Nintendo 3DS

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Manufacturer	Nintendo
Type	Handheld
Release date(s)	February 26, 2011; March 25, 2011; March 27, 2011; March 31, 2011
Discontinued	September 17, 2020
Media	2GB Nintendo 3DS Game Card, Nintendo DS Game Card, SD Card
Input	Nintendo 3DS Stylus
Predecessor	Nintendo DS
Successor	Nintendo Switch Lite

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Manufacturer	Nintendo
Release date(s)	July 28, 2012; July 28, 2012; August 19, 2012; August 23, 2012;
Media	Nintendo 3DS Game Card, Nintendo DS Game Card, 4 GB SD Card (Expandable by 32 GB)
Input	Nintendo 3DS XL Stylus
Predecessor	Nintendo DS, Nintendo 3DS (concurrent)
Successor	None

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200px
	;
Manufacturer	Nintendo
Type	Handheld
Release date(s)	February 26, 2011; March 25, 2011; March 27, 2011; March 31, 2011
Discontinued	September 17, 2020
Media	2GB Nintendo 3DS Game Card, Nintendo DS Game Card, SD Card
Input	Nintendo 3DS Stylus
Predecessor	Nintendo DS
Successor	Nintendo Switch Lite

The Nintendo 3DS is a handheld gaming console and is the successor to the Nintendo DS. Officially revealed at E3 2010, it was released on February 26, 2011 in Japan; in Europe on March 25, 2011; on March 27, 2011 in North America; and March 31, 2011 in Australia.

It originally had a suggested retail price of US$249.99, before August 12, 2011, when Nintendo introduced a price drop to US$169.99, with consumers who bought the system at its original price gaining access to ten Nintendo Entertainment System games as well as ten Game Boy Advance at no charge.^[2] The Nintendo 3DS ran until its discontinuation worldwide on September 17, 2020.^[3]

Alongside the announcement of the 3DS, Animal Crossing: New Leaf was originally announced at E3 2010 and was subsequently released on November 8, 2012 in Japan, February 7, 2013 in Korea, and June 2013 in North America, Europe, and Australia.^[4] An Animal Crossing spin-off, Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, was announced in an Nintendo Direct held on April 1, 2015 and was released in July 30, 2015 in Japan and Fall 2015 for North America, Europe, and Australia.^[5]

At 75.94 million units,^[6] the 3DS stands as Nintendo's least-selling handheld platform.

Features

An example of the Nintendo 3DS graphics as seen in Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Welcome amiibo

The Nintendo 3DS has many new features. It is capable of glasses-free 3D on its top screen, which has been expanded width-ways. The 3D effect can be increased or turned off entirely with the slider located on the right-hand side of the top screen. Nintendo has recommended that children under 6 are not permitted to use the 3D effect, which can be locked off with Parental Controls,^[7] however the American Optometric Association has stated that 3D gaming on the Nintendo 3DS will not harm children's eyes, if used in moderation.^[8]

The console includes 'augmented reality' cards, which one places on a flat surface and uses the Nintendo 3DS camera to view. The cards are then transformed into an object which is visible through the 3DS camera. Nintendo has stated that users "are not to be surprised if they see a dragon coming out of their kitchen table."^[9] An example card is a game in which players are required to shoot targets surrounding objects.^[10] The Nintendo 3DS includes a gyroscopic sensor that registers movement, similar to that of the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Like the Wii, the Nintendo 3DS includes the Virtual Console. Players are able to download games from the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Nintendo Entertainment System. Members of the Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Program are able to download Game Boy Advance titles which are exclusive to them. The New Nintendo 3DS, New Nintendo 3DS XL, and New Nintendo 2DS XL can also play Super Nintendo Entertainment System titles from the eShop.^[11] Purchases are made through the Nintendo eShop, using a cash system rather than Nintendo Points. Additionally, all models of the Nintendo 3DS family feature backwards compatibility with Nintendo DS software, though certain games that utilize the Game Boy Advance slot on the original DS and DS Lite are incompatible.

The Nintendo 3DS has the standard A, B, X, Y, Start, Select, L and R buttons, as well as the D-Pad. It also has the Circle Pad, an analog stick, and a Home button.

Similar to the Wii's Wii Address Book, the Nintendo 3DS has a function named the Friend List, where people are able to see which of their friends are currently online and their status messages. The Notification LED will light orange when a friend is online.

SpotPass is the ability for the 3DS to seek Wi-Fi signals and automatically download content while in sleep mode. It may be used for players to download distributed items in Animal Crossing: New Leaf. StreetPass is the ability to connect with other 3DS systems while in sleep mode. A widely cited example is that passing 3DS systems in the street is able to send Miis to each other.

Friend Codes remain in the 3DS system's software, however, only one is needed per system, as opposed to the Wii and DS's one each for every game.

The Activity Log tracks both game play (noting which games have been played and for how long) as well as physical activity (counting every step taken while carrying a 3DS). The feature encourages walking more every day to earn Play Coins, which can be used with compatible games and applications to acquire special content and a variety of other benefits.

