Sorry Nintendo, But The 3DS Really Is Dead Now

I see people playing it all the time though.

It would be dead if people didn't use it and it didn't make Nintendo any money.

Not dead but available for a bunch of years now. How do you expect it to sell as much as Switch in 2019? 200,000 units in the last quarter is a decent number.

Sorry to say but the 3DS isn't dead yet. No matter how much you guys brag about it dieing, it'll still be played and it'll still be enjoyed. Wait a few more years and maybe then you can brag about it being dead.

Yes, because you cannot buy a new 3DS anywhere (except stock left in shops) its all 2DS now a days.

Still play mine though

Oh it's very dead. But despite what some people think that's not a slight against the system nor does it mean people will not continue to enjoy it for years to come. It doesn't mean it is or was a bad system, it's very much a great machine.

It just means it's run its course, nearly all, if not all of the best games it will ever have are out on it, and nearly everyone who wants one and can get one, has it already.

A dead system doesn't mean you have to put it in the closet and never touch it again. There are still people out there who enjoy Atari 2600. Dead systems can and do remain loved for years. That doesn't mean they remain on sale and in production indefinitely.

If you can't handle that the 3DS is dead and is obsolete technology... well that's kinda just on you. Nothing wrong with still enjoying obsolete tech, I and many others do all the time. My father was still listening to music on 45 year old record players for years. I still have a Gamecube plugged in under my TV and I still have my Game Boy, GBA DS and 3DS. It happens.

The 3DS Family is only dead after they disappear from stores. Sure the System is on it's way out, but i don't consider it dead when i can still buy the Hardware and Software in most Stores.

Only 2.13 million this quarter for the switch?

@patbacknitro18 No offense, but by that definition, the original Gameboy isn't dead yet, sure, it has been out of non-retro stores for 15 or so years, but people are still playing Gameboy games! ^_^

Commercially speaking, the 3DS is dead, but that's alright, it had a good run, and there are plenty of games available for it (online anyway, where i live, stores are selling what stock they have left, and that's it), and on occasion i'll still play some games on it, like i do with all my other retro systems.

It's also a slow few months generally for hardware, so not exactly a good time to take a snapshot of figures

I love playing my 3DS. Two systems and eight years of memories. In the age of mobile gaming, against the odds, this plucky little system kept Nintendo alive and allowed the company to grace us with the Switch.

But whilst I can see myself playing the 3DS for many moons to come, I am looking forward to ‘Switching’ this Autumn when the Lite is released.

I love mine and don't care what Nintendo say about it being "dead". I'll be playing it in years and I'll buy a replacement if it dies, simple as

Sooo... still sold 200,000 units in 3 months though. Still shifting hardware. People are still buying brand new ones. Nintendo are still manufacturing and selling hardware.

It may be on life support, but it’s still alive.

I pity your elderly relatives if that’s your definition of dead.

@Heavyarms55 Right on the money, it's dead commercially but not in the households.

A eulogy for the 3DS:
The 3DS is dead, long live the Switch. It's the passing of the torch and the 3DS can be proud of both its lineup and its sales. RIP double-screened little wonder that could. Thank you for all the Zelda titles.

I play it way more often than my Switch. Im constantly playing Puzzle games - though I have run out of Picross sadly.

My girlfriend and I also play Mario Party Star Rush a lot together because we like the Shuffle minigame

@MysticX It's still selling isn't it? 1/5th of a million units isn't bad for a handheld thats been out for about 8 years now. So while it's not as alive as it has been years ago, it isn't by any means dead at all. Again, wait a few more years and maybe then you can brag about it being dead.

I don't get as many Street Passes as I used to, but I still bring it nearly everywhere I go. Switch Lite still isn't going to be small enough for your pocket.

Hardly seems dead when they're still selling brand new consoles in almost every store. eShop is still working fine. Miiverse? Well, that's another story... :/

3DS is never dead for me.
I still hunt for Japanese / PAL exclusive games to enlarge my 3DS games library.

Here we go again...

Look, the 3DS isn't dead. You're just thinking that because the Switch is a success. Also, 200K units is pretty decent for an 8-year-old system. Man, the nerve of anti-3DS idiots is just annoying.

200k units is still not bad. I expect it to crawl along this year still stocked in shops with a last bump in sales for Christmas. Then in early 2020 Jan-Feb Nintendo will likely announce that the 3DS has stopped production.

I like Nintendo Life but why is the site so obsessed with proclaiming the 'death' of the 3DS? As a Nintendo fan site, you should be celebrating as much of the company's output as possible, especially the fact that they are still supporting high-quality hardware from the previous generation (even if that has now slowed down to a minimum). Imagine if they'd unceremoniously dropped the 3DS the moment the Switch came out like they did with the Wii U - everyone would be moaning that Nintendo had forgotten their loyal fans and those on a budget.

