Nintendo 3DS

[Sno]

I feel like I've chosen the worst possible way to jump on this bandwagon, in some respects. I apparently missed out on the buy-three-get-one-free promotion by a week, and since it's a European console I apparently can't even register it to my Club Nintendo account in Australia. (Any Europeans want some free stars? I'll send you the code.) Prices for full release games in the Australian store are just insane, if they even get a release at all, and switching regions to compare prices is a big hassle. Missing out on all the Ambassador stuff is a bummer too; I wouldn't mind if they were actually available for sale, but I want me some GBA games! Damnit Nintendo, even when you get digital somewhat right you're still insane.

Does the system being region-locked create any problems with accessing and buying from the different digital storefronts as you apparently are?

 

Aanyway, despite all that I'm feeling positive about my purchase. There's lots of cool sounding download-only stuff, so I'm planning to stick with just one full release game at a time. First up is Super Mario 3D Land. In download I've got the Switch Force games, Starship Damrey, and Picross. After that probably Luigi's Mansion, then maybe Etrian Odyssey, Fire Emblem, and Donkey Kong Country. Looking forward to it all!

Those are certainly some great games to go with. I've had the

completely wedged into my brain for a few weeks now.

If you're going digital, you might want to register a european club nintendo account that you'll be able to tie your 3DS into, and then also write down your system's serial number for safe keeping.  Admittedly, i don't know how it varies by region, but Nintendo does seem to have some regrettably convoluted and unfriendly processes in place to help people recover or replace their purchases if their system is stolen.

On the digital front again, keep in mind that the retail games tend to be fairly massive relative to the eShop-exclusive games, you'll probably want at least a 16GB SDcard.

Also, it's worth checking the store for sales semi-frequently. The button for that section is usually kind of hidden way off screen to the right somewhere, but they have new things on sale just about every week.

AS FOR MYSELF.

I have been playing Project X Zone, which is a super, super dumb game.

It would be a little too obvious and easy to shit on it for looking like a strategy RPG while having only the thinest pretensions of any squad tactics, so i don't think i will.

The story is also incredibly terrible.

I'm having fun with it though, it's by no means a bad game, just one that's going to have a very specific appeal. Such as, having at least a passing familiarity with everything represented in it, i'm enjoying all the silly injokes and knowing nods, and the battle system at the game's core is really very fun. You're mixing different available moves, supports, and assists to juggle targets, trying to hit them with different attacks while they're at different heights in the juggle. The game more or less breaks down to simply being about trying to maximize your damage each turn, ideally ending battles before any enemies are able to deal serious damage to your party. The game kind of makes everything seem way more complicated than it is, layering systems upon systems, but it's ultimately a pretty simple, fun, stupid game.

[dibs]

Is PXZ light on strategy/tactics. The demo was hilarious fun, but if that is all there is I shall wait for something a bit deeper.

[Sno]

Is PXZ light on strategy/tactics. The demo was hilarious fun, but if that is all there is I shall wait for something a bit deeper.

It's very light on strategy/tactics, that's pretty much the crux of what i was saying. There's a ton of systems in there, it plays around like it's giving you a lot of options, but it's ultimately a game where healing is a free action and the eventual answer to every problem is to brute force through it with awesome combos. It's fun, but it's not a strategy game.

If you want an excellent, thoughtful strategy RPG on the 3DS, you absolutely need to be playing Fire Emblem: Awakening. (Edit: Which you already said you were, so ignore me.)

[tegan]

I got a 3Ds yestersay too! Fire elblem is rad and difficult, I had to tone it down to normal. I also got zelda: link's awakening. Nostalgia oozing out of me right now.

The wahoo is expensive for games, do they ever have sales or the like?

 

If you have Fire Emblem already, you should consider picking up the new MegaTen game and getting a $30 eshop credit.

 

 

...also, everybody buy Animal Crossing.

[Sno]

Also, Crimson Shroud continues to be a thing that is both amazing and inexpensive.

[Laco]

Does the system being region-locked create any problems with accessing and buying from the different digital storefronts as you apparently are?

I'm not actually sure yet, as aside from SM3DL I've only bought some relatively cheap stuff, all from the Australian eShop. As I understand it all of PAL is treated as one region, so though your account balance and any active downloads are reset when you switch (between UK and AU, say), you can still play any games you've already got installed. In keeping with most other parts of the system, this seems to be made to be as unclear as possible.

If you're going digital, you might want to register a european club nintendo account that you'll be able to tie your 3DS into, and then also write down your system's serial number for safe keeping.

Good point, though I can't register an EU account with the same email address as my AU one, bleagh. The star rewards are apparently all physical too, which won't help me much while I'm moving around a lot. I've never bought enough Nintendo games to actually redeem anything before my points expire, so I'm not too bothered, especially as Nintendo AU are so half-assed about everything.

On the digital front again, keep in mind that the retail games tend to be fairly massive relative to the eShop-exclusive games, you'll probably want at least a 16GB SDcard.

Also, it's worth checking the store for sales semi-frequently. The button for that section is usually kind of hidden way off screen to the right somewhere, but they have new things on sale just about every week.

Ta, yeah I'm planning to pick up a 32GB card at some point. I think the MSF games were on sale this week, only $6 each, though the interface doesn’t actually tell you the normal price. I wish more than anything that I could just buy games through a browser on my phone and completely ignore the eShop interface, but then I guess it's no worse than the hateful Xbox and PS3 on-device shop interfaces.

I have been playing Project X Zone, which is a super, super dumb game.

It's on my watch list, though I think it's likely to be pretty far down. Fire Emblem has been hugely universally acclaimed, but even that I'm not sure is for me. I've just never managed to spend the kind of time these tactical RPGs seem to need. But we'll see!

