Nintendo promised that it wouldn't be doing the standard "Lite" or "SD" upgrades for the 3DS back when the system launched to a collective yawn from the gaming community in 2011, and although a little over a year later I now find myself staring at a giant version of the 3DS complete with 90% larger screen and full-length stylus, I have to admit that there was at least some truth to Nintendo's line. There is no second analog stick (you'll still have to pick up the Circle Pad Pro for that) and there's really nothing "lite" about this system. Nintendo has jumped straight from streamlining their handhelds, which frankly didn't need to be done with the 3DS's sleek frame anyway, to enlarging them. The end result? A surprisingly satisfying play experience, if my hands-on time is any indication.

I had the privelage of playing three different games on the 3DS XL before its scheduled launch of August 19th. During my time with New Super Mario Bros 2, Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon, and Kingdom Hearts 3D: Dream Drop Distance, the same impressions kept coming to mind. First and foremost is, obviously, the larger screen. Nintendo has been boasting that the XL's screen sits at a humungous 90% larger size than that of its predecessor, and while it may be hard to believe at first blush, it's clearly apparent in person. Given that many 3DS games now boast graphics comparable to those of the Gamecube, it's only natural for gamers to want a nice big screen to display them on, and the XL absolutely delivers on this front.

Having said that, the larger screen displays in the same resolution as the original 3DS screen, so you won't quite be hitting Vita levels of HD deliciousness. It's not that the games look low poly or underdeveloped on the larger screens; everything I played looked good, but it wasn't exactly difficult to pick out the individual pixels in the text of games, especially text-heavy ones like Kingdom Hearts, and it would have been nice of Nintendo to increase the screen's resolution along with its size.

The XL's bottom screen has seen a nice upsizing too, and although the upper screen is where most of the action is, the larger lower screen turned out to be one of my favorite improvements. See, I'm not a huge fan of playing DS games with the stylus. Unless a game demands pinpoint precision with the touchscreen, I'd much rather use a thumb to control the action. On the original 3DS model, my somewhat larger thumb could often obscure the screen itself. Thanks to the improved real estate of this newer model, I no longer have this issue. My thumb now fits comfortably on the bottom screen.

Of course, if you prefer to use a stylus Nintendo has you covered there, too. The XL's stylus is no longer retractable like the original 3DS model's, meaning that you won't have to fumble with extending the stylus each time you withdraw it from its sheath. It's a small change, but it counts for a lot in a casual play session. Other small changes include an additional stop on the XL's spine hinge and a redesigned series of Start and Select buttons, none of which I'm such a big fan of. When opening the original 3DS, the hinge wouldn't lock until the screen was all of the way back. There was an extra lock in the hinge for those who wanted the screen facing upwards a little more, but that was it. Now the first stop in the hinge comes a little after the system rests at a 90 degree angle, like a laptop computer. I guess the assumption is that, with the system's increased size, gamers are more likely to set the thing on a table and game with it like a laptop. I don't know about the rest of you, but I never found myself doing that in my time with the system. The Start, Select, and Home buttons feel similarly finicky. The buttons simply have too much give, and as a result they feel mushy and imprecise.

All of that is fine and good, but what of the biggest offender in the 3DS's stable? What of the simply wretched battery life? I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but it's absolutely unchanged. We'll have more in-depth studies and comparisons of the battery life once the system is on store shelves, but for now it seems like Nintendo has done little to remedy the awful lifespan of the original system's battery.

While much of this redesign remains a mixed bag, the design of the system itself is a shining high point. I never found the original 3DS to be unattractive; in fact, I'll freely admit that when I unboxed mine on launch night, I had trouble thinking of how Nintendo could improve upon the system from a purely physical standpoint. I now stand humbly corrected. Not only does the expanded size of the XL allow for a more comfortable grip in larger hands such as my own, but the sleek rounded corners and matte colors just look nicer than the original 3DS's harsh corners and glossy finish. I found myself wiping fingerprints from the system and its screen far less than I had come to terms with doing with the original.

The 3DS XL seems far from the perfect redesign, but in many ways it is superior to the regular old 3DS. The expanded real estate and new stylus make for a much more comfortable gaming experience, and the larger screens serve to showcase the system's gorgeous graphical capabilities very well, even if the resolution isn't what it could be. Having said that, I took my share of issues with the XL. The Start, Select, and Home buttons feel way too mushy, and the battery life still leaves a lot to be desired. It's not the perfect remake, but if you're in the market for a 3DS, I would absolutely recommend the XL over the original system.