Game Boy Advance Gets 20% Cheaper

While most high-tech companies are licking their wounds and hoping that economic recovery happens sooner rather than later, 2001 was a banner year for companies that build games and the hardware they run on. Just goes to show you that when things get rough, a little healthy escapism can be just the ticket. According to Nintendo, the U.S. video game industry generated a record-breaking $9.4 billion in 2001, and Game Boy Advance was responsible for more than 20 percent of total hardware units sold. Since its release in June 2001, Game Boy Advance has sold nearly 5 million hardware units in North America. Nintendo intends to ship 23.5 million Game Boy Advance and Game Boy Color units to retail outlets worldwide during its current fiscal year, ending March 2002. Due to "production efficiencies and decreased component costs" (read: volume sales mean the profit margin on individual units can be lower if you sell a ton of them) Nintendo is implementing a global price drop for Game Boy Advance, effective February 1, 2002. In the U.S., the new MSRP for the little wonder is $79.95, a 20-percent decrease.