Nintendo 3DS (XL)

[trap15]

Probably same way you transfer accounts on 3DS: over wireless. For SD card data you can just copy the contents over.

[ZellSF]

smea released a region unlock hack a few hours ago, no pre-requisites needed, works on current firmware. Only works on physical games. Details and download are on his github.

I can see how in Europe this is a massive deal with so many games not coming out. I am not sure it is that big a deal in the US. Most of the things I'd like to see come over require an English translation (IE Dragon Quest 7.)

Most Europeans who cared about missing games should have gotten a US 3DS: The DS should have told them what was going to happen.

This hack seems a bit useless, it'll probably not work on future updates and there aren't enough good import only games to outnumber good future 3DS releases.

Not that there are that many good future 3DS releases, but there's fewer import games.

[Immryr]

so, I've been thinking about getting a 3ds after spending a lot of time the last couple of weeks playing on my girlfriends ds for the first time. what are the essential games, other than stuff like Mario and smash? here is what I have my eye on so far.

SMT IV
zelda link between worlds
fire emblem awakening
shinobi
kid icarus
etrian mystery dungeon

whut else is out there?

[BryanM]

Etrian Odyssey games, including Persona Q (better than the actual Persona games, if you don't care for the "a subpar visual novel" aspects of them)... Monster Hunter 4 Giant Ultimate Lizard Slayer Edition... Youkai Watch if you need a new kind of chinpokomon kind of game.. Puzzle and Dragon... um... and a smattering of conservative jRPGs we've essentially already played thousands of times before. Though the DQ Monsters franchise seems kaput on ever getting translated again.

[ZellSF]

Code Name S.T.E.A.M demo is out (in EU and US).

[Cata]

Code Name S.T.E.A.M demo is out (in EU and US).

The concept behind this game is great but man do I loathe the art style

[ZellSF]

Fantasy Zone is released now.

Sort of disappointed they didn't manage to find a way to expand the game area vertically to get rid of the black bars. Still, it's portable Fantasy Zone. Now to wait one more month for the sequel and then another for Outrun.

I really don't get Sega's release scheduling.

[BrianC]

Fantasy Zone is released now.

Sort of disappointed they didn't manage to find a way to expand the game area vertically to get rid of the black bars. Still, it's portable Fantasy Zone. Now to wait one more month for the sequel and then another for Outrun.

I really don't get Sega's release scheduling.

Nintendo's site has Outrun for March and FZII for April. I don't get Sega's release scheduling either. It seems like they take a long time to release the Japan designed games and release western designed crap like Sonic Boom.

[HydrogLox]

FYI: System Transfer 3DS XL to New 3DS XL.

The source system had primarily downloads from the Canadian eShop - except for Kokuga from the US eShop.
After the transfer Kokuga was present and working on the target system.

• Used PC-based transfer (560MB) based on http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2015- ... he-new-3ds
• Both systems were upgraded to Ver 9.5.0-22U
• Both systems region was set to Canada, Ontario
• Neither system ever had an NNID (Nintendo Network ID)

Most annoying part was getting the New 3DS XL backplate off (which is easy once you know what to do) as the screws unscrew but do not "undo".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tI46jF3GoW0#t=515 (go to 8:35 if the advert cancels the time index).

PS: Just a reminder. Unlike the North American (old) 3DS XL, the New 3DS XL does not come with an AC adapter (which isn't an issue if you allready own a DSi or 3DS).

Fantasy Zone is released now ... Sort of disappointed they didn't manage to find a way to expand the game area vertically to get rid of the black bars.

So Settings > Screen Settings > Type 2 doesn't work for you? Type 1 seems sharper though.
There is also Settings > Game Settings > US Version/JP Version.

I really don't get Sega's release scheduling.

I think they are deliberately drawing out the releases so they don't cannibalize their own sales - releasing one at a time, hopefully the customer has gotten bored with last months release and is ready to buy the next one (rather than letting them pick and choose right now and forget about the rest in pursuit of shinier things). I'm definitely getting the feeling that they are not expecting 3D Fantasy Zone: Opa Opa Brothers to sell once 3D Fantasy Zone II Double is released.

