New 3DS XL Release Date: Don't Buy A New Nintendo 3DS XL Yet; Here's Why

I mean, just LOOK at the Majora's Mask New 3DS. You definitely need this. I need this. We need this.
I mean, just LOOK at the Majora's Mask New 3DS. You definitely need this. I need this. We need this. Nintendo of America

So the New Nintendo 3DS is now available in North America, and as our review said, it’s pretty darn spiffy. But, unless you could get the one-time-only, super-limited Majora’s Mask New 3DS XL—which you couldn’t, because nobody could—you straight up shouldn’t get a New Nintendo 3DS just yet. And the reason for it should be pretty darn obvious: Umm, there aren’t any games for it yet.

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The New Nintendo 3DS XL is a mid-lifecycle upgrade (arguably a late life-cycle upgrade) to the New Nintendo 3DS. In some ways, it’s more like, say, the Game Boy Color than the PS3 Slim, in that it is fully backwards compatible and basically the same system, but it does have games that only work for it. I mean, in theory. And therein lies the rub.

The problem with the New 3DS XL is that it has only one exclusive game coming out for it so far: Xenoblade Chronicles. That is literally the only game that requires it so far, and it’s not even launching with the system—It’s coming out on April 10 in North America. Other than that, while games like Majora’s Mask 3D certainly run better on the New Nintendo 3DS, it isn’t necessary, strictly speaking.

Surely there will end up being lots of games for the New Nintendo 3DS—at least, we would hope so. Otherwise it remains what it is right now: An upgrade like the DSi, the final successor to the Nintendo DS, which had a small handful of exclusive games (on the predecessor to the Nintendo eShop). It was the best version of the Nintendo DS, that’s for sure. But there wasn’t really much of a reason to buy it if you already had a Nintendo DS.

The New Nintendo 3DS is an upgrade, to be sure. The face-tracking 3D in particular is a game changer. But without a slew of new games specifically designed for the system… what’s the point?

Let’s hope Nintendo announces a bunch of games for the system at E3 (which they may), or that they put more Majora’s Mask special editions into production (which they won’t). Until then… cool though it is… it’s hard to justify buying the New Nintendo 3DS if you already have a 3DS.

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