Not everyone has hundreds of pounds to spend on a new console every few years and the latest titles every few weeks. Sometimes the website's attitude strikes me as very dismissive of anything older than what whatever the current fad is, and it makes me think it's all just another form of advertising to get us to throw money at the latest shiny thing.

200K doesnt seem too bad and clearly that means its still making nintendo money. so by selling that amount it shows its clearly still alive. I do wonder why everyone here seems to be obsessing over saying the 3ds is dead, why? the PS vita is selling over in Japan in the hundreads do they comment on that being dead as well??

200,000 units? That's more than all the Xbox sold last quarter.

Yesterday, I finally finished A Link between Worlds, with 3D on. So for me: The Switch is more dead than the 3DS.

Not as dead as the horse that's being beaten with these articles every other week.

Every 2DS XL sold is still covered under warranty so as long as Nintendo still fixes them or replaces them, then that's probably Nintendo's definition of supporting the 3DS.

The time for new 3DS games has long sailed but I think to me the 3DS is dead when they shut the eShop servers down.

Low quality clickbait article. Pretty much all stores still carry 3ds hardware and software. If it didn't sell, software in particular, then retailers aren't going to waste space on it.

Hardware sales don't matter that much for a system that sold 75million units and has a successor on the market. At some point the market for new units is saturated. But as long as software sales are reasonable nobody (retailers and Nintendo) is going to pull the plug.

...there is still a pulse...

I bought three games in the last three months, the catalogue of great games is Huge! Still have to get the fire emblem games, samus returns, the last layton, the dragon quest games, fantasy life, ever oasis, and I haven't even bought animal crossing.

I've got about 800 hours on the thing!

It won't be dead to me for at least another year!

It's not quite "dead"--although Nintendo's support for it really does seem to be dead in the water--but at this point I kinda wish Nintendo would just figure out a way to let as many 3DS games as possible be ported over to Switch and let the 3DS retire.

200,000 units is hardly dead but work. Absolute shambles of a headline.

Well, releasing a portable-only version of Switch, and forgetting about the 3D feature for quite some time already, equals the death of this great system and is the opposite of "supporting" it.

Consoles live as long as they exist and play games, not as long as they sell. And 200k some eight years into the lifetime is still 200k, although Nintendo's confidence may also mean it remains cheap enough to produce. Like I said, it would be ridiculous to make fun of their confidence as long as it helps prolong basic support (until S in the name officially stands for "Stability") and eShop access. This thing still has an insane library (a lot of whose highlights aren't on Switch and not even guaranteed to ever be), and I still have a sizeable backlog and wishlist on it.

Well I just finished Persona Q2 recently, and that came out recently. Spent over a 100 hours on it, but had to get it online as the few local game stores did not have it. And then finally got Metroid on it (on sale, €15 brand new).
The fact that it's hard to find PQ2 physical in media stores, and that Metroid was on sale for €15 in a game store, are clear signs 3DS isn't printing money anymore. But it selling 200.000 units in a few months after all those years means it's not dead. Not commercially, and far from it in any other way.
3DS is the home of so many exclusive, great games, I don't think many have gotten everything out of it it has to offer yet, and the 3D to me always brought the games to live (to the point that I found it hard to get into BotW at first, as it felt... Flat).

@Fuz Also for a Nintendo "fan" site being the ones to say "the 3DS is doomed or dead"

by now most people would of already gotten a 3DS or a few I have 4

there's still software to buy and dlc, and playing the system.

like for one, the Switch doesn't have a proper VC, unless your happy with NES games, your going to need a New 3DS to play SNES,Game Boy and Game Gear games

and two most kids/adults who can't afford a Switch yet, are still using their 3DS

@Nagi
Except that stores don't really stock it anymore. Not like they used to anyway. Just out of curiosity I had a look at a few local retailer sites just now to see how easy it would be for me to buy a 3DS.

As of right now? One retailer has both the New 3DS and New 2DS available although the 2DS is only available online and the 3DS is only available as some left over stock at one store about an hours drive away. A second retailer has removed the link to the 3DS category but, when you do a text search, they have a 2DS available at my closest store. Just the New 2DS XL though, nothing else 3DS outside of used hardware. The third retailer has taken everything 3DS from their site entirely.

Also they're charging $200AU for the 2DS while also having the Switch Lite available for pre-order at $330AU. I don't get why people can't accept the fact that the console is pretty dead now, at least from a retailer perspective. It just is.

Never got myself one... i can't support a system that's not up to date... 240P??? please it should've been at least 360P. They had to re-release an other 3DS with a bit stronger CPU i remember. I wasn't impressed at all. That's the handheld "QUALITY" you get from Nintendo

I wouldn’t call 200,000 units in a quarter dead. Dying, certainly, but there’s a difference between dying and dead. Honestly, 200,000 units is a lot more than I would have expected them to sell.

