Topic: What are you playing on 3DS? (2023 Edition)

I've ignored my 3DS for a good long while, but after playing through Fire Emblem Echoes (great experience!), I'm on a bit of a kick with this system again, so I decided to boot up Stella Glow, an SRPG I bought on sale that people have spoken quite highly of over the years.

Admittedly, the first impression it makes isn't the best. Combat feels slow and basic, and, like, five minutes in, we're already doing the 'main female character can't cook har har' thing. I'm not hating it, though, so I think I want to play it some more and see how it evolves.

I have no idea where my stylus for this console is, so I'm going to order another one in order to play some of the more touchscreen heavy games. I'd like to get to that Puzzle and Dragons game on the system that reviewed well.

Anyway, if you're playing anything new on this ageless handheld, post it here!

I still playing Yokai Watch 3 Tempura to level up my other Yokai. I have accumulated more than 220 hours gameplay.

@Anti-Matter My kid nephew LOVED the Yokai Watch games. Pity the physical run for the third game was so small we weren't able to secure him a cartridge.

@EaglyTheKawaiiShika YESSSSS. SMT IV and the 3DS Emblems are wonderful. Absolute must-plays. I don't know what region you live in, but Atlus has actually put up a number of really steep sales for all of their 3DS games a number of times in North America, so it seems likely that they'll host at least one more sale before the eshop closes. I'm less confident in Nintendo doing something like that, but it'd be a nice gesture considering how many games are going to be impossible to secure legally once the eshop closes.

If I can get funds on the eshop, I would like to grab the Mario and Luigi games I don’t own.

@EaglyTheKawaiiShika Highly recommend SMT IV, it was my first SMT (sounds like some kind of terminal illness now that I think about it). I played it last year, and it kind of blew my mind how good it is, the atmosphere/music/story is off the charts. It's fantastic, though go in as blind as you can! It's worth it.
(PSA: The opening is pretty slow but once you get through it becomes much better)

@Ralizah I think I remember you loving SMT IV: Apocalypse and I wonder, is it really that good? I heard mixed things about it, but personally, I don't need more SMT IV for the time being. I also don't really want to spend 30€ on the game if Sega doesn't put it on sale before the eshop closure.
Basically, is it worth picking up over the other 3ds SMTs?

And personally, I think I'm almost done with Kid Icarus Uprising which I started last June (!?) and went on and off with. I really like it, I just don't feel compelled to push through to the end for some reason.

I also want to replay SMT IV soon, to get another ending, but I'm kinda dreading to spend 50+ hours on the game again, so I have no clue when I'll do that

In Spring I'll play Bravely Second. Played Bravely Default last year, mixed feelings on it but I still like it, they won't make me do time loop shenanigans AGAIN, are they?? Also hoping the story is better and intentionally decided to wait a year until playing the next one.

Finally, all this Fire Emblem Engage talk has made me want to get into the series so I'll probably pick up a not-so-cheap copy of Awakening in the year.

Already a busy plan, and it might get worse if Sega holds a last minute eshop sale on the SMT games and Radiant Historia. Pleaaaaaaase.
(Or if @Ralizah gaslights me into buying SMT IV:A )

@blindsquarel Which ones are you planning to buy? In my experience, the mario and luigi games are cheap and plentiful on the second hand market, so I think you can get a better deal if you take the physical route, but I recommend the games regardless

@Ralizah
I was so lucky to get the Japanese version copy of Yokai Watch 3 Tempura with cheap price from my country without importing from Ebay.
And for other Yokai Watch games that still Japanese only such as Yokai Watch Sangokushi, Yokai Watch Busters 2, I don't really mind if I have to play in Japanese language as I can read some Japanese letters.

I did download a bunch of games awhile back. I really should try to start Miles and Kilo. I also got a cheap $1 game just to use up the rest of my funds on my New 3DS, mostly because it isn't tied to my Switch, which was Zara the Fastest Fairy, an endless runner, or flyer. Fun time waster that plays really smoothly. Really do want to get around to Miles and Kilo, it looks like a fun platformer.

