What games should I play on a 3DS?

[Ortho]

I recently bought a 3DS, and Nintendo recently discontinued it. I'd like to grab some games for it before the stores stop stocking them.

So, in the forum's opinion, what games are worth playing for the 3DS?

[tonberrian]

Etrian Odyssey IV
Etrian Odyssey V
Etrian Odyssey Nexus
Etrian Odyssey Untold I
Etrian Odyssey Untold 2
Persona Q
Persona Q2

These all are dungeon crawlers where you draw your own map with the touchpad. Only the Untold ones and the Persona ones have any real story to them, but the gameplay is fun in each of them. Only try one to see if you like it. Persona ones have characters from Persona 3 and 4 and, for Q2, Persona 5.

SMT IV or IV: Apocalypse

Probably the best JRPGs on the system, but as an SMT game it's rated M for mature themes and railing against God. Apocalypse is a direct sequel, but it has the superior mechanics.

SMT: Devil Survivor Overclocked and SMT: Devil Survivor 2: Record Breaker

These are more tactical RPGs akin to Fire Emblem than a straight RPG like SMT IV. Not as mature themed as SMT IV, but still rails against God. The second is not a direct sequel to the first, can be played in any order. The first one has the better plot, but the second has the better characters and mechanics. The plot of each in GENERAL is that you're trapped in Tokyo for seven days in the middle of a demonic invasion, and everyone gets the power to summon demons - and power like that corrupts. Meanwhile, humanity is being judged. The who and why differ between the two, though.

Dragon Quest VIII: A good PS2 game made better on the 3DS. Worse graphics but other bonuses.

Bravely Default: A good turn-based Squeenix RPG that's getting a sequel on the Switch. Plot's decent enough, but gets REAL repetitive at the end. Has random encounters, but a slider that allows you to turn them up to grind or turn them down to zero so you can just go through in peace. Has a sequel on the 3DS as well but i've not played it.

Fire Emblem Awakening: The best Fire Emblem game before Three Houses came out. Lots of fun. Fire Emblem Fates is not nearly as good and is split into three parts you have to buy separately.

Mario Kart 7: The best Mario Kart before 8.

Pokemon: It's pokemon.

The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D: A really good remake!

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask 3D: An okay remake.

Phoenix Wright: Visual Novels where you are a lawyer and crazy things happen. Good stuff, but the original trilogy is also available on Switch and you should play those first. Originally GBA games in Japan, became DS games in the US, now available in the E-Shop.

Star Fox 64 3D: An excellent remake!

If you're willing to wait, most of these were on sale during last year's Black Friday sale.

[Zevox]

Really just depends on the type of games you like. The 3DS is a long-lived and quite successful system with a massive library, especially if you have a version that also plays original DS games. Much of what I have falls into the RPG category, but there's plenty of others out there.

I'd definitely recommend Persona Q and Q2 myself, albeit with the caveat that you should really play Persona 3 and 4 (and 5, for Q2) first, since the whole point of those games is that they're crossovers of the casts of the main Persona games. Great fun if you're familiar with the characters, and probably still good even if you're not, but they'll definitely lose something in the latter case.

For more standalone games, Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 1 and 2 are my top recommendations. Not as good as Persona, but I like them substantially more than the mainline SMT games - definitely much better in the story area, and I like their gameplay better as well personally.

Kid Icarus: Uprising is an excellent action game with a frustrating control scheme that involves constant use of the stylus and touchscreen. Still, until Nintendo wises up and ports it to the Switch/future console so we can have it on something with a second analog stick, it's worth putting up with the controls to play it.

Most of the Dragon Quest franchise can be played on the system if you have on that plays original DS games - everything from 4-9, with 4-8 being remakes and 9 being a DS original. 7 and 8 are the only 3DS ones if you lack the DS backwards-compatibility, but 8 is the best of them anyway. Would strongly recommend 8, and try out the rest of the franchise if you like that (5 and 6 are probably the next-best of the bunch, ignoring ones not available on the system).

