The Painful Early Days of the Nintendo 3DS

Its crazy how the 3ds went from a handheld struggling to find its footing with lackluster sales to being so successful that it got 6 alternate models and a death 3 years after the Nintendo switch's launch. Its such an iconic handheld in my mind despite the fact that, for a period of time, it almost became the Wii U of handhelds.

It will always be tragic to me how Mario 3d land and Mario Kart 7, despite helping save the 3ds, have become forgotten in favour of what came later

Honestly being 8 years old in 2011, getting the 3DS for Christmas is probably one of my favorite memories ever. My mom let me open my gifts at 12 AM while the series finale of DBZ Kai was airing on Nick Toons. On top of the 3DS, she also got me OoT 3D and Mario Kart 7. She told me how she got the last copy of OoT 3D in Best Buy and some kids parents were upset lmao. We weren’t rich or anything but my mom made sure that I got the best Christmas possible, and I did.

I remember the 3DS's 2011 well. Street Fighter 4, Ocarina of Time, and Star Fox 64 kept me busy until Super Mario 3D Land and Mario Kart 7 made my 3DS purchase worthwhile.

I got a New 3DS years later so the 3D effect was always pretty cool for me. Stuff like Super Mario 3D Land and Majora's Mask 3D used it pretty well.

I got a 3DS after hearing about the ambassador program. The price cut wasn’t due to take place for a few weeks, so I went out and got one before it took effect. Fortunately the shops were still trying to sell the 3DS with good deals due to its lackluster early sales, so I got the 3DS and Ocarina Of Time 3D for €240, and still got the ambassador benefits. Part of the reason for the price cut was the announcement of the PS Vita. That also cost €250, and had far more features. Its memory cards cost far more, true, but that didn’t register at the time as it wasn’t out yet. It’s easy to forget now due to how badly Sony handled the PS Vita, but it was seen as a genuine threat to the 3DS at one point. For the record I also got a PS Vita shortly after launch and loved both systems. Another advantage of being an early adopter, or even a DSi owner at the time, was The Legend Of Zelda: Four Swords Anniversary edition. This was DSiWare that was available for free as part of Zelda’s 25th anniversary. It was only available for a short period, and apart from another short release only in North America in 2014, it has never been released since.

My first 3DS had a really loose 3D slider that made it almost impossible to turn the 3D off. I actually had to enable parental controls on my own device so I could play my games comfortably. All I remember thinking was "this thing's biggest selling point is its 3D, and I am actively restricting myself and worsening my experience to deliberately avoid using it "

I highly disagree that the 3D feature wasn't impressive. It's what sold me on the system in the first place and it's such a treat to come back to after using the boring Switch screen so much lately.

The 3DS probably had better chances with its marketing than now. While you have a good point that it is NOT easy to showcase 3D on a 2D screen, the 3DS released at the time when 3D was the craze back then. Everyone and their dog was VERY fond of 3D, so even without knowing how the 3D looked on a 3DS, people had a better general idea of what it could look like. Nowadays? You probably haven't seen 3D outside the 3DS for a decade since it is a dead fad.

Man the 3D effect is what sold me over the Vita. I was so pissed when it wasnt the focus anymore and more games dropped support. Resident Evil Revalations was the hit title for me and Metroid. A Happy Ambassador fwiw

I was really impressed by the 3D effect. I really enjoyed how A Link Between Worlds used it

I remember begging my mom for a 3DS when it came out. Then I got it and was like "Wow.... This is disappointing." It literally had no games. So my 3DS sat in a drawer for 2 years until Pokemon X and Y came out.

“There were a handful of cool titles like: VeVEveVeveve…vevev?

