Better spend your points: Nintendo DSi Shop closes at the end of March

By Danny Cowan March 28, 2017

nintendo dsi shop closes dsishutdown header 640x0 — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Nintendo is closing its DSi Shop at the end of this month, and players have until March 31 to spend any remaining points before permanently losing the ability to purchase new games.

While purchased games will still be redownloadable for the foreseeable future, Nintendo warns that any unspent DSi Shop points will be gone for good once the service officially closes at the end of the month.

Nintendo’s DSi Shop was a predecessor to the company’s cross-platform eShop, and was available exclusively to owners of Nintendo DSi and DSi XL portables. The DSi arrived in 2009 as a stopgap release between the original DS and the 3DS, and established a catalog of digitally distributed portable games for the first time in Nintendo’s history.

The DSi Shop hosted hundreds of digital DSiWare games, many of which were not released at retail. Popular DSiWare titles released over the portable platform’s lifespan include the puzzle-platformer Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Minis March Again, retro-style puzzler Pictobits, and the since-discontinued animation app Flipnote Studio.

While many DSiWare games are downloadable and playable on 3DS systems, many featured titles remain exclusive to DSi family portables. These games will no longer be available for purchase once the DSi Shop closes across all regions this week.

Last-minute DSi Shop purchases will not guarantee permanence, however, as Nintendo warns that the ability to redownload purchased DSiWare games “will also stop at some point.”

“You can still … purchase content in the Nintendo DSi Shop until March 31, 2017,” Nintendo said. “The ability to redownload Nintendo DSiWare games will also stop at some point; we will announce specific details as that time approaches.”

Nintendo adds: “Note that even after the Nintendo DSi Shop closes, most Nintendo DSiWare will continue to be sold in the Nintendo eShop on systems in the Nintendo 3DS family.”

Editors' Recommendations

Topics

Contributor

Danny’s passion for video games was ignited upon his first encounter with Nintendo’s Duck Hunt, and years later, he still…

Gaming

3 things I want in Fallout 5 after watching Amazon’s Fallout series

Lucy enters a house in Fallout.

Fallout has been the watercooler TV show this month, an impressive feat for a video game adaptation. Although Bethesda doesn't have any new Fallout games to release alongside it, the Amazon Prime series has reinvigorated interest in Fallout, with all its titles seeing notable player count increases. For now, we’ll have to be content with a Fallout 4 current-gen upgrade, but I’ll admit that my mind is drifting to thinking about Fallout 5.

Bethesda’s Todd Howard has teased that Fallout 5 will be the next project Bethesda Game Studios works on after Elder Scrolls 6. While that likely means its release is at least a decade away unless Bethesda fast-tracks it, I still find it fun to theorize about where a true single-player Fallout 5 could go next. These three particular things are what I want to see the most.
Set it somewhere new

Gaming

NYT Strands: answers for Monday, April 29

Strands is a brand new daily puzzle from the New York Times. A trickier take on the classic word search, you'll need a keen eye to solve this puzzle.

Like Wordle, Connections, and the Mini Crossword, Strands can be a bit difficult to solve some days. There's no shame in needing a little help from time to time. If you're stuck and need to know the answers to today's Strands puzzle, check out the solved puzzle below.
How to play Strands
You start every Strands puzzle with the goal of finding the "theme words" hidden in the grid of letters. Manipulate letters by dragging or tapping to craft words; double-tap the final letter to confirm. If you find the correct word, the letters will be highlighted blue and will no longer be selectable.

Gaming

Wordle Today: Wordle answer and hints for April 29

Someone playing Wordle on a smartphone.

We have the solution to Wordle on April 29, as well as some helpful hints to help you figure out the answer yourself, right here. We've placed the answer at the bottom of the page, so we don't ruin the surprise before you've had a chance to work through the clues. So let's dive in, starting with a reminder of yesterday's answer.
Yesterday's Wordle answer
Let's start by first reminding ourselves of yesterday's Wordle answer for those new to the game or who don't play it daily, which was "PRUNE." So we can say that the Wordle answer today definitely isn't that. Now, with that in mind, perhaps take another stab at it using one of these Wordle starting words and circle back if you have no luck.
Hints for today's Wordle
Still can't figure it out? We have today's Wordle answer right here, below. But first, one more thing: Let's take a look at three hints that could help you find the solution, without giving it away, so there's no need to feel guilty about keeping your streak alive -- you put in some work, after all! Or just keep scrolling for the answer.

Today’s Wordle starts with the letter C.
Today’s Wordle uses one vowel.
Today's Wordle can denote a particular skill, expertise, or ability in creating or executing something, often with hands-on work and precision.