I’ve not given the 3DS much thought up until just today when I browsed through the current list of 3DS titles. Nothing much stood out. Is there even any developer interest in producing 3DS specific games?
Do you guys even have a 3DS?
It’s very much alive if you live in Japan or understand Japanese.
For everyone else, it’s a solid machine with some great games already out, some good ones coming out but it’s not the DS.
I think in the West, the entire notion of dedicated handheld devices has taken a huge hit, especially in the eyes of developers and publishers.
I think it probably didn’t help that even the manufacturers had to warn people it could damage the eyes of their children. That probably can’t help.
The last handheld gaming device i brought into the family was a regular DS, for the decent child friendly Zelda and Professor Leyton games etc. But we are mostly a PC gaming based family now (just so much more variety that is not dependent on the console manufacturers ‘approval’ etc), and looking at the rise of indie games and non-AAA games on that platform it looks like we won’t be going back?
My daughter last year ditched her regular DS for her iPod touch and its many free, $1 or $2 games. Never looked back, and she has zero interest in the 3DS.
^^^ This for me, but with my iPhone.
I have no idea what’s going to happen with the 3DS. It’s huge in Japan, but that doesn’t necessarily translate to success in the west where it is really struggling. But then the DS didn’t get very good western support either, so who the hell knows. There are a bunch of ok games out for it and it is bound to get continued support from Japan so in answer to the topic: no, don’t be a silly.
After picking up a 3DS earlier this year (lost my DS on a trip a few years ago), I’ve been sort of ambivalent on the system. There were a number of great first party titles, but now that I’ve played through most of them, I don’t see a lot for me in the near future.
I realize this makes me old, but I prefer a dedicated handheld over gaming on my phone. Some games work well (I loved 10000000, Dungeon Raid, etc), but anything more action-oriented I just find frustrating to play without the physical feedback of buttons.
For me, the 3DS is great fit for taking with me, and zoning out at the gym on lighter workout days. But other than that, if I’m at home, I’m going to play on my PC or console.
My son is too young for a DS/iPod right now, but I see a lot of similar decisions in younger kids that I know. I like my buttons, but if I were limited by my funds, I would probably do the same thing.
Being older and having more disposable income (but less time) has made me less price sensitive towards the experience I want. I’m okay picking up a new console if there’s a game I really want to play, because I want to make sure I’m enjoying my time.
Judging by the number of ads on TV, no, it isn’t dead at all.
The ads are kind of interesting. They have some cute blonde girl (who might be famous? I have no idea) playing one of their more accessible (Touch Generations line, if that means anything to you) games, and she closes the ad by saying: “I’m <her name>, and I’m not a gamer. But with my 3DS I’m a <insert thing you do in the game>.”
If you don’t ever see these ads, they may just not be buying time on the channels you’re watching. I’m not sure, but they might be running on Bravo, Lifetime, etc. i.e. Not 18-35 year old male demographics. So, that gives a hint with what they’re trying to do with it.
I understand that it’s more capable than a DS or a DSi, but when it came out I look one look at it and said I already have two DS’s and a DSi and didn’t need a fourth DS in the household.
I’m old enough to remember when people complained about the Nintendo controller because it didn’t give you the satisfying tactile feedback of the classic big plastic atari joystick.
Which is to say: just try harder. You’ll eventually get used to touch controls. The younger generation already has.
It has taken quite awhile, but I’ve really come around on the 3DS lately. It sits at my nightstand and I find myself putting rotating a few games around lately before I fall asleep. It greatly helps that first party releases are now available for digital download, so I am rarely fishing for cartridges anymore.
I’ve been slowly pushing through NSMB2, which completing a level or two off and on for the past several months each night, I now find I have nearly completed almost everything that game has to offer in terms of progression content. It’s not the most memorable or accomplished entry in the franchise, but it has kept me returning over such a broad amount of time for bite-sized play that credit is deserved.