The two external cameras are used together to create 3D photos, however the interior camera can capture 2D photos and 2D videos.

The game Face Raiders is automatically built into the Nintendo 3DS. In it, the player uses the 3D camera and Augmented Reality to shoot faces which have been taken from photos captured with the 3D cameras.

A play coin is an alternative form of currency in various Nintendo 3DS games, obtained by walking with the Nintendo 3DS while the system is in sleep mode. For every one hundred steps taken, the system will add 1 coin, for up to 10 coins per day and for a maximum of 300 coins. In Animal Crossing: New Leaf, fortune cookies can be bought for 2 play coins, and in Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Welcome amiibo, play coins can be used to recruit villagers or restart in Desert Island Escape.

On June 7, 2011, the Nintendo eShop became available, allowing users to download digital copies of games as well as collection of older titles via Virtual Console and DSiWare.

Types of 3DS

Name	JP Release	NA Release	EU Release	AUS Release	Notes
Nintendo 3DS	February 26, 2011	March 27, 2011	March 25, 2011	March 31, 2011	Original model of the Nintendo 3DS.
Nintendo 3DS XL	July 28, 2012	August 19, 2012	July 28, 2012	August 23, 2012	A significantly larger model of the 3DS with improved Start, Select, and Home Buttons.
Nintendo 2DS	February 27, 2016	October 12, 2013	October 12, 2013	October 12, 2013	Has no 3D features and lacks the clamshell design of previous DS and 3DS consoles.
New Nintendo 3DS XL	October 11, 2014	February 13, 2015	February 13, 2015	November 21, 2014	Introduced a C-Stick, two new buttons, and a new processor. Has certain games exclusive to it.
New Nintendo 3DS	October 11, 2014	September 25, 2015	February 13, 2015	November 21, 2014	A smaller version of the New Nintendo 3DS XL.
New Nintendo 2DS XL	July 13, 2017	July 28, 2017	July 28, 2017	June 15, 2017	A redesign of the New Nintendo 3DS XL. It lacks 3D, but has a clamshell design, unlike the Nintendo 2DS.

Animal Crossing-related games

Retail

Game	Image	Release date(s)
Animal Crossing: New Leaf		November 8, 2012 February 8, 2013 June 9, 2013 June 14, 2013 June 15, 2013
Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS		September 13, 2014 October 3, 2014 October 3, 2014 October 4, 2014 September 10, 2015
Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer		July 30, 2015 September 25, 2015 October 2, 2015 October 3, 2015
Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Welcome amiibo	100px	November 23, 2016 November 24, 2016 November 25, 2016 December 1, 2016 December 8, 2016

Backwards compatibility

Game	Image	Release date(s)	Available By
Animal Crossing: Wild World		November 23, 2005 December 5, 2005 December 8, 2005 March 31, 2006 December 6, 2007	DS Card

Download

In addition to the downloadable versions of the retail Nintendo 3DS titles mentioned above, the following download-only software are also playable on the Nintendo 3DS.

Nintendo eShop native apps

Game	JP Release	EG Release
Photos with Animal Crossing	2013	(limited 2015 release)

DSiWare legacy apps

App	Japanese release date	English release date
Animal Crossing Clock	2009	2009
Animal Crossing Calculator	2009	2009

Redesigns

Nintendo 3DS XL

The Nintendo 3DS XL is the first Nintendo 3DS redesign. The 3DS XL fixes several design flaws of the original 3DS, such as the 3D screen denting and making use of the control pad much more comfortable. The 3DS XL came in a variety of colors, with most of them being outside of North America. The colors that the 3DS XL came in are:

Red/Black (Japan, Europe, North America, Australia)
Blue/Black (Japan, Europe, North America, Australia)
Silver/Black (Japan, Europe, Australia)
Pink/White (Japan and North America)
Black (Japan, Europe, Australia)
Pikachu Yellow (Japan)
Charizard Black (Japan)
Xerneas & Yveltal Red (Japan, Europe, North America)
Xerneas & Yveltal Blue (Japan, Europe, North America)
Pokémon X/Y Premium Gold (Japan)
"Eevee Edition" (Japan)
Super Smash Bros Blue/Red (Japan, Europe, North America)

Nintendo 2DS

The 2DS is the seventh, newest portable console, also the newest Nintendo console. Since the console's main market audience is younger children and that Nintendo believes that stereoscope 3D can damage children's eyes, there is no stereoscopic 3D feature. There is also no hinge, so it is unable to close. Unlike closing the lid to have it go to sleep mode, a feature for the previous 3DS and DS, there is a switch for sleep mode. The Nintendo 2DS was released in October 2013.

New Nintendo 3DS

File:New Nintendo 3DS and New Nintendo 3DS XL.jpg

A New Nintendo 3DS (left) and New Nintendo 3DS XL (right)

The New Nintendo 3DS and New Nintendo 3DS XL, announced on August 28, 2014, were the first hardware upgrades for the Nintendo 3DS line of systems, similar to the Nintendo DSi. They were released on October 11, 2014 in Japan, and on November 21, 2014 in Australia and New Zealand, and in Europe on February 13, 2015. In North America, the New Nintendo 3DS XL was released on February 13, 2015, while the standard New Nintendo 3DS was released on September 25, 2015 alongside Happy Home Designer. On January 6, 2015, selected European Club Nintendo owners were invited to buy New Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Edition, a special pre-release bundle of New Nintendo 3DS, for €199.99, with orders shipped as early as January 7, 2015.

