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So recently, I decided to mod my childhood 3DS. Reason being that it's still a great piece of tech that I've rarely used in recent years, especially since Nintendo shut down all services for it in 2023. I thought modding it would be a great way to get more use out of it, but I was nervous about bricking it.
Regardless, I took the risk and I'm glad I did, cause now I have a highly customizable emulation powerhouse of a handheld console! I now play on it almost every day, and I feel like a kid again every time I do!
I've seen tons of videos online of people doing tours of their cute customized 3DS's with tons of games on them, so I decided to my own tour on here! I'll be showcasing my current layout, and I'll also give a few game recommendations for anyone interested!
If you're interested in hacking your 3DS, then I recommend checking out the 3DS Hacks Guide site for instructions on how to do so. This is what I used to mod my own.
People usually advise against using video tutorials because they can become outdated quickly, but this site is up-to-date on everything, very easy to follow and contains direct downloads to all the files you'll need. I used the "Soundhax" method for my older model, but the method you use might slightly differ depending on the model or system version.
It also doesn't take much time at all to mod! I never modded anything until recently, but the process took around 25 minutes as a first timer. It could probably even take 10 - 15 minutes if you have more experience. Regarding the likelihood of bricking, it's virtually impossible unless you do absolute nonsense with the device in Godmode9 or whatever.
People usually decorate their 3DS with pretty cases, stickers and charms. I would like to maybe do that, but I'm worried about the stickers mucking up the surface if they get worn or taken off. So for now, I have a little Domo phone charm to decorate.
Regarding the actual layout, I'm currently going for a "Classical art meets contemporary technology" look. I got a Nokia themed splash screen, and a Fallen Angel themed backdrop. I have Minecraft painting badges to piece together and form whole art pieces, along with Windows 3.1x icons and white keycap letters to label folders/sections. For the BGM, it's "Magical Night Light" by Masayoshi Takanaka. I got it from another theme based on The Rainbow Goblins.
I wasn't expecting to land on this look for the theme, but I'm pleasantly surprised with how well it turned out! It's like a mini art museum I can take with me anywhere!
Regarding games, I currently have a small amount of GB, 3DS, and homebrew stuff. I want to give some game recommendations based on a few stand out titles I've been playing!
This game and I go wayyyyy back. Since I was maybe 13 or so, I was weirdly intrigued by it. I remember drawing the main character, this badass cowboy armadillo named Dillon, in one of my old sketchbooks too. I have some memory of showing it to classmates as well. I never got to play it until now, however.
The game stars Dillon and his partner, Russ, an adorable squirrel mechanic. Together, they travel from city to city to fight off killer rock monsters (named "Grocks") and protect people's food supplies (Scrogs) from them. The gameplay itself is an interesting crossover between tower defense/RPG/beat em' up/time management styles. Even to this day, I don't think I've seen anything like it.
The gameplay loop itself is very simple: in each city you stay for 3 days, and for each day, there's a day and night section. During the day, you run around exploring the plains outside the city. This is where you do your prep work (building gun towers, mining for ore for defence gates, collecting scruffles to feed to scrogs to increase their numbers/your city's HP, etc.).
When it's dusk, the sky turns blood red, signalling the arrival of the grocks! This is where the real action begins. You and your towers will be working to kill out the Grocks before they reach the city. The Grocks feed on scrogs, so it's game over if you run out of them. You win the round when you kill out all grocks or survive the whole night without losing all your scrogs.
The game is pretty fun, but damn is it TOUGH. I didn't expect to be losing so many times. It's very fast paced, with each day getting shorter and shorter. But at the same time, the nights in later levels are so brutal, with one full day lasting as long as half an hour or MORE in real time. The gameplay can get repetitive at times, but new enemy types and stage gimmicks keep things fresh. The game rewards exploration and taking risks heavily. There are ancient ruins you can find rare gems in to sell for big money, as well as heart pieces to increase Dillon's HP. You can also do some quests on the side for the little extra cash and challenge.
Overall, it's a really cool game, and I'm so glad I finally got to play it! Feels like an item's been crossed off my bucket list.
I did NOT expect to have so much fun with this game. I just heard about it on Tiktok one night when I was looking for game recommendations. I have a soft spot for fun management games like Burger Shop and Diner Dash, so I decided to give this one a shot.
Its premise is simple: you run a Japanese 24/7 convenience store selling various goods. You can hire workers, expand your store, and change your stock to cater for the needs of various customers throughout the year.
Despite being a simple game, there is actually a decent amount of planning involved. You can consult the predictions chart to see which customers will be expected to come for the day, as well as which products will appeal to which customers. You will constantly need to keep stock of items and replace them as they go stale. And depending on the time of year, you will need to sell special items for special holidays and occasions (Christmas, Golden Week, festivals, etc.) You even have to deal with the occasional drunkard, complainer or shoplifter!
It can actually get pretty chaotic, but never to the point of becoming stressful. In fact, I would argue that it's near impossible to lose in this game unless you really try.
The occasional translation mistakes in the dialogue are a bit distracting at first, but you can ignore it after a bit and understand everything. The pixel graphics and simple chibi artstyle aren't groundbreaking by 3DS graphical standards, but still pleasant to look at.
If you like simple, cozy games that can still be genuinely engaging, then I think you might like this one. Give it a shot if you're interested in a cute, relaxing management game.
Last, but not least, we have the classic Bit Trip series starring Commander Video! Like with Dillon, I've known about this series since I was a kid. I first heard about it through a review of Bit Trip Beat done by The WiiViewer (how many people are familiar with his videos?).
As soon as I remembered that the series had a 3DS port, I had to snag it ASAP. Thank God I did, as this is also my first time playing it!
The game is a compilation of all 6 main games in the Bit Trip series (not including Runner 2 and 3). Each part is a rhythm game that not only takes on a different gameplay style and tone, but also documents a different part of Commander Video's life. For example, Beat is a unique pong-like game documenting the birth of Video, and Runner has him exploring the world as an adult while dodging various obstacles.
I was surprised by how difficult the games could get. If you miss too many beats or get hit too many times in some games, you enter the "Neither", where you must survive long enough or hit enough beats to "revive" yourself, else you die and lose the game. It can get tough, but the addictive gameplay, gorgeous visuals and groovy soundtracks keep me coming back for more.
The series' trippy pixel/voxel art style is so iconic to me. Even to this day, I find it has a unique look that sets it apart from most games. Some of the backgrounds can get too busy to the point of obscuring the gameplay sometimes, but they're still pleasant to look at! Even the menu designs for each game are creative and visually appealing!
Definitely check out Bit Trip Saga if you're looking for a good rhythm game!
So that's it for this tour! I hope you liked it! Perhaps it might have made you interested in modding your 3DS as well. The only thing I regret about modding it is not doing it sooner! If I'm up to it in the future, I might do another tour session if I update my layout or find more games to share.
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