We already knew it, but Nintendo is adding a layer: The Wii U and 3DS blinds will indeed close on March 27, 2023, the firm recalls. Players have until August 29, 2022, to add their vouchers. As for the criticism of the preservation of retro games, the manufacturer wants to be evasive, to say the least.
The concerns started in July 2021. In the shadows, Nintendo is asking developers to stop adding their games to the Wii U and 3DS stores, which already didn’t bode well for the future. The suspicions were confirmed a few months later, in February 2022. The Japanese company then announced that the said stores will close permanently in March next year.
Since then, it has been dead quiet from the Japanese offices. Despite complaints from players, Nintendo appeared to be deaf. However, the community hadn’t completely given up on it, revived by the turnaround at Sony regarding the closing of the PS3 and PS Vita blinds. Finally, it doesn’t work at Mario’s parent company. In a blog post, the latter confirms once and for all the death of its old consoles, which will take place on March 27, 2023.
This announcement doesn’t come out of the blue, as the expiration date of gift cards in stores is fast approaching. Indeed, players have until August 29 to add their vouchers to their accounts. After this date, they are no longer usable. In contrast, certain services will be maintained in the spring of 2023. Especially the online game servers continue to run. In addition, already purchased games remain downloadable for a short period of time.
However, the question of preserving the heritage of video games arises. In an FAQ about closing the blinds, Nintendo tried to answer it by stating that the Switch Online subscription offers 130 classic games in emulation on the latest console. “De [joueurs] can find not only games they remember or have heard of but also other fun games they might not otherwise have thought they would look up,” the company said.
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