In the console business, software sells hardware. Plain and simple. It's worth mentioning that the 3DS more or less hit its peak saturation a long time ago, but once the new releases from Nintendo trickled up completely the writing was on the wall. It makes me sad, but you can't stop the march of time.

I’m glad. Need to catchup on that backlog. The library is massive.

@skywake
"I don't get why people can't accept the fact that the console is pretty dead now, at least from a retailer perspective. It just is."

Maybe because we're not retailers? Players perspective is different in comparison. In general a system could be considered dead under a lot of different circumstances like Software Support, Hardware Availability, Online Stores / Connectivity, etc...

Like i said, the 3DS is on it's way out, but before it vanishes from Stores completely, like the Wii U and PS Vita for example, i don't think calling it dead is the best term to use.

I haven’t played mine for a good little while now. Still a great system though. I need to get that Kirby Yarn game. Eventually.

It's an old, outdated system. It's no surprise it's support is dropping.
My local retailers have almost no space for it and it's games anymore.
But, it has a huge, fantastic library that even years from now anyone could buy a secondhand one and gain access to an amazing library of games. Other past no longer supported 'dead' consoles are still played and games sold and traded a lot.
The amazing 3DS library almost assures it will be one of those systems that people still talk about and will play and buy games for, for many years to come.

The fact it’s still selling 10% of what the Switch is despite being old, old tech is still surprising.

can people stop saying the 3DS is dead?? It is not decided by YOU, or ME or Nintendo itself but by the overall customers! sure sales number is looking rosty but if games are still selling like cupcakes then the 3DS is everything but NOT dead! Considering how many games came out for the 3DS it will stay here with us as a little bro for some time.

@Nagi
From a "player perspective" what does it being in stores matter? We're talking sales and retail availability here not how attached to it some fans of the system still are. And from those perspectives it's pretty damn flat and has been for a while.

So yeah, it's pretty dead for lack of a better term and has been heading in that direction for a while

@Maxz
Not that suprising when you think about it. 10% is pretty similar to what the DS was doing compared to the 3DS a couple of years post launch. I've kinda been saying this since before the Switch even launched but the Switch really is the 3DS successor. The death of the Wii U was a side show to what was really happening.

Dead?! The switch has sold less units than the 3DS (As of July 30). I have an original 3DS model. It is the thing that got me playing Pokémon USUM all night. Saying it’s dead is an overstatement. It’s dead when the Nintendo Network Service ends.

@skywake "From a "player perspective" what does it being in stores matter?"
People who want to get the System can still buy it and Games they would like to play on it, so why shouldn't it matter? Also 200,000 consoles sold between April and June isn't even that bad like many would believe. I think seeing Software Sales during this period could be more interesting, but sadly they're not included in this article.

I'm well aware that Hardware sales are going downward from here, especially with the Switch lite Release around the corner, but until then i don't consider the 3DS completely dead.

Kinda sad that the 3DS wont be able to outsell the GBA.

I expect the New 3DS XL and New 2DS XL to be discontinued soon. The normal 2DS is the only 3DS SKU that will look like a worthy value proposition when the Switch Lite launches.

what ever happened to the PSP or PS Vita?

I just bought a New 2DS XL in May as a graduation gift to myself. It’s currently in my backpack waiting for my lunch hour. My original 3DS is on a shelf in my room in case I want 3D.

:: sniffle :: but.. it truly is my favorite system next to N64. Switch is great but as a handheld is pales in comparison. It has to do with the floaty analog sticks and the general portability if it. Don’t get me wrong I’ve played it a great deal on flights and this and that but battery life and size all play a factor.
I really do wonder if we’ll ever see some kind of adapter that will allow playing of 3DS carts on the system. I’d be so happy.

I've only had my Switch for a couple of months. I love it and play it a lot.

I also play my N3DS every day. The library of games alone will keep me going back to it. I have a great case for my Switch, but I'm not going to be packing it up and taking it to appointments where I'll need to kill some time. I just pop my N3DS into my purse and go.

We've had every Nintendo system for my kids and/or myself except the Virtual Boy.

The 3DS family is my favourite.

@TheRealKyleHyde
So precise.

This site turned on a dime over the Switch and even gushed about the excessive pricing model form Switch and accessories.

There will never be another system that is allowed to have the backwards compatibility to the level of 3DS. Switch is proof of that already.

3DS will be looked back at as legendary for the games library and abilities.

I wish that I could sell 200,000 of something in 3 months and have it be considered dead.

@Lizuka yet nintendo insist they still want to support the system still so I don't get that. the system dosn't seem to be dead just yet like other people mentioned you can still buy software and hardware although the 3ds series has been discontinued, only the 2ds remains left.

