Nintendo killing off online services for Wii and DS
Nintendo have announced plans to close online services that use the “Nintendo Wifi Connection” name on May 20th. So bad news if you’re still playing Mario Kart DS.
Worry not though – the move won’t affect newer Nintendo consoles. Nintendo Wifi Connection was succeeded by the Nintendo Network a few years ago, which uses different infrastructure to provide online gaming to the Wii U and 3DS, so they will continue as normal. Similarly – given Nintendo are making big losses at the moment, it’s perhaps no surprise that this won’t affect the shop: the DSi Shop and Wii Shop Channel will continue to sell you games… just don’t expect to be able to play them online.
So what iss affected? Wikipedia has a big list of online DS games and Wii games. Some of the most high profile casualties include Mario Kart on both platforms, various Call of Duty games, Smash Bros Brawl, and Activision’s Goldeneye remake.
It was perhaps an inevitable move, marking the continued transition towards the latest consoles – presumably Nintendo are hoping that if anyone is still using the old platforms they’ll upgrade soon. Though Nintendo have also used this news to quietly announce the shuttering of the 3DS’s video channel, which never really made an impact. It allowed users to watch a very limited selection of 3D videos, so it is perhaps no surprise that they’ve given up.
So remember: You’ve got until May 20th to get together (virtually) with friends and play through Mario & Sonic at the Beijing Olympics one last time.
