With the advent of the 3DS, it seems like Nintendo started to enter a new mindset with its handheld line of games. When playing on a portable console, people enjoy it in short bursts, not long hours on end game sessions. It may not seem that bad or note worthy but it's actually quite a big decision when you realize how many games its affected. It's the reason why Super Mario 3D Land was broken up into bite sized levels, or why Luigis Mansion Dark Moon was given a mission based structure instead of a big mansion. or why the dungeons in Zelda: A Link Between Worlds are notably shorter than in past Zelda games. All based on this one notion.

Personally, I both love and hate this approach to handheld games. the formula works for games like 3D Land but I don't like it being applied to almost every game that Nintendo makes for the 3DS. Luigis Mansion would've been perfect it we were allowed to explore every mansion as one big mansion rather than being pulled out by E. Gadd midway only to be thrusted back in. It really broke up the immersion. Same thing with A Link Between Worlds. It has brilliant level design and a gorgeous world to explore but the shorter dungeons really halted some of the brilliance that could've been expanded upon if Aonuma decided to make it a bit longer. Not to mention, being asked to take a break every two to three saves is really quite annoying. I understand why they do that for obvious legal reasons, but I really wish they made an option for you to turn the notification off. Simply put: I feel like this approach breaks your immersion, limits level design creativity and makes the game generally harder to get into.

But what do you think? Is this a good or bad trend? Let's discuss!

It's a good approach. The entire idea behind a portable like the DS is that they can be used on the go, and shorter, segmented gameplay works best with this.

@Dreamz I can half agree on this. But for every game? I just don't know. I wish we had at least some games that had long uninterrupted levels. Sometimes I just like to sit down with my 3DS and play for hours. It sucks that there's little games catering to this.

it's a good approach but there are other things that can solve the problem and Nintendo is using one of them since the DS(maybe before? not sure) the sleep mode, it allows you to play extensively long games in fragmented sessions so if you must stop just close the handheld(or push the switch on the case of the 2DS) and pick it up from where you stopped later.
the only flaws I can see in this system is that it can't be used for multiplayer(but that's understandable) and that some games are so big that you'll probably have to stop before doing anything fun or significant(ok this one's troublesome, especially in games with long cutscenes or huge semi-empty areas to cross)

Its kinda expected too If you think about it, people don't but handhelds for something thats long and time consuming they want something to pick up and play. Games like Mario, Kirby, Mario Kart and some Zeldas(Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks) do this.

But I agree to the love hate since as of now my main from of gaming comes from my 3DS and an old PSP I'd love some games that take a while to complete, like a new RPG or something with replay value and nintendo does that sometimes.(Pokemon Soul Silver)

It's a good idea, but if you do it all the time you're appealing to half the market. It's obvious that some gamers like longer handheld games (me being one), so it'd be nice to see them change it up more often.

Games that let me pause and stop at almost any point are great, but I'd prefer longer games.

There are enough long experiences that I'm happy with what they put out. I'm not too worried.

Because handheld systems are now capable of providing console-like experiences (unlike the past where games were often described as "good... for a handheld"), I don't want handheld games to be shorter. Instead, I'd rather have games with more save points, such as the Final Fantasy games for the GBA where you can save anywhere.

Using sleep mode, as GuSolarFlare mentioned, is nice too. I play tons of long RPGs on my DS and PSP and being able to put the system in sleep mode at any time is very convenient.

I am not so bothered about stuff being shorter. What I don't want is it made an order of magnitude easier each time.

While LTTP and ALBW are not my favorite Zeldas or anything, complaining about their length is stupid considering how it was intentionally designed to going back to the quicker pace in the pre-OOT days. Which was unquestionably the right choice being the next game made after Skyward Sword.

Other than that, it's mostly lead to interesting design ideas that don't actively hinder longer play sessions (barring that occasional annoying "HEY YOU CAN TOTALLY TAKE A BREAK, OK?!" message) so I don't see the issue. If you're annoyed at 3D Land, be more annoyed at Nintendo trying to remake Mario 3/World at every possible opportunity.

also that last Mario and Luigi was apparently longer than every Wii U game Nintendo has released

@kkslider5552000 First of all, I said the short structure worked for 3D Land. Secondly, I actually prefer Skyward Sword style. It's the best game in the series in my opinion.

Depends on you as a player and your views.
I like it. What Nintendo has constantly gotten right with their handhelds compared to Sony is that Nintendo understands that a handheld experience should be one you can pick up and play and then put down fairly quickly and easily. It's short but effective bursts of entertainment. Whereas with the PSP and Vita, Sony attempts a console experience on a handheld and it doesn't always work. I'm not saying the PSP and the Vita aren't good systems, but I find whenever I play PSP I need to be invested and focused for a long period of time, whereas if I'm playing Pokemon or something on a Nintendo handheld, I can jump in and jump out whenever.

I very rarely play even games meant to be played for longer periods of time for longer than an hour to an hour and a half. And usually when I do its because I want to have a 2-3 hour session for the conclusion of a larger game.

They are not trying to remake 3/World The best thing that applies to both is the lack of collectables. The difficulty curve in 3 is perfect. The multiple paths and knowing which levels have a secret exit (And finding one you get a decent chunk of levels) is the best thing about World. (And not being forced to only use Yoshi on certain levels).

If there's replay value, then sure, I'll welcome those short games.
It's kind of funny, because I downloaded 2 handheld games recently Kirby's Dream Land and Ikachan. One, I love, and another I despise. Kirby's Dream Land is loved because it has replay value with a hard mode, and challenge yourself with the custom menu you unlock later. I've been beating it over and over again, because it's great to challenge myself in new ways in 2 different games.
Ikachan however is terrible in my opinion. It lasts an hour and has little to no replay value, other than boring grinding to level 6. It should give you an extra 20 minutes, but honestly, it's not worth the time.
They both had an hour to impress me, and one definitely impressed me over the other. But only one of them could impress me for plenty more hours, despite it's short length, and I'm still happy with it.

If anything, Luigi's Mansion Dark Moon was too long.

Also my gaming sessions are pretty short, even on consoles, so I don't mind as much. It's nice to run through one or two missions and then take a break to do something else.