3DS Gets Huge StreetPass Update – Is It Worth Your Time?

This week, the 3DS StreetPass Mii Plaza received a huge update from Nintendo. Two new StreetPass games are being offered, as well as a few minor changes and an optional, paid upgrade to the Plaza.

Let’s start with the basics. Everyone can get this update by opening StreetPass Mii Plaza, navigating all the way to the left, and selecting “Check for Updates.” This update is not mandatory, so your Plaza will not be updated unless you manually do so. There are a few tweaks that everyone will be seeing. The first and probably most welcome of these is the Game Vault. 3DS users can place StreetPass games inside the vault. After putting them inside, you will no longer be given reminders to play the game – now you don’t have to play Find Mii for the thousandth time just to get the exclamation point to go away. Games can also be rearranged, which might excite players who want to organize them by title or how often they play. You will also be given the option to customize the bubble that carries your StreetPass greeting. Bubbles are unlocked for each StreetPass game that you own, and can also be bought with tickets in the Exchange Booth.

Now, let’s talk about the games. The first new offering is called Battleground Z. This is a game where your Mii will use weapons generated by other Miis’ hobbies to defeat hordes of zombies and rescue your StreetPass plaza guests. It plays very much like the Pokémon Rumble series – it’s a simple hack and slash affair, with each weapon being capable of a basic attack and a charged attack. After an attack, the weapon’s condition gets worse. You can repair your weapon with tokens dropped by your defeated enemies. Battleground Z is colorful and interesting, and it is definitely a fun way to play with your friends’ Mii characters. However, it is clearly the more underwhelming of the two new offerings.

The second and, in my opinion, far superior new game is called Ultimate Angler. It’s a peaceful fishing simulator, and it’s deceptively simple and incredibly addictive. Each StreetPass hit provides you with bait. You use the bait to fish – you can either use it as it is or combine it with other pieces of bait to create new, unique types of bait. Each type of bait attracts a different type of fish, and you’ll have to get creative with your combinations if you want to collect them all. After catching a fish, you can display it in a tank and keep track of your catches in your journal. The fishing itself is a lot like the fishing found in Animal Crossing: New Leaf, but with a twist – after hooking your catch, you’ll have to rotate the circle pad to reel it in. If you reel too quickly, you’ll break your line, but if you reel too slowly, you’ll lose your catch. In addition, each Mii character that you pass can come to your aid if you manage to hook a big catch. This adds an element of strategy and a lot of replayability to the title. All things considered, Ultimate Angler is one of the most essential StreetPass games, falling just short of the excellence achieved in Spike Chunsoft’s Warrior’s Way.

You can pick these games up for $4.99 each or as a bundle for $7.99, which is what I would recommend. Even though Ultimate Angler outshines Battleground Z, they’re both worth picking up for such a low price.

What is probably not worth picking up is the $4.99 upgrade for the Mii Plaza. If you decide to pay for this update, you’ll unlock a few new features. StreetPass Birthdays and the VIP Room will be included in the update for everyone, but they will only be usable by those who upgrade. Every Mii you pass will have its birthday registered in your system, and, if you collect all 366 birthdays, you’ll earn a lot of tickets. The VIP Room lets you select your favorite Mii characters and place them in the VIP Room, ensuring that they will never be deleted from your system, regardless of how many Miis you come across.

Will you be updating your StreetPass Mii Plaza? If so, will you be picking up either of the new games or the deluxe upgrade? Let us know in the comments, and keep checking back with LoadTheGame for the latest 3DS news.