The 3DS and Wii U era gets another nail in the coffin as Nintendo stops repairing New 3DS consoles in Japan

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This comes less than two months after Wii U repairs stopped in Japan, too

Super Mario Odyssey - Mario underwater
(Image credit: Nintendo)

It feels like almost every day, we're given a fresh reminder that Nintendo's previous generation of hardware is well and truly a thing of the past, as it's now been announced that repairs for New 3DS consoles will no longer be offered in Japan. 

Back in February, a notice on Nintendo's Japanese support site revealed that the company would stop offering repairs for the 2DS, New 3DS and New 3DS LL (the Japanese 'XL' model) as soon as its existing stockpile of parts ran out. Well, that day has finally come for the New 3DS (the KTR-001), as Nintendo announced on Twitter earlier today. 

For the time being, customers in Japan can still receive repairs from Nintendo for their New 3DS LL, 2DS, and New 2DS LL systems, but again, it's a race against time for two of those models, so don't hang about if you're holding onto a handheld that's a bit worse for wear. 

This announcement comes less than two months after Nintendo's Japanese support site announced that the company had similarly depleted all its stock of parts for the Wii U and its peripherals, so everything from before the Nintendo Switch is definitely being phased out at this point. That's not to mention the shutdown of the Wii U and 3DS online servers back in April, which has rendered it impossible to play the online modes of games like Xenoblade Chronicles X, Splatoon 1, and Animal Crossing: New Leaf in an official capacity. With that said, one Mario Kart 7 player is still hanging on, connected with no one left to play with, so shout out to him. Even so, it's impossible to deny at this point that the Wii U and 3DS era is becoming an increasingly distant memory, which my nostalgic heart doesn't want to accept yet.

While you're here, be sure to check out our ranking of the 25 best 3DS games of all time. 

Catherine Lewis
Catherine Lewis
Deputy News Editor

I'm GamesRadar+'s Deputy News Editor, working alongside the rest of the news team to deliver cool gaming stories that we love. After spending more hours than I can count filling The University of Sheffield's student newspaper with Pokemon and indie game content, and picking up a degree in Journalism Studies, I started my career at GAMINGbible where I worked as a journalist for over a year and a half. I then became TechRadar Gaming's news writer, where I sourced stories and wrote about all sorts of intriguing topics. In my spare time, you're sure to find me on my Nintendo Switch or PS5 playing through story-driven RPGs like Xenoblade Chronicles and Persona 5 Royal, nuzlocking old Pokemon games, or going for a Victory Royale in Fortnite.