New Nintendo 3DS XL Comes Stateside

There was a time when the U.S. release of new goodies – whether consoles or games – from Japanese giant Nintendo was a really, really big deal. If you’re of a certain vintage, you’ll quickly recall that our collective love affair with Nintendo all started with the release of what is still widely acclaimed as the most iconic game in the history of gaming: Super Mario Bros. This title (and its various spinoffs) was the vehicle that drove so many of the company’s handheld consoles – including the Game Boy and the Nintendo DS – into our lives.

Things, however, haven’t been nearly as rosy in recent times. A seismic shift towards smartphone-supported gaming has definitely lessened the impact of recent handheld releases from Nintendo. This is a trend that the company will be hoping to buck with the U.S. debut of the rather confusingly labeled New Nintendo 3DS XL.     

   

A Couple Months Late and a Model Short

It isn’t that unusual for folks on this side of the world to have to wait a little while until tech from the other side of the world (i.e. Japan, China, and South Korea) finally reaches these shores. With that being said, the four-month lag time between the new 3DS XL’s Japanese and U.S. debuts did raise a few eyebrows. These are in addition to the eyebrows that were initially raised when it was revealed that there isn’t any immediate schedule in place for the U.S. release of the smaller new 3DS model. All of these issues can be put on the backburner – if only temporarily – now that the New 3DS XL is finally here though. Let’s take a closer look to see if it was worth the wait.

What’s new or improved?

Comparing the latest model of any device to its immediate forerunner is always one of the easiest ways to see if that device has been improved. We won’t be reinventing the wheel on this one. Here’s a quick rundown of the key areas in which the fractionally bigger and thinner 3DS XL sports upgrades over the model that came before it.

Front (top) and back (bottom) views of the New Nintendo 3DS XL.
(Courtesy of dualshockers.com)

Controls

There are a number of usability upgrades rolled into this new Nintendo that could significantly improve gameplay. The most obvious of these is the new GameCube-like “C Stick” which sits above the indispensible A, B, X, and Y buttons. It allows you to easily manipulate cameras for more immersive and calculated gameplay. (Of course, enjoyment of this functionality demands that you’re actually playing a game that’s C Stick-compatible.)

ZL and ZR triggers are also among the intriguing features freshly incorporated into this new handheld console. They’re located inside the traditional L and R primary triggers that form the “shoulders” of the device. Their addition has pushed the game card slot to the front of the console. As for their functionality; much of this will ultimately depend on what command and control responsibilities game developers and gamers choose to put in their hands.

Processing

Quite a bit of time has passed since the original Nintendo 3DS XL was released with a dual-core ARM11 MPCore processor supplying the muscle. That’s why it comes as no big surprise that Nintendo has opted to go with a more powerful processor on the newer model to effectively handle the progressively more demanding mobile gaming landscape. This comes in the form of a quad-core ARM11 MPCore. This new processing configuration also sees more VRAM being allocated, which should result in sharper and smoother rendering of image elements.   

Connectivity

The New Nintendo 3DS XL also comes equipped with NFC. In and of itself, this isn’t anything groundbreaking. However, the whole outlook changes markedly when one considers the potential for integration with the Amiibo figurine universe. They might not be a hit in the U.S. right now, but neither was cosplay once upon a time.

A Mario amiibo “activates” atop a New Nintendo 3DS XL.
(Courtesy of attackofthefanboy.com)

Viewing

The 3D viewing experience served up by the original 3DS and 3DS did result in a few head and eye aches for some folks. This was often due to their occasionally less than stellar head tracking performance. The incorporation of a new infrared LED should boost the device’s efficiency in this arena, particularly under low-light conditions.  

  

Web browsing

Having the new 3DS XL as their primary Internet-going device won’t happen by choice for just about any user. However, the fact that the device’s web browser has been pepped up with significantly improved compatibility with HTML5 means you won’t be left flapping around like a fish out of water if all other options are somehow taken away. You might even be able to kill some time with a few videos courtesy of beefed up video playback support.     

The Final Word

The New Nintendo 3DS XL boasts quite a few improvements over the model which hit these shores a few years ago. A more robust processor, more control components, and improved connectivity are just a few of the upgrades that should result in more enjoyable gaming experiences. This huge collection of pros far outweighs the potential compatibility cons (and the curious decision to ship AC adapter-less consoles to the U.S. and Europe).