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Nintendo will sell the New 3DS for $100 on Black Friday
You no longer have to pick a 2DS if you want a Nintendo handheld for $100 or less. The company is releasing special black and white Mushroom Kingdom editions of the New 3DS for $100 ($140 Canadian) starting on Black Friday, November 25th. These lower-cost models should be available at many North American game retailers, too. You won't get any games out of the box, alas, but you might be willing to forgive that when you'll have extra money to spend. Assuming you're interested in the first place, there's just one main dilemma: do you go for the low price, portability and large game library of the New 3DS right now, or save up for the larger, pricier but more powerful Switch when it arrives next year? [Thanks, Kristy]
'Metroid Prime: Federation Force' launches August 19th
It's been eight years since the last Metroid Prime game came out for the Wii, but a successor was finally announced for the New 3DS handheld system at the game conference E3. Today, Nintendo announced that Metroid Prime: Federation Force will be released on August 19th in the US and September 2nd in the UK, but players can get a hands-on demo at PAX East this weekend.
In a world of smartphones, Nintendo's 3DS reaches five years old
Nintendo's (not quite) first steps into 3D were shaky. Some of us complained that the 3D effect hurt our eyes, while others found the battery life on the first-generation 3DS just awful. (It was.) However, with bigger (and some flatter) iterations along the way, the handheld has started to hit a groove. Five years since it hit stores in the US, there's now a strong stable of quality games, and the company is bringing back some older SNES hits , as long as you've got the newer hardware.
A Super Famicom-themed Nintendo 3DS is headed to Japan
If you were watching the Japan-specific Nintendo Direct yesterday, you would have noticed a little hardware treat for classic console fans. A special edition New 3DS XL is coming to Nintendo's home turf with a Super Famicom design, complete with classic colors and nostalgic "buttons" on the outer shell. It'll launch in April for 21,600 yen (about $190) but sadly, there's no word on a wider international release. Of course, to make the jump to North America, it would need a little splash of SNES purple...
Nintendo Direct roundup: 'Mario Maker,' 'Splatoon' and more
Today's Nintendo Direct featured a light feast of sci-fi adventures and fantasy tales, including a new Star Fox game, the return of classic Super Nintendo games (exclusive to the New 3DS handheld), a new Kirby game and the announcement of Monster Hunter Generations for Western audiences. Phew. But that wasn't everything -- we've collected the best trailers and tweets from today's Nintendo Direct below. Feast on this:
Nintendo makes SNES games exclusive to 'New' Nintendo 3DS
Want to play classic, Super Nintendo games on the go? Hope you updated to Nintendo's vaguely named "New" Nintendo 3DS last year, then -- the company just announced that the latest additions to its virtual console library are exclusive to the revised handheld. Starting later today, NN3DS owners will be able to download Super Mario World, F-Zero and Pilotwings from the Nintendo E-Shop.
Nintendo's smaller New 3DS comes to the US on September 25th
When Nintendo decided to release only the New 3DS XL in the US this winter rather than its smaller New 3DS sibling, it left many scratching their heads. Why would Nintendo deprive American gamers of a smaller, more travel-friendly handheld? Well, it's making amends for that mistake very shortly. Nintendo has revealed that it's bringing the New 3DS to the US on September 25th as part of a $220 Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer bundle. So long as you like having the game's charming art plastered all over your handheld, you too can have a more portable option. The NFC Reader (needed to load up on Amiibo figurines and card) will also arrive that day for $20.
Tell us how you really feel about the New 3DS and 3DS XL
With E3 starting next week, we're going to hear plenty of news from companies like Microsoft, Sony and yes, Nintendo. The company's Digital Event on June 16th promises new games for the handheld 3DS, making this a great time to upgrade to a New 3DS or 3DS XL. The latest 3DS offers improved 3D capabilities, built-in NFC support for your Amiibo figures and even a new C stick and ZL and ZR buttons for more control options. Nintendo has also said that some future games will only work on a new 3DS, making an upgrade necessary if you want to play some of the latest titles. While we certainly enjoyed the New 3DS' added features in our review, we'd like to know how it actually worked out for our readers. If you've picked up a New 3DS or 3DS XL since its release, let us know how you've been enjoying it by writing a review on its product page. We'll do a roundup of the best user reviews to find out if this upgrade is worth your hard-earned scratch.
Nintendo's new, more powerful 3DS launches in North America and Europe on February 13th
Back when we reviewed the new, dual-analog input-enabled Nintendo 3DS handheld, we weren't quite sure when it would make its way to the rest of the world -- that changes today. The slightly more powerful handheld launches on February 13th, 2015 in North America and Europe. To make it up to those who've waited patiently while the likes of Japan and, kind of, Europe got in on the extra shoulder button action, Nintendo's made a cabernet-hued console for us to wrap our fingers around. And what good is a new console without games to play on it? Nintendo has us covered there as well, with The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D and Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate. You know, in case you're already bored with the latest portable version of Super Smash Bros. There are even "New" 3DS XL Monster Hunter and Majora's Mask bundles headed to stores on February 13th with fancy designs.
Nintendo 3DS review (2014): a good reason to give 3D another shot
Nintendo's original 3D handheld launched in 2011 and three years is a seriously long time in tech -- especially for Nintendo. Fortunately, it's been a hit -- over 44 million units sold so far -- following a tradition of handheld console leadership that started way back with the original Game Boy. (And if you've seen Nintendo's recent depressing earnings reports, you know that handhelds are why Mario is still able to even make ends meet.) So here's not one, but two hardware refreshes. Yep, two models, one bigger than the other (sound familiar?), both of which arrive with new buttons, a second (gasp!) analog stick and some new 3D screen assistance that means I now willingly switch on the 3D effect while playing games. Whoa. For now, it's launched in Japan and parts of Asia, and it's also coming soon to Australia and New Zealand. I'd bet the cost of a new 3DS that it'll make its way to the rest of the world at some point; it's just a matter of when. This is the New 3DS and New 3DS LL, and if you already have an older model, you'll probably want to consider an upgrade.
We just played with Nintendo's New 3DS: Finally, an extra analog stick
You might have heard: Nintendo's refreshing its 3DS family with two new models. Both the New 3DS as well as the larger New 3DS XL will arrive with a diddly analog stick just above the action buttons. (Throw away your Circle Pad Pros!) Plus, there's built-in NFC for those incoming Nintendo figurines and a new microSD card reader. Unfortunately, in my fly-by Monster Hunter 4G gaming test, I didn't have the chance to try either of those features -- readers love SD slot close-ups -- but it does offer an estimation of what Japanese gamers will get in less than a month when both handhelds launch. There's still no word on an overseas release for either model, but for now, watch me prove how poor I am at Monster Hunter in our video after the break. No, far worse than that.
Nintendo is making two new versions of its 3DS portable console, arriving in Japan this October
Nintendo releases recorded video presentations, known as "Nintendo Direct," pretty often. Usually they're focused on games, or they highlight an upcoming season's game releases. This morning, however, Nintendo revealed two new versions of its wildly successful 3DS portable game console. And just like the Mario series, Nintendo's not pulling any punches when it comes to naming conventions: the new 3DS is simply called "New" 3DS. And yes, there's a "New" version of the larger 3DS XL, too. As seen above, the smaller "New" 3DS has Super Nintendo-themed buttons on the right side. Just above those buttons is a new, tiny analog stick. Bizarrely, Nintendo's president Satoru Iwata compared the new analog stick to the GameCube controller's yellow C-stick (which was rarely used in GameCube games).
