by Jordyn Newsome
When comparing the aesthetics of the 3DS and the Nintendo Switch, it’s practically night and day. The 3DS is filled with fun mechanics, silly themes, and an overall aura of technological fun. In comparison, the Nintendo Switch feels bland and underbaked. But why is it this way? Why do so many users miss the era of the 3ds, despite the Nintendo Switch being an objective improvement in graphics? In this article, I will contrast the feel, look, and general aesthetics of Switch when put against the 3ds, to see if these criticisms are all nostalgia blindness, or is there something fundamentally missing with the Switch compared to its handheld predecessor?
1. Themes
Themes, on both consoles, are a way to decorate the background of your counsel to give it a bit more style and flair. On the 3DS, there were countless themes to use, usually associated with a franchise or game. This addition gave the consoles individuality, you could express yourself through your favorite game, character, aesthetic, color, anything. All through the background of your console. With such a good theming process, you may be wondering how the Nintendo Switch followed this up. The answer is, they really didn’t. The only two themes on the Nintendo Switch settings are light and dark mode. Meaning, your background can either be white or black, paling in comparison to the many varied options available on the 3ds. In my opinion, it makes the Nintendo Switch lack the individuality the 3ds shined in, and makes itself and the general vibe blander for it.
2. Music
The 3DS is filled with little musical jingles that imprint itself in your brain long after you’ve first heard them. From the home screen, the settings, to even simply passing over certain games, there’s always a melody to accompany it. This helped the 3ds become memorable, as it’s scientifically proven jingles are much more likely to stick in your mind. The Switch has nothing like this, being completely silent most of the time, unless you’re in a game. While it does have a few sound effects, very little have all the small melodic charms present in the 3ds. This makes the Switch feel significantly lacking in style in the musical department.
3. Communication
The streetpass was a feature of the 3ds, a main selling point in fact. The way it worked was that if you were walking on the street, and you passed someone else with a 3ds, you would become friends, and their mii (a customizable avatar) would come to your mii plaza. You could get rewards for multiple streetpasses, which gave people the incentive to go outside for the chance of getting one. People have even organized events just to get more streetpasses with each other. It was a great way of getting gamers out of their home and giving you a sense of community. Unfortunately, the Nintendo Switch has nothing like this. The only way of gaining friends on the Nintendo Switch is sharing a simple code, which, while efficient, doesn’t have the same sense of community the 3ds did. It also encourages players to stay inside of their house instead of interacting with real people, taking away a healthy aspect of streetpass.
Because of all these reasons, on an aesthetic level, I would say the Nintendo Switch fails in comparison to the 3ds. Much of the charm has simply been lost, making it feel bland corporate compared to the fun of the 3DS.
