claimed that Nintendo is working on a shock early redesign for its 3DS handheld.

It claims that the company will in 2012 launch a brand new version of the machine that radically tones down” the handheld’s 3D capabilities and will introduce a second analogue stick.

It even reckons that Nintendo will rebrand the device to focus on other functionality, downplaying its 3D visuals. Indeed, public scepticism about 3D and its effect on the human eye is said to be the cause.

However, a further (hard to believe) claim says that Nintendo is actually preparing a physical add-on for existing machines that will add a second analogue stick. It hopes to retail this for around $10.

Though a redesign for the machine is certainly not out of the question, the idea of an external hardware add-on for current machines seems unlikely.

Andriasang, though, has revealed that Nintendo has announced a pre-Tokyo Game Show event for September 13th.

And yesterday Nintendo’s stock price experienced an unexpected surge, at one point climbing 9.7 per cent.

It’s all conjecture and, in reality, is quite unlikely. But if the recent 3DS price cut isn’t enough to permanently bump up sales of the device Nintendo will have to act in some capacity.