On The Go with the New Nintendo 2DS XL

It’s no secret that my family is a gaming family. A family that games together has more fun, right? Of course we enjoy all kinds of activities as a family from hitting up the local playground to playing a game of soccer on the weekends. Sometimes though, it’s a whole lot of fun to play a video game together. Whether it’s the Mario Kart competition I’ve got going with my oldest son on the Nintendo Switch (truth be told, he wins most of the time), or King Dad showing him the ropes in Castlevania on the Nintendo NES Classic, we can have a whole lot of fun together with Nintendo. The New Nintendo 2DS XL lets our family combine our love of gaming with our love of family outings! Now we can take the fun on the road! The New Nintendo 2DS XL has been the perfect first personal gaming system for The Heir, who is six, plus it’s now bundled with our favourite Nintendo gaming experience of all time: Mario Kart 7. 

At six years old, The Heir is no stranger to Nintendo. King Dad’s love of Nintendo started at a young age in the early/mid 1980s, and his experience with Nintendo gaming systems has always been a positive one. He’s been not so slowly introducing The Heir to all of his favourite classic Nintendo games and The Heir has really taken to all things Mario. And who could blame him? I may just have a passion for playing Mario Kart myself. The New Nintendo 2DS XL Mario Kart 7 Bundle is packed with great features that make it a wonderful system for the youngest gamer in the house, and it comes with Mario Kart 7 preinstalled. The New Nintendo 2DS XL is filled with entertainment right out of the box AND it has awesome parental controls. That means I know The Heir can have a blast playing on this system and I can relax knowing exactly what he can (and can’t) access. There’s also an Activity Log, so I can keep track of the titles The Heir plays and how much time he’s spending playing on the system. I really appreciate that the game that comes preinstalled on the New Nintendo 2DS XL is Mario Kart 7. It offers a fun and high quality gaming experience, and it’s a title I know The Heir would have wanted anyway. It has all The Heir’s favourite characters including Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach! Having Mario Kart 7 already included in the system means I can spend what I would have spent buying it separately on another great Nintendo title. Win-win!

Speaking of great Nintendo titles, there’s a whole line up of Nintendo Selects Classics that come at an unbeatable price! I know The Heir is going to want to expand his game collection beyond the titles we already have (Mario Kart 7 and Luigi’s Mansion). With Nintendo Selects, we can pick up some great games for $29.99. At the top of The Heir’s wish list are Super Mario 3D Land and Zelda: A Link Between Worlds. In addition to Mario, Luigi, and Link, Nintendo Selects titles feature all the best characters from the Nintendo worlds including Kirby, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, and so many more!

Want to know what really makes the New Nintendo 2DS XL so much fun? It’s oh so portable! With two kids we are on the go a whole lot of the time. There isn’t always time to sit down and enjoy our Nintendo console games that we like to play together at home. The New Nintendo 2DS XL lets The Heir take his love of gaming on the road. Now that we’ve moved back to BC, we have lots of family asking for visits. That means a lot of time in the car. Yes, The Heir does still fall asleep in the car sometimes, but more often than not he’s awake even for the three hour drive to our family’s beachfront cabin. He can play his New Nintendo 2DS XL while Petit Prince enjoys a car snooze, and King Dad and I get a break from being asked “are we there yet?” every 5 minutes. It’s awesome.

We don’t spend every weekend away from home, but every weekend is filled with fun outings and activities for the kids. One of our favourite weekend rituals is going out for brunch after The Heir’s soccer practice. The wait for a table at our favourite brunch spot can be long, but The Heir brings his New Nintendo 2DS XL along and actually enjoys the wait! One of the perks of living on the West Coast is being so close to the ocean all the time. I love grabbing a coffee with King Dad and spending some time watching the ships passing through. Petit Prince loves watching all the high flying kites, and The Heir plays his New Nintendo 2DS XL while King Dad and I finish our coffees. Then it’s down the path and up the block to explore the park and run off all that energy at the playground.

When choosing the first personal gaming system for The Heir, it was important that the system was the right size for him. He is only six, so his hands aren’t overly big. I wanted the system to fit nicely in his hands and for all the buttons and controls to be easily reached. The New Nintendo 2DS XL fits great in The Heir’s hands. So far he’s found the controls really easy to learn and everything is within reach of his fingers. What’s not small about it is the screen! Despite being a compact and portable system, the screen is big. It makes game play a really nice viewing experience, and the screen is a good size for those times when mom (or dad) want to see what The Heir is playing and even help him along the way.

In addition to Mario Kart 7, we also have Luigi’s Mansion. This game is loads of fun and a little spooky which I love. As this game requires a fair amount of reading to play, The Heir does need guidance to make it through each area. I’ve been more than happy to help him along and I’ve enjoyed watching it so much that I have started my own game in Luigi’s Mansion on the New Nintendo 2DS XL. Because I can totally guide him through it much more easily if I’m already halfway through the game myself, right? Truth be told, I have been packing The Heir’s New Nintendo 2DS XL in my purse on Petit Prince’s preschool days. It’s fun to squeeze in a quick Star Cup Grand Prix when I arrive a little too early for pick up time.

If your family is anything like mine and you love gaming together, the New Nintendo 2DS XL Mario Kart 7 Bundle is the ideal first personal gaming system for the youngest gamer in your house! Your kids will love this portable system and the game play experience of Mario Kart 7 that comes pre-installed, you’ll love the parental controls and the Nintendo Selects games that offer classic Nintendo games featuring all the best characters at a great price.

The New Nintendo 2DS XL Mario Kart 7 Bundle retails for $199.99 CAD and Nintendo Selects games are just $29.99. Click here to read more about the New Nintendo 2DS XL Mario Kart 7 Bundle. Find the full range of Nintendo Selects games and grab your little gamer’s favourites right here. Stay up to date with all the latest news and updates from Nintendo by following the Nintendo Canada Facebook page and Nintendo Canada on Twitter!