Hello! :3 I'm essentially totally new to handheld gaming (previous console was a gbc lol), and I'd like to hear what you would recommend for the 3ds, be it a 3ds or ds game. I've been looking through IGN reviews, but since there are SO MANY games, including the lesser known indies, which I'm sure contain gems, I'd like to ask y'all what you liked and what you'd recommend in general. What are your favorite games?

Also, more specifically, I like: steampunk, good story lines especially ones with twists, puzzles, RPGs, painterly like 2d graphics, getting to choose/influence my own story line aka good replayability. Any rating is a-okay, except games with fan service, nty. Things I suck at are shooter games and basically all other things that require good hand eye coordination. D8 /flails

Also, I'm a pokemon fan, and I intend to play through all of the games designed for ds, but do you recommend starting in order of game release or following the generations (like OR/AS first because it's gen3?)? Or are there some games which are really, really bad in terms of gameplay or something where you'd leave them off towards the end? Is continuity a big thing? Could I play out of order? (yep totally a newb here haha :"D)

Thanks for your help! n___n

I don't play much besides Pokemon, so I can't help with the other stuff. But for Pokemon, you can really start anywhere. XY and ORAS are probably a bit easier than the other games because they have features which make it super easy for newbies, like giving you more experience after battles. (I personally found it too easy so didn't use that feature. xD)

It might be best to start with Diamond and Pearl (if you wanna play all the DS games), cos the games get progressively better graphics and functionality wise. (Going back to DP, everything seems so SLOW compared with ORAS that you might find it harder to go back, for example!)

I don't think there are any games that are bad at all! I got a bit bored of Black and White 2 because I'd just played through Black and White and didn't think that much had changed to keep my interest. But I know a lot of other people really loved BW2 so I dunno.

So yeah, just play in whatever order you like. There is no real timeline or anything so it doesn't matter. :) Each game has its own little differences and charms, so they're all a lot of fun!

Thank you so much for the information. :D It's been very useful! c: I'm almost afraid I won't like the new graphics because I've been brought up on the first 2 generations, so all I'm used to are those adorable sprites haha. xD I think I'll start with AS because I'm super excited about Hoenn. I didn't realize other previous gens of pokemon are available in ORAS. :"D omg technically over 700? Dang. Sounds like the ultimate treat, can't wait ghsjskka aaah. ;O;

Do you play other pokemon games like super mystery dungeon? Would you recommend any in particular? :3 SMD looks really nifty because you get to play as a pokemon. Cuteee.

Oh, if you're used to the old games then I'm sure you'll love any of the new ones! :) Heart Gold and Soul Silver are a wonderful nostalgia trip too and you get cute Pokemon following you around! AS is a great place to start though. The games were awesome and you'll get to meet all the new Pokemon in time for Sun and Moon coming out in November! :D Haha yeah there are so many now! I haven't finished a Pokedex in years. I keep meaning to and then they release another 100 Pokemon haha!

I've played most of the spin off games. The first two sets of Mystery Dungeon Games (Red/Blue and Time/Darkness/Sky) were AMAZING. Seriously best stories in a Pokemon game and fun to play too! I would definitely recommend any of them. I haven't played the two newest ones (Gates to Infinity and Super Mystery Dungeon). I've heard that Super Mystery Dungeon is really good and better than Gates to Infinity if you wanna check that out, though my friends prefer the older MD games, but that might be personal preference! :) If you go for an older one, I'd probably pick Sky.

Haha I'm excited for you now :D

I'm super tired so I don't have much to comment on besides the fact that black and white bored me, pokemon x is the love of my life, anyd I was super disappointed by oras because they sacrificed a lot of game functionality to cater to older fans, imo. They chopped the ease of X/Y's interface and made it more complex for the sake of looking cool. I didn't like half the new features.

Also I think you'll be won over by the new graphics, the sprites are still there theyre just ten times as charming.

For sure look into the Zero Escape series. The first game is 9 Hours 9 Persons 9 Doors and the second game is Virtue's Last Reward. The third game is coming out tomorrow (!) and is called Zero Time Dilemma.

They are visual novel/puzzle games that are very story driven. The games are probably 70% story, 30% puzzles? Each one has several different endings that you will have to trigger by doing different things in the story.

The stories are dark, and characters die, sometimes gruesomely, however, the gore you actually see is minimal. One character in each game has an absurd costume/cleavage but that's as close to fanservice as they get.

I wish they remade crystal as well. T___T It was my bae. I totally have to get either heart gold or soul silver eventually. Johto's awesome. Oh yeah, sun and moon. xD I will barely be able to catch up in time for that ohoho. Thanks for the mystery dungeon info! :3 I didn't realize there were sets to it. Haha I can hardly contain my excitement, been looking through the pokedexs on various pokemon sites. ;O; eeeee

That might be good for me about cutting functionality haha, considering I'm used to the gbc games. Looks like I should get x next. The legendary looks amazing. <3 <3 Have you played black / white 2? Or just the original? I really like the tao legendaries for BW so I'm surprised people are not in general better fans of BW. Fingers crossed about the graphics. n__n Thanks for your info!

I came across that one! 8D 999 is definitely on my to play list! Did you like VLR despite the lack of choices (as in forced to go back etc)? On one hand it's much more organised than 999, but on the other hand, it sounds like a buzzkill in terms of suspense and replay value. They sound like my sort of game. O Bring on the suspense tehe. Thanks for posting! I had no idea about a 3rd being out soon. Sweet.

Pokemon Gates to infinity was a big let down for me after the first two mystery dungeons. Mystery of time had a really good story line (at least I thought so), and super mystery dungeon was pretty good as well (although it is a lot easier then mystery of time).

