Pokémon Bank will become free in March 2023, existing after the end of the 3DS eShop

As Nintendo fans mourn the inevitable deaths of the Wii U and 3DS, many assume that Pokémon Bank will be one of the causes when the eShop for the 3DS closes. However, the Pokémon Company revealed that the Pokémon Bank will remain operational after 3DS eShop to close March 2023, and it will become free after that date. Pokémon Bank still needs to be downloaded before the eShop shuts down, so it’s best to download it sooner rather than later.

The Pokémon Bank is a service that stores Pokémon that players have collected in various Pokémon games. For example, you can store your Rowlet from Pokémon Moon in the Bank and it will stay there with all the in-game stats you caught it. Players can also transfer their Pokémon from game to game. Bank is a paid service that costs $4.99 a year, and it was succeeded by Pokémon Home for the Nintendo Switch.

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Players still need a Pokémon Bank to store and transfer their Pokémon from 3DS titles. If the Bank were to close, there would be no way to store or transfer all of those Pokémon. The games that will be affected are Pokémon Sun, Pokémon Moon, Pokémon X, Pokémon Y, Pokémon Omega Ruby, and Pokémon Alpha Sapphire.

Players can transfer their Pokémon from the Bank and back to Home with the Home Premium Premium Plan. If players still want their Pokémon from their 3DS games on it, they’d better download Bank, archive them, and move them all to Home.