In addition to having a more powerful CPU, the New Nintendo 3DS features an improved 3D effect, using the system's gyroscope and cameras to track the location of the player's eyes to sustain the 3D effect. An NFC sensor is built-in under the bottom screen, allowing compatibility with the amiibo line of products without needing the stand peripheral. Two additional shoulder buttons (ZL and ZR) have been added, alongside a second smaller circle pad above the ABXY buttons, the same features added to a standard Nintendo 3DS or 3DS XL with the Circle Pad Pro. The Start Button and Select Button buttons have been moved under the ABXY buttons, similar to the Nintendo DS Lite and DSi. In addition, the cartridge and stylus slots have been moved to the bottom of the handheld, and the SD card slot has been replaced by a microSD slot on the back of the system which can be accessed by removing the bottom cover.

The New Nintendo 3DS models also feature removable back covers on the backs of the top and bottom screens, which can be replaced with custom covers purchased separately. The New Nintendo 3DS also features some changes to the Internet application in that it can now play HTML5 videos. Japanese New Nintendo 3DS models have a web filter pre-activated which can only be removed by paying 30 yen but, the preactivated filter is absent on non-Japanese models. Only a few titles were released that were exclusive to the New Nintendo 3DS systems and were not compatible with older models, such as the port of Xenoblade Chronicles.

New Nintendo 2DS XL

A new version of the Nintendo 2DS was released in July 2017. It features screens 82% bigger than the regular 2DS, as well as built-in amiibo compatibility, a more powerful CPU, and the new buttons and control stick already featuring on the New Nintendo 3DS. It retails for $149.99 in the United States.^[12]

Themes

3DS themes are themes that can be applied to the HOME Menu of any Nintendo 3DS. Themes are typically bought; otherwise, some of them are available through the My Nintendo rewards program, or for free for special events.

The Nintendo 3DS is a handheld gaming console and is the successor to the Nintendo DS. Officially revealed at E3 2010, it was released on February 26, 2011 in Japan; in Europe on March 25, 2011; on March 27, 2011 in North America; and March 31, 2011 in Australia.

It originally had a suggested retail price of US$249.99, before August 12, 2011, when Nintendo introduced a price drop to US$169.99, with consumers who bought the system at its original price gaining access to ten Nintendo Entertainment System games as well as ten Game Boy Advance at no charge.^[2] The Nintendo 3DS ran until its discontinuation worldwide on September 17, 2020.^[13]

Alongside the announcement of the 3DS, Animal Crossing: New Leaf was originally announced at E3 2010 and was subsequently released on November 8, 2012 in Japan, February 7, 2013 in Korea, and June 2013 in North America, Europe, and Australia.^[14] An Animal Crossing spin-off, Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer, was announced in an Nintendo Direct held on April 1, 2015 and was released in July 30, 2015 in Japan and Fall 2015 for North America, Europe, and Australia.^[15]

At 75.94 million units,^[16] the 3DS stands as Nintendo's least-selling handheld platform.

Features

An example of the Nintendo 3DS graphics as seen in Animal Crossing: New Leaf - Welcome amiibo

The Nintendo 3DS has many new features. It is capable of glasses-free 3D on its top screen, which has been expanded width-ways. The 3D effect can be increased or turned off entirely with the slider located on the right-hand side of the top screen. Nintendo has recommended that children under 6 are not permitted to use the 3D effect, which can be locked off with Parental Controls,^[17] however the American Optometric Association has stated that 3D gaming on the Nintendo 3DS will not harm children's eyes, if used in moderation.^[18]

The console includes 'augmented reality' cards, which one places on a flat surface and uses the Nintendo 3DS camera to view. The cards are then transformed into an object which is visible through the 3DS camera. Nintendo has stated that users "are not to be surprised if they see a dragon coming out of their kitchen table."^[19] An example card is a game in which players are required to shoot targets surrounding objects.^[20] The Nintendo 3DS includes a gyroscopic sensor that registers movement, similar to that of the iPhone and iPod Touch.

Like the Wii, the Nintendo 3DS includes the Virtual Console. Players are able to download games from the Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Nintendo Entertainment System. Members of the Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Program are able to download Game Boy Advance titles which are exclusive to them. The New Nintendo 3DS, New Nintendo 3DS XL, and New Nintendo 2DS XL can also play Super Nintendo Entertainment System titles from the eShop.^[21] Purchases are made through the Nintendo eShop, using a cash system rather than Nintendo Points. Additionally, all models of the Nintendo 3DS family feature backwards compatibility with Nintendo DS software, though certain games that utilize the Game Boy Advance slot on the original DS and DS Lite are incompatible.