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

@NintendoDad No prob! Happy to help when I can. Enjoy your travels on SR388, and later on Planet ZDR.

Finished Samus Returns.

Last weekend, I realized I had to get to 100% before leaving the planet. So 'did that. And then finished mid-week. I really enjoyed that game. 'really honed me in on the type of game I enjoy.

Haven't made it to the stores to look for Dread yet.

But dusted off my copy of Super Mario 3D Land to start back in at the special worlds.

And planning to re-start Shovel Knight — I downloaded it from the eShop before it shutdown.

I've been playing the following Games...

Pokemon X & Y (Currently replaying to complete Pokedex)
Pokemon OmegaRuby & AlphaSapphire
Pokemon Sun & Moon
Pokemon UltraSun & UltraMoon
PMD Gates to Infinity
Pokemon Super Mystery Dungeon
Animal Crossing New Leaf (I play a modded hack of this game called Animal Crossing Welcome Luxury)
Animal Crossing Happy Home Designer
Mario & Luigi Superstar Saga DX
Mario & Luigi Bowser's Inside Story DX
Mario & Luigi Dream Team
Mario & Luigi Paper Jam
Super Mario 3D Land
New Super Mario Bros 2
Tomodachi Life
Miitopia

Basially, the good and old 3DS games that I used to play all the time

I try to finish online Zelda Triforce Heroes I 'm in the last world, and Kirby Robobot planet. And then start fantasy life, Heroes of Ruin also online.

Figured while I'm working away from home for a bit, I'd finally start Dragon Quest VII as I'd likely have some spare time in the evenings to play. It's my first experience with a DQ game and while I'm generally enjoying it there are definitely things that could be better - I'm only about 10-12hrs in, so still a long way to go. (approx. 75hrs according to HLTB)

I'm enjoying the story so far and the while the characters are maybe a little generic they seem fine too. The turn-based battles I like, as well as the varied enemies and I kinda also like how the game is split into islands so it's fairly easy to have a shorter play session and just concentrate on one island at a time before progressing. Gives natural save points I guess.

So far it seems like there's not much to complain about, but there are certain things that are starting to bug me a little. First off, there's so much backtracking! I've read this is one of the longest DQ games (if not the longest) and it's not hard to see why, as right from the start you're travelling back and forth across the first island, with various tasks/quests that sometimes seem like they are no more than 'go give this thing to the guy on the other side of the island' and then you get there and the guy says something like 'Thanks, you must be tired after travelling so far - go home and have a lie down'...in the town you just travelled from! Hopefully it'll improve as I get further though.

Second, there are some sections (like narrow passages in caves etc) where you just can't avoid battles because you physically can't get past the enemies without engaging them, so you end up constantly battling and pretty much finish one battle and are straight into the next. It's fine when out in the open as you can just go around them if you want, but was really frustrating in the sections you can't. Apparently the PS1 version had random encounters and I'm not sure which is worse in this case.

Finally - and probably worst of all - I quite often have no idea what to do next! Now, I'm by no means an RPG expert, but equally not a noob either but in the relatively short time I've been playing there have been quite a few times where I've had to resort to a guide. Sometimes its really obscure clues/refences, sometimes you have to speak to people in the correct order before you unlock the meaningful dialog and sometimes it's just stuff you wouldn't think to do, like dropping into the middle of a volcano to get to a boss . The worst example so far was where I needed an item to progress the story and there was a clue as to who/where I was supposed to go to get it, but I had no idea who that person was. There's an NPC that is supposed to guide you what to do next, you can talk to your party to get tips too and there's a recap option in the menu that pretty much tells you the next goal - all of these just gave a description of the person and said something like 'You know who that is, don't you?'. Well obviously not if I'm asking! I went round speaking to anyone/everyone that I could think of until I gave up and looked at guide. I won't reveal spoilers, but turns out it was a character I'd very briefly spoken to way back near the beginning of the game that I only have a vague recollection of actually meeting.

TL;DR - Dragon Quest VII. Good, but flawed 7/10 (so far)

I'm back on Pokemon Ultra Moon. I thought I finished it ages ago, but I'm nowhere near done - very exciting!

I took a break from gaming for a couple of weeks. (Too many chores to do around the house. LOL.)

Finally got the house cleaned up a bit, so I treated myself by starting up The Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time on my 2DS again.

Every few years I start up the game, but I've never finished it.

Last time I started up OOT was over 2 years ago.

So I wiped the save spots and started again yesterday.

If I ever get OOT done, I've got Majora's Mask waiting.

Ok.

I'm not quite done OOT of time yet, but working on the last temple, and then I guess getting ready for the final boss battle?

But . . . I thought this weekend I'd toss in Majora's Mask and get that one started to see what that one is all about.

That and try to progress a bit more on Another World.

