Nintendo 3DS Gamer’s Sealed Case Crumbles to Dust

A gamer named Randolph Co posted something wild online, and I, for some bizarre reason, just can’t shake it off. So, they had this Nintendo 3DS case, brand new, ya know, all sealed up like an ancient treasure. And guess what? It turned to dust. Like, actual dust. Yeah, true story.

Nintendo stuff—usually tough as nails, right? I mean, these things survive toddlers and falls from countertops. So, a 3DS case seemed like a smart bet to keep it safe from life’s little accidents or just let folks jazz up their gadget without messing with the original look. But heads up, maybe peek at your own 3DS case collection just in case it’s plotting some sneaky disintegration.

Anyway—where was I? Oh, right—it’s like Randolph cracked open the box and poof! Crumbs. The case once had this funky design with slimes in fun colors, totally gone now. Like, if you ever bake cookies and forget about them until they’re ash. Weird, huh?

So what happened? No official word from Randolph, but the thing’s made from TPU. Yeah, thermoplastic polyurethane—fancy words for a material that’s basically designed to vanish after a few years. This case hit the market back in 2015, so, do the math—it’s bio-goo by now.

Biodegradable plastics, supposed to be great for, like, Mother Earth and stuff, but terrible for collectors who want their gaming gear pristine forever. Guess the makers didn’t think people would hang on to these cases longer than a few years or that it’d get so beat it’d be tossed. Not all 3DS cases were made like this though, so maybe your collection is safe. But with the 3DS launched in 2011, who knows how many more have evaporated into nothingness?

Gotta say, a bit mind-blown here. Or, maybe it’s just one of those odd things that stick in your head like a song you can’t shake off. Anyway, that’s the curious case of the disappearing 3DS case.