That redesign of the redesigned Nintendo DS? Not happening. Or at least, not yet. It's not just Nintendo that says so, either. Now the source of the original rumor, Japanese publisher Enterbrain, has released a statement denying that president Hirokazu Hamamura ever suggested a new DS would show up at E3 in July, as originally reported by Bloomberg.

"No such statement or announcement was made by the president," read the statement, adding that "He did not [...] make a comment about the possibility of an announcement by Nintendo concerning a new model or successor to the Nintendo DS due to its current scarce product availability caused by its worldwide popularity."

Looks like another case of mistranslation, then. As for Hirokazu Hamamura himself, he was last spotted being hurriedly bundled into a black car with tinted windows by several burly men in suits and shades. Probably.

To us, the DS Lite is perfick -- it's slim, stylish, and beautifully proportioned. Will that stop Nintendo from giving the whole thing a facelift and turning it into something even more desirable? Probably not. Ninty has a history of giving its handhelds a nip and a tuck, and the company will have noted the extra momentum enjoyed by the PSP in Japan since its redesign. Frankly, we'd be surprised if the Lite wasn't updated at some point in the future.

As would Hirokazu Hamamura, boss of Famitsu publisher Enterbrain, who reckons that Nintendo may announce a new DS model at this year's E3. Hamamura's prediction appeared in the latest edition of Weekly Famitsu, and was greeted by a "No comment" from Nintendo. Let the wanton speculation begin!


[Via NeoGAF]

Japanese media giant Enterbrain recently surveyed retailers, as reported by Gamefront.de, about their expectations for game system sales this holiday season. We know you're not surprised, but right now? The show is all Nintendo.

Retailers were asked, "Which next generation console do you think will sell better this Christmas?" The results lean heavily toward Nintendo -- 88% thought the Wii would boast better sales, and 11% settled on the PS3. We're not sure if it's worse that Microsoft wasn't even listed (perhaps because the Xbox 360 was released last year) or that Sony only garnered 11% in the poll.

The Wii loses, however, when it comes to all systems ... because 60% of retailers queried thought the Nintendo DS would be the top dog of all holiday console sales. Only 32.8% chose the Wii ... and a shocking 3.3% picked the PS3.