I personally thought X and Y had a weaker story line and a really easy game to beat, but the graphics are really nice (so it defiantly made up for it).

Interesting. :O I'm a sucker for customization, so I can't wait to play X/Y, but yeah, the story doesn't look too compelling. xD Good to know about gates to infinity and SMD. The older copies are probably going to be difficult to find in stores (not a fan of buying over the internet ;___;), so I'll probably go with SMD first, especially if it's easier. Thanks for posting! :D

: For pokemon, if you want to go retro, try one of the original entries like Red, Blue or Yellow. They're sold on the eshop for about $10 or so. Now I haven't played Black or White myself since I'm no longer a dedicated fan to the series, but people heavily praise Black and White due to it's story. So if you want a pokemon game with a good story, try Black or White. I did however play and enjoy X and Y. It has player customization which was a neat addition.

For indies, I suggest Steamworld Dig, I'm not quite sure why I like the game, but I do and review wise it has high reviews, it also has a steampunk vibe to it. I also really suggest Cave Story, pretty great story. This next one has an absurd story, but I found it to be incredibly fun, Retro City Rampage DX.

Aside from those I suggest the Etryan Odyssey (rpg) series which I myself am new to. You can play them out of order. Some of them go on sale on the eshop alot so keep your eye out whenever you see one on sale for $10. I also am new to the Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Survivor (rpg) series, they have remakes to both games on the eshop as well. Seeing as you like good stories, I suggest trying any of the Zelda games (you can play these out of order as well) I particularly enjoy the following that are available to download off the eshop. The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and Seasons (two different games with completely different stories that if played one after the other with a code you get from the fist one you beat, form an overarching plot) and The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds (technically a spiritual sequel to A Link to the Past but you don't have to play A Link to the Past before playing it).

I hope these suggestions help you out! ^.^

Oh gosh, I need yellow. T___T Yellow was my bae until crystal came out. ❤️ Oh, maybe I am confusing sucky storyline with X/Y then or something. I like the legendaries for BW, so I hope I can play it eventually. c:

Do those RPGs require a lot of manual gaming skills? The thing I liked about pokemon was not being held back because I wasn't fast enough or accurate enough with pressing buttons. I'd love to try them, but trying to be realistic as to if I could complete the game. :3 I haven't actually played a Zelda game before. So much to catch up on. xD Steamworld Dig sounds fascinating. Steamworld Heist with space robots sounds amazing (I'm very into space western locations). I'll know what to look out for. Thanks! :D You've been a help!

Oh good, I'm glad you're going to pick up 999. I did like VLR, although not as much as 999. Supposedly the 3rd one is more like 999 but darker, so I'm looking forward to it. There is a story reason why your character keeps going back and repeating things. Unfortunately almost everything is a spoiler, so I can't really explain why.

It is a bit of a buzzkill that you literally get a flowchart/map in-game that shows the length of the path each choice leads to, although not what will happen down that path (events have a ? over them until you complete them). The replay is still good, as events that you saw from one angle will look completely different when you see them from another frame of reference after making different choices.

Things I had minor issues with in VLR. I will avoid spoilers so some of these will be vague:

• A large portion of the game involves the classic "Prisoner's Dilemma" scenario which I'm not a huge fan of
• If you have a physical game cartridge, there is a potential save data corrupting bug in some of the puzzle rooms and you are recommended to avoid saving the game in puzzle rooms. If you buy the game from the Nintendo eshop and download a digital version, this is not an issue.
• Some of the puzzles require leaps of logic that didn't make much sense to me, at least compared to 999
• I felt that it lacked some of the urgency and danger present in 999. It's still there, just not as in your face.
• You have to remember several passcodes in order to complete the true ending, and the game only provides 2 pages of memo space for you to write on-screen, which you might need for working on puzzles. It would have been nice if the game automatically saved these for you once you unlock them

The voice acting is great, and I still highly recommend playing it. It's a very good game.

I think the 3rd one being released soon explains why amazon uk is out of stock, at least uk-wise. /pout :c So hopefully I'll get around to playing it. Just gotta find a copy! ;O;

The flowchart reminds me of a certain anime, not mentioned for possible spoiler reasons, which I absolutely loved. So maybe I will like the chart... eventually. Though game mechanics wise, it would be cooler if it was 999's style, but that's just me talking without knowing the plot, so I'd probably change my mind after knowing the story. :3 You have to tell me about the 3rd one! 8D I love sequels if they're done properly.

Also, haha, old school pass coding writing. Sounds like fun haha. xD

: Well the story in X and Y is definitely better than regular pokemon entries. AZ's story in particular, probably one of the most saddest ever in a pokemon game.

Etrian Odyssey is essentially a dungeon crawling RPG. What I really like about it is that you have to map the dungeon yourself, so you get the feeling of being a cartographer without actually being one. Lol. The Devil Survivor series are SRPG's with a dark story and the ability to capture demons, use them in battle and fuse them with other demons to make stronger ones. Neither involves any precise button pressing, you just have to be strategic about how you handle certain bosses. Zelda games are honestly something I used to shy away from as a kid. In middle school I got the Wii version of Twilight Princess though, and have become a fan of the series. I forgot to mention, that you should try and get Majora's Mask 3D. That game is great. Probably one of my favorite Zelda's and the only one with a really dark story. Yeah the developers of the Steamworld games are great. If you're into simulation games, you should try Animal Crossing New Leaf. It's a hard to explain game, but trust that it is incredibly fun and addicting.

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