Certain Nintendo 3DS & Wii U eShops Closing Soon

Nintendo has announced via its official Customer Service website that limited Nintendo 3DS and Wii U eShops will be closing in certain Latin American and Caribbean regions on July 31, 2020. “Limited” Nintendo eShops are basic variants on the standard eShop which can perform some tasks, such as game code redemption but do not feature access to all available titles for the console in question.

The list of affected regions is featured on the announcement page here. It does not include Mexico and Brazil, as these countries have access to “full” eShops rather than the limited version.

Nintendo encourages 3DS and Wii U owners in these regions to perform the following tasks before the shutdown:

    • Re-download any software previously obtained via the eShop
    • Check for and install any available updates to software you own
    • Redeem any download codes which you have not yet claimed

After July 31, none of the above functions will be available. Additionally, according to Nintendo’s announcement, “any software that requires the limited Nintendo eShops to operate may cease to function.”

The company was reluctant to provide any clear reasoning behind this decision. The announcement even includes a FAQ with the question asking why this decision was made. Still, Nintendo’s response is vague: “We constantly re-evaluate our business and make decisions based on a variety of factors.”

Nintendo also refused to comment about whether or not it planned to release full 3DS or Wii U eShops in the affected regions. However, they did reassure fans that no Switch eShops, whether limited or full, would be closing as a result of this decision.

The announcement was met with surprise, confusion, and even outrage by fans. In particular, many are now worried that the full Wii U and 3DS eShops available in other regions will close down, especially as Nintendo continues to prioritize the Switch and other future consoles. The Wii U, which had its last official game release in 2018, is of especial concern.

For now, Nintendo has refused to make any further comment beyond the officially posted announcement.

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