3DS GeForce Now: How the open-source app Kasumi turns Nintendo's ancient handheld into a cloud gaming device

TVS News AI, editorially supervised, presents 3DS GeForce Now: How the open-source app Kasumi turns Nintendo's ancient handheld into a cloud gaming device.

A developer named p0mpurin has released the open-source app Kasumi on GitHub, turning Nintendo's 3DS into a client for Nvidia's cloud gaming service GeForce Now. The tech magazine Frandroid picked up the project; VideoCardz had already spotted it on September 30.

Here's how it works in practice – a game runs on an Nvidia server, the 3DS receives the video signal, outputs the sound, and sends your button presses back to the cloud. So you're not playing old 3DS titles, but PC games from your Steam, Epic, or Ubisoft Connect library – on the tiny 800 × 240 screen of a handheld whose production Nintendo discontinued in September 2020. p0mpurin builds with OpenNOW on top of a family of free GeForce Now clients that already exist for the Switch and PS Vita.

Why only the "New" models join in

Before you dig the old 3DS box out of the closet: Kasumi only runs on New 3DS, New 3DS XL, and New 2DS XL – that is, models sold in Europe from 2015 onward. The reason lies in the hardware. Only these devices have a video decoder chip that the original 3DS lacks. You'll also need custom firmware such as Luma3DS, since Kasumi is a homebrew – an unofficial program that only runs on modded consoles.

The tinkering has all the hallmarks of a Frankenstein project, but it works and brings the handheld back from the dead.

What lands on screen – and what doesn't

The 3DS displays an image of 960 × 540 pixels – a quarter of a Full HD resolution – and by default at 30 frames per second. A 60 fps mode exists but is still in beta and needs a stable Wi-Fi connection. The data stream comes in at around 1.3 Mbps. The 3DS's 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi chip manages about 0.9 Mbps with virtually no loss; from 1.3 to 1.5 Mbps, packets start getting dropped, which Kasumi then requests individually from the server.

For comparison: Nvidia's own GeForce Now apps require at least 15 Mbps to play at 720p with 60 frames per second. Kasumi makes do with a data stream more than ten times lower – at a smaller image and half the frame rate. The Performance and Ultimate tiers are therefore hardly worth it, because the picture tops out at 960 × 540 pixels anyway, far from the 5K Nvidia officially promises.

What the latency probably feels like

The developer measured a network roundtrip of 60 to 80 milliseconds. That puts Kasumi just under Nvidia's 80 ms threshold but well above the recommended under-40 ms. Kasumi buffers one to two frames to smooth out Wi-Fi hiccups and overlays ping and fps live on the display. According to p0mpurin, the latency is fine for adventures, RPGs, and most action games – competitive shooters, less so.

The buttons adopt the layout of a PlayStation pad. L3, R3, and the PS button, which the 3DS lacks, are provided by the touchscreen; the gyroscope can be used for aiming. If you want, you can remap the layout per game yourself. Titles that only accept mouse and keyboard remain a problem – except on Steam, where Steam Input translates controller commands.

Even the free tier works

You don't need a subscription: Kasumi also works with the free GeForce Now tier, which admittedly comes with a queue and sessions of at most one hour. While you wait, you can close the lid; once the machine is ready, the 3DS's notification LED blinks and a tone sounds. You don't type your password anywhere on the console – Kasumi displays a code that you confirm on your phone or PC on an Nvidia page.

Steam Link and Xbox Cloud Gaming are also on board

The latest version of Kasumi is no longer limited to GeForce Now. It brings Xbox Cloud Gaming along in beta – most games require Game Pass Ultimate, but free-to-play titles like Fortnite run without a subscription. Also on board: Steam Link, which streams games from your own PC to the 3DS over your home Wi-Fi. This isn't entirely new – Moonlight-N3DS could already do that, with Sunshine or GameStream running in the background.

What this means for you

If you have a New 3DS sitting in a drawer, the app is free on the GitHub project page and updates itself from the console afterward. As with any third-party client, though, you bear the risk for your console yourself – p0mpurin himself describes it as a project for everyone who wants to breathe life into the 3DS one last time.