[Update 4] Nintendo eShop on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS now discontinued; Fire Emblem Fates, Pokémon Bank, and more impacted
Update 4: Nintendo has announced that the ability to merge funds from your Nintendo Network ID and your Nintendo Account will be discontinued on the following day:
- Europe: March 12th 2024 at 6AM
- UK: March 12th 2024 at 5AM
- North America (ET): March 12th 2024 at 12AM
- North America (PT): March 11th 2024 at 9PM
- Japan: March 12th 2024 at 2PM
Do keep in mind that you do not need a Nintendo Switch to create a Nintendo Account, which means you can merge funds even if you do not own one.
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Update 3: due to issues with reedeming Download Codes yesterday, the deadline for those has been extended until April 3rd 2023 at 9.30PM PT / April 4th 2023 at 12.30AM ET / 5.30AM BST / 6.30AM CEST / 1.30PM JST. If you have Download Codes for Wii U and/or Nintendo 3DS games left, make sure to redeem them before then!
Source: Nintendo (Twitter)
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Update 2: Nintendo have announced that from March 2024, users will no longer be able to merge the balance of their Nintendo Network ID and their Nintendo Account. After the option is discontinued, users will not be able to use any funds left on their Nintendo Network ID even if they link it to their Nintendo Account. In Japan specifically, Nintendo will offer refunds for any funds unused.
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Update: Nintendo have shared more details about the discontinuation of the Nintendo eShop on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS.
As of March 27th 2023 (5PM PT / 8PM PT) / March 28th (1AM BST / 2AM CEST / 9AM JST), it will be no longer be possible to purchase content on the Nintendo eShop on those two platforms (as well as in related games/services such as StreetPass Mii Plaza, the Theme Shop and Nintendo Badge Arcade). The download of free content (demos, etc.) is also impacted.
Also, sales of the digital version of Fire Emblem Fates ended one month before the Nintendo eShop was discontinued, on February 28th 2023. This presumably was to avoid people buying the game before they can reach Chapter 6 (which is when they can download and/or purchase the other story routes), giving them enough time to play through the first 5 chapters.
Finally, Nintendo announced that Wii Karaoke U will be discontinued on June 30th 2023 in Japan.
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Original article (updated with latest info)
It’s now been nearly 13 years since the Nintendo eShop was launched on Nintendo 3DS, and 12 years on Wii U. Unfortunately, the service is now discontinued on both platforms. Since March 2023, you can no longer make new purchases or download free Software, though you will still be able to redownload content you already own… at least, for a limited time.
Do note that the Nintendo Swich platform is not impacted whatsoever: the announcement is exclusively about the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U systems!
Here’s the planning for the Nintendo eShop discontinuation on those two platforms:
- As of May 23, 2022, it is no longer be possible to use a credit card to add funds to an account in Nintendo eShop on Wii U or the Nintendo 3DS family of systems.
- As of August 29, 2022, it is no longer be possible to use a Nintendo eShop Card to add funds to an account in Nintendo eShop on Wii U or the Nintendo 3DS family of systems. However, it will still be possible to redeem download codes until March 27th 2023.
- As of March 27th 2023, it is no longer be possible to do any of the following:
- Purchase any content
- On Nintendo 3DS, this includes paid content, plays and passes in software such as StreetPass Mii Plaza, Theme Shop, Nintendo Badge Arcade and Pokémon Bank.
- On Wii U, this includes passes in software such as Wii Sports Club.
- Download demos
- Download free-to-start software
- Purchase any content
- As of April 4th 2023, it is no longer be possible to do any of the following:
- Redeem a download code
- As of March 12th 2024, it will no longer be possible to merge funds between Nintendo Network ID and Nintendo Account.
- As of March 2025, users in Japan will no longer be able to ask for a refund for unused funds on their Nintendo Network ID (note: refund is not available if you have already merged the funds on your Nintendo Network ID and Nintendo Account).
If you still have funds on your Nintendo Network ID wallet by the time the Nintendo eShop is discontinued on Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, make sure to link your ID to a Nintendo Account. This will allow you to merge your remaining balance, and then use it to make purchases on Nintendo Switch. Do note that this option will only be available until March 12th 2024!
Also, Nintendo eShop pre-paid cards with Nintendo 3DS / Wii U branding can still be used to add funds on Nintendo Switch even after the Nintendo eShop has been discontinued on those platforms.
Here’s the features that will NOT be discontinued on March 27th 2023:
- all Nintendo eShop features on Nintendo Switch
- Redownloading content you already own (games, DLC, etc.)
- Downloading Software/Firmware updates
- Online play on Nintendo 3DS or Wii U (to be discontinued on April 8th/9th 2024)
- Download of a small selection of new Nintendo 3DS Themes
Unfortunately, Nintendo specify that users will only be able to redownload content they already own “in the foreseeable future”, which implies that it will become impossible to do so at one point in the future. In other words: don’t wait before (re-)downloading anything you want to (re-)download!
About Pokémon Bank
The Pokémon Company have announced that Pokémon Bank will be impacted by the discontinuation of the Nintendo eShop on Nintendo 3DS. Starting March 27th 2023, you will no longer be able to buy new subscriptions for the service (no refunds will be offered), which will become entirely free. It will remain free to use until the service itself is discontinued at one point in the future.
However, there’s a catch: you will no longer be able to download Pokémon Bank (and Poké Transporter) as of March 27th 2023, so if you want to keep using the service, you have to make sure to download both the Pokémon Bank and Poké Transporter apps before the Nintendo eShop is discontinued on Nintendo 3DS!
Also, do keep in mind that you will still need a paid subscription in Pokémon Home to transfer Pokémon from Pokémon Bank to Pokémon Home even after Pokémon Bank becomes free to use.
About Fire Emblem Fates
Fire Emblem Fates will be impacted by the discontinuation of the Nintendo eShop on Nintendo 3DS. To be more precise, players will no longer be able to buy any DLC for the game: the additional maps and the various Story Paths (Conquest, Birthright, Revelations). The game itself will no longer be available for purchase after February 28th 2023.
This is particularly important for players with the digital version of the game, as this discontinuation of the Nintendo eShop means they could end up with an incomplete version of the game, unable to progress past Chapter 6! To avoid this, players have to do the following before the Nintendo eShop is discontinued:
- Progress all the way to Chapter 6
- Select “Branch of Fate” from the start menu
- Pick up the Story Path you want and download it for free
- If you want to check out the remaining Story Paths, you will have to buy them before March 27th 2023 (this also applies to players who bought a physical copy of the game)
This particular issue is due to the fact that in the digital version of Fire Emblem Fates, all Story Paths are treated as DLC (with players being able to select one for free). There’s only one version of the game available digitally (as opposed to two for the retail version: Birthright and Conquest).
Nintendo wanted to make sure players only got to download content they have access to (and therefore, allow them to save space on their SD Card), but this solution was bound to cause issues when the Nintendo eShop was to (inevitably!) be discontinued.
About Wii Karaoke U
Nintendo have announced that Wii Karaoke U will be discontinued on June 30th 2023. Here’s the planning:
- Purchase of tickets: until March 28th 2023
- Using the Software: until June 30th 2023
