Nintendo Wii U and 3DS have joined the ranks of legacy consoles. Both being released in 2011 and 2012 respectively, they are now a decade old. Wii U went head-to-head with Xbox One and PlayStation 4, while 3DS competed with PlayStation Vita in the handheld consoles category.

Now a thing of the past, these consoles were a pioneer in their time. Wii U was the first Nintendo console to support HD graphics. And 3DS was successful in displaying 3D effects without the use of 3D glasses. Although both these consoles were hardware specimens, the eShop of Wii U and 3DS was the key factor in their success. And now, that journey is seeing its end. 

Nintendo stops supporting Wii U and 3DS eShop

The Japanese giants recently announced that they’ll be shutting down the eShop support for Wii U and 3DS on March 27, 2023. While you would no longer be able to buy new games, pre-purchased games would still be accessible. Nintendo started prohibiting users from loading money into the Wii U and 3DS eShops in August 2022, signaling the discontinuance of the eShop.

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After March 27, the only way to buy Wii U and 3DS games would be through physical sales. Nintendo will be removing around 1000 digital-only games from the eShop, like Pokemon Rumble U, Pokemon Picross, and Luigi. Virtual console service will also be disappearing due to the closure of eShop.

Read More: This Is How Nintendo Can Assure Switch 2 to Be a Worthy Successor

This sparked a debate on the responsibility of Nintendo to preserve these classic games. While the initial reply from Nintendo was in the favour of preservation, they later changed the answers to this question in the Q&A forum. “We currently have no plans to offer classic content in other ways,” Nintendo said.

Fans are giving their regards to the end of an era

The discontinuation of the eShop reminded fans of the long journey these consoles had, and they were seen paying their respects. While Nintendo is trying to divert the users to Switch eShop, user @FSlider64 said, “it’s not the same”.

Another user dedicated a beautiful piano cover to say his farewell to the Wii U and 3DS eShop.

Twitter users like @KdogGaming31 and @OnTheDownLoTho tweeted about missing the eShop icon.

Fans also shared their memes bidding their farewell to eShop.

The fans are developing their own methods to deal with the loss of 3DS and Wii U eShop. What are your thoughts on the departure of the eShop? And how do you think Nintendo should preserve these games? Let us know in the comments down below.

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