Okay, I'm going to be here all day if I keep writing this much about each game/series, so here's a list of general recommendations:
- Ace Attorney/Phoenix Wright franchise (Visual Novels, some regular DS)
- Zero Escape franchise (Visual Novels, first one is DS)
- Fire Emblem: Awakening (Strategy RPG)
- Mega Man: ZX, ZX Advent (Platformers, all regular DS)
- Mario & Luigi franchise (RPGs, some on DS)
- Advance Wars franchise (TBS, regular DS)
- Radiant Historia (RPG, regular DS)
- The World Ends With You (odd Action-RPG-ish title, regular DS)
- Remake/collection recommendations:
-- Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D
-- Star Fox 3D
-- Tales of the Abyss
-- Mega Man Zero Collection (regular DS)
-- Chrono Trigger (regular DS)

[tonberrian]

Note: Radiant Historia had a 3DS remake, and Zero Collection had an update with the ZX games on the Switch.

[Winthur]

Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is also a fine Zelda title on the console. Metroid: Samus Returns is a good game as well. Otherwise, yeah, I use 3DS as my Phoenix Wright / portable jRPG / Zelda machine.

[Anonymouswizard]

Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is also a fine Zelda title on the console. Metroid: Samus Returns is a good game as well. Otherwise, yeah, I use 3DS as my Phoenix Wright / portable jRPG / Zelda machine.

Note: A Link Between Worlds has the distinction of a relatively flat puzzle difficulty curve, as well as an enemy who's primary purpose is to be a bomb for puzzle solving. This is due to the open ended nature, you can tackle the second two dungeons in either order and the next seven in (almost) any order you want, with items being rented from a central shop and only one being required for any specific dungeon. Boss difficulty always ramps up, but dungeons can't build puzzles around multiple items even if you do buy them (although it's definitely worth buying them just to get the Nice versions).


My recommendations are in essence the Zelda games, one or more MegaTen games (probably Persona Q if you like Persona, otherwise Strange Journey if you like Etrian Odyssey, Devil Survivor if you like Tactical RPGs, or Iv/Apocalypse if you want a more 'traditional' JRPG), Bravely Default, your preferred Pokemon, and possibly Tales of the Abyss. Plus any DS games you want, I like both the DS Zeldas despite the flaws and the Ace Attorney ports.

[TaRix]

Rhythm Heaven: Megamix.

No one else suggested anything nearly as light and casual, but this one's good for chuckles and in-between project games. It's download-only, though.
But if rhythm isn't yer jam, there's also a Wario megamix, WarioWare Gold.

I also picked up the Final Fantasy Theatrhythms, but mostly for the jukebox feature while driving.

[veti]

I'm just gonna suggest my favourite DS games here, since this is probably the last platform that will run them.

The Pokemon Ranger games make good use of the touch pad-stylus format. There are three that I know of in the series, and it's hard to imagine them working so well on any other platform.

A personal favourite of mine and my kids': Chocobo Tales is a collection of mini- and micro-games tied into an overarching storyline and a card-collecting-and-duelling game. Great for casual play.

[Rynjin]

The Final Fantasy IV remake is quite good. Kirby: Planet Robobot was fun too.

I have a 3DS and like 4 games total for it, so these may be very shallow opinions.

[Hunter Noventa]

The Final Fantasy IV remake is quite good. Kirby: Planet Robobot was fun too.

I have a 3DS and like 4 games total for it, so these may be very shallow opinions.

Planet Robobot is pretty great fun.

Do NOT get the Final Fantasy III remake though. They actively made the game worse in nearly every way they could.

[sandmote]

I think whether Kid Icarus: Uprising's controls are comfortable or a mess might be based on how well you can rest the 3DS on your left palm and middle/ring/pinky fingers. Someone I had try the game complained until I showed him how I hold the system while playing; before that he was trying to hold the system with both hands.

I consider Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate to have the strongest story in the series, and far better designed monsters and difficulty curve than Monster Hunter World does. If you want lower difficulty there's Generations, but I just checked and found out they've finally released the Ultimate version on switch ("Ultimate" in the name means they slapped a bunch of content on the end of the original version).

Also, they've re-released a bunch of Mario and Luigi games on the eShop with a extra story added in, so I'd check which version it is if you get them.

