Fans of Nintendo fear that the Wii and DSi digital stores may be shutting down permanently after they have been down for days. Although Nintendo Switch has outsold the Wii, older Nintendo consoles are still used by many, and the lack of access to digital purchases on older Nintendo consoles will be devastating to some.
Even with the introduction of an extremely popular console such as the Switch, Nintendo fans are heavily attached to older consoles and their original games, with many still enjoying the 3DS, Wii, and Wii U hardware and software. While users have not been able to purchase any content from the Wii Shop Channel since 2019 or the DSi Shop since 2017, their previously-purchased games have remained available to download through the storefronts. Unfortunately for fans of older consoles, Nintendo is mainly focusing on the Switch at this point, with the Wii U and 3DS eShops set to close in 2023.
Fans are now worried that their digitally-purchased Nintendo content will be inaccessible as the Wii and DSi digital stores have been closed for some days. According to Kotaku, they may have just shut down completely without any notice from Nintendo. Eurogamer discovered that the shops have been completely offline since March 16, to Wii and DSi users' dismay. It's worth noting that Nintendo has not said anything about the shut down of either shop, as fans would most likely expect a warning so they can properly retrieve any purchased digital content they may have. While it very possibly could be due to technical issues or something similar, players are still reasonably worried about the outage.
The announcement of the upcoming closure of Nintendo's 3DS and Wii U shops damaged player trust in the company in the past, so it seems unlikely the company would completely take down other console shops without giving some sort of heads up. Some have stated that they have been able to access and download content through third-party tools, which is hopeful. Nintendo has previously stated that they have been planning to shut the Wii and DSi shops down eventually, but an announcement was expected.
Hopefully, digital Wii and DSi content will not be completely lost, and Nintendo players will have an opportunity to save any purchases. Nintendo has said nothing about the incident thus far, and no one knows the reasoning behind Wii Shop or DSi Shop's outage or what the outcome may be. Reactions are mixed, with some remaining hopeful about the preservation of older Nintendo consoles and others criticizing Nintendo's ethics and focus on Nintendo Switch. Although some NES and N64 games are available through Nintendo Switch Online, Wii and DS games may become all but obsolete if Nintendo has abruptly closed the digital stores down.