Analyst predicts DS2 reveal by September

Last week, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata talked vaguely about the next version of the company's DS system, but he suggested it could be a ways off in light of the company's enduringly successful existing line of handhelds. Despite that, one analyst believes the successor to the DS is waiting in the wings and will be revealed this year.

In a note to investors, Electronic Entertainment Design and Research analyst Jesse Divnich said he expects Nintendo to officially announce its next handheld platform "within the next eight months," with a retail launch by mid-2011. Although the DS is still on top in the portable gaming market, Divnich said an earlier-than-expected launch for a "DS2" (as he refers to it) could remove the threat of a would-be competitor hitting shelves first.

"Nintendo has always had a controlling stake in the handheld market, despite facing numerous competitors, and EEDAR believes one of the biggest reasons for Nintendo’s success in the handheld market is their ability to remove opportunity gaps for competitors to enter," Divnich said.

For example, Divnich pointed to Nintendo's transition to the DS. By launching the system in late 2004, Nintendo beat the Sony PSP to market, undercutting any upper hand the new competitor would have had in going head-to-head with the then-aging Game Boy Advance platform.

Divnich also pointed out that publishers' support for the DS could be waning, with Sega, Capcom, and Ubisoft all indicating fewer investments in the platform for the future.