The End of an Era: Nintendo 3DS and Wii U Fade into Oblivion
Nintendo has just announced that their online services for the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U consoles will be discontinued on April 8, 2024, at 7:00 PM Eastern Time. This means that from that date onwards, these devices will lose access to online services, resulting in not only the closure of online stores, but also the inability to play online titles such as Mario Kart 7 and Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate with friends far away.
Rankings will be removed, and the distribution of game updates will cease as well. Although the online services will be turned off in one fell swoop, there will still be a foreseeable future where users can download updates and re-download previously purchased games and content from the Nintendo eShop. Unfortunately, no details have been provided regarding how long this ability will be available.
However, it’s important to note that Pokemon fans will not be as greatly affected by this end, as apps like Pokémon Bank and Poké Transporter will continue to function, at least for some time.
The Final Farewell
Last year, Nintendo closed the eShops for the 3DS and Wii U consoles worldwide, which was just the first step towards the complete shutdown of their servers. This meant that users could no longer make purchases or redeem codes. Now, with this final step, we bid farewell to the fantastic era of portable consoles.
The Nintendo 3DS, considered one of the best-selling consoles in Nintendo’s history, will now only be used with physically installed software or saved on compatible SD cards.
The End of Wii U
This is also the final nail in the coffin for the Wii U. Along with it, unique titles that players had the chance to experience during the console’s short lifespan will also fade away. Many of these games seem to be dormant franchises that will not return on the Nintendo Switch, such as Mario, Zelda, or Splatoon. We hope that some of these games will be re-released by Nintendo themselves before fans have to resort to less legal methods to experience them.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
The source of the article is from the blog meltyfan.es