Nintendo Switch eShop and Online Services to End in China in 2026 - News
by William D'Angelo , posted on 01 December 2024 / 2,791 Views
Nintendo and partner Tencent have announced the Chinese Nintendo Switch eShop and online services will be shutting down in 2026. This move will only affect players who own the official Chinese version of the Nintendo Switch.
On March 31, 2026, the Nintendo Switch eShop will stop selling games and other software in China. All paid and free titles will no longer be available to purchase or claim. On May 15, 2026, players will no longer be able to download games, DLC, or redeem codes.
Nintendo Switch owners in China who has an active WeChat account associated with it will receive up to four Nintendo Switch games for free as compensation from November 27, 2024 until March 31, 2026. They will be able to choose from the following games:
- New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe
- Super Mario Odyssey
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe
- Super Mario Party
- Mario Tennis Aces
- Yoshi’s Crafted World
- Flexible Brain School
- Dr Kawashima’s Brain Exercises
- Kirby Star Allies
- New Pokémon Snap
- Pokémon Go! Pikachu
- Pokémon Let’s Go! Eevee
A life-long and avid gamer, William D'Angelo was first introduced to VGChartz in 2007. After years of supporting the site, he was brought on in 2010 as a junior analyst, working his way up to lead analyst in 2012 and taking over the hardware estimates in 2017. He has expanded his involvement in the gaming community by producing content on his own YouTube channel and Twitch channel. You can contact the author on Twitter @TrunksWD.
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The Chinese e-shop only has like 50 games on it. Because most Consoles in China are import, this shutdown is not really that big of a deal.
It’s a lot of free stuff for one thing. But yeah, the one thing I wish is that Nintendo migrated over their EShop/WiiWare/VC stuff over to the Switch environment from Wii U/Wii/3DS/DSi. At least, I hope Switch is the last Nintendo system with an abandoned digital distribution platform.
I’m guessing the switch has something to do with moving from a Chinese government service to one owned by Nintendo for the Switch 2, or another Chinese government owned organization.
I’m not entirely sure how things run over there regarding services.
It almost certainly has to do with new gaming regulations imposed by the CN government. Nintendo probably decided that it isn't worth it, and is now pulling the plug. The Chinese Switch wasn't particularly successful in the first place, as most Chinese gamers would rather import a regular Switch from HK or Japan.
Maybe I will be able to answer the question in the future: Last month I was in Shanghai and bought the Chinese version of the Switch. The salesman was very surprised why I don't want to buy the HK or Japanese version as they are 1. cheaper and 2. have no censorship for eshop and online gaming. But I insisted on the Chinese version as I wanted to have it as a collectors item - who knows maybe in future this specific version is worth something. I don't intend to open the package. But the price was really good: Converted to USD, for the OLED model I paid a bit less than $250 (incl. a personal special discount from this salesman). The salesman was still confused and he checked online and told me that I'm really a pro because he found out that the Chinese version was sold out everywhere.
China being China,
Don't know if they want to make money or say no to money
And people wonder why us physical-media guys are so paranoid lol
No context?
Here's your context:
“However, due to recent changes in the service provider’s business in China, it is no longer able to undertake the responsibility, and Nintendo is unable to transfer the relevant work to a new third party. Causing Tencent, which is responsible for the operation of Switch in the Bank of China, to make relevant adjustments.”
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