The Video Game History Foundation has issued a statement on the closing of the Nintendo Wii U & 3DS eShops

By now, you’re more than likely aware of the announcement that Nintendo will be closing the Wii U and 3DS eShops in March of 2023. The response to the closures has been quite a lot of backlash, due in large part to a significant library of digital-only games not being preserved and available to buy anywhere else.

For example, the Video Game History Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving, celebrating, and teaching the history of video games, has released a statement about Nintendo’s Wii U and 3DS eShop closures. They say that, while “we understand the business reality that went into this decision”, they don’t understand “what path Nintendo expects its fans to take, should they wish to play these games in the future”.

The Video Game History Foundation states that Nintendo, as a paying member of the ESA, “actively funds lobbying that prevents even libraries from being able to provide legal access to these games”. While they say that “not providing commercial access is understandable” they state that “preventing institutional work to preserve these titles on top of that is actively destructive to video game history”. Their full statement is down below.