Financially, they stand to gain alot, purely because they've released so many games to the series that they're going to be making money on them, let alone the 1.5 and 2.5 and 3.14159 games as well.

Financially, definitely they're going to make a killing. Having said that, the multi-platform strategy can risk alienating fans (like myself!) who either can't afford all the consoles, or think these handheld games are merely spin-offs and not a numbered entry, therefore don't bother (I know they're crucially important to the story, personally).

1.5 and 2.5 are compromises, yes. I just can't help but feel slightly put out by the whole thing honestly.