Summary
A recent update has reportedly shut down online play for players picking up new 3DS and Wii U consoles, with online play on the platforms expected to fully end early next year. The future of Nintendo’s last-gen platforms had already been revealed earlier this year, with Nintendo confirming thatNintendo 3DS and Wii U online serverswill be shutting down in April 2024. The eShops for both platforms were also closed earlier this year, with players no longer able to access the online marketplace. Now, new owners of the handheld platforms will apparently be losing online access earlier than expected.
While some fans will be sad to see the 3DS andWii Ugo, Nintendo has long since shifted its focus towards the Switch. Production for the Wii U ended as early as January 2017, just two months before the release of the Nintendo Switch. The 3DS would manage to survive for several years past the launch of the handheld-home console hybrid, with production of new consoles ended in 2020 and receiving new digital games as recently as last year. Now, however, online play has reportedly been shuttered on both consoles for new users.
As reported by NintendoLife, a recent update to the 3DS and Wii U has officially disabled online play for new 3DS and Wii U users. The error was reportedly discovered by players attempting to access theonline servers forSuper Mario Maker, with some players believing Nintendo had begun shutting down online servers early. However, the issue was later discovered to be exclusive to new 3DS and Wii U accounts, reportedly not being “synchronized” with the servers ahead of the impending shutdown. Existing users are still expected to be able to access the consoles' online servers until the official shutdown in April.
With the impending shutdown of online play for both the 3DS and Wii U, Nintendo has already brought several of the platforms' most popular games to the Switch. Nintendo has frequently releasedenhanced ports and remasters on Switch, with popular games likeBayonetta 2andSuper Mario 3D Worldmaking their way onto the console.Mario Kart 8 Deluxeeven went on to become the Switch’s best-selling game as an enhanced port of the Wii U’sMario Kart 8, originally debuting in 2014.
The upcoming shutdown of the Wii U and 3DS online servers comes following a busy holiday season for Nintendo with plenty of major releases. The last quarter of 2023 would bring a pair of new Mario games, with a remake ofSuper Mario RPGandSuper Mario Bros. Wonderas the newest 2D Mario platformer. ThePokemonfranchise would also see the launch ofDetective Pikachu Returns, as well as the “Indigo Disk” expansion forPokemon Scarlet and Violet. Nintendo’s newest updates look to begin the final farewell to the 3DS and Wii U’s online servers.
Nintendo Wii U
The Nintendo Wii U was the original successor to the Nintendo Wii and featured upgraded motion controls as well as a new controller that had a touch-screen tablet interface. It was part of the eighth-generation of the console wars and went toe-to-toe with the Xbox One and PS4.
