It’s a sad day indeed. The rarely used, by exponentially loved by a select few, Wii channels including Forecast, News, Everybody Votes, Check Mii Out, and Nintendo Channel are being discontinued. Sure, news and weather eventually became useless, but the Everybody Votes, Check Mii Out, and Nintendo Channels are all part of great memories for me and Wii owners around the world. Sadly, Nintendo will be shutting these channels down this June.
What does this mean for Wii owners? Yes, you can still use Netflix, Hulu, the Wii Shop Channel, and play online, as well as receive letters from specific games on the message board, such as Wii Sports. However, you may no longer send messages to your Wii friends via WiiConnect24 (remember that!?). It also means that we will no longer see endless interpretations of Michael Jackson and Mario in the Check Mii Out Channel, no more trailers on our Wii via the Nintendo Channel, and no more exciting polls and intriguing data via the Everybody Votes Channel. Enjoy them while you can, Wii folk, as you never know what you got till it’s gone.
Source: Nintendo Life
The ending of WiiConnect24 makes me a bit sad. In high school, a couple friends and I used Wii messages all the time for various shenanigans. Say goodbye to sharing your Metroid Prime 3 bobblehead screenshots. I haven’t used the features in years but it’s sad to see these pieces of fleeting technology disappear, remembered only by the records of running machines.
My wife and I STILL use Everybody Votes! It’s a great little piece of passive, friendly competition.
I really hope that these services being “shut down” simply means some version of them is going to spring up on Wii U.
… maybe after E3? Say, ain’t dat in June?? =D
I’m really sad to see these channels being shut down, too. I cast ballots in the Everybody Votes Channel almost every day when it was first released, so I’m especially sad to see that one being discontinued. I really hope they’ll crop up on Wii U like NinSage predicted!
I’m also going to miss the Everybody Votes channel. I didn’t always keep up with it, but it’s a fun, playful, friendly little service. The worldwide polls often highlighted the differences between countries in really interesting (though maybe not statistically valid) ways.