Time To Say Goodbye: Nintendo To Close Its Wii U And 3DS Shops In March 2023

Fans of the Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS – the day has come.

Nintendo says it will close its Wii U and Nintendo 3DS eShops by March 2023. 

The move means that post-March 2023, gamers will no longer be able to buy games from the eShop for their Wii U and 3DS, and they will no longer be able to download free content – including game demos. 

But the move to close the eShops will start earlier.

As of 23 May, 2022, customers will longer be able to use a credit card to add funds to their account for the Wii U or Nintendo 3DS systems.

And as of 29 August, 2022, customers will not be able to use a Nintendo eShop Card to add funds to their account for the Wii U or Nintendo 3DS systems. But customers will be able to redeem download codes until March 2023. 

For those wondering if it would be possible to redownload games they own after March 2023 – Nintendo says yes, and that system updates and online play will continue to be available. 

The move to close the Wii U and Nintendo 3DS eShop, Nintendo says, is partly because of the declining popularity of the consoles. 

After all, the Wii U and 3DS were both launched over a decade ago and the gaming giant is now focused on the Switch, which is shaping up to be Nintendo’s most popular console.

Nintendo has no plans to offer classic content in other ways. They believe the Switch Online Membership plans are an effective way to make classic content available

More info: https://t.co/oRRYap8cIl pic.twitter.com/OSQm0rfZOC

— Wario64 (@Wario64) February 16, 2022

Fans also noted that when Nintendo first released the blog post, there was a section that asked if classic games for past platforms would be available for purchase anywhere else, and if Nintendo had an obligation to preserve classic games by making them available for purchase. 

Nintendo’s answer was to the point – no, they would not be releasing classic content in other ways.

Their answer came under intense fire on Twitter and Nintendo eventually removed that section from their Q&A. 

Our statement on the closure of Nintendo's legacy digital shops. pic.twitter.com/mG5GzuGH4G

— Video Game History Foundation (@GameHistoryOrg) February 17, 2022

Want to remember the times you’ve spent gaming on the Wii and 3DS? 

Nintendo has rolled out a website for gamers to memorialise their time spent on the consoles.

The website allows you to check out your play activity and most memorable game played – much like what Xbox and PlayStation did. 

*Featured image from Nintendo

By Samantha Chan \ 17:00pm, 24 February 2022