Portable 3D??? The heck you say!

So, it has been a few weeks since I have acquired the Nintendo 3DS, and overall, my experience with it has been positive and flawless. I was even able to transfer most of my games from the Nintendo DSi, which is more than can be said for my Wii to Wii U upgrade (thanks, GameStop!). At first, having a handheld with bigger screens felt kind of awkward, because I was used to the original-sized Nintendo DSi. Over time, however, I was able to spend time with it and get a feel for how it works, and I have to admit, I am a fan.

The next thing I did was register my device and synchronize it with Club Nintendo in order to get my 160 reward points, and additional reward points for games I download afterward. This was especially crucial because I later found out that the program would be discontinued in a few months and I wanted to get and spend as many points as possible. At the end of the day, I was able to download four game rewards (one was actually the WiiWare version of Punch-Out!) as well as the new version of Flipnote Studio.

I have also tried features I have not been able to experience in the past. Since I acquired the 3DS before I was able to sell or trade the Nintendo DSi, I was finally able to try Pac Man Vs. for the Nintendo DS. This game, while still fun, does not have as much play appeal as its GameCube original, however, it is still a good game.

In addition, I had the opportunity to try the Augmented Realtiy feature that I have heard so much about. As much as I hate to admit it, this feature has probably been the most disappointing. At first glance, the 3D looks amazing, but over time, I realized that without perfect lighting, which entails me setting up a desk lamp on a card table, augmented reality does not work on the Nintendo 3DS because of the lack of a flash cue within the cameras themselves.

Now, that's not to say that the 3DS doesn't have any perks. For example, compared to its predecessor, the 3DS has a lot more to offer in terms of content. Besides the obvious "new release" titles, the one thing the 3DS has going for it that the DSi does not would be a virtual console library. I was able to pick up the first two Mario Land GameBoy games (also through Club Nintendo) and they are quite fun for being over two decades old. At some point I also plan to try one of Nintendo's 3D Classics releases and the one I was most excited about was Urban Champion. However, since that was one of the first Wii U downloads I purchased, I might have to rethink my strategy for this, and I will most likely choose the 3D version of Xevious instead.

All in all, the graphics are improved, although, the type of shading the 3DS uses when the 3D slider is turned up kind of gives me a headache, so I do not use it very often. It's still an excellent handheld console.