The 3DS had a rough start for a Nintendo console in 2011. This was unprecedented as Nintendo handhelds always seemed to sell like gangbusters out of the gate even without giant libraries at first. The only big failure before this was the Virtual Boy which was coincidentally also themed around 3D. Did Nintendo fail at 3D again?
No, the 3D effect was well-thought-out. Things picked up for the 3DS in 2012 after Nintendo dropped the price and more games came out. It was a good recovery year. It’s a shame that some of these games are still stuck on the hardware as they could be fun to play again on Switch. The year is new so who knows what surprises 2022 will bring.
8 Resident Evil: Revelations
Resident Evil: Revelations was a return to form for the series. It brought Jill back to the limelight and also made it a spookier experience. There was still more gun action than the original titles, but it wasn’t a celebration of explosion unlike Resident Evil 5 and Resident Evil 6.
It’s impressive that the 3DS could handle a title like this. The 3D was pretty good for it too. It was successful enough to get a sequel and future ports to consoles. It was released on February 7, 2012, for the 3DS.
7 Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2
Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor 2 is the second spinoff game in this subseries for the franchise. Instead of a traditional turn-based RPG like the other games, it was a strategy RPG. The first one was brutally difficult and the same was true for this sequel.
It was a bit more lenient, but players still couldn’t plow through maps. It took a sound mind to face the trials of this game. It was released on February 28, 2012, for the 3DS. This was a year after Japan.
6 Kid Icarus: Uprising
Kid Icarus: Uprising is one of the most divisive titles in Nintendo’s history. The game itself is an absolute blast. The gameplay is exciting between the on-rails shooting segments and the land action combat. The graphics are still impressive on the system and the 3D is out of this world.
The downside is that the control setup on the 3DS made it almost impossible to play comfortably. It’s deeply upsetting that this hasn’t received a port yet for Switch. Now is the time Nintendo. It was released on March 23, 2012, for the 3DS.
5 Theatrhythm Final Fantasy
Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is a weird name for a good spinoff game. It condensed the main entries in the series to a bunch of musical battles. Follow the notes and complete songs to score big points.
There were boss fights at the end of each game which allowed players to fill their party with classic characters like Cloud and Zidane. These battles still followed the note-based gameplay. It was perhaps a bit too simplistic for a rhythm game but fun nonetheless. It was released on July 3, 2012, for the 3DS.
4 Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance
Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance was the first full sequel in the series for a while. Most in-between entries were prequels after the second proper entry. This pushed the story forward by having Sora and Riku dive into the dreams of sleeping worlds to complete their Mark of Mastery exams.
It introduced new movies to the franchise including The Hunchback of Notre Dome and revamped older titles like Pinocchio. It may be a spinoff, but it is canon and shouldn’t be overlooked. It was released on July 31, 2012, for the 3DS.
3 New Super Mario Bros. 2
New Super Mario Bros. 2 added co-op to the portable entries for the first time. That was a big gimmick for the console games which featured four players. This was limited to two via Mario and Luigi. That’s fine as it still worked remarkably well as a portable entry.
The big hook of this entry was collecting coins. Yes, that is the goal for all Mario games, but the coinage in this sequel is out of this world. It was a fun classic formula complete with power-ups but it wasn’t revolutionary. It was released on August 19, 2012, for the 3DS.
2 Heroes Of Ruin
Heroes of Ruin is a Diablo-like dungeon crawler. It also featured co-op gameplay similar to that series. Players could use their Wi-Fi signals on their systems to connect to friends nearby. There were four classes to choose from.
The Vindicator, for example, was the Warrior of the group whereas The Alchitect was a mage-like spellcaster. It didn’t break new grounds for the genre, but it was a sound Diablo-like for the portable. It was released on July 17, 2012, for the 3DS.
1 Pokemon Conquest
Pokemon Conquest is technically not a 3DS game. It was released on June 18, 2012, for the DS. Since it can be played on the system it is worth discussing as a weird spinoff in the series. One, because it is a good tactical RPG. Two, for the sheer absurdity of it all. This was a blend between the Pokemon franchise and Nobunaga’s Ambition.
That series had games published in the West at this point but very few of them. This made it an odd series to choose to blend with Pokemon. It somehow worked though to create an odd RPG set in the warring states period of Japan. It deserves a modern port if not a full sequel.