So tired of the 3DS envy. That is, people wishing and celebrating the death of the 3DS in favor of the Switch.

I take my 3DS with me to the big San Diego Comic Con event every year. I brought my 3DS (for Street Passes) and my Switch with me this year. And I only saw 1 other person have a 3DS with them out in the open. Everybody else brought their Switch. In years past (as I never miss the event. I go every year. Haven't missed it in over 10 years), everybody always brought a 3DS. Tons of people could be seen everywhere playing it. Nintendo would even have a bunch of 3DS Kiosks with games in them for everybody. This year, it was only Switch Kiosks. Not a 3DS Kiosk, or even 3DS sign or logo, in sight. I still got some Street Passes, but not as many as I used to get. But there were all kinds of Switch's everywhere. Bunch of different types of battery packs and add ons, and different types of grip handles, etc, that different people had. Tons of different Joy-Con colors, and color combinations too. There was a huge Switch presence this year. But there was a noticeably smaller (near dead) presence of the 3DS this year.

It’s not officially dead, but it is so close to being dead. 3DS was a good system, but I don’t see why people still buy and play it when the switch exists. Especially when the switch lite is coming out is a little more than a month.

There's more to it too. I want to show something from first quarter, 2016, and compare it to first quarter 2019:

(Q1, 2016) Wii U: 18,893 million Yen

(Q1, 2019) 3DS: 5,679 million Yen

This clearly shows the Wii U made THREE TIMES as much in 2016 as the 3DS did in 2019! So, quit saying how well the 3DS is doing, it's NOT!! It's beyond dead when the WII U can make more money than it!!

@Pod Wii U made more money at this point in 2016 than 3DS did in 2019. Think about that! The 3DS is dead, and as far as playing it, by that logic the Game Boy is still around!

@Amsterdamsters well, the Wii U did that in 2016, and was considered dead, so why is it when the 3DS does it, you consider it still alive?

@NEStalgia nice, but it still takes money to maintain the servers, it still takes money to physically make the systems, it still takes money to ship the systems, it's NOT free money!

@Nagi just for reference Wii U sold that many in 2016, and was considered beyond dead, so your assumption that it's good, no, it doesn't fly, if the Wii U was dead with that many, so too is the 3DS now.

@gaga64 well, the Wii U did the same in 2016, and was declared dead, so it fits here too. Can't have it both ways, the Wii U couldn't have died a quick death if it was still alive, because then that'd have given it 5+ years on store shelves, erasing the whole mass failure thing who only lives 5 months.

Personally I’d love to buy a new 3ds xl because mine got destroyed. I’m reluctant to buy a 2ds xl because I always played with the 3D turned on and also I’m not a fan of the design and colours

Dead in sales, Yes.

Dead in usage, Not even close

@gamefreak77
That's a very weak argument. You can't compare Revenue from two different Systems at two different time periods.

In Q1 2016 the Switch was still one year away from being released, so of course people would buy a Wii U if they want a Nintendo Home Console since there was no other option.

Q1 2019 was 2 Years after the Switch Launch and with the System being a Home Console and Handheld Hybrid it of course overshadowed the 3DS. But despite that it continued to get support for over 2 Years. Can't say that about the Wii U which got ditched pretty much immediately after the Switch launched.

@gamefreak77 I wasn't saying the service should be free. That's a different argument. I was showing Nintendo's approach to such a service is clearly underachieving.

Also WiiU vs 3DS is a very different situation. WiiU had a very low lifetime sales, with a very low total install base, and subsequently low software sales. 3DS is low as it winds down to end of life, but enjoys a massive install base and very healthy software sales for a mature, legacy platform. It's an very different scenario. Software is the lifeblood of their revenue, not hardware, other than what's needed to establish an install base.

@Heavyarms55 Yeah the 3DS is dead as far as relevance is concerned. I see how there is a number of people that are saddened by that or simply in denial, but as you said that is all on them. I still have my PS3 and Gamecube hooked up to my TV despite them being old, I still use my PS Vita despite that being a dead platform as well. This whole "it's not dead it'll live forever" mentality just isn't embracing reality. Google is shutting down their youtube service on the 3DS, there is no more games, all the kids I see these days are using a Switch. It's time to move on.

@Pod A dead system is one that is obsolete from new software and hardware releases. It has nothing to do with consumers using the product.

Nah, it's just pining for the fjords.

200k?! That’s not bad at all, all things considered! Certainly not dead.

Who doesn't own a 3DS (or 2DS) by now? Just because the system isn't selling as much doesn't mean they aren't profiting from the eShop, a lot of people still play with that system, i believe digital sales are still stable and well alive, is only the physical sales that are dead.

