On June 01, 2025, Nintendo released theNintendo 3DShandheld. The successor to its Nintendo DS line of handhelds, the3DSbrought a number of innovations to the table, upping the graphical fidelity considerably and offering glasses-free 3D. Unfortunately, the 3DS had a slow start, with a lack of compelling software in its early months and a relatively high price point often blamed.
Eventually, the Nintendo 3DS managed to find its place in the gaming world, becoming one of Nintendo’s most successful handhelds ever by the time it was discontinued. Over the years, the 3DS built up an impressive library of games, including some of the highest-rated titles of the last decade, with many of them available exclusively on the Nintendo 3DS. With theNintendo 3DS turning 10 years old today, it’s a good time to look back at some of its best games, like the 10 3DS games that earned the highest reviews from critics, according to review aggregate site Metacritic.
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Best 3DS Games
A quick glance at the 10 highest-rated 3DS games shows that the system had a variety of classic games, brand new titles, and new entries in some of Nintendo’s most beloved franchises. This includes 3D remakes of theNintendo 64 eraLegend of Zeldagames, giving a serious graphics boost toMajora’s MaskandOcarina of Time, while also implementing a wide range of quality-of-life improvements to help make the games more accessible to modern gamers.
An originalZeldagame also had a prominent place in the Nintendo 3DS library in the form ofThe Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. A direct sequel toThe Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past,A Link Between Worldswas critically-acclaimedand stands as one of the highest-rated video games ever released for the handheld.
BesidesZelda, some of Nintendo’s other heavy-hitter franchises had a major showing on the 3DS as well. This includesSuper Mario, withSuper Mario 3D Landproving to be one of the 3DS system’s early must-have titles.Fire Emblemalso had a major resurgence on the 3DS withFire Emblem: Awakening, which put the series on the map for many gamers and helped propel it to being one of Nintendo’s hottest properties.
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