Xenoblade Chronicles is coming to the new 3DS, won't work on older hardware

Nintendo has announced a new model of the popular 3DS line of portable systems, and the updated hardware has its first exclusive game: Xenoblade Chronicles, a port of the 2010 open-world Wii title.

This explains Shulk's now-confirmed appearance in the upcoming Super Smash Bros. release, use of Xenoblade characters will only help to promote the 3DS game.

Very little is known about the 3DS version of the game, although you can watch the trailer below, straight from Nintendo Direct this morning.

Here's the catch: This version of the game will only be able to be played on the new 3DS hardware, meaning owners of the older hardware will be locked out. "The remake is something they’ve previously wanted to do for the Nintendo 3DS, but were not able to due to its lack of CPU power, but now that it’s getting a boost with the newer version, it has been made possible," Siliconera reported.