Are the Pokemon games any good on 3DS?

Feels like they made a lot of games for it.

@NintendoDad So did you break into Majora's Mask? It can take a bit of getting used to once you get through the early bit.

@gcunit

Yes. I managed to get it tossed into our 2DS.

I had never started it up to play before.

I got to where Link changes. LOL. That gave me a chuckle. It looks good!

I'll probably go back to finishing up OOT. But I'm looking forward to really getting started with MM.

I actually went and found a copy of A Link Between Worlds for when I finish MM. So I'm waiting for that to come in. I'll be travelling every other week for the forseeable future . . . so I was thinking it would be nice to have a couple of games to play in the 2DS while I'm away.

What are you playing? Is any of it on the 3DS?

@NintendoDad Nothing better than a Zelda game (or three 😄) if you've got some time on your hands - enjoy.

Up until Super Mario Bros. Wonder released my most 'active' game was Detective Pikachu on my N3DS, which I need to get back to. It's pretty standard in terms of its gameplay, but I tend to enjoy most things that have a Pokémon theme, and I'm particularly enjoying the subtle salaciousness to Detective Pikachu's character.

Still playing Yokai Watch 3 Tempura 3DS and have accumulated more than 250 hours gameplay time.

@gcunit

Yeah. Super Mario Bros. Wonder looks good.

I don't want to get it yet though. LOL. We've got so many Switch games we've started, but not finished yet. If we finish off two more of the umpteen games we started . . . then I'm thinking I'll get it.

That Detective Pikachu game looks good. There's a Switch version now, right?

@NintendoDad 'Unfinished' is the default status for pretty much all my games, but I just rationalise it by telling myself I'm saving myself from the disappointment of having to move on after finishing a game... 🤭

Yeh, Detective Pikachu Returns is the sequel on Switch, which I'll pick up fairly soon probably. I'm not gonna tell anyone these are must-play games, but sometimes a 'Lite' game really hits the spot, and as a Pikachu fan I don't really have a choice.

@gcunit

LOL. Yeah, no. I hear you on unfinished. LOL.

I was glad when I finished off Metroid Samus Returns, but a little sad that I had gotten to the end of that story.

In the past I never finished any games.

It was when my daughter was old enough to play platformers that I started finishing games. On the Wii and Wii U we finished off 11 games together. On the Switch we've only finished like 3 or 4. I've finished a couple more by myself. But we are so close on a couple more.

After gaming with my daughter, looking at how close to finished we are has now kinda become a habit. LOL.

She's older now, and more likely to be playing games on-line with her friends. So I've been digging out some of the old games I've picked up over the years . . . but never finished off, like OOT and MM. Such great stories and worlds . . . games that I've not really explored.

I hear you on Pikachu. LOL. For Smash Bros that is my favourite character to play. LOL. As for Pokemon, I think my nephew is working through GBA Leaf Green again. And my daughter is working on Pokemon Violet.

I've been touching on Virtual Console games lately on my 3DS. I've only beaten "Super Mario Bros. 2 (USA)" once and that was back in 1989 before I went to see the new "Batman" movie in the theaters. I picked it up on VC before the Fall o' the Shop, so I figured no time like the present to give it a shot again. I'm at World 6 now (warping) but haven't gotten back to it yet.

@Gamemoose

How many short cuts are there in SMB2?

Is it like SMB where you can by-pass most of the game?

I've not really tried starting SMB2 yet. I've been hung up thinking I'd finish SMB first, LOL, But with all the short cuts. Even with the short cuts, I'm still stuck on the last 2 levels. Sad thing is . . . I've been stuck on those 2 levels for about 7 years. Those stupid axes. I just can't learn the timing. LOL.

Good luck on finishing SMB2!

@NintendoDad I know of two, the ones I use: the vase at the end of 1-3 and a vase on a whale at the halfway-ish point in the second part of 4-2 (Princess works great for this ice level). There are more (2 I think with a quick web skim) but I don't know where they are.

I use Toad for most levels due to his fast veggie pulling. You can amass some serious coin in the first three levels to get lives in the bonus slot machine.

Don't be afraid of the save states! I do not have the time I used to in High School to play or hone my skills like they were, so I personally have no "gamer ethical" problem using them. I used it liberally when I beat SMB 3 (over 30 years to beat that-not that I played it hard core over those years mind you) and have no regrets.

But if you wanna go it old school-props to you and good luck as well! It feels good closing a game chapter after years.

@Gamemoose

Thanks for the info. I'm going to have to check that out with SMB2.

I might run through SMB tonight to see how much I've forgotten LOL. And then try out SMB2.

I downloaded SMB, SMB2, SMB3 and SMBtLL from the eShop before it shutdown. So some of the cheaper old classics so I'd at least have some games in the 2DS besides only cartridges.