I have other games downloaded, but can't remember which ones off the top of my head.

@EaglyTheKawaiiShika Enjoy SMT IV, such a good game. I also played SMT Strange Journey Redux. Still remembering the days when SMT V was revealed and the 3DS games were topping the eShop charts. Bought SMT IV then. Had Strange Journey earlier than that, and surprisingly own it physically.

@GreenTea
Superstar Saga and Paper Jam. My brother has them so it isn’t a huge deal, but I would like my own copy of each.

@Sunsy
Is 3DS cartridge storage like HORI or 3rd party still available at your place?
Here in Indonesia, 3DS HORI cartridge case was already sold out. 😟
The price of 3DS HORI cartridge case 12 / 24 on Ebay even from Japanese seller was really expensive currently. The only alternative 3DS cartridge storage was the NDS case model with 18 slots.

@GreenTea SMT IV: Apocalypse has the best gameplay, pacing, and difficulty curve in the entire series. But some fans really disliked its tone and characterizations, which is far more like an ordinary JRPG. Basically, imagine if SMT IV had a cast that was more reminiscent of recent Persona games.

I think it's a wonderful game, but it does lose much of the atmosphere that so many people like in SMT IV. If you want something more along those lines, Strange Journey Redux might be a better choice.

@Anti-Matter Afraid not. Last time I saw anything in a store for 3DS was 2020, picked up Star Fox 64 when I did an errand with mom to pick up stuff we needed. Pandemic was going on so I didn't really go out looking for games. The last physical 3DS game I bought was Angry Birds Trilogy, ordered online. Got it after seeing The Angry Birds Movie 2. Haven't seen anything 3DS since that day.

The past year, it's mostly just been Switch games, along with Xbox games (my friend has an Xbox).

I recently remembered I never got round to buying the DLC for Ace Attorney Spirit of Justice, so I'm playing that now. I'll probably start Kirby Planet Robobot next.

@blindsquarel And of course it's the two I haven't played, I also need to get to them. I am shocked that you won't play the Bowser's Inside Story remake though, how dare you make the right decision!

@Ralizah Yeah, that's basically what I heard, but the best gameplay in the series does sound pretty appealing I'll admit. I love SMT IV's atmoshere and story but the difficulty very much left something to be desired, so maybe Apocalypse could show me the best gameplay the series has to offer? I'm really unsure to be honest, more SMT IV can only be a good thing, right??

I'm pretty sure I'll pick up Strange Journey Redux since the set up sounds extremely cool. Too many games, too little time!

@GreenTea I still think IV: Apocalypse has an interesting story (although, admittedly, it doesn't have the force of IV's rather epic narrative), and it does some pretty interesting stuff with certain minor characters from IV.

Since you seem receptive, I'll argue for the game:

• I played on War difficulty, for the record, which felt 'just right' for someone who was comfortable with the difficulty in other SMT games. There is actually a harder downloadable difficulty, but I don't know how brutal it is. Anyway, on War mode, it started fairly easy, gradually became more difficult over the course of the game, and climaxed with a really great final boss (probably the best in the series to date, tbh) that required pretty much all of my mental energy to defeat. There were also several late game bosses that forced me to really grapple with the possibilities of what could be done with the combat system in order to defeat them. The difficulty curve was almost perfect, whereas SMT IV starts off too hardcore, and loses most of its edge after Naraku.
• Some people really don't like the characters, since they joke around, bicker, and there's a bit of a love triangle element that enters the game at a certain point. They all feel human. That includes the potential for pain and growth, and SMT IV: Apocalypse's cast noticeably changes over the course of the game. Nobody is there just to spout ideological extremities.
• The moment-to-moment of it is more enjoyable. For one thing, they completely fixed the map, so getting from place to place is no longer a pain. Smirking has been balanced and better integrated into the larger gameplay. You can actually choose your partners in this game, and they're all pretty distinct from one-another.
• Demons are less interchangeable as well in terms of their stats in relation to what attacks you're using because of more sharply defined strengths and weaknesses.
• SMT IV: Apocalypse's approach to mythology is more diverse, and the main plot pulls in gods and entities from a wider range of world religions.
• The music in this game is mostly drawn from SMT IV, but it does have some awesome new additions, including the best final boss theme in the series to date.
• Dungeons are meatier in this game than in IV, although the game is still not nearly as dungeon-focused as something like Nocturne.
• This game features... well, probably one of the more shocking moments I've ever seen in a video game. It really floored me, and it only works because you grow to really like the cast (at least, I did, because the characters being charming anime people didn't drive me up a wall like it did some fans). While this isn't as dark as Nocturne or IV, it's still a crapsack world where humans are caught up in a war between mythological entities who don't really care about them.
• There's not really an alignment system here like in IV, so 95% of the story is shared between one route. I just feel like this makes it a stronger experience if you only want to play it once. Admittedly, this does cut down on replayability, but it's a long game anyway.

