Reminder: Nintendo DSi Shop shutting down next year

Update 2

If you live in Japan, or if you have a Japanese Nintendo DSi (XL), Nintendo has detailed the unused Nintendo Points refund procedure: click here for more details!

Update

The official English FAQ is now available: click here to check it out!

Some important details about the Nintendo DSi Shop discontinuation:

• the ability to re-download Nintendo DSiWare games will stop at some point, so not necessarily when the Nintendo DSi Shop is discontinued. More details will be announced soon. Of course, this does not apply to games transferred to a Nintendo 3DS, which will remain re-downloadable even when the Nintendo DSi Shop is fully discontinued.
• To the question “Can I use my Nintendo DSi points to fund my Nintendo eShop account?”, Nintendo answers that it is not possible “at this time”, implying that it will be possible in the future.
• To the question “Can I get my unused Nintendo DSi points refunded?”, Nintendo recommends users use all their points before the Nintendo DSi Shop is discontinued (on March 31st), but also explains that more details will be announced in the near future. It looks like there will be refund program!

Today, the web eShop for the Wii U and the Nintendo 3DS will go live in Europe and North America. And on the same day, Nintendo announced that the Nintendo DSi Shop would be shut down next year. Nintendo plans to end all services related to the DSi shop in two phases: one in September 2016, and a second one in March 2017.

• September 30th 2016, 11.59PM (JST): after that date, you will no longer be able to add Nintendo DSi points to your account;
• March 31st, 2017, 11.59PM (JST): after that date, you will no longer be able to access the Nintendo DSi Shop period, even to redownload content you previously bought. You have until that date to transfer your content to a Nintendo 3DS; if you don’t transfer it in time, it will remain stuck on your Nintendo DSi.

Nintendo recommends that users transfer all their content to a Nintendo 3DS before March 31st, 2017. That way, they will be able to redownload it at any time, from the Nintendo eShop. Also, DSiWare will still be available for purchase from the Nintendo eShop even after the Nintendo DSi Shop has been shut down.

However, that only applies to DSiWare titles that are currently available on the Nintendo eShop. Those which are not will be lost forever, such as:

• pre-loaded games
• Asphalt IV
• Flipnote Studio
• Let’s Golf
• Nintendo DSi Browser
• Oregon Trail
• Real Soccer 2009
• Real Soccer 2010
• SUDOKU MASTER
• SUDOKU SENSEI
• Sudoku Student

It looks like Nintendo will have a refund program for unused Nintendo DSi Points cards, but the company explained that more details about that would be announced at a later date. Right now, we don’t know whether a similar program will be available in Europe and North America or not.

Source: Nintendo