One of the biggest challenges is emulating the dual-screen setup of the 3DS (and DS). Many games for the console require both screens to be displayed simultaneously, which is not difficult on wide/long single screens, especially on smartphones, but they would look awkward and unnatural to replicate on a single screen. Emulating both screens on a single display can make the game difficult to play as important information or gameplay elements may be cut off or obscured.
Another issue is that the 3DS has a unique form factor, which includes a clamshell design and two screens that can be closed together. This design makes it difficult to replicate the experience of playing on the original hardware with an emulator, as the dual-screen setup is just one aspect of the console’s design.
There are lots of games that have their entire gameplay based on the dual top-bottom screens of the device like Etrian Odyssey (interestingly, it will be ported for the first time on non-dual screen devices), Zelda Phantom Hourglass, Sonic Rush, and although already been ported and is more than playable on other devices, Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors is better played on the 3DS because of its impact in its plot twist.
Moreover, the 3DS also features a touch screen, which adds another layer of complexity to emulation. Some games require the use of the touch screen for certain actions, and replicating this functionality on a PC setup can be challenging especially in desktop environments where touchscreen monitors are not preferred by gamers, or even by casual users.
Due to the unique dual-screen setup and touch screen of the 3DS, emulating the console can be a challenging task. While some emulators exist, the experience may not be the same as playing on the original hardware, and the gameplay may be compromised due to the difficulty of replicating the dual-screen setup. It may not be worth emulating the 3DS for gameplay purists.
Nevertheless, emulating the 3DS on modern platforms provides for better graphical fidelity and some basic emulation features like Save State / Load State, configurable controls, and shader cache.
Explore the world of Nintendo 3DS gaming on your PC or smartphone with our top-ranked emulators. Discover features, compatibility, and performance for an enhanced gaming experience.
1. Citra
Citra is the only 3DS emulator worth your time. It is surprisingly capable although its devs have been coy all the time and keep on labeling their project as “experimental”. As of this writing, there are 162 “perfect” games. Perfect in emulation scenes means that the emulator can play the entire game from start to finish without performance issues such as graphical artifacts or audio glitches. Popular games that are running on Citra are the following:
- Bye-Bye Boxboy!
- Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D
- Mario Miracle Cure
- Etrian Odyssey IV: Legends of the Titan (among other games)
- Gunman Clive
- Hey! Pikmin
- LAYTON’S MYSTERY JOURNEY
- LEGNA TACTICA
- LEGO Ninjago: Shadow of Ronin
- Mario and Luigi: Superstar Sage + Bowser’s Minions
- Mario Party Star Rush
- MIGHTY GUNVOLT
- Mighty Switch Force!
- The two Nano Assault titles
- Need For Speed: The Run
- PAC-MAN & Galaga Dimensions
- Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy
- Picross games
- Retro City Rampage: DX
- Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey Redux
- Sonic Generations
- SteamWorld Dig 2
- SteamWorld Heist
- Steel Dive: Sub Wars
- Tekken 3D Prime Edition
- VVVVVV
- Wario’s Woods
- YO-KAI WATCH games
- Luigi’s Mansions
One-hundred 76 games also play “Great” like Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, BIT.TRIP SAGA, and Dragon Quest VIII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past. Some games play only “Okay”, these are not recommended games to play on Citra since only the enthusiasts can tolerate all the bugs and performance issues. Games in this category include Conception II: Children of the Seven Stars, Detective Pikachu, and Pokémon Y.
Unfortunately, Gurumin 3D: A Monstrous Adventure (one of the most underrated games but good thing it is available on the PSP and there are PSP emulators that run this game perfectly and improve the graphics substantially ), Harvest Moon 3D: The Tale of Two Towns and METAL GEAR SOLID SNAKE EATER 3D are in the “bad” category, meaning the most passionate of players just can’t take it anymore in playing them on Citra no matter how good these games are, that is how bad they play currently.
For the past couple of years: Citra had been improved with several features being added. For those who are speedrunning enthusiasts, there is already a rerecording feature, albeit basic. This rerecording feature follows the stringent requirement for TASVideos. Although admittedly basic, has its own uses.
There are also customs folders, improving support for Picture-in-Picture custom layouts, GameCube controller support, and support for custom textures and texture dumping.
However, Citra has telemetry running behind the scenes. If you are wary of spying, it can be opted out. While all the promises of making your identity and location anonymous, those are just, you know, promises.
Pros
- Actively in development
- Feature-full
Cons
- Cannot emulate 3DS homescreen
Download from Official Website
2. Citra MMJ
This emulator is forked from the original Citra and is aimed at making popular games run smoothly on cheaper smartphones. Citra MMJ is an impressive Nintendo 3DS emulator designed specifically for Android devices, developed by the talented programmer weihuoya. Technically, this is just Citra with extra steps, but it is a far different thing as it sacrifices stability for performance.
Citra MMJ is, again, known for its superior performance, providing a much smoother gaming experience than the mainline Citra emulator on Android on select games. Users have reported less stuttering, faster loading times, and improved graphics. Moreover, Citra MMJ also offers additional features that are not present in the original Citra.
While the minimum hardware requirements for Citra MMJ are not explicitly defined, users have reported that it runs smoothly even on weaker hardware, outperforming the mainline Citra emulator in this regard. This means that gamers with low-end Android devices can still enjoy their favorite 3DS games without any performance issues.
It’s important to note that since Citra MMJ is an unofficial fork of the original Citra emulator, support is not available from the official developers.
Pros
- Good performance in weaker hardware
Cons
- Hacky
- Unstable
3. Mikage
This is an emulator that is yet to be released but it looks like it is promising due to its ability to run the 3DS home screen. The developer also promised not to include ads, and that also probably means that there will be no telemetry, unlike Citra. This was announced in 2019 but its development started way before. This is a closed-source endeavor but the developer is amenable to changing this into open-source. Again, this emulator has yet to be released.
Currently, some games such as Animal Crossing: New Leaf, The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D, and Rayman Origins are running on the emulator.
Pros
- Launching games from the Home menu
- No ads
Cons
- Not yet available, and may not be in the foreseeable future