The new Paper Mario is quite good as well and a nice twist on the formula. Layton also. Each are very unique puzzle experiences that fit right at home when lounging on the bed for quick twenty minute sessions. The 3D effect is quite pleasing, and again just being able to switch on the system and dive into either without hassle is perfect.
Mario 3D Land, Resident Evil Revelations, Kid Icarus, and a few others are equally worth the time. Kid Icarus being the only game that sticks out as a chore to setup and play comfortably, but is a pretty exceptional piece of software under the right play conditions.
I greatly look forward to Luigi’s Mansion 2 and Monster Hunter in the near future.
I’m with Crater. I can deal with certain game genres using touch controls (turn-based games, point and click adventure games, a few others) but most work way better on a dedicated gaming device. So in theory I would be in the market for things like the 3DS and Vita. The thing is, I find it difficult to focus on portable games at all when I’m at home and have access to my PC and the thousands of games I have for it. And barring the occasional vacation trip away from home (where I’ve found I do hardly any gaming at all - I tend to stick to reading, and now that I have the ability to do so, Netflix), that’s the only place I would be using a handheld. I haven’t even touched my DS or PSP in probably over a year. So absent multiple absolute must play titles on either system, I just can’t justify that pricetag.
Edit: Wait, there’s a Paper Mario for 3DS? Okay, that’s -one- must play…
That’s Dianna Agron you…barbarian!
(Just kidding. She’s an actor on Glee, all of pop culture doesn’t hinge on knowing who she is).
I bought one of the 3DS XLs this summer, mostly because my wife loves things like Professor Layton and Scribblenauts, and those didn’t seem to be coming out again on the regular DS. I have precisely one 3DS game for myself–the turn-baste Ghost Recon one, bought used–and I have barely touched it. There just don’t seem to be any DS or 3DS games of any sort that I’m interested in any more.
My kids have taken over my DS Lite and I’m in the market for a DSi XL if I can find one. I don’t see the advantage of a 3DS, especially with the limited software for it.
So just to recap, the only games on the 3DS that are actually designed for the platform and worth picking up are: resident evil, paper mario, super mario bros 2, professor layton or kid icarus? With an additional two or three promising games coming out in the near future.
I saw that the new scribblenauts is also available on the 3DS, but it unfortunately is lacking the object creator which apparently was one of the biggest features of the new version as far as I’m aware.
While the 3DS is backwards compatible with the DS, DS games don’t look especially great on the enlarged screens, do they?
I’m essentially between asking for a 3DS or a leather messenger bag from the family for christmas.
I’ve been happy with the 3DS so far, though I agree that they released it way too early and took too long to develop a library that would really push system sales. Despite that, the 3DS has managed to sell better in its first year than the DS did, and the DS ended up doing quite well.
Next year sees Etrian Odyssey 4 in February as well as Fire Emblem, both of which look fantastic, so I don’t personally have much reason to be pessimistic.
Edited to add:
DS games look fine on the 3DS/3DS XL screens. The graphics, and text in particular, can be a little bit blurry due to the rescaling; if this offends you, you can hold select while booting the DS game to run it in its native resolution.
There are definitely more games coming out for it than leather messenger bag.
I was not a fan of the vanilla 3DS system. I found the design uncomfortable, tinny, awkward to use, and DS games looked pretty bad on it.
The 3DS XL has been a noticeable improvement and is the system to get. Though DS games still are a bit stretched to fit the increased resolution, the bigger screens do help to mitigate how poorly they looked scrunched on the smaller 3DS unit.
Also if you enjoy Mario platforming, Super Mario 3D Land is a must. Takes great advantage of the 3D aspect and has some really inventive levels. I like it far more than New Super Mario 2. I’d argue it should be the first game purchase.
Zelda Ocarina is also extremely impressive on the system, if you can stand to play it all over again.
Mario Kart 7…a lot of people like it, I found it really dull.