Ranking the Top 10 Best 3DS Games

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[Kurlija]

My 3DS got a new lease on life after I modded it last year, it's currently my most-played system. In addition to the great 3DS library, I love getting to explore all the GB, GBC, GBA and DS games I missed out on as a kid, especially the fan translations. All that said though, my favourite 3DS game is still Etrian Odyssey IV.

[TakisEnjoyer]

I don't agree with your list, you're wrong (I'm yet to watch the video)

[cwooddirector]

It's a crime that Kid Icarus Uprising hasn't gotten an HD remaster on Switch. The control scheme could easily be adapted to work with two analog sticks. I would love to give this game a shot in a format that doesn't cause my hand to cramp. I still regret selling my copy.

[guguig]

The thing with the 3DS is that it has so many incredible games, that I could watch a dozen lists, each with different games, and still agree with all of them!

[chaoticcranium]

Great list! Here are my personal 3DS game rankings:

1. Kid Icarus: Uprising
2. Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
3. Kirby: Planet Robobot (though Triple Deluxe is amazing too)
4. Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest (That is, in terms of gameplay. Shadows of Valentia is by far the better FE game for story and presentation. Awakening is cool too, but Conquest is just the most strategic game.)
5. Super Smash Bros for 3DS (though the Wii U version was superior in almost every way, just a miracle the little 3DS could run this beast of a game! Smash Run forever!)
6. Metroid: Samus Returns
7. Majora's Mask 3DS
8. Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon
9. Mario Kart 7
10. Mario and Luigi: Dream Team

Bonus 11. The 3DS Ambassador program, especially the 10 GBA titles they gave out. Spent so much time with these!

[monacosm]

Shout-out to Shantae and the pirate curse that was exclusive to the 3ds for a short time, love that game

[GentlemanGamer]

Kid Icarus Uprising and Fire Emblem Awakening are such fantastic titles. ^_^

Kid Icarus' Saturday Morning Cartoon vibes, clever writing and bite-sized levels makes it a blast for me to replay. Meanwhile, something about the supports in Fire Emblem Awakening are so uniquely addictive to me, though that's perhaps just the nostalgia talking. I spent hours grinding battles in high school to try to see them all and even to this day, rewatching fandubs of the support conversations on YouTube makes me happy :)

[SirKupoNut]

Radiant Historia Perfect Chronology and Story of Seasons Trio of Towns are two of my fav 3ds games ever. One of the best JRPGs remade and streamlined and the best farm sim to date

[Robbie]

I'm so glad you threw in a "I've gotta get back to playing Animal Crossing: New Leaf on my Nintendo 3DS." Was going to be quite disappointed if it wasn't there.

[ryuhoshu]

It's always nice to see the 3DS get some love

[RogersBase]

Great list! The fact that almost half of your didn't even make my personal list goes to show just how awesome the system was.

Animal Crossing New Leaf
Fire Emblem Fates
Super Smash Bros. for 3DS
Kid Icarus Uprising
Metroid Samus Returns
Fire Emblem Awakening
Pokemon Sun & Moon
The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia
Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright

[SaturnineAberrance]

For anyone interested in trying out DQVIII on 3ds, but are disappointed by the midi soundtrack instead of the orchestrated one - there is a patch available that puts the orchestral soundtrack back in if you have your 3ds homebrewed.

It was even easier to make this patch than you would think, because the Japanese version has the orchestral soundtrack - only the overseas release replaced it with the midis.

[TheLonelyGoomba]

Glad Kid Icarus is getting recognition. It is the best 3ds game imo.
Even the online mode was a ton of fun and it wasn't even a focus.

[Mattakschwa]

Still have my ambassador 3ds. Kid Icarus uprising, fire emblem awakening, and a link between worlds all deserve to be remastered. Such great games, hope they don’t remain 3ds exclusives for the rest of time

[TheOneNamedMrLife]

Fire Emblem Awakening is such as classic. I remember getting that game while I was recovering from my wisdom teeth removal at the time.

[felipemartinho]

Bravely Second is still my favourite game ever on the 3DS, but I can easily say it has a lot of contenders.

[srlinski]

The most baffling and Nintendo-brained part of the Wii U/3DS era was that the Wii U had a GBA virtual console while the 3DS didn't. Not that it really matters anymore, but it's such a shame because it was the only thing missing that would have put the 3DS up there as the best Nintendo handheld for me

[ade]

The 3DS is such a good system. My top 10:

Honorable mentions: New Super Mario Bros. 2, Metroid Samus Returns, Star Fox 64 3D, Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, Fire Emblem Fates, The Legend of Zelda Majora's Mask 3D

10. Kid Icarus Uprising
9. Kirby Planet Robobot
8. Super Mario 3D Land
7. Fire Emblem Awakening
6. Pokémon Sun/Moon
5. Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
4. Mario Kart 7
3. Fire Emblem Echoes Shadows of Valentia
2. The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds
1. The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D

[inspectorvoid]

Fire emblem awakening was my first FE game. I was hooked, such a great title. I’m now a big fan of the series.

[RevolverLink]

I'm coming at this several months late, but in no particular order my 10 favorite 3DS games are probably:

-Animal Crossing: New Leaf (Hits the perfect sweet spot for me between "classic" AC and New Horizons.)
-Fire Emblem Awakening (I'd played and liked FE before, but this was the entry that truly got me hooked on the series.)
-The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (Instantly became, and remains, a top 4-5 Zelda for me.)
-Shovel Knight (It's been released on everything at this point, but I played it first, and most, on the 3DS. Looks really nice in 3D too.)
-Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice (One of my absolute favorite entries in my favorite non-Nintendo series.)
-Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward (A great follow-up to one of the very best games on DS. A classic.)
-Theatrhythm Final Fantasy: Curtain Call (The first Theatrhyhm was fun, but Curtain Call felt like the game the first one should've been. A really fun rhythm game just stuffed with great Final Fantasy/Square Enix music.)
-Picross 3D: Round 2 (As a fiend for both 2D and 3D Picross, this is just about a perfect puzzle game.)
-Kirby Planet Robobot (I mostly think of the Return to Dream Land-style Kirbys as pretty good, but not exceptional - not so here, Planet Robobot is a great game and probably my favorite Kirby.)
-Rhythm Heaven Megamix (A great mix of new and old RH levels, filled with charm, humor and a lot of damn catchy music.)

I decided to exclude ports/remasters of games from earlier platforms mostly for the sake of personal clarity, and because I largely think of them as belonging to their original consoles first. But needless to say, I think the 3DS versions of Ocarina of Time, Radiant Historia* and Dragon Quest VIII are probably the closest things we have to definitive versions of those games thus far (I actually like the Dragon Quest VII remake a lot too, though it's different enough that I wouldn't say it makes the original PS1 game not worth checking out if you're a DQ fan). And while Majora's Mask 3D is still a great game and improves things in several key areas, the original N64 release is still my preferred version (and my favorite game ever made).

*For my money, one of the greatest RPGs ever made and also seemingly cursed to release, and be largely ignored, during the dying days of Nintendo handhelds.