Steeldiver was lit af, i learned morse code from it

I was not expecting my own Nintendogs footage here! Thanks so much for featuring it, this really made my day!! Similar to Super Mario, Nintendogs and Nintendogs+Cats was a huge part of my childhood. I got +Cats when I was 7, back in 2012, after playing the eshop demo and begging for the cartridge. I fell in love with it instantly. I still have my very first Nintendog, Goldie the golden retriever, and uploaded videos of her a few times (I should probably make a playlist to organize all my Nintendogs videos). It’s not just the dogs and cats that are fun, but having a really nice house in a pretty area, getting to relax to nature sounds I don’t usually get to hear, discovering new items, exploring the world through walks and entering competitions! You see progress from training your dogs. They become more obedient on walks and way better in competitions! Unlocking an advanced robot dog reward for “beating” the game is awesome! Meeting others and their dogs through Streetpass was also fun while it lasted. When I want to relax and feel less stressed, Nintendogs has always been there for me. I do think +Cats could’ve been better. It could’ve brought back my favorite dog competition, agility (I like watching the real life ones!), a proper day and night cycle (when I woke up early for school it was fun seeing the sunrise in original Nintendogs, but +Cats doesn’t have one sadly), letting you permanently buy multiple houses, and other little things. But there’s lots of fun new things, including dogs in far better quality. They look so cute and fluffy!! So I’m very happy with it! Not long after getting +Cats, I found the original Nintendogs and also loved it instantly. Even though the previous owner’s dogs were left there, I decided to keep the Labrador Sammy. To this day I love the original and +Cats equally and play them! Funny coincidence, I was just playing +Cats today when this video appeared in my recommendations! I was never allowed to have a real dog because my dad didn’t want one. So while you may have not seen much in it, Nintendogs+Cats was and still is very special to me. It made the harsh reality I faced when little: loneliness, no friends, really bad bullying from kids and teachers, and literally every person in my classes having real dogs but me a little less sad. A real dog has always been my dream. I guess I would’ve loved a wonderful companion I could always rely on to make me feel better, play with me, and keep me company. Even go outside with me on adventures, which would’ve been so helpful since my parents always forced me to go to parks to walk with them. While my parents are now more open to the possibility of a real dog, it always ends in a discussion about needing more money, money this, money that. I wish it were as easy to get a dog as in Nintendogs, and that every little thing didn’t revolve around having excess money to spare. My YouTube videos has given some money, but barely any since I don’t get many views. I really wish I got more… But I’m hoping to get my first job sometime soon, which should be more reliable for money. I’ll continue working on it in the hopes one day, I can have my oldest dream come true at last. Even when I finally have a real dog, I will still return to Nintendogs. The nostalgia, adorable and fun dogs, lovely houses, places to visit, competitions and just how nice the world of Nintendogs is will always have me coming back. Nintendogs was a big reason I chose to get a capture card for my 3DS! Which is how that footage was recorded, since +Cats on Citra lags like crazy on my PC. I also got it for Super Mario 3D Land. It didn’t leave nearly as much of an impact as Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 of course, but I have so many fond memories of it, including conquering the challenges of the eight special worlds! I love 3D Land and still enjoy it! Now I’m feeling inspired to record more Nintendogs and 3D Land, especially since there’s some challenges and things I’m interested in doing. Thanks again for featuring my footage, I’m really happy seeing others enjoying my cute Nintendogs! And thanks for the interesting video about the early 3DS days! The 3DS will likely always be my favorite console and, like Super Mario and Nintendogs, has a very special place in my heart.

9:32 it is it just depends on the game and if the game utilizes it pretty good Nintendo wanted to do a system with a 3d screen since the 90s I think it was a unique concept for a handheld

I always loved the 3D effect on this little thing. Some 2D games looked like pop up books. It was really neat.

I'm one of the rare few people that was sold on getting a 3DS by seeing PilotWings Resort in person. I saw a demo model at a Best Buy store in 2011 or 2012, and the 3D effects of Pilotwings absolutely wowed me. I knew I had to have one... But I didn't actually get my first until a few years later, Christmas 2015.

Bought this on release day and had a ton of fun with just the built in software. Unfortunately didn't know about the ambassador program til it was too late but I remember getting Four Swords for free for some reason.

I didn’t get a 3DS until 3D Land came out, and that was the summer of 2012! I think I bought it with the birthday money I got! Anyways, I loved the handheld. I sold it tho to get the Switch.