[Update]: Pokemon Bank Is Now Free To Use On 3DS, Poke Transporter Faces Issues
Following the closure of the 3DS eshop earlier today, the Pokemon storage app Pokemon Bank is now free to use on the console.
Players who downloaded Pokemon Bank before the closure should now be able to use the app for free, with the expiration date listed as “?40”. The app allows players to transfer Pokemon from their 3DS games up to their Switch games. At the time of this writing, it is not known how long the service will remain available for, although it was stated to remain live for the foreseeable future.
Serebii Update: The Nintendo 3DS eShop will now no longer allow for new purchases. As such, Pokémon Bank is now free to use for the foreseeable futurehttps://t.co/AtpMrdsaui pic.twitter.com/2t0lTDLbCZ
— Serebii.net (@SerebiiNet) March 28, 2023
Unfortunately, it seems some players are facing problems with Pokemon Bank‘s companion app Poke Transporter, which transfers Pokemon from DS to 3DS games. According to reports, players who did not have an active Pokemon Bank subscription at the time of the closure are now not able to use Poke Transporter. However, players who did have an active Pokemon Bank subscription have reported they can use Poke Transporter with no problem.
I renewed my Pokemon Bank a couple of weeks ago for a video, & Poke Transporter works.
However, some are claiming that if your Bank Pass expired at store closure time (30 minutes ago) that you cannot currently use it despite Nintendo stating it will be free. We will have to wait… pic.twitter.com/u5QmHpYKjI— Austin John Plays (@AustinJohnPlays) March 28, 2023
a tweet from @NijiMarii displaying us such. https://t.co/v3jEsJhfq0
— Austin John Plays (@AustinJohnPlays) March 28, 2023
At the time of this writing, it is not known whether this is a bug or intended by The Pokemon Company. Stay tuned for more updates as they come.
What do you think? Let us know in the comments.
[Update]: The bug affected Poke Transporter has now been fixed, and all players who downloaded the app prior to the eshop’s closure should be able to use it regardless of whether they had an active Pokemon Bank subscription beforehand.