[tegan]

Ta, yeah I'm planning to pick up a 32GB card at some point. I think the MSF games were on sale this week, only $6 each, though the interface doesn’t actually tell you the normal price. I wish more than anything that I could just buy games through a browser on my phone and completely ignore the eShop interface, but then I guess it's no worse than the hateful Xbox and PS3 on-device shop interfaces.

 

This is a feature that's allegedly coming, but it's been a while since we've heard any news about it.

[tegan]

So the new Streetpass features hit North America! I bought the haunted house game. It's cooool.

 

Also, the framerate is noticeably better now, which is a nice bonus.

[Laco]

So far I've only spent a few hours out and about in Milan with Streetpass enabled, but I've already had four hits! It feels kinda dumb, but I'm a lot more excited about this stuff than I expected to be. That green notification light! And pink puzzle pieces! Checking off regions on the world map is super satisfying too. I've actually spent more time on this than with any of my purchased games so far.

I'm not sure about the new Streetpass games, but I should probably just buy them all at once before the novelty wears off.

[tegan]

Streetpass is the secret best feature of the system. Certain games also unlock content via Streetpass (ie: Super Mario 3D Land lets you recieve powerups and Star Coin rooms as gifts, Animal Crossing lets you visit a passerby's house and order their furniture, etc).

[mikemariano]

Wait, the new Streetpass games cost $5 each?  Why???

[shammack]

To pay the people who developed them?

[syntheticgerbil]

I'm actually a bit annoyed at having to pay for these new Street Pass games. I'll participate in Find Mii for free, but what is the use in paying for a grindy game that takes forever to complete? Maybe if it doesn't take months to finish a level and constant resets of my steps to do it I might be interested, but otherwise, I don't need more of these things. And why the fuck does Nintendo cap the coin amount to 10 for a day? I'm a bit sick of never having an accurate time and date at this point.

 

Maybe when I get all the hats and shit for Find Mii 2 I'll bother, but meh for right now.

[tegan]

If the haunted house one is any indication, the new games are way more complex than the original ones. Like more complex than some actual eshop games.

[Sno]

I'm seriously tempted by the shoot `em up, but i'll probably wait until Nintendo gets their internet streetpass exchange in place, because i still very rarely get hits.

 

 

Streetpass is the secret best feature of the system. Certain games also unlock content via Streetpass (ie: Super Mario 3D Land lets you recieve powerups and Star Coin rooms as gifts, Animal Crossing lets you visit a passerby's house and order their furniture, etc).

 

Fire Emblem: Awakening lets you send out an instance of your party to fight with passersby, you'll show up on their overworld map as an extra battle. (They can even recruit your version of the player avatar if they win!)

[tegan]

Here's today's mini Nintendo Direct featuring 3DS and Wii U neat stuff:

 

[shammack]

The new Streetpass games are great, except now it takes like half an hour just to clear out my streetpasses every day.    The haunted house game in particular is a killer. I don't have time for that! I have animals to cross!

[Sno]

Attack of the Friday Monsters, the third Guild 02 game, is up on eShop.

It looks cute, has anybody played it?

Also, SMT4 is out, that's kind of a big deal.

[juv3nal]

Attack of the Friday Monsters, the third Guild 02 game, is up on eShop.

It looks cute, has anybody played it?

I haven't played a lot of it, but I did grab it. Seems like a visual novel thing except you get to run around and snag collectibles and apparently there's some kind of card battling thing, but I haven't got there yet. The backgrounds are very pretty.

[lobotomy42]

Attack of the Friday Monsters, the third Guild 02 game, is up on eShop.

It looks cute, has anybody played it?

Also, SMT4 is out, that's kind of a big deal.

 

What was the second one?

[Sno]

Keiji Inafune's Bugs Vs Tanks game.

[tabacco]

I'm liking the new games, but Wii Force is rough if you only get 1-2 street passes per day. I really wish you could save visitors up between visits to the gate.

[Laco]

I picked up all the new games, and they're not bad, but I agree that they need to waste my time a lot less. I thought I'd enjoy Garden, but it's so painful waiting for the same lengthy animations to play every single time we leave the house or someone waters a plant.

Overall I think my favourites are Puzzle Swap and Battle/Warrior's Way, because they're pretty quick to play and meeting experienced Miis is cool (rare puzzle pieces and large armies). The others seem to depend solely on colour, which is dumb and should have a minor effect at most.

Other than Streetpass, I've finished SM3DL with two glittering stars (so far). It's really good! I've played the whole thing with 3D enabled, because it seems to make a big difference to judging distances and directions.

I picked up Fractured Soul because it's cheap right now, haven't tried it yet. Also just started the first Denpa Men, which seems a bit like a lite version of Pokemon, for people who don't want it to take over their whole lives (i.e. me). I like it so far.

[shammack]

I picked up all the new games, and they're not bad, but I agree that they need to waste my time a lot less. I thought I'd enjoy Garden, but it's so painful waiting for the same lengthy animations to play every single time we leave the house or someone waters a plant.

 

In case you didn't already know, you can fast-forward the animations of a lot of stuff throughout all of Streetpass Mii Plaza by holding the R button.

 

Speaking of animations, the animations for the Miis in the garden game kind of creep me out for some reason. They have this weird stretchy, rubbery quality that they don't have anywhere else. I know the games are made by several different developers, but that's the only one that really stands out as not being made by Nintendo to me because the animation and UI stuff is so different.

[Laco]

In case you didn't already know, you can fast-forward the animations of a lot of stuff throughout all of Streetpass Mii Plaza by holding the R button.

Yeah, but in the new games the speedup only seems to be about 25%, presumably due to the increased graphical complexity?