Yes, can we please let this old and ugly handheld console die already.

@doctorhino Yeah to some people the Atari 2600 is still very much alive. I think we all need to acknowledge how this whole argument as to when a console is considered dead has nothing to do with personal opinion, and it has nothing to do with the way some people feel about using it. It is simply a statement related to how it is being actively supported, which is related to questions like "are these still new games being developed for it" and "are the services still being actively supported" and so on. If the answers to those questions are or soon to be a no, then it is most likely dead or dying as far as platforms are concerned.

Dude, people are still playing the original DS. Think 3DS will have 5 more years if games keep coming. What I really want is 3DS version 2 with upgraded hardware.

@Wolfate They already released that and it was called the New 3DS. The "New" part is very important as it means you are getting a 3DS with upgraded hardware and capabilities. As for the games I don't think we have any new ones coming out anymore.

@JayJ I own New 3DS, I'm asking for the next gen 3DS. The Switch is cool and all, but I need something that maintain the 3DS library, like how that 3DS maintains the 2DS library.

I now realize the the PS4 sold 3.2 million compared to the only 2.1 million of the Switch
How did that happen? What did I miss? Every major market I saw the switch was always at the top by far

@Chibi_Manny
3DS Software sales for Q1 is down from last year.

I find it funny how people assume "dead" in this case means they have to throw out their 3DS's and never play them again. By peoples definitions on this site, the Wii U isn't dead because someone out there still plays and enjoys it. That's not what a console being "dead" means. Stop freaking out and just enjoy your games dag nabbit!

@ToadsworthIsDead Because it still has games that people want to play

If I sold two hundred thousand units of anything, I’d consider myself one hell of a raging success.

Not for me it's not. I jumped on the 3ds bandwagon only about 2 years ago. Still fresh to me.

@JayJ That's the thing, 3DS owners don't have to move on, no one is stopping anyone from playing their 3DS. A system being dead doesn't mean people have to stop playing it, and that's what people don't seem to get.

@Nagi
"I think seeing Software Sales during this period could be more interesting, but sadly they're not included in this article."

3DS:
Hardware: 360k -> 200k, Forecast 1mill FY
Software: 2.9mill -> 1.4mill , Forecast 5mill FY
Down 45-50%

Switch:
Hardware: 1.9mill -> 2.1mill, Forecast 18mill FY
Software: 18mill -> 23mill, Forecast 210mill FY
Up 10-20%

@Heavyarms55 Yeah and some think that they should just keep doing the same thing forever, like they should have kept a disc drive so you could play Wii games. Sometimes it is better just to admit that the industry has moved on and enjoy what you got.

@JayJ I mean, I am all for backwards compatibility. But there is physically no room for a disc drive on Switch. lol

@Heavyarms55 Oh exactly. They could have incorporated some kind of disc drive into a more elaborate dock but that would have surely driven up the price overall, and I think they just had no intentions of sticking with discs anymore. It's for the better if you ask me, while I love physical media discs have always been rather unreliable (usually due to the drives eventually failing) and they don't last as long as memory cards and cartridges either.

At the end of the day the Switch is meant to work as a portable which means they had to redesign everything, especially since they are working with modern games that take up more space. They needed something that has future expandability and I think they nailed it for a on-the-go console. If that means the old stuff won't work on the new hardware then, well, I guess that is why I like to keep the old hardware.

@JayJ I've always preferred cartridges anyway. Though I don't understand why the sizes of Switch game cards are so small, considering how cheap much larger SD cards are now. Not micro SD, but the older SD which was roughly the same physical size as Switch game cards.

I have a weird nostalgia for physically sliding cartridges into consoles and Game Boy. Something reassuring about the solidness of it.

Define the use of the word dead? Other than it makes good headlines.

The 3ds was killed off, so in this respect it is on the way out. Nintendo has gone for the one size fits all gaming machine card. Not sure if it was a good idea.

It's dead in the sense it's no longer supported with major releases. In a practical sense, it's dead when Nintendo stop producing it. In terms of actual dead and buried, that will take a few years.

@Heavyarms55 Well it's just better technology. The problem with discs is how they are reliant upon disc drives that are reliant upon moving parts, which is why they always develop issues over time. With cartridges you usually just need to clean the contacts after a while, there is no disc laser and sliding mechanisms to worry about.

@JayJ They are also much more easily damaged.

@Heavyarms55 That and they simply don't age nearly as well. The nature of scratches is one thing, and it isn't an easy fix like dirty contacts. There is another issue called disc rot, it's apparently unusual and unlikely in most video game formats but that is still a possible defect with aging that isn't present with cartridges and memory cards. The worst thing seems to be batteries in old cartridges going bad but that can be fixed with a special screwdriver. It just seems like cartridges and memory cards are the only really great long term solution for collecting.

