All articles tagged with #wii u
Nintendo has published its maintenance schedule for the week of February 1, 2026, noting a Wii U/3DS maintenance session later in February that will impact software downloads and the Nintendo eShop.
Nintendo has published its maintenance schedule for the week of January 25, 2026, with two sessions: Nintendo Store maintenance from late Jan 25 to Jan 26 across major time zones, and a February 12 window for Wii U/3DS software downloads, spanning PT, ET, UK and Europe.
The Nintendo Switch 2 has recently surpassed the sales of the Wii U, SEGA Dreamcast, and PlayStation Vita in the UK, marking a significant achievement for a platform launched only in June, and highlighting its growing popularity in the European market.
The Nintendo Store app now allows users to browse and purchase games and merchandise, as well as track detailed gameplay history for Switch, 3DS, and Wii U games, including playtime by day and session length, providing a new way for gamers to analyze their gaming habits.
The article ranks Nintendo's console launches from worst to best, highlighting the Wii U's failure, the GameCube's decent start, the nostalgic success of the NES, the revolutionary impact of the Nintendo 64, and the modern success of the Switch 2, emphasizing how each launch shaped Nintendo's legacy in gaming.
Devil’s Third, despite its poor reception and development challenges, was considered by director Tomonobu Itagaki in 2025 to be innovative for its time, especially in multiplayer gameplay that integrated strategic, operational, and tactical layers, though he would improve certain aspects if redoing it.
The Nintendo Switch, which has become Nintendo's best-selling hardware, builds on the ideas of the Wii U, offering seamless transition between handheld and TV gaming, and is set to continue this legacy with the upcoming Switch 2, emphasizing backward compatibility and enhanced features.
Nintendo's 3DS and Wii U online servers have officially shut down, marking the end of an era for dedicated fans who kept the service alive beyond its expected closure. The last player, known as Fishguy6564, managed to keep a 3DS lobby running until a system crash ended the online play. Alongside another player, Marioiscool246, they used a patch to prolong the service by having bots race each other. Despite the efforts, the servers have now gone dark, concluding a significant chapter in Nintendo's online gaming history.
With the end of online play for 3DS and Wii U games, a pitch is made for Nintendo to bring back several beloved titles to the Switch with enhancements, including local multiplayer for The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and Tri Force Heroes, improved controls for Kid Icarus: Uprising, a double pack for Kirby: Planet Robobot and Triple Deluxe, a Switch port for Xenoblade Chronicles X, an HD port for Metroid: Samus Returns, a potential NES and SNES Remix, and a remaster of Tomodachi Life with Miitopia's enhanced Mii Maker.
Following the shutdown of Nintendo's Wii U and 3DS servers, one dedicated Splatoon player remains active on the Wii U, playing through an emulator on a Steam Deck. Despite feeling lonely, the player continues to post map rotations and has no intention of logging off, even though the servers have officially closed. Other players have also expressed their determination to keep playing, with one advising against resetting the Wii U as the game servers are still active for many.
Before Nintendo shut down the 3DS and Wii U servers, a community project called the SpotPass Archival Project successfully gathered 23,000 data dumps to preserve DLC and other content from being lost forever. This effort involved rallying the 3DS and Wii U Homebrew modding community to save system data sent via Nintendo's Spot Pass program. The project aims to publish a completed archive of the collected data and is working on ways to preserve specific games like StreetPass Mii Plaza. This victory in video game preservation highlights the ongoing battle against time and the importance of preserving gaming history.
Nintendo has shut down online services for Wii U and 3DS, but a fan project called Pretendo is working to keep them alive by recreating Nintendo Network using clean-room reverse engineering. Although still a work in progress, Pretendo aims to provide continued access to online features for Nintendo hardware long after the closure of Nintendo Network. The shutdown has led to community efforts like Team 0% completing every Mario Maker level, while fans mourn the end of an era for the beloved gaming platforms.
The Pretendo Network, an open-source Nintendo Network alternative for the Wii U, no longer requires a hacked console to access its homebrew servers, thanks to an SSL exploit called "SSSL" that allows connection with a simple DNS change on stock firmware. While not all third-party titles are compatible, in-game Miiverse functionality still works. The workaround requires a Wii U running at least firmware version 5.5.5, and it remains to be seen if Nintendo will issue patches to address the exploit.
The fan-made Nintendo Network replacement, Pretendo, now offers a hackless method for connecting to the network on the Wii U, following the closure of Nintendo's official online servers for the Wii U and 3DS. The new method, called 'SSSL', utilizes a bug in the Wii U's SSL module and allows users to connect to Pretendo Network without the need for homebrew or custom firmware. However, this method is only available for the Wii U, and certain titles with their own SSL libraries will not be compatible with the unofficial network.
Nintendo has shut down online services for 3DS and Wii U, but fans have managed to keep their favorite games online by leaving their systems on, defying the planned shutdown. The Splatoon community rallied together to keep the game alive, while 3DS Pokemon players also found themselves inexplicably managing to complete online trades for hours longer than expected. Despite some players being forcibly removed, the community's determination to hang on until the very end is evident, although all good things must eventually come to an end. Online functionality is still available on Nintendo Switch.