I know it's a controversial game with fans, but, as usual, I think that's largely a result of closed-mindedness on their part. It's up there with some of my favorite JRPGs of all time, and I feel it's different enough from SMT IV to feel like its own sort of experience, even if it does draw heavily from SMT IV.

As I have been doing for that last few years, going through all the Picross games on it (completely hopeless at Mega picross if anyone has any tips) and hoping to get some street passes.
That is all

I'm playing Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 3 - Square never localized it so I been playing a fan translation on my modded 3ds.
I installed this a while ago but I'm continuing where I left out and so far I'm enjoying it all over agian, theres a ton more quality of life features and new mechanics like riding your monsters, more monsters at a time now (4 vs 3 previously), and more.
Definitely would recommend to those that played the DQ monsters series or like the subgenre in general.

@GreenTea
It’s actually the other way around. I’ve only played the remake of BIS. I prefer the Dream Team art style to the original.

I just need to beat the last case in AA Trials & Tribulations and I'll finally be done with the original trilogy. Tbh I think playing the game right after the 2nd backfired on me cause the 1st three cases felt so much like slogs to get through, I ended up putting off playing for months in between sessions. I don't know what exactly cases 4 and 5 do differently, but they've been so much better. Especially 5

@Ralizah Wow, thanks a lot for the detailed recommendation, I really appreciate it!

I like to think I'm pretty open-minded when it comes to a game's tone, so the more Persona-esque cast isn't really a turn-off since I have fairly high tolerance levels for anime spice in my games. I'll just have to adjust my expectations going in, and if the cast feels more like real people stuck in an apocalypse instead of SMT IV's cast being admittedly unsubtle allegories, then I'm all for it.

Having better dungeons does sound pretty apealing since IV's were pretty lacklustre, and that last one (went for the Chaos ending) was incredibly underwhelming thanks to the lack of difficulty, so I'm glad that's improved

The game having no alignement system is really not a big negative to me if the story is good thoughout. It also means I likely won't need to replay it to see everything, thank god.

And also, the game features one of the most shocking moments in a video game. For someone with that profile picture ? Sounds veryyy intriguing. SMT IV did have one of the most shocking moments in a game I've seen: When Isabeau takes her own life in the Chaos path. That left me shocked. Amazing character So if Apocalypse can top that I'll be very surprised

All the gameplay changes you've described sound very positive to me, but I'll admit. Mostly reused tracks from IV? Ahhhh, that sucks, but it is still a great soundtrack.

Anyway, I feel like I owe myself to check it out since I really love IV that much, at least make my own opinion on it. And I owe it to you too, after your detailed analysis, so thanks haha.

I think I'll have to replay IV on neutral first, play Strange Journey and then Apocalypse. Will I be able to do it this year though? I sure hope so, but it does sound like I'll have to put it on the backlog before the eshop closes, which is something I hate doing, but it seems I've got no choice, oh well. (I could just hack my 3ds but I'd rather avoid it, personally, it just sounds like a hassle)