[Wooph]

Some quick impressions of the New3DS XL, based on what I remember of the 3DSXL:

-Overall responsiveness of the system has increased noticeably.
-Face buttons and D-pad are lighter to press. Face buttons are also slightly flatter in shape.
-Start and Select are in much more sensible positions and are easier to press.
-ZL and ZR may take a bit of getting used to, but their usefulness is already apparent in MH4U.
-C-stick is just like the little pointer nub on laptops and works well.
-Face Tracking 3D works quite nicely, but still isn't perfectly stable.
-MH4U runs smoother.

[BrianC]

I really don't get Sega's release scheduling.

I think they are deliberately drawing out the releases so they don't cannibalize their own sales - releasing one at a time, hopefully the customer has gotten bored with last months release and is ready to buy the next one (rather than letting them pick and choose right now and forget about the rest in pursuit of shinier things). I'm definitely getting the feeling that they are not expecting 3D Fantasy Zone: Opa Opa Brothers to sell once 3D Fantasy Zone II Double is released.

I feel that kind of makes sense, but Sega already botched it with sales when they decided to release crappy US made Sonic games instead of releasing the second batch of 3D classics when they should have been released. It seems there's a large disconnect when it comes to JP made games and Sega often takes forever to release stuff in the US.

[BryanM]

We can skip past the whole "remaking something is dumb because you can only make it better or worse, and if it was good to begin with, you can only make it worse so spend the hours of your life doing something new instead" argument and all just accept that the sprite art is terrible art full stop. Barely above what you expect a teenager with a gradient fetish to accomplish.

I created an infographic to touch on the barest, most fundamental errors.



In short, if you have a better resolution and more colors to work with, that obligates you to put more work into it, not less. It additionally magnifies the lack of talent of the artist*; in low res even someone as shitty as I can throw together something that doesn't immediately melt eyes if I put the time into it.

Was reminded of this travesty today.

By seeing some art for Terra/Tina that's comparatively absolutely gorgeous. "The game could look like this if they wanted to spend money on it.."

Never forget

[soprano1]

http://www.siliconera.com/2015/12/10/br ... y-26-2016/

Really excited for this one, next year seems to be having some good releases for the 3DS.

[munchiaz]

http://www.siliconera.com/2015/12/10/br ... y-26-2016/

Really excited for this one, next year seems to be having some good releases for the 3DS.

Looking forward to playing this one. The first one was pretty great, and i loved that you could tailor the game to fit your wants and needs. I would like to play it on my Japanese new 3ds, but Nintendo patched the youtube hack

[soprano1]

http://www.siliconera.com/2015/12/10/br ... y-26-2016/

Really excited for this one, next year seems to be having some good releases for the 3DS.

Looking forward to playing this one. The first one was pretty great, and i loved that you could tailor the game to fit your wants and needs. I would like to play it on my Japanese new 3ds, but Nintendo patched the youtube hack

Which wouldn't be necessary if there wasn't region locking, but it's no use beating on a dead horse at this point.
I really wish that Story of Seasons would be released sooner, though. Anyone here played the game?

[M.Knight]

munchiaz : Do you keep your n3DS up to date?
If yours' firmware is under 10.1, you can still use the browser to boot the homebrew channel and play imports. With such a firmware, it is even possible to install an entrypoint using the theme data through the homebrew channel. That way, you can then boot it up without needing the internet. If you don't absolutely need eShop stuff, it is a great set-up, especially with a n3DS if you want to use emulators as well.

As for the firmware updates contained within the newer games, I think it is possible to bypass them if you launch them with the homebrew channel, but I'm not 100% sure.

