As you probably know, right now Nintendo is supporting two systems : Switch and 3DS. While the Switch just launched, it's perfectly normal, on the other hand the 3DS is six years old and is seriously starting to declining in sales. Despite that, Nintendo still claims that the 3DS isn't going anywhere, and that Switch won't replace it. A lot of people think that way too, especially with the recent Nintendo Direct which showcased a lot of new 3DS games. I doubt Nintendo claims, and I think they stopped 3DS development quite some time ago. To explain that, let me first list 2017's 3DS important releases (in Europe at least, some titles may have been released earlier in America).
- Dragon Quest VIII
- Poochy & Yoshi's Wooly World
- Dragon Ball Fusions
- Mario Sports Superstars
- Yo-Kai Watch 2
- Fire Emblem Echoes : Shadow of Valentia
- Ever Oasis
- RPG Maker FES
- Hey ! Pikmin
- Culdcept Revolt
- Dr. Kawashima Devilish's Brain Training
- Monster Hunter Stories
- Lady Layton
- Miitopia
- New Kirby game
There are probably other games, but I think it's a good grasp at what 2017 is looking like for 3DS. Overall, it's a good list of games. E3 is still coming, there may be some new announcements at that time too. Most of the list is from third-party though. I bolded first-party Nintendo IPs releasing this year. But, here's something interesting amongst these bolded games :
- Hey ! Pikmin is made by an external team, instead of Nintendo : Arzest.
- Mario Sports Superstars has been co-developped by both Camelot and Bandai Namco. It's unclear wether or not Nintendo participated too, but most of the game has been handled externally.
- Yoshi's Wooly World 3DS port has been handled by Good-Feel, an external studio.
- Miitopia is, in fact, a game that released in late 2016 in Japan, and is only localized very late, to fulfill the Fall schedule.
- Dr. Kawashima released five years ago in Japan and America.
So, what exactly did Nintendo develop for its 3DS this year ? Fire Emblem Echoes Shadow of Valentia, a low-budget remake of a previous game, re-using engine, assets and models from past Fire Emblem games, and the new Kirby game, which we know nothing about except that it's supposed to be multiplayer focused. I also expect Kirby to be a low-budget effort, in the same kind as Zelda Triforce Heroes.
My point is, so far, from a first-party perspective, 2017 is 3DS's worst year, without any doubt. Nintendo only announced two new games plannned for this year, and both seems to be low-budget effort. Now, I know very well that E3 is coming and that they may announce things, but think about it : will they really ? Nothing pointed in that direction. 3DS will have a good year thanks to the multiple late localizations and third-party efforts, but not thanks to Nintendo's effort.
Conclusion : Nintendo already dropped the 3DS, and is dedicating their whole workforce on the Nintendo Switch.
- Dragon Quest VIII
- Poochy & Yoshi's Wooly World
- Dragon Ball Fusions
- Mario Sports Superstars
- Yo-Kai Watch 2
- Fire Emblem Echoes : Shadow of Valentia
- Ever Oasis
- RPG Maker FES
- Hey ! Pikmin
- Culdcept Revolt
- Dr. Kawashima Devilish's Brain Training
- Monster Hunter Stories
- Lady Layton
- Miitopia
- New Kirby game
There are probably other games, but I think it's a good grasp at what 2017 is looking like for 3DS. Overall, it's a good list of games. E3 is still coming, there may be some new announcements at that time too. Most of the list is from third-party though. I bolded first-party Nintendo IPs releasing this year. But, here's something interesting amongst these bolded games :
- Hey ! Pikmin is made by an external team, instead of Nintendo : Arzest.
- Mario Sports Superstars has been co-developped by both Camelot and Bandai Namco. It's unclear wether or not Nintendo participated too, but most of the game has been handled externally.
- Yoshi's Wooly World 3DS port has been handled by Good-Feel, an external studio.
- Miitopia is, in fact, a game that released in late 2016 in Japan, and is only localized very late, to fulfill the Fall schedule.
- Dr. Kawashima released five years ago in Japan and America.
So, what exactly did Nintendo develop for its 3DS this year ? Fire Emblem Echoes Shadow of Valentia, a low-budget remake of a previous game, re-using engine, assets and models from past Fire Emblem games, and the new Kirby game, which we know nothing about except that it's supposed to be multiplayer focused. I also expect Kirby to be a low-budget effort, in the same kind as Zelda Triforce Heroes.
My point is, so far, from a first-party perspective, 2017 is 3DS's worst year, without any doubt. Nintendo only announced two new games plannned for this year, and both seems to be low-budget effort. Now, I know very well that E3 is coming and that they may announce things, but think about it : will they really ? Nothing pointed in that direction. 3DS will have a good year thanks to the multiple late localizations and third-party efforts, but not thanks to Nintendo's effort.
Conclusion : Nintendo already dropped the 3DS, and is dedicating their whole workforce on the Nintendo Switch.