Skip to content

You Can’t Log Into Your Nintendo Network Account On A Different Wii U Console

It has been confirmed that you can not sign into your Nintendo Network account on a friends Wii U console. The Nintendo Network account you created is tied exclusively to the system you created it on. Nintendo does say that in the future, you will be able to use your Nintendo Network Account with future Nintendo consoles and other devices, such as PC’s.

157 thoughts on “You Can’t Log Into Your Nintendo Network Account On A Different Wii U Console”

    1. No. That’s just plain retarded. My worries have been essentially confirmed. So if your system is stolen or breaks (out of warranty) all your downloads are gone. Sweet.

      1. Not to say this breaking it can’t happen, but that gives you an even better reason to keep your system safe, right? I think they will fix this problem in the future because they might come out with a “Slim” Wii U, or any special edition Wii U (or colorful) consoles. Who knows? ;)

      2. I remember they saying that if this happens, you can contact Nintendo and they’ll transfer your data to other console. It’s nothing to worry about, just keep it safe (except in case of it being stolen, which is more likely to happen here in Brazil), and you’ll have no problems.

      3. You should be grateful it’s not a Microsoft product then :P Do you know how many people are going to be nervous when people buy Microsoft’s next POS?

          1. Fair enough. Nintendo may hopefully have an update in the future. If you get a Wii U or already have one I hope it doesn’t break :)

              1. There will be an update in the future so all hope is not lost. The update will allow you to log onto your account on other Nintendo consoles and other devices like PC, Tablet, iPod, etc. Not to mention, your purchases are tied to your account so the update will definitely allow you to do it in the future.

                1. They never said that. If they do, great. For now, they haven’t made mention of it. They only said that the ID can be used on future consoles and other devices. But not necessarily more than one Wii U.

                  Hopefully they change it though.

                  1. Your account is tied to your Wii U. But if you lose it or get it stolen, you can contact them and they will change what Wii U your account is tied to, so if you change, even your original Wii U won’t be able to access your Network account. This is to prevent people from buying everything and then letting their whole family and friends to play those whenever they want by giving them his/her account info. I admit, it sucks. That is why physical copies will always be better than software.

                    Point in case, if you lose your Wii U, you can still tie your account to another (single) Wii U. Meaning, you can have one at a time tied to your system.

      4. I understand it’s frustrating, but if your system breaks, they’ll transfer your stuff.
        If it’s stolen, you have to have a police report and even with that it’s hard. People are lining up to exploit the “My system got stolen,” excuse. Sorry form of pirating.

        1. Not piracy, because that would most likely involve knowing another person’s account info, which would be stealing in this case.

    2. Nintendos is overrated

      Wii u was a piece of shit. I immediatley return this piece of shit to walmart and bought myself an xbox 360 instead. Now im having fun with my xbox and smartglass and i can say anything freely. Also my friends list is bigger than the wii u.

      Only on xbox

      1. Eh, smartglass is alright (Needs a bit of work, but hey all new things do) but I tried the Wii U gamepad and found it to be better. But hey, everyone can prefer what they want :)

        1. ^This

          People need to realize that everything, in the beginning, has some hiccups and troubles. Whether it be the VITA, 3DS, PS3, Wii-U, 360, SmartGlass, Wii-U GamePad, etc. Consoles take a year or so at least for everything to get fixed and for all the basic features to be added.

      2. Smartglass? You can’t be serious. I tried smartglass and it’s basically useless, an over-glorified remote which has the same functions as the controller. And you’d be a total idiot to buy something right away only to return it. You obviously have never used Smartglass or bought a Wii U.

        Go away, troll, your kind is not welcome here.

      1. I’m hoping this,

        Specially for a 3ds update to make an account from the 3DS, I wanna save my User I.D. as soon as possible.

        1. Well Nintendo did say that the Nintendo Network will eventually be a universal online system and I do recall there being said that there will be an online update for the 3DS but don’t quote me on that. I could be wrong on that last part.

          1. The update announcement was made a few months back, that’s a for sure, but what I’m hoping is for them to get rid of friend codes and replace them with an ID on the 3DS with that update.

            Only time will tell though.

    1. For right now, you’ll either have to send it in or report it being stolen and then give your contact information so your purchases are transferred over alongside your account data. In the future, you will be able to log onto your Nintendo Network account on other Nintendo consoles and other devices like PC, Tablet, iPod, etc. So it’s not going to be a problem forever.

