But the day Nintendo pulls the plug on the Wii Store Channel should be a strong warning those who care about video game preservation, and any consumer who uses a digital store: We often don't truly own products we buy digitally, and when one of these digital stores go down, piracy is often the only way to preserve its history.Īs it stands, even after the store officially closes, Wii users will be able download any past titles they’ve purchased and downloaded from the Wii Shop Channel, provided they can fit them on either the Wii’s internal storage or an additional SD card.
Especially given Nintendo gave customers plenty of time to spend any remaining Wii Points long before the storefront was shuttered. On its surface, the company’s move is easy to brush aside as the natural, evolutionary demise of a service tied to an aging console.
Nintendo removed the ability to purchase in-store currency (Wii Points) last March, and starting January 30, users will no longer be able to purchase any WiiWare or Virtual Console games from the service. After more than a decade online, Nintendo will be shutting down the company’s Wii Shop Channel this Wednesday.
