Topic: How long until the 3ds dies?

All this understandable talk of the 3DS coming to its end has reignited my interest in the system.

It might be that I’m in the denial stage on the change curve (like a football fan who decides to group together to buy the club when it goes bust).

But I think actually it’s more that it has such a great library of games. Scores that I own and deserve some play time. Others that I missed out on when busy with young kids and when Switch came out.

I plan to put my 3DS back into rotation for a while, not sure how long that’ll last. But it’s a cool retro system now!

@JoeDiddley The 3ds has undoubtedlya great library of games, probably one of the best out of any console period. I loved the 3ds ever since I got one when it came out. But all great things must come to an end eventually...

Enjoying your 3ds isn't denial, theres nothing wrong with going back to a console you love.

The 3DS is my favorite system of all time, and will likely be so forever. So many great games, and it's sad to see it all come to an end. I've been going back and playing old DS and 3DS games on a bit of a nostalgia trip, while checking out the newer ones.

I literally just bought my first 3DS today... There may be almost no more games coming out, but as a legacy system, it’s nigh on unbeatable. Hardly any of those dual-screen titles will ever make it to Switch, and the virtual console is ten times better than what we currently have on Switch. I just wanted one to have around and provide different experiences to what the latest console offers.

@MysticGengar I feel the same way but, why did you post your comment 4 times? Or was that a glitch?

@Krull No question about that. The Switch's online is garbage compared to the 3ds which is free. It's sad to see that the only thing the online has going for it is Tetris 99. Meanwhile the 3ds has a much larger library of games, local save backups, virtual console and backwards compatibility with the ds.
I'm honestly baffled how Nintendo dropped the ball with the online.

@iLikeUrAttitude you’re right, I’ve taken it on an overnight trip and it’s been fantastic

@Krull -wrong thread (sorry mods) but do you wanna swap friend codes?

@Krull
Congratulations on your 3DS purchase !
Now, you can hunt for older 3DS and NDS games library to maximize the potential from your 3DS.

@iLikeUrAttitude
My bad. That was a glitch.

@JoeDiddley Absolutely. However, although I’ve bought my 3DS, it hasn’t arrived yet. Will happily add you!

@Anti-Matter Thank you! I’m really excited about it!

@ReaderRagfish I agree re solid library even if not much on the horizon, and access to a great DS library too.

It’s probably because there are more download options on 3DS but I was organising my carts last night and I was surprised to see I still have more DS than 3DS physical games.
The DS being region free also helps, as It’s bolstered by some Japanese imports.

@Krull great, enjoy when it arrives!

I remember buying my ps3 the week the ps4 came out! Despite that, I played it for most of my childhood and still revisit the old games today. For sure the 3ds can do the same.

Interesting reading my post in this thread from over a year back where I'm talking about software sales. Because that is really the measure of how alive a dead a system is in any meaningful sense. Of course systems "live on" but only in the sense that the SNES from my childhood still turns on and runs. Doesn't mean it's not a "dead" platform.

In any case, we have another year's worth of data since then. In 2018 as a proportion of total software sales the 3DS dropped bellow where the Wii U was sitting until the Switch's release. In any real sense last year the 3DS was "more dead" than the Wii U was in 2016. Meanwhile as a proportion of total software sales the Switch last year was the best performing Nintendo console since the Wii in 2010.

Put simply the 3DS is doing worse than the Wii U was doing when it was still on shelves and the Switch is doing better than the 3DS ever did. Sure you can still play it and it still has content if you want to go through the back catalogue. But it's a back catalogue only. Honestly at this stage I'd be surprised if it even got a mention at E3 this year.

@skywake I agree the 3ds didn't exist in the last direct and even if the 3dds is mentioned at E3 I doubt we'll get anything thats not a port, remaster or an Atlus game. Nintendo si focusing completely on the switch which is a good thing.

Also I didn't realize my thread was over a year old

“We have nothing new to announce regarding first-party software for the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. We can confirm that new software is coming from third-party publishers.”

https://nintendoeverything.com/nintendo-says-it-has-nothing-n...
Edit: originally thought that would need it's own topic. but i went back and found this one instead since it's about the 3DS dying and all.

@Aozz101x Welp I guess that confirms (at least officially) that Nintendo isn't paying attention to the 3ds and focusing all their efforts on the switch.

I'd say anywhere between 2020-2022.

@TheAwesomeBowser Really? You picture the 3ds lasting that long?

@iLikeUrAttitude Yep. Fight me.

@TheAwesomeBowser Final destination, no items, Fox only!!