  1. I had a felling that would be the case because eshop purchases are tied to the NNID, logging into in on another system would allow you to DL all the titles onto that system aswell as your own.

      1. I approve this system to prevent piracy and file sharing. I mean if i could i would just log into my ID on my bro’s system and DL all my games for him to play as long as my ID is on his system AND continue to play them on mine.

        Annoying Yes, But i see their logic

  2. That’s a change in what we heard before. At least it doesn’t take away anything important concerning to gaming on this console.

      1. But still, because if your Wii U gets stolen what’s going to happen to everything you have, and if Nintendo gives you a new Wii U then people will do that until they get unlimited Wii U’s. For me that could be an ultimate troll for Nintendo

        1. You’ll have to report your stolen Wii-U and tell them your account information. Due to your purchases being tied to your account, you can surely recover your purchases. If your Wii-U breaks, then you can send it in and you’ll still have all of your digital purchases, hell Nintendo did that for me with my Wii

  3. Meh , on that 1. The portable hard drive of the 360 that conveniently pops onto your m8s is the best way…

    Do any of you wiiu owners know how the resoloution settings of the wiiu work ? Do you set it to 1080p or 720p etc in the settings. And then does that upscale and stay at 1080 like the 360 does for nearly all of its games. Or does it like the ps3 , go down to 720p when playing games like Little big Planet ?

    Also Do the gamecases mention on the back whether or not they support 1080p ?

          1. Interested because the xbox stays set set to 1080p. But the ps3 defaults to 720p on a lot of games.
            The marketing material in my local game store clearly states ”play all your favorite games in 1080p” – I think that confirms what I’m asking…

  4. Well if your Wii U breaks, send it to Nintendo. You still know your account name and such, I’m pretty sure, in this case they’ll ‘port’ your nintendo network-id.

  5. i really dont see a problem here, my wii broke down several times and i had lots of wiiware and vc,
    nintendo just transfered al my data from the wrecked one onto a brand new one i got that back and everything worked like a charm.

    so dont worry about losing all your downloads guys, nintendo is way more supportive to customers than other manufacturers if you ask me.

  6. Then what’s the point in having the system at all? What happens to all your downloads, or your friend list etc. should the console break down.
    Why is Nintendo incapable of making a decent online system? So many companies have done it now, you’d think it would a ‘painting by numbers’ type scenario. Even if they are too incompetent to do it themselves, you’d think they would at least have the sense to outsource it…

  7. Wait I remember, this is NINTENDO we’re talking about here, not Microsoft. Nintendo is much more forgiving with their customer service than Microsoft’s “RROD-well-sorry-you’re-fucked” attitude. WE’RE ALL GOOD GUYS!

    1. XD But this is an issue if you’re Wii-U breaks down early on or is stolen. You’ll have to send your Wii-U to Nintendo or contact them instead of being able to instantly do that on a new one. Hopefully, as Nintendo said, it’ll be rectified in a later update.

  8. I hope that they fix this for the future. If they don’t, I won’t download anything onto it just in case, but the 360 lets you log in elsewhere and you still can’t steal the downloads. I hope and maybe even maybe doubt that it was intentionally set up this way…

    1. Well they did say they’ll do it in the future so it’ll definitely be rectified in a later update. All consoles at launch are missing some features here and there and the Wii-U is no exception.

  9. I hate to say it but Nintendo is kind of fucking themselves over with stuff like this. It seems every post on this page is one more thing that I scratch my head to and just say “Why?”

    1. Well there will be an update so you can log onto your account on other Nintendo consoles and other devices like PC, Tablet, iPod, etc. Not to mention, your purchases are tied to your account so the update will definitely allow you to do it in the future.

      Am I the only one reading the second part?

  10. this blows. again the digital purchases are tied to the console instead to the consumer who buys them. No thanks Nintendo. I’ll wait until it is truly consumer friendly, if it ever will.

    1. Well there will be an update so you can log onto your account on other Nintendo consoles and other devices like PC, Tablet, iPod, etc. Not to mention, your purchases are tied to your account so the update will definitely allow you to do it in the future.

      Am I the only one reading the second part?

  11. Nintendo is so fucking stupid:

    They encourage this idea of playing in groups with friends, which hardly anyone does anymore because of online gaming, and they push all local-multiplayer gaming for games like NSMB U. But now, after encouraging it so much, they make it so you’re UNABLE to use your own account when you DO go to a friends house to play.

    Fucking. Idiots.