Here's a flowchart that could come in handy to explain the possibilities open to you depending on your firmware:
http://i.imgur.com/DYZgAX6.png

[munchiaz]

munchiaz : Do you keep your n3DS up to date?
If yours' firmware is under 10.1, you can still use the browser to boot the homebrew channel and play imports. With such a firmware, it is even possible to install an entrypoint using the theme data through the homebrew channel. That way, you can then boot it up without needing the internet. If you don't absolutely need eShop stuff, it is a great set-up, especially with a n3DS if you want to use emulators as well.

As for the firmware updates contained within the newer games, I think it is possible to bypass them if you launch them with the homebrew channel, but I'm not 100% sure.

Here's a flowchart that could come in handy to explain the possibilities open to you depending on your firmware:
http://i.imgur.com/DYZgAX6.png

I don't have the lastest firmware, but everytime i try to go to a site the web broswer kicks me back to the home menu.

[NTSC-J]

http://www.siliconera.com/2015/12/10/br ... y-26-2016/

Really excited for this one, next year seems to be having some good releases for the 3DS.

Looking forward to playing this one. The first one was pretty great, and i loved that you could tailor the game to fit your wants and needs. I would like to play it on my Japanese new 3ds, but Nintendo patched the youtube hack

I'd recommend tempering your expectations a bit. I was a big fan of the first, but this one feels a little off. I read that the head scenario writer left and it shows; the story rambles and doesn't have a clear direction. They also recycle dungeons from the first game (which weren't that good to begin with).

It's still fun to play and there are lots of new job classes (which you can't get all in one run, you'll need to play through New Game+), so still check it out if you liked the first.

[BrianC]

They also recycle dungeons from the first game.

That's a pity since recycling was the main flaw of the first game.

[TransatlanticFoe]

While they were the main reason behind my picking up a 3DS, looking up non-RPG/adventure/strategy games I see there was a Shinobi game released. How does it fare compared to Revenge of Shinobi and Shinobi 3?

[M.Knight]

I don't have the lastest firmware, but everytime i try to go to a site the web broswer kicks me back to the home menu.

Is there a specific message displayed on your console when you try to access a website or do you get kicked without warning nor notice?
If there is a message telling you to update, it is still possible to trigger the exploit by using a specific DNS such as the following one to access the website before the message pops-up. Due to performance needs, this works on n3DSes only.
107.211.140.165 (primary)
107.211.140.065 (secondary)

However, in the case where no message at all is displayed, I don't think this could work, as you can't even try to access a website. I read that games with 9.9+ updates inside (you can see a list here) come with a hidden browser update that installs a dummy browser that behaves like yours and completely denies you access to the regular browser if you are not on the latest firmware (which would be even scumier than the update message). That could be your issue and I am not sure there's a fix for that problem, AFAIK. =/


TransatlanticFoe : While I haven't played the previous Shinobi games, I thought the 3DS game was quite fun to play, especially with its very satisfying parrying/counter mechanic that instantly sold me on it. It is challenging but the final stages are leaning on platforming hell, though, and that may be a turn-off.
Most of the levels are a bit longer than what you would expect in an arcade game, but there is also a set of 20-ish missions set in a VR-like environment that are more pick-and-play than the main game. That said, you have to use play coins or streetpass to unlock them.

[munchiaz]

I don't have the lastest firmware, but everytime i try to go to a site the web broswer kicks me back to the home menu.

Is there a specific message displayed on your console when you try to access a website or do you get kicked without warning nor notice?
If there is a message telling you to update, it is still possible to trigger the exploit by using a specific DNS such as the following one to access the website before the message pops-up. Due to performance needs, this works on n3DSes only.
107.211.140.165 (primary)
107.211.140.065 (secondary)

However, in the case where no message at all is displayed, I don't think this could work, as you can't even try to access a website. I read that games with 9.9+ updates inside (you can see a list here) come with a hidden browser update that installs a dummy browser that behaves like yours and completely denies you access to the regular browser if you are not on the latest firmware (which would be even scumier than the update message). That could be your issue and I am not sure there's a fix for that problem, AFAIK. =/

