USgamer Community Question: Are You Still Playing Your Nintendo 3DS?

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The Nintendo Switch is coming up on the first anniversary of its release, and we've all been happy to share our joyous stories about taking so many great games on the go. But even as we celebrate, we seem to have forgotten about our once-stalwart companion, the Nintendo 3DS.

Your Nintendo 3DS remembers the good times. Do you, though? Do you still show the hardy little handheld some love from time to time, or does it haunt your dreams, gaunt, pale, and with tears brimming in its eyes?

Mike Williams, Editor

No, not in the least. My dark secret is a rarely go back. I don't rewatch old television shows and movies, unless I'm showing them to someone else, because frankly, there's so much new, good stuff out there that I never have time for that. Likewise, with games and game systems, I generally don't go in for a replay, except in the case that I've played a game at a review event or debug systems, so I want the acknowledgement on my personal systems.

If it's not this generation of consoles, I've already packed it up. The Wii U went into storage pretty quickly and the 3DS followed shortly after. The Switch is now my Nintendo system. My travel bag companions used to be my 3DS and Vita, but now I have the Switch (a hefty extra battery) and the Vita. Soon, I'll probably be done with the Vita altogether: I need Danganronpa on Switch Spike Chunsoft!

Let the past die. Kill it, if you have to.

Nadia Oxford, Staff Writer

N-not really. I've been going pretty hard on the Switch since its debut. That doesn't mean I won't go back to the 3DS at some point, mind you. If nothing else, I have an excellent collection of games I like to re-visit from time to time parked on my system, e.g. Link's Awakening. Here's the thing, though: I haven't done any major travelling in a little while, and I'm still a bit hesitant to bring my Switch on the road (especially if I'm travelling alone, since my husband might need the Switch while I'm gone). I have a big trip coming up soon, and I've little doubt it'll be my 3DS accompanying me, not my Switch. Ahh. It'll be nice to StreetPass again.

Caty McCarthy, Staff Writer

I mean, kinda? I've been playing a lot of Style Savvy: Styling Star these last few weeks, which came out on Christmas Day. Other than that though, I haven't been playing my Nintendo 3DS. Whenever I last used it, I even left it off my charger, letting it collect dust and die alone quietly, with only the constant flash of its annoying red light to keep it company.

With the release of a new Style Savvy though, it's like a Batman beacon lit up the sky for me, calling me back home to my Nintendo 3DS. As the only platform that I've bought multiple times just because (from launch edition to XL to the New Nintendo 3DS with those nifty changeable cover plates), I feel bad about neglecting it now. But there's not really much else on the horizon for it, I really think 2017 was the last hurrah for it with Samus Returns and a few other games. It's time to lay the 3DS to rest, upcoming Detective Pikachu be damned.

Matt Kim, News Editor

The last game I played on my 3DS was Metroid: Samus Returns, so I guess my answer is a tepid, "not really."

Honestly, I was pretty dismissive of the idea that the Switch could replace the 3DS. Sure, the Switch can play graphically-intense games, but the 3DS has its own charms that makes it pretty distinct from the Switch. And no, I'm not talking about the 3D.

Sadly, the Switch proved to be just too good and now I rarely even look at my 3DS if I need some portable goodness from Nintendo.