As Club Nintendo begins its slow descent into obsolescence - the last day to register any game and receive the program's Coin currency is March 31 - you might wonder which games, exactly, you should pick up.
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We've already outlined some of the must-haves for the Wii U. Today, our eyes turn towards the Nintendo 3DS and its many offerings that span the last 30 years of gaming.
Most every game on the list is worth a look, but here are the ones you should start with:
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Kid Icarus / Kid Icarus Of Myths And Monsters / Kid Icarus Uprising - okay, so it's three games. Pit was nearly forgotten for a decade before he came back with a vengeance in the Smash Bros. series. 200 nets you the original NES platformer. For 150 coins, you can pick up the still challenging - albeit dated- original Gameboy title Of Myths And Monsters and for 700 you can get the 3DS title Uprising, the handheld 3D beat em up. Beware though, stress injuries are common, but totally worth it.
Xevious [200 Coins] - an original NES shmup that got a major graphical overhaul a while back, fans of the genre will find a lot to love about this game. The 3D adds a level of depth the original systems could only dream of, and it's hard as [expletive] still.
The Legend Of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX [200 Coins] - it would be easy to recommend the original NES, but you should already own that. Part of the 'Last Hero Timeline', Link's Awakening is a fun side-quest adventure that finds our hero stranded on a strange island after a shipwreck. All the classic gameplay - plus a new dungeon - finds its way onto this 1998 remake of the original Game Boy title.
Fluidity: Spin Cycle [300 Coins] - I'm a fan of any game that makes me use my device in a different way. Fluidity asks you to tilt, twirl and spin your 3DS to navigate a collection of water through various platform levels, moving through the element's many states. Like all great platformers, it comes with a good amount of replayability, too.
3D Classics Excitebike [200 Coins] - it had to make an appearance on one of these lists. The NES launch title gets a minor graphical overhaul, and the ability to save up to 32 dirtbike tracks of your own design. While it lacks multiplayer support, the ability to amuse yourself with dangerously more absurd designs never gets old.
Star Fox 64 3D [700 Coins] - first, why haven't you picked this up yet? Second, you should pick this up. The all time great space flier, the game that launched at least one meme, has been lovingly remastered for handheld (it even comes with improved motion controls for the New Nintendo 3DS systems) and a four-player multiplayer mode. Plus, you'll never know how much you appreciate not having Slippy start talking about whatever the hell he talks about on the same screen, as all dialogue has been moved to the lower touchscreen on the 3DS.
Club Nintendo will rise like the phoenix from its ashes as a new service after its shutdown on July 1. Hopefully some of these games will come with it, but in case they don't, best pick them up now. These things have a way of disappearing mysteriously.
