Nintendo ends online sales of games in Russia

Nintendo has said it will no longer sell games in Russia through its online store as the Japanese giant winds down operations in the increasingly isolated country.

The changes, which were announced and came into effect on Wednesday, follow Nintendo’s suspension of product shipments to Russia in March 2022 after the invasion of Ukraine.

Russian customers can still re-download previously purchased content but no new payments can be made or new accounts created, a Nintendo statement said.

Following the shipment suspension and “as a result of the economic outlook, Nintendo of Europe has decided to wind down operations of its Russian subsidiary”, it said.

“Payment information tied to Nintendo accounts, such as credit card or PayPal account details, has been deleted for security reasons.”

Nintendo’s eShop was already “under maintenance” in Russia because its payment provider had stopped ruble transactions.

A growing number of multinationals have fully or partially halted business in Russia since the Ukraine war began.

Some have cited disruption to business, while others have directly linked the move to outrage over President Vladimir Putin’s decision to send troops into Ukraine in February last year.

Nintendo’s rival Sony suspended software and hardware shipments to Russia and operations of the PlayStation Store there in March 2022.

© 2023 AFP