If you don’t think you’re getting old, then think again. As of today, March 28 2023, the Nintendo Wii U & 3DS eShop has officially been shut down. This was inevitable, given that the 3DS and Wii U were both released more than a decade ago. So what does this mean for people who still own and enjoy these particular devices?

Long story short, people can no longer buy content or try new demos on the Nintendo Wii U & 3DS eShop. This is the death of new, fresh content on these consoles as we know it. Thankfully, users who stocked up on credits or money within these platforms can transfer them over for use on the Switch family of systems. It’s a gentle nudge by the brand to move onto their latest devices.

There’s no real reason for it. Nintendo just claims that this was a sad yet expected part of the product lifecycle. We hypothesize they’ve done this in order to focus company assets on profit-generating business revenue streams such as the Switch family, or funnel efforts into the next-generation line of products.

There’s a silver lining though. While users won’t be able to access any new content whatsoever, they can still download existing content they’ve already bought and currently own on the platform. Also, Nintendo isn’t planning to axe online play on these consoles anytime soon.

As we gradually wave goodbye to services like the Nintendo Wii U & 3DS eShop, and eventually total support for the consoles themselves, all we can give is a silent salute as these devices have redefined quite a lot of childhoods (or mid-life crises). Respect!