Earlier this year, Nintendo had pulled the plug on the Nintendo eShop service for the Wii U and the 3DS. This meant that players could not purchase titles from the store after deactivating the store-front.
Now, Nintendo has announced on their official support that they will discontinue the online services for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U software in early April 2024. This will mark the end of online play and any online communication functionality.
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This also means that online co-op play and internet rankings will not be accessible anymore. While they have not announced the specific date and time, this news is unfortunate for the OG Nintendo fans.
Along with discontinuing the online services, all services for the features of Nintendo Badge Arcade will also end. Nintendo further clarified this move.
Firstly, after the service ends, Nintendo Badge Arcade will display an error screen when launched. This means that the Practice Catcher will no longer be available.
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Secondly, there is no chance of placing badges in the badge box after discontinuation. Users can access 100 categories and 1000 badges in the badge box. Nintendo recommended players finish placing the badges before discontinuing in April 2024.
Nintendo has warned players beforehand that the badge data for decorating the home screen will be saved as “Additional Data” to the SD Card. If lost, there is no way to recover it after discontinuing the service.
They also clarified that players could play offline even after the online services end. One caveat has also been mentioned wherein the online services can be used for select software like the Pokemon Bank and Poke Transporter.
“For the foreseeable future,” data will be downloaded and updated for purchased software and downloadable content found in the Nintendo eShop.
StreetPass will continue functioning using local communication between the Nintendo 3DS systems. However, SpotPass will not be able to continue as it uses online communication.
This announcement is not much of a shock to most fans as this was an action long overdue on the part of Nintendo to make space for the next-gen consoles and their services, such as the Switch and the rumored upcoming Switch 2.
About Nintendo
Nintendo is a Japanese video game and electronic company. They are well-known throughout the world for rolling out best-selling consoles and games.
Game Boy, Wii, and Nintendo Switch, etc., are some of the consoles that Nintendo is credited for. They are also applauded for making gems like Mario, Pokemon, The Legend of Zelda, etc.
From rich finances to high honors, Nintendo has it all!
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