Nintendo 3DS

[Stark]

I loved Castlevania: Mirror of Fate, but I think it feels pretty different than a typical 2D Castlevania game. I also love the lore they built up around Lords of Shadow, Mirror of Fate, and LoS2.

[Stark]

Anyone else having their hinge on the new 3DS be super loose? Also now my stylus doesn't stay in all the way, it sits about 1/4 in. out at all times. Annoying, I don't really use my 3DS that much! Might have to grab another one and gift this to the kids. :/

[ejamer]

Anyone else having their hinge on the new 3DS be super loose? Also now my stylus doesn't stay in all the way, it sits about 1/4 in. out at all times. Annoying, I don't really use my 3DS that much! Might have to grab another one and gift this to the kids. :/

My original 3DS didn't last well. It was well taken care of, but had button issues and significant scratching on the top screen just from normal use. The hinges lasted better than the rest of the console, but were very loose compared to what I expected after having DS Lite and DSi consoles previously.

My XL model purchased as a replacement had the 3D slider pop off, more scratching on the top screen (although not as bad as the original 3DS), and a hinge crack. The hinge might be partially my fault, as I could have been more gentle with this system - but it wasn't abused and similar complaints are so common that I don't take full responsibility. It's still "usable" but I can't turn on 3D and am scared to move the hinge...

Now reports of hinge-related issues with the New 3DS also?

Normally Nintendo hardware is remarkably solid. The 3DS line hasn't impressed me at all though. I've stopped playing (and buying) 3DS almost entirely for the moment because I don't want my XL hinge to break, but am not willing to shell out for a third piece of hardware in the same portable generation without a price drop.



Edit: Multiple corrections and clarifications.

[Stark]

Yeah I kinda wish they had a 2DS XL, I have one of those for the kids and it seems a lot more solid.

[Tanooki]

I remember it having a bit of a wobble but the stylus was actually tight on mine which makes me think their QC is lacking these days as that's inconsistent.

They've on the whole with hinges been more wobbly and loose since the DS/DSLite era when they had a more stiffer set and click to them, but the hinge issues abuse aside go back to strongly if I recall popping up around the DSi period. At first people were apologists saying it was weaker clear/white plastics and stupid fingers, but as time marched on it seemed to have become less quality. Perhaps they're really feeling the hurt thanks to the WiiU bombing, handheld being decimated by Android and iOS running devices, and those wanting cheap/free (in theory) crap now trifecta of problems. 3DS isn't running those OS's, they're hurting (not on the whole bank wise) with stock holder profit/trust, and the cheap-freemium tards of gaming won't pony up $30-40 for a physical game either and want their swiss army devices.

[Sarge]

My 3DS XL has been rock solid for the time I've had it (3-4 years, I think). I had the 3DS before that, and I did have a loose hinge issue on it.

[mas]

I absoultly love my 3ds. Play it in bed for about 1/2hr before I fall asleep.
I found my sons old ds bag holder and it holds like 20 games with it. I places all my carts in there. Helps out big time in stead of having cases all over the place

[ejamer]

I absoultly love my 3ds. Play it in bed for about 1/2hr before I fall asleep.
I found my sons old ds bag holder and it holds like 20 games with it. I places all my carts in there. Helps out big time in stead of having cases all over the place

I never thought that cases designed to hold many game cards would be useful, and always enjoyed seeing the original cases on display anyway... but after getting a case like that from Club Nintendo my opinion has changed.

My entire DS/3DS collection (currently ~70 games) now resides in four such cases, each the size of a normal DS game. It's much easier to move or store them - although my shelf of original cases is still proudly on display, I no longer have to hunt through it to play a new game.

I do admit to being nervous about taking them out of the house though... if one of those cases was lost or stolen then a quarter of my collection would just disappear. That would be crushing.

[Exhuminator]

Get a 2DS. It's literally designed to be mistreated by toddlers. Any normal gamer will be fine.

[PartridgeSenpai]

Yeah I kinda wish they had a 2DS XL, I have one of those for the kids and it seems a lot more solid.

I'm not sure most people could hold a much larger 2DS, but it's a funny thing to think about XD

My NEW 3DS XL has held up just fine since I bought it a year or two ago. The age on my Japanese 3DS XL is a little dubious, but it's at least a year old, if not 2 or 3 (I was not the first owner), but it's also holding up fine though.

I will agree though, that the original 3DS was a fairly cruddy piece of hardware. The face buttons would crack, the shoulder buttons would just die. I only bought an XL because I couldn't even use either shoulder button on my old, launch-era 3DS.