[Zevox]

I think whether Kid Icarus: Uprising's controls are comfortable or a mess might be based on how well you can rest the 3DS on your left palm and middle/ring/pinky fingers. Someone I had try the game complained until I showed him how I hold the system while playing; before that he was trying to hold the system with both hands.
I played the game using the stand that came with my 3DS (not sure if all versions had it, but the original did). It helped a bit compared to holding it, but it still became uncomfortable over time. Using the stylus with your right hand constantly like that just becomes painful after a while.

Great game, but damn do I wish it could've been on anything with a second analog stick instead.

[Ortho]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I've only heard of about half of these games, so it seems I've got a lot to look at.
Also, I may need to buy a new SD card just for the demos - the default 4 gigabytes of storage aren't quite up to the task.


Zelda: A Link Between Worlds is also a fine Zelda title on the console. Metroid: Samus Returns is a good game as well. Otherwise, yeah, I use 3DS as my Phoenix Wright / portable jRPG / Zelda machine.

I've had my eye on the Ace Attorney series for a while, so...yeah, I suspect this is what my 3DS will become. Not that I was expecting anything different....


I'm just gonna suggest my favourite DS games here, since this is probably the last platform that will run them.

The Pokemon Ranger games make good use of the touch pad-stylus format. There are three that I know of in the series, and it's hard to imagine them working so well on any other platform.

A personal favourite of mine and my kids': Chocobo Tales is a collection of mini- and micro-games tied into an overarching storyline and a card-collecting-and-duelling game. Great for casual play.

By all means, suggest original DS games. I missed the entire 7th generation of consoles - one of the main reasons I bought a 3DS was for the backwards compatibility, actually.

[Battleship789]

In addition to Fire Emblem Awakening (which is great), Fire Emblem Echoes has great production values but the gameplay is a little dated in parts (as a remake of an old NES game). The three games comprising Fire Emblem Fates are interesting, though not necessarily worth playing. Birthright refines Awakening's gameplay for the better, though the story is pretty forgettable. Conquest has amazing gameplay, arguably the best in the series, but the story is a complete dumpster fire. Finally, Revelation gives you a huge cast with a ton of options but doesn't really deliver a good box to play inside.

I'll second The World Ends With You, a actiony RPG that uses the dual screens of the (3)DS better than other game. Ghost Trick is another DS title, a puzzle game with visual novel elements (somewhat similar to the Zero Escape series, though more light-hearted).

While entries in a larger franchise, Kingdom Hearts 358 Days/2 (DS title) and Dream Drop Distance (3DS) are fun action RPGs. 358 Days is relatively standalone, though not completely. (I'm actually curious how someone would think about the franchise if Days was their first title...)

[Rodin]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I've only heard of about half of these games, so it seems I've got a lot to look at.
Also, I may need to buy a new SD card just for the demos - the default 4 gigabytes of storage aren't quite up to the task.

Do so. The SD card provided is nowhere near big enough. Keep in mind that the DS does NOT require proprietary hardware. You should be able to pick up a standard digital camera SD card with far more space for a pittance.


I've had my eye on the Ace Attorney series for a while, so...yeah, I suspect this is what my 3DS will become. Not that I was expecting anything different....

If you're looking at Ace Attorney I also recommend Ghost Trick. It was developed by the same creator as Ace Attorney and I consider it to be a superior game in a lot of ways.

Other games that people haven't suggested:

New Super Mario Bros DS - if you've played the Wii U version this is more of the same. Still good Mario though.
Super Mario 3D Land - The only 3D Mario game ever released on handheld. It doesn't have the open world of the others but it's pretty darn good.
Mario 64 DS - It's Mario 64, but with the ability to play as Yoshi, Luigi, and Wario. What more could you want?

Peggle and Plants vs. Zombies - two PopCap classics that got DS versions. None of the microtransaction nonsense that has since infested the company - probably because the DS wasn't Internet capable.

[Wookieetank]

If you like puzzles, with endearing stories, and gentlemen in hats, I highly recommend the Professor Layton Series. It started on the DS and ended on the 3DS, there's 6 mainline games, and I think there's now a side series as well.