After more than a decade since the Wii U and 3DS release, Nintendo is now moving forward with its shutdown of the online servers for these previous generation consoles starting today, April 8.
This means that players will no longer get the chance to connect to the online experiences for select games whose servers were still available and use their remaining balances in the eShop.
Gamers already saw this move coming, and new titles were no longer released for both consoles since Switch settled as its current-gen gaming platform.
Nintendo Wii U, 3DS Online Servers Now Shut Down
Nintendo officially shut down online services for the Wii U and 3DS consoles effective April 8, 2024, following the company's previous announcement notifying gamers of this move.
This was made earlier this year in January when the company announced that online play and other connected experiences would no longer be available by the deadline.
This means that the 3DS and Wii U online services for the company's software titles can no longer connect to online play and other functions available.
Nintendo gave the world a long time for this experience, with the 3DS released in 2011 and the Wii U arriving in 2012, alongside the online experiences.
No More Access to Online Play, eShop Credits
According to a previous update by Nintendo, gamers were given until March 11 of this year to transfer their remaining eShop credits and balance to their Switch Online accounts, which they may use for other purchases and more.
However, those who still have it can no longer access it as the deadline has elapsed, and the company has officially shut down the online servers.
Nintendo's Online Console Experiences
When Nintendo released the Switch console in 2017, the Wii U and 3DS were six and five years old, respectively, and it was high time for the new console to take the spotlight for the Japanese entertainment company.
Fast-forward to 10 months after Switch's release, and it had already toppled the Wii U's numbers in its four-year run, and the 3DS was still going strong in the market then.
Last year, in March 2023, Nintendo closed down eShop access for Wii U and 3DS, which means that all the available in-game purchases and title sales were no longer available for gamers.
This meant that those looking for new games had until the closure date to purchase these titles from retro game sellers who still had physical copies available.
The only remaining supported experience for the Wii U and 3DS was its online gaming services from Nintendo, but it is already high time for the consoles to take their rest from connected play.
Nintendo's move towards this shutdown gave Wii U and 3DS gamers an extended time to experience what the previous consoles offered, with more than a decade made available to them by the company.