3ds is not dead
like have you seen all those online players on the online games on the 3ds.

@Anti-Matter
sounds fun

I consider it dead, I'll still use mine but with no new games coming out and all the retail stores doing clearances to free up shelf space of their physical titles at the moment.

Doesn't make for a particularly attractive purchase with no physical games.

My issue is that the hardware is cheap but software here in the UK is more expensive for 3ds and getting new games is expensive.

It is certainly dying, will be finally gone when the Switch Lite releases.

Hopefully Nintendo's policy of region locking is completely dead.

@TheRealKyleHyde death sells lol like death of superman. I think of all the card games/board games are dying as people overhype new releases or play new formats of magic, Yu-Gi-Oh and the like, which can't be duplicated digitally. I thought Ascension was dead until i had fun with traveling on the board map with skulls and sails with that deckbuilder though I use that steering wheel currency as I please.

Don't tell my kids, they play on theirs all the time. We just downloaded Minecraft. The back catalogue is epic!

It seems that internally the 3DS is listed with an EOL date based on several factors. Parts availability, cost of parts to manufacture and sell in. What Bowser is saying is essentially true that based on orders the 3DS still is a viable product. However if the (non switching) Switch Lite takes off they will rationalize capacity and likely move the date up. While I would like to see Nintendo prosper I am not sure the Lite will be that successful. It may be moderately so but will never match the Switch OG or the 3DS in terms of lifetime sales.

The big tell here is the lack of software development being announced. There may be projects in progress but Nintendo is being quiet so it does not bode well. Personally I still play the DS and you can still buy games at major retailers although the selection is poor. It is a great portable unit and the amount of games I have yet to play is staggering. The Switch Lite(please demote the marketing people) will never achieve this in my opinion.

The best play Nintendo has right now is the launch in China where they have a huge untapped market. That will change things a lot and may lead to new products.

I really wish Nintendo would learn and lean on some of their biggest franchises more often. Who wouldn't buy a Layton collection on Switch? Or a Bravely Default collection HD remaster. Some of that would do so well on the Switch.

@Pod It is pretty much dead though. Content has slowed to near nothing an the market is moving to the Switch. People still play it because even the older games are really good on it. I'm playing Fire Emblem Fates right now.

There is still no real competition other than the Switch.

Just look at the 2019 release schedule. Its either ports or old games or unheard of Indie titles.

https://www.releases.com/l/3DS_Games/2019/2/

@RazorWind I think the eshop has a good 5+ years of life left. There are 75M 3DS systems out there and retail will be bailing on the system soon. Nintendo's online store will be the main place for people to buy games for the foreseeable future. Players get a vendor and Nintendo gets money for doing nothing more than leaving a server up.

I own a New 3DS and it was the system that confirmed in me that I’m not really a portable gamer. I may have 10 hours in total on it, but my son played with it extensively.

The system isn’t dead yet, but it certainly is enjoying its sunset years as it moves to the old folks’ home of video game consoles. Those who love the content will continue to play the games until they too realize that it’s time to say goodbye and place it on the shelf, like I have done.

@TheRealKyleHyde @Tantani

I don't really understand why people are getting upset about this. The 3DS is a fantastic system with one of the best libraries to grace a Nintendo console. That being said, while it isn't dead commercially (still being sold in stores), it's definitely dead in terms of Nintendo game support. You don't have to take offense to that. No-one is telling you to stop playing your system. Articles like this are good for customers who might be thinking about buying a 3DS but worried about how much support it's going to get in terms of software.

The 3DS form factor is 100% better than the Switch. The clam shell with two screens is just a win-win design.

Do this, and 3DS lasts another 10 years:

• Increase the top screen size to fill the full area edge to edge
• OLED high res screen
• Update the processor to at least that of the Switch's processor

In all reality, the Switch Lite should have been an upgraded 3DS that could play 3DS, DS, and Switch games with out removable joycons and no tv docking features. That would have sold the Switch Lite like hot cakes.

@earthinheritor
yes it would but instead nintendo will charge it 60$, when you can buy it way cheaper for the 3ds.

I'm curious to see how many software units the system has sold, where Nintendo actually makes most of its money.

@Mr_Persona Yeah thats a whole different issue. Nintendo constantly overcharges for software, always been that way but that's what will hurt them in the long term.

@Spudtendo I think for someone who's never owned a 3DS it's still worth getting now. It doesn't need support in the form of new games. It has an enormous catalog of amazing games, and it's super cheap now to buy the system plus a bunch of games. I've had a 3DS since 2013 and bought one of the "new" models two years ago. There are still games I haven't played yet that I would like to get someday.

Unless you care a lot about HD graphics, the 3DS is still worth buying. And let's be honest, even when it was first released the graphics were hardly state of the art.

