Nintendo Fans Scored for Game Preservation Before 3DS and Wii U Server Shutdowns
Nintendo fans managed to preserve a good portion of game content on the 3DS and Wii U before the servers were shut down. On April 8th, Nintendo shut down the servers for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U, removing all online capabilities. However, to ensure that some features wouldn't be lost to history due to the lack of connectivity, a community of fans mobilized to create the SpotPass Archival Project.
The SpotPass Archival Project aims to preserve all the extras and game updates that games on the 3DS and Wii U received through SpotPass. Similar to StreetPass, SpotPass was a feature embedded in the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U that automatically connected the consoles to the internet and downloaded additional content from installed games. Before Animal Crossing: New Leaf shutdown, players received distributed items via SpotPass, while in Fire Emblem: Awakening, it was possible to acquire unique characters and optional chapters, for example.
With the shutdown of the Nintendo 3DS and Wii U servers, many of these extra contents would be lost forever. That's why the SpotPass Archival Project community moved to preserve numerous SpotPass data, and luckily, they succeeded. On the project's official website, they listed which 3DS and Wii U games had their SpotPass preserved. The SpotPass Archival Project aims to ensure that this data is accessible in the future, even without access to the online servers or the 3DS and Wii U eShop.
The closure of the 3DS and Wii U servers is already impacting old games. Although most of these console libraries can still be enjoyed without online functionality, players who never purchased DLC for a specific game or perhaps deleted it from storage have lost it forever. Super Smash Bros. for 3DS DLC can no longer be re-downloaded, which means characters like Cloud and Bayonetta are forever lost in the annals of time.
Another example is that all the Pokemon stored in the Global Trading System are permanently lost. Another game that lost much of its
