Looks like bad news to all Nintendo users out there!
Nintendo has announced that they're cutting off all Wi-Fi connections to your Nintendo DS and Wii on May 20, 2014. Several game titles will be affected by the disconnection.
The move was announced by Nintendo of Japan and will mean the end of several features. Online play, matchmaking and leaderboards will cease in many popular games, including Animal Crossing: Let's Go to the City, Mario Kart Wii, Super Smash Bros. Brawl, and the Pokemon series on DS. Nintendo says it plans to pull the plug on May 20, 2014.
Not all services will be cut, however. If you're using your Wii or DS to surf the web, watch Netflix or YouTube videos or digitally purchase games, you'll still be able to do so after the Wi-Fi Connection service is shut down. And, naturally, players on the 3DS and Wii U will continue to have full access to those features.
Nintendo made it clear this would be a 'global' shutdown, but it didn't give a clear reason on why it decided this time to lower the boom.
Nintendo has made a statement to the situation,
"We at Nintendo sincerely thank our fans for their continued support of our company's legacy systems. Your enthusiasm for games made for these systems speaks to their longevity, and the passion of Nintendo fans."
Nintendo has been looking for ways to cut costs for some time now. The recent slashing of its financial forecast only reinforced those efforts.
The company has drastically reduced its Wii U sales forecast, dropping it from 9 million to just 2.8 million, and conceded that the holiday season was a bust. The company now expects to have life-to-date Wii U sales of 6.25 million units by March 31. The PS4, by comparison, has sold over 5.5 million units since its launch and will possibly top the life-to-date sales of the Wii U by the end of next month.
A list of game titles that are affected by the disconnection are as follows:
Nintendo DS
100 Classic Books
Animal Crossing: Wild World
Advance Wars: Days of Ruin
Clubhouse Games
Custom Robo Arena
Diddy Kong Racing DS
Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies
Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker 2
Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon
Fossil Fighters: Champions
Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass
Mario Kart DS
Mario vs. Donkey Kong 2: March of the Minis
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem
Metroid Prime Hunters
Personal Trainer: Walking
Picross 3D
Picross DS
Planet Puzzle League
Pokémon Black Version
Pokémon Black Version 2
Pokémon Diamond Version
Pokémon HeartGold Version
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Darkness
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time
Pokémon Pearl Version
Pokémon Platinum Version
Pokémon Ranger: Guardian Signs
Pokémon Ranger: Shadows of Almia
Pokémon SoulSilver Version
Pokémon White Version
Pokémon White Version 2
Professor Layton and the Curious Village
Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box
Professor Layton and the Last Specter
Professor Layton and the Unwound Future
Star Fox Command
Style Savvy
Tenchu: Dark Secret
Tetris DS
WarioWare DIY
Nintendo DSiWare
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again!
Metal Torrent
Number Battle
Wii
Animal Crossing: City Life
Battalion Wars 2
Endless Ocean
Endless Ocean 2: Adventures of the Deep
Excitebots: Trick Racing
Fortune Street
Mario Kart Wii
Mario Sports Mix
Mario Strikers Charged
Pokémon Battle Revolution
Samurai Warriors 3
Sin & Punishment: Star Successor
Super Smash Brothers Brawl
Wii Music*
WiiWare
Dr. Mario Online RX
Excitebike: World Rally
LONPOS
Maboshi's Arcade
My Pokémon Ranch
ThruSpace
WarioWare DIY
Other
Wii Speak**
Wii Speak Channel**
(*) Services that require Internet communication ended on June 28, 2013.
(**) As Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection is required to use this title, it is no longer functional
