The Circle Pad Pro features a second slider pad and three shoulder buttons, used to give the 3DS a more controller-like grip, and to make games such as RPGs or third person shooters more similar to those on consoles control-wise.

The C-stick on the New 3DS is essentially a pointing stick — one of those little nubs you might have seen on a laptop keyboard that works like a makeshift mouse/trackball. It doesn't move the same way as an analog stick or the 3DS's existing Circle Pad, but it senses pressure in all directions and moves accordingly.

in the browser the C-stick is used for zooming, but switches to controlling playback speed when playing media. in games the use varies, but the C-stick is most often used for camera controls, or aiming.