@PharoneTheGnome An upgraded 3ds that could play switch games would be awesome!

I'm with you. I prefer the form factor of the 3DS too. I still think the Switch lite will sell well though, especially once the new Pokemon is out.

If i could sell 200000 of anything I'd be well chuffed, never mind dead 3ds'

@earthinheritor
yep

It seems some people won't sleep at night until Nintendo makes a proper announcement telling they are "Killing" the 3DS (with this exact wording).

It might not be selling but those that have them are still playing them. I see them on the bus all the time. And every time I go to a Comic Con or some big event like that I see people with their 3DS' playing games and collecting StreetPass tags. I still think Nintendo should release a firmware update that brings StreetPass functionality to the Switch, especially now that the Switch Lite is a thing. But all Switch systems should get this. The device itself is portable enough and I know the fans miss this. Wouldn't require any hardware revisions, it's purely a matter of software and Nintendo's willingness to provide.

It's not dead! it's the only way to play a portalbe 3D version of outrun, streets of rage 1+2 !
It's still a nice pick up and play system and with me owning over a 30 DS games as well it's a great system.
+I have all the ambassador program games too.
It's only dead when it stops booting!

@teko

I agree that it's worth buying, but that isn't what I was getting at. A system being supported with the latest games is definitely important, and if someone was choosing between a Switch and 3DS, I think that'd be a super important deciding factor for them.

I’ve loved my 3DS. I think it’s dead. How many games are coming out for it this year? Basically none. Persona Q2 came out and maybe a Kirby game. I’m finishing a few more games on it and then I won’t have much use for it after that.

@Heavyarms55 I am glad to see a sound comment on this topic.

It's been dead but never forgotten.

It quite literally kept Nintendo alive during their most turbulent time. Hats off to the little system.

I would say 200K is still good considering the 3DS is fading out. In my opinion, I wouldn't say that this system is dead just yet, but it is most certainly on the way out. Nintendo even said they are still supporting the system. The releases are now further apart, but games are still being released, aren't they? I would still give it at least until next year before we can really say it's dead..

@earthinheritor
I won't fight you at all on those points. I just always felt the definition "dead" would imply it wasn't in use. Whether new games are coming out and more systems are being sold is a slightly different matter.

@doctorhino
Is it really a neatly defined term that way?
I feel I see people using it in quite different manners.

@gamefreak77
I'm not sure why you would think I personally considered the Wii U "dead" under those circumstances.

I wonder if/when Backwards compatibility will be announced for 3ds games to future switch consoles.

Be a shame if classics like Super Mario 3D Land, Zelda A link between Worlds and the Gen 6 Pokemon games end up becoming non playable on future devices for years to come after the 3DS line has been put to rest.

What does it matter? They got the money to do what they want. If they want to sell it who cares.

@miitomobenji and during the slowest retail time of the year. I will be surprised tho, if they are still in production this time next year.

I still play it
I still enjoy it
so suck it up
and deal with it

I'm of the opinion that the 3DS isn't going to be "officially" dead until all of the following happens:
1) When (not if) sales tank completely to the point where there's no stock of games, 2DS consoles or accessories in any major retail outlet, dedicated to gaming or otherwise, therefore not causing the console to be profitable anymore
2) When (not if) Nintendo decides to shut down the eShop and all online communication servers, consequently disabling multiplayer and the ability to buy any additional digital games.

The second one is unlikely to happen until a while after the first one occurs, which isn't going to happen anytime this year. This is because even though the standard 2DS is only £80 with a game and the premium 2DS XL costing £135 with a game, manufacturing costs will have come down drastically at this point that the 2DS consoles must be pure profit-milking machines, even with the sales only in the thousands. Even once the (2/3)DS is officially "dead", it's still going to be more feature complete then even the Switch Lite (with camera, microphone, basic web-browsing and theme functionality alone putting the more costly Switch(Lite) to shame, although I can imagine web-browsing and theme functionality being put in a late-life Switch software update) not to mention that DS backwards compatibility and the modding community means that the gaming community won't be ditching their 3DS's anytime soon. Not to mention that the Switch and 3DS provide two completely different portable gaming experiences, with the 3DS being better for casual and budget-friendly gaming and the Switch bridging the gap between casual and power gaming, so there is purpose to both.

TL;DR: Don't write the 3DS range off just yet, it's still important even in 2019, and it is not dead "now" like the article makes it out to be.

