weebdeluxe

On Thursday, the 18th of April, I decided to challenge myself: After having seen a youtube video about somebody only playing the Nintendo 3DS for 30 days, I decided that I want to do the very same thing.

The reasoning was fairly simple: I haven’t really played my 3DS in a long time and it would be fun to revisit the system that I have many fond memories off. 30 days doesn’t seem like that long a timeframe either, so I was sure I’d have no problems making it through that challenge.

It’s way harder then expected. So much is already clear after about half of the challenge is done. But I already enjoyed my time so far and I’m happy to share my insights into what I have learned this far.

Lesson 1: Less is more

This one is basic and unsurprising: Having less choices improves your choice making. I don’t have all that much time to play videogames. Very often, I lose a considerable amount of time just trying to figure out what to play. Focusing on a single console and its library reduces the number of choices I could make. Which leads to me making far better choices.

Lesson 2: The DS/3DS libraries are huge and very diverse

It’s kind of an understatement, but the libraries for the dual screen handhelds are huge. I collected a lot of JRPGs, but I also have a decent amount of Jump and Run games, Visual Novels and many more. I like story heavy games, so collecting those has always made sense to me. However, I made sure to get a lot of Nintendo’s own games as well.

Lesson 3: Switching it up is key

With a challenge like this, I feel like it’s important to switch games as soon as you feel like you need a break. Yes, the Mario & Luigi games are great. Yes, Link Between Worlds might be the first Zelda in a long time to really pique my interest. Yes, Phoenix Wright has amazingly fun writing. But playing those games for days without taking a break is a bad idea, since it will most definitely burn me out.

Lesson 4: Leave your comfort zone

I don’t like Zelda but gave Link Between Worlds a try. That was a good idea. I heard many good things about Crimson Shroud but felt daunted by its mechanics. Now I want to play it more. Resident Evil Mercenaries always seemed odd and… it is odd, but I don’t regret giving it a try.

Lesson 5: True portability

You think the Switch or even the Steamdeck is portable? Compared to the 3DS, those consoles are unwieldy and complicated. The 3DS is small, easy to carry and always ready for a quick burst of gaming. This is not meant as a knock against the other devices, but true portable only devices have the luxury of an even smaller form factor and the 3DS with its clamshell design has been easier for me to always carry with me than other devices.

Lesson 6: Play more, play more focused

In a week I had played more on my 3DS than in 2022 and 2023 combined. I always felt kind of bad for leaving the device behind because I have a huge backlog on that thing. Now I feel like it’s almost manageable to complete all the games on there if only I spend more time with it regularly.

Lesson 7: Retro gold is precious

This is an extension to lesson 3: Revisiting Virtual Console games or even some 3D-remakes of older titles are a great way to break things up and to explore libraries of systems I never owned. This is especially true for the Gameboy, GBA and the Sega Game Gear.

As always, thanks for reading. If you want to follow me on mastodon, you can do so over at @[email protected]