Your Thoughts on the Nintendo 3ds and its Family

[Zaddd]

We are fully aware that Nintendo no longer manufactures anymore Nintendo 3ds/2ds handheld consoles. And the fact that the Nintendo eShop application that associates with these consoles will no longer be in service prior to March 27, 2023 this year. That's close to 2 months this application will be available until it is not.

I just recently upgraded my storage on my New 3DS XL up to 32 GB using an SD card transfer tool. I had this console for like 7 years and currently looking for some other digital copies of games I hadn't played yet via downloading them from the eShop.

It has been a long journey for me with this console and it's my ONLY console I had ever since highschool. I didn't want to just let this pass by because I hadn't seen anyone here talking about this.

So, what are your thoughts on the Nintendo 3ds?

 

[Corrin]

Hi! As this is about a console, I'm moving to video games :)

 

[Janp]

I love 3DS family. I recently repaired mine and it's such a blast to play on it again. I got it back in 2015, so also fairly late to its life cycle, but slowly build up small library. I used it mostly to play Pokémon and Monster Hunter, but I found out some really cool games and series thanks to 3DS. It introduced me to Fire Emblem and Xenoblade series. And Yo-Kai Watch. I wish the third game wouldn't be so expensive. Ever Oasis and Sushi Strikers are one of my favourite hidden gems on the system. I got to play more 3D The Legend of Zelda games thanks to it. And I finally tried Luigi Mansion.

I plan on getting another New Nintendo 3DS XL in the future, just in case my breaks down in a way that I won't be able to repair it. I also made a list of games I would like to get physical versions in the future. It's quite huge now that I'm looking at it.

 

[Rock_Salazar]

The 3DS family is the only set of handhelds I own that have stood the test of time besides my gameboy SP. I originally got a 3DS to replace my DSi and DS Lite since both refused to function, especially the DSi which lasted about 2 years for me compared to the DS Lite's 5 years. I still own my old 3DS and I sometimes forget how small it is. Fits perfectly in my pocket and it's a blast to play to this day. I transferred everything to my New 3DS and I think its library of games and downloadable content makes it worth the purchase in today's market. You got Shin Megami Tensei, Pokemon, Fire Emblem, Super Street Fighter IV, Zelda, and Dragon Quest. Fantastic handheld with an impressive library AND it has access to the regular DS library. It is perhaps the greatest device Nintendo has made since the SNES.

Also, 3DS family is great for homebrew purposes, and much easier to hack than the PS Vita in my opinion. Can also load backups of 3DS games and virtual console content.

 

[Cherrim]

I miss the 3DS so much. Or rather, I mostly miss the handheld console it represented. That level of cheaper, smaller scale game made for portability just doesn't exist anymore. The Switch is still portable, but any game made for that also has to be made to the scale of a proper television console. People are disappointed when the scope isn't as large as what would previously only be on Gamecube, Wii, etc., so devs have to scale up their game ideas to match. That's not to say there aren't still plenty of spinoffs, but they have to have a lot more polish and a lot more oomph because of that necessitated format. The only real replacement for the mobility that the 3DS and its predecessors had was mobile games, but those are so plagued by gacha and ads and microtransactions that they make for an even poorer replacement for the handheld scope.

All this is to say I really loved what the 3DS represented. It was a comfortable little console that had a great library. I think I may have preferred the DS just for its library and form factor, but I am so deeply sad that the 3DS was the last of the true handhelds. I'm glad it's easy to hack/emulate these days, but that only gives access to its existing games and I think we're worse off for not having new games in this format.

Anyway I think I own like four different kinds of 3DSes. As much as I liked the 3DS, it was extremely annoying that it was region locked. So I had a Japanese 3DS, a North American 3DS, and then one of those died out so I got a 2DS XL, and then realized how great the XL size was and upgraded the other region one too, lol. :(

 

[CoolKid575]

I really liked it and it had a great run, I certainly got a lot of use out of mine. However I think it's good that it was retired when it was. By 2019 the DS line had been out for 14 years and it had just run it's course. Pretty much all the clever concepts using the touch screen/dual screens had been exhausted and it was time to move on.

 

[Sheep]

Easily one of my favorite systems. I had so much fun playing through the 3DS Pokémon games and other favorites like Rune Factory 4. Tbh I miss this era so much, even if I didn't have reliable Wi-Fi for the whole time. Sometimes I still want to get a n2DS XL but just can't justify it. <\3

 

[moon]

I love my New 3DS :3 it's white with the colored buttons and has got such a toy-like cute look. It's also fully functional still, many years after I got it.

I've only ever had a Gameboy Advance (together with a sibling) and the 3DS for Nintendo consoles, until I finally decided to get a Switch the other day, yeaaaars after everybody else d: I still play the 3DS from time to time, since I have my pokémon game collection compatible with it or downloaded on it.