@Muddy_4_Ever Totally agreed with the eShop still having life for 5+ years BUT...it really depends entirely how/if Nintendo decides to: a) update its online catalogue..especially its Virtual Console catalogue, namely the Game Boy selection..really really poor when you consider the wide breadth of games available..and peddling out first-gen titles like Balloon Kid and Alleyway are more of an insult when you see the price they charge) which brings me to my next point. Also: GBA games..why did they only put them on the Ambassador edition 3DS' (first gens) and then never again on the eShop? The GBA has a plethora of games (some of the best ever on a handheld i.e Advance Wars 2) yet Nintendo stupidly reserved that section for Wii U, hence another slap in the face for 3DS owners.

b) the pricing at the eShop (especially the European one, UK in particular) is just ridiculous. To still keep 'new' titles at full rrp of £34.99 when the console is clearly being pushed aside doesn't make much economic sense. Squeezing new 3DS owners like that in the face of the upcoming Switch Lite seems rather insulting, especially when this is the perfect moment to start shifting online software by the bucketloads and really recuperate sales.

I know there's been a summer sale of up to 70% on the eShop very recently but I can safely say that the UK 3DS eShop wasn't impressive. Save for a handful of all-time titles that they reduce on an occasional basis (SSF4, Steamworld Heist,3D Mario Land, Zelda, etc.), there are some that have never had a discount despite being in the eShop for over 5 years!!

@Roronoa11 totally agree. Eshop prices will have to come WAY down, they need to make a 2DS light that goes for around 50 USD, and they need to ship all new systems with a massive memory card to encourage download purchases.

There's little risk/cost associated with doing any of these things and it would allow the DS line to provide a steady stream of revenue for years with almost no associated investment (to say nothing of allowing gamers to leverage the deepest library of any system in history).

3DS will never die EVER.

I'm on a tight budget at the moment, but I will buy the Switch Lite in to comming months. I was glad that some new games like Wario Ware or Luigi's Mansion have still been published for the plattform without being envy to Switch owners while seeing a lot envyness from different gaming sites about the fact that they couldn't get it all. Even now, as there are no new games coming for the 3DS, Nintendolife as a dedicated fan site wants the 3DS to see dead so desperatly, it's unreal - while I'm not sure if the upcoming release of Shakedown Hawaii for the 3DS will bother Nintendolife enough to publish a dedicated review for the title as it's already available on the Switch, I guess that if there will be one, the words "fitting farewell" , "swansong" , "dying system", "salute" and the like will be part of the text as it was in every 3DS release since the last two years. The Wario Ware Gold reviewer was honest enough to see that the concept was kinda fitting for the 3DS but he still had to mention several times that the title should have been published for the Switch in the first place because he doesn't want to use his 3DS anymore and that's all that counts - my excietmend to get a new game of this francise for my 3DS while having no acess to 99% of all new releases isn't important. Common Nintendolife, where's the freakin' problem? And what means "dead" anyway? If he's dead, so what's the issue? Not dead enough for you? Do you want them to shut down the e-shop imidiatly and force every retailer to throw remaing stock out of the window? Or may I still use my system and even buy a game - be it online or in a store - or is this a frivolous act? You can declare the 3DS as dead as much as you want and publish as much farewell "greatest hits" list as you want, ultimatly, Nintendo will decide when they will stop producing and selling the system. Just because you decided that this moment already has happened, it's your fault being annoyed that Nintendo won't follow suit to your reports or perception of reality, it's your duty to report the facts instead of insisting what the facts should be. Why don't you just rename your site to switchlife.com - you wouldn't even need to find new jokes for system stability updates as an added bonus. Rant over, just let may say: The 3DS is dead - long live the 3DS!

It's getting old so naturally, something else takes its place. That's how it is. Even if Nintendo isn't coming out with any new content for it, it won't change the fact that it's still going to be played by tons of people for a very long time. I was actually thinking of buying a new 2DS, preferably the non-clamshell type. The standard blue clamshell 2DS I have just never felt very well built, and the joints are beginning to loosen and wear down. I heard the older flat 2DS is more durable, but I don't know if it's true or not.

@Pod nope. nobody sues the 3DS anymore and so many people use the switch. you just can't deny the fact that the 3DS is dead and that nobody wants to use it anymore.

@ShinyUmbreon what a joke. everyone is laughing cause the 3DS is already dead XD!!! nobody uses that 3D thingy anymore. its all about the switch now

@Retendo
Funny man, you. <3

still playing everyday. if you wan, you can add my friend code @0920-5338-3850. i have no friends

@Damo Ok so let's have some logic, Switch is expensive not everybody can buy a Switch. If you kill the 3ds to make the Switch live, nothing will change because they have their own success, so you don't need to kill anything because you can win x2 money more than you think just by letting 3ds live. People that wasted money to buy a 3ds like me will buy the new games that are out, everybody and youtubers are gonna talk about the 3ds still being alive and people will buy the games and it will give Nintendo some money. You don't need to kill 3ds when you can get money from people who buy the new games. People will still have hope to not abandon 3ds and if you put updates on the 3ds, People will keep it and keep buying games on it.