Yesterday, Nintendo announced on Twitter that the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U eShop will be discontinued by late March 2023, where “it will no longer be possible to make Nintendo eShop purchases for the Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems.” This means that all the systems within the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U families will be affected, including the New Nintendo 3Ds, New Nintendo 3DS XL, New Nintendo 2DS XL, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo 3DS XL, Nintendo 2DS, Wii U Deluxe, and Wii U Basic.
Although Nintendo’s announcement claims that they “are providing this notice more than a year in advance,” it’s happening sooner than stated. Users will no longer be able to use credit cards to add funds to their account in the Nintendo eShop by May 23, 2022. Users will also no longer be able to use a Nintendo eShop Card to add funds to their account by August 29, 2022. However, users will have until late March 2023 to redeem downloadable codes.
Nintendo also stated that users “who link their Nintendo Network ID wallet (used with Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems) with their Nintendo Account wallet (used with the Nintendo Switch family of systems)” will be able to use the balance to purchase content until late March 2023.
According to Nintendo, “The changes to Nintendo eShop on Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems will simultaneously take effect in software on these platforms where it is possible to make purchases, such as StreetPass Mii Plaza, Theme Shop and Nintendo Badge Arcade.” Nintendo also stated that “it will still be possible to redownload games and DLC, receive software updates and enjoy online play on Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems.”
Nintendo also made a website called My Nintendo 3DS & Wii U Memories, where Nintendo Account users can view their Nintendo 3DS or Wii U play activity from 2011 through 2020. Users can see their total playtime on the console, the total number of titles played, and their top three most played games and favorite genres. Users can also select their most memorable game from their available game library and share their reviews on social media.
Although this was expected since Nintendo shut down the Wii U and 3DS eShop in 42 select Latin American and Caribbean countries back in July 2020 and removed credit card payments for the Wii U and 3DS eShop in Japan last month, it’s still sad knowing it’s finally official. With that being said, make sure to clear some space so you can purchase games from the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U eShop before it’s too late.