Nintendo clarifies why SNES games won’t run on anything but a New 3DS

It seems suspect, but perfect emulation isn’t easy

Last week, Nintendo revealed that SNES games were coming to the 3DS eShop. Great! Except for the fact that they’re not only not Cross-Buy supported, but they also won’t even run on the old 3DS.

Speaking to Game Informer, Nintendo clarified this point a bit:

“As previously announced, New Nintendo 3DS has an improved CPU, which enables Super NES games to run on the system with quality results,” Game Informer was told by a Nintendo representative. “The Super NES games also include Perfect-Pixel mode, which allows players to see their games in their original TV resolution and aspect resolution.”

I uh, I’m not sure why the old 3DS couldn’t just pump out a “not perfect” resolution and still run the games (this is already done for a number of recent proper 3DS titles, some of which perform worse on the older unit). But there you have it — SNES titles are one of the very few exclusives the New 3DS has.

Nintendo Explains Why SNES Games Will Only Run On New 3DS [Game Informer]