Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime announced on Wednesday that the company will disable online features on its 3DS and Wii U consoles starting in March. “We’ve decided that it’s not in the best interest of our consumers to have their systems connected to the internet,” Fils-Aime said during a Nintendo Direct presentation. “We want them to be able to enjoy their games without interruption, whether they’re at home or on the go.” Nintendo cited concerns about data security and piracy as reasons for disabling online play. The decision comes as a surprise, as both systems were released with built-in support for online multiplayer gaming. “This was not an easy decision, but we believe it is the right one for our consumers,” Fils-Aime said. “We hope that this change will allow them to continue enjoying our products uninterrupted.” ..
Starting in later March 2023, Nintendo will stop everyone from buying new digital games on their Wii U and 3DS consoles. Of course, you’ll still be able to head to your local video game retailer to purchase physical games, which adds more value to buying physical media.
Before you start panicking, you’ll still be able to download the games you have already purchased for either console, at least for the time being. Nintendo did announce that it would stop offering downloads of owned games for the original Wii at some point, so we have to assume the company will do the same for the Wii U and 3Ds.
As of May 23, 2022, you will no longer be able to use a credit card to add funds to an account in the Nintendo eShop on Wii U or the Nintendo 3DS. Additionally, starting on August 29, 2022, you will no longer be able to use Nintendo eShop Cards to add funds.
However, it will still be possible to redeem download codes until late March 2023, when the system for purchasing games shuts off completely.
Nintendo made sure to note that “No changes are planned for Nintendo eShop on the Nintendo Switch family of systems,” so if you’re using Nintendo’s most recent consoles, you have nothing to worry about.
However, the fact that Nintendo is shutting down the Wii U and 3DS stores leaves us to wonder about the long-term prospects of the Switch. When Nintendo decides it’s done with the Switch, will the company do the same thing? We’ll have to wait and see.
