Nintendo Is Bringing An SNES-Themed 3DS XL To The US

When you find a recipe for success, just keep cooking, baby. That is the philosophy Nintendo is following with the rabid demand for retro gaming, which it has been tapping into with miniaturized re-releases of old school consoles such as the NES Classic Edition and SNES Classic Edition. But why stop there? Adding another ingredient, Nintendo is getting ready to release an SNES-themed New 3DS XL handheld in the United States.

This is something Nintendo has been toying with in other parts of the world. It started with a Super Famicom-themed 3DS XL in Japan that it released last year, followed by an SNES version in Europe this past summer. Now Nintendo is bringing the latter model to the US, with a release date set for just over a month from now, November 27.


Unlike the NES Classic Edition and SNES Classic Edition console, the SNES-themed 3DS XL is not a rebirth of a previous console that comes pre-loaded with a bunch of old school titles. The retro play here is on the physical design—the chassis looks like an SNES with a gray color scheme and the familiar purple Power and Reset buttons.


That said, the themed handheld will come with a download code for Super Mario Kart, the classic SNES game that many gamers who grew up in that era spent hours playing. Otherwise, it is the same as other New 3DS XL consoles (released in 2015), and uses the same AC adapter as the Nintendo DSi, 3DS, and 2DS handheld systems.

Nintendo has struck gold with its gaming roots. The NES Classic Edition was a hot seller that left a lot of gamers frustrated with its scarce availability (Nintendo plans to produce more models next year), and the SNES Classic Edition has proved equally as popular in the short time that it has been on the market. While the 3DS XL in SNES form is a different beast, it makes for a nice consolation prize.

You can pre-order the SNES-themed 3DS XL at Amazon for $200.