Nintendo Shutting Down Many Wii Online Services
Sad times ahead for Wii users who aren't planning on upgrading to a Wii U. While the Wii managed to gain Amazon Instant Video streaming capabilities after the Wii U was announced, it now looks as if things are sliding downhill from here on out. As consoles (and software / hardware of any description, really) begins to age, OEMs traditionally phase things out as the user base contracts. But you'd be hard-pressed to find anyone in the gaming community that would describe the original Wii as "old."
That said, Nintendo has made the decision to take a number of Wii Channels offline starting June 28th. The Forecast Channel, News Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, the Check Mii Out Channel will all be going dark at that point, while Wii Message Board and data exchange are slated to not be far behind.
The bigger question here, however, is whether or not this is a trend. Sony kept many PS2 services alive for some time, but the PS3 is a far more advanced and connected console. We'll be watching to see how fast the PS3 fades from Sony's memory once the PS4 hits the market. It'd sure be a shame to see online support end in haste, but then again, it takes a lot of resources to keep those things humming along.
That said, Nintendo has made the decision to take a number of Wii Channels offline starting June 28th. The Forecast Channel, News Channel, Everybody Votes Channel, the Check Mii Out Channel will all be going dark at that point, while Wii Message Board and data exchange are slated to not be far behind.
The bigger question here, however, is whether or not this is a trend. Sony kept many PS2 services alive for some time, but the PS3 is a far more advanced and connected console. We'll be watching to see how fast the PS3 fades from Sony's memory once the PS4 hits the market. It'd sure be a shame to see online support end in haste, but then again, it takes a lot of resources to keep those things humming along.