So this is my Japanese new 3DS, and i do receive a message (don't know what it says) but it only gives you 1 option to choose from, you click on it, and it returns you to the home menu. I have tried using the DNS you posted, and google DNS as well, and the results are the same. Looks like i may just need to purchase a Japanese copy of cubic ninja

[Udderdude]

I bought Project Mirai DX and it's lots of fun .. even though it's probably the weebest game I've ever owned

[M.Knight]

It is a fun game with an excellent tracklist and a bunch of additional content on top of the rhythm part and was definitely worth the wait IMO. The game is indeed very Japanese in terms of menu interface, themes and colors, but that works in its favor and gives it a specific identity I think.
My only gripe with Project Mirai DX is its relatively low difficulty. Very few tracks reach the level of challenge you can have in Taiko's average Oni notecharts for instance. A "hardcore" difficulty level would have gone a long way towards improving the long-term replay value.

[Udderdude]

I'm pretty sure it was a game aimed at beginners to the genre, and they didn't want to scare them off with insane difficulty. I'm used to some pretty crazy shit (used to be into DDR pretty heavily) but I don't mind if the game isn't trying to kill me with 20 billion taps per second.

[professor ganson]

Yeah, this game is perfect for someone like me, who has no hope when the pace picks up. Great presentation and tracks. Truly fun.

[M.Knight]

I don't mind Project Mirai trying to appeal to beginners first as the game is fun despite its average difficulty. The tap mode is a good example of that, given that despite the lenient timing on the notes, it is involving and enjoyable.
That said, there was potential for more IMO and you can see it when playing on Hard. All it lacked was just one more level of difficulty.

Spoiler about the unlockables :

Spoiler

Turns out there actually is a new "Super Hard" difficulty mode that wasn't in Project Mirai 2. However, only 6 tracks have it, which is a missed opportunity as those charts are really fun for an experienced player. I think I would have zero complaints about Project Mirai DX if all songs had that difficulty level.

One thing I really like about Project Mirai DX is that it feels full of content that would have been used as DLC or scrapped in other games, such as the Puyo puyo and Reversi mini-games, the AR stuff, the Dance editor or the Profile Cards. Not to mention the (series-wise) high number of songs. It's like the dev team put all of their care into the game.

[Udderdude]

Yeah, you can tell they really wanted to throw in as much cool stuff as possible. Definitely makes up for the lack of KILLER HARDCOAR DIFFICULTY. There's enough rhythm games with that shit already. lol

[NTSC-J]

Bravely Second is out this week in Europe, so I thought I'd post more impressions since I'm at the end of the Japanese version.

- Play it on Hard. I did Normal for a few hours, but had to restart and decided to go with Hard and it's much more of a game, although still not very hard.
- Lots of job classes with some neat new classes, but the powerhouses from the previous game have been nerfed and I can't find any classes that really fit me. My favorite is the Tomahawk class that I guess is the Cowboy class in the English version.
- The music sucks! This is one of the key features of an RPG to me. The only good track is one from the first game and I've only heard it one time.
- Fixed RNG. This really sucks. If you get wrecked by some random encounter, you can look forward to the exact same one when you restart. Same enemies, same attacks to the same characters. You can really get stuck in some places which leads me to having my characters do things simply to throw off the RNG seed.
- Story is weak even by JRPG standards.
- One of the new characters is from the moon and she speaks in her own "moonspeak" which in this case is English because I'm playing it in Japanese. I cringe every scene where she says some short English phrase then repeats it in Japanese to make sure you understand. This is a lot like when I hear Japanese people show off their English and it drives me nuts. The voice actress is Japanese and the accent is heavy, making things that much more unbearable. I sure hope the English version has her speak weeaboo shit like adding "desu neee" at the end of each sentence so you can know my suffering.

If you didn't love the first, don't play the second.

[Shelcoof]

So guys thoughts on Fire Emblem Fates?

I just got my copy in the mail.. not too happy not being able to find the Special Edition.

No idea why Nintendo always does this with their product