      1. Yeah, let’s talk about an issue that hasn’t been an issue for 6 + years. Good one.

        Enjoy having to drive to your friends house to play a game only to have to redo it again when you get home to your own console.

        Christ alive that is utterly stupid…

          1. I and 6 other friends of mine all bought a 360 about 4 years ago. None of us have had a single problem.

            The percentage of RRoD happening with the “slim” model that MS came out with back in 2009? Less than 1%, look it up.

            You’re a twat still living in 2006, JUUUUST like Nintendo with their non-online multiplayer games, 720p, and lame ass console-specific profiles.

            Ugh…

            1. Just because YOUR friends didn’t have problems with their 360 back in ’08, doesn’t mean other people didn’t have the same problem. I’m not the one living in 2006, I’m bringing back the past, one which YOU are ignorant of and choose to look at with rose colored glasses. I have had friends who have had problems with the Slim so don’t bring up this bullshit with RROD being automatically fixed with the Slim. So Nintendo has a few multiplayer games, they’re living in the past? So because some games are in 720p, which will STILL be a supported resolution next-gen due to the costs and effort that go into it which can rather go to improving graphics, polishing, etc. they’re living in the past? Also, again, if you’re Wii-U gets stolen, CONTACT Nintendo and all your account information and stuff will be transferred over. If you’re console gets broken, send it to Nintendo and it’ll get fixed with everything still on it. Not to mention, this is only a temporary problem. You really are a dumbass, aren’t you? Putting a game in 720p has EVERYTHING to do with costs and effort and NOTHING to do with trolololo weak hardware. Why are so many games in 720p on the PS3/360 while games like Uncharted and Halo 4 run at the same resolution whilst being technically more impressive? Simply, the resources and time have to be split between two versions so they can get both of them done at the same time. Not to mention, 1080p gaming is barely noticeably for consoles and is a waste of time, at the current moment, for developers. Have fun living in ignorance and blaming the wrong people.

              1. Dude, you’re wasting your time on Icy. He needs to comfort himself because Nintendo just ate his lunch. Launch was successful, with a few hiccups, as is to be expected from the launch of any new piece of tech. He needs to latch on to something, anything he can use to turn back the Wii U tide. It’s all about Nintendo right now and he can’t stand it.

                I have a question. If these trolls love the PS360 so much, why are they here and not playing the games they claim to love so much right now?

                1. Beats me and, yeah, I should’ve known from his posts he ain’t worth it. It’s not like I myself go and bad mouth the 360, my least favorite console, just because it’s not my preference or over-exaggerate tiny details or half-truths.

                  1. That’s what I can’t understand about these dudes. So you don’t like Nintendo. So what? A lot of other people do. They just can’t stand the fact that their big, powerful HD twins was beaten by the small scrawny Wii and a bunch of casuals. It’s butthurt, plain and simple.

                    1. Indeed. Although I myself preferred the PS3 this gen, due to it being my console of choice, I still enjoyed my Wii and, instead of complaining about a lack of games, I looked them and found about titles I would’ve never known about had I just listened to popular opinion.

                      1. That’s because you’re a real gamer. This crap only started in the last 2 gens. It wasn’t like this in the old days.

                          1. Yeah, we argued about which one we thought was better, but we never called each other a faggot for liking the other one.

                            I had NES and SNES. if I went over to a friend’s house and he had a Genesis, I wouldn’t say “I don’t play that shit” I would play the hell out of it, because it was about playing games no matter which platform it was on.

                            We have too many wannabe jockish, macho pseudo alpha males around these days. Keyboard warriors who think they know what’s best for everybody. It sucks.

                            1. Agreed. It’s almost as if people have developed this mentality that if a game isn’t on their console of choice, the game sucks. I can still play Halo 4, it doesn’t matter if it’s on the 360, I can still play PlayStation All Stars Battle Royal (I tried out the demo; liked it), and I can still play Super Mario Galaxy 2 without feeling like I’ve “betrayed” my company.

                2. If this was a permanent issue, I’d agree with you. Even with the issue being rectified in a later update, this shouldn’t be an issue at launch, regardless of time constraints. Although I am confused as to why you’re talking about Nintendo encouraging local multiplayer…oh well, for once, I sort of agree with you

                  But, keep in mind, Well there will be an update so you can log onto your account on other Nintendo consoles and other devices like PC, Tablet, iPod, etc. Not to mention, your purchases are tied to your account so the update will definitely allow you to do it in the future.

                  From what I can tell, you’re not getting the console at launch so, by the time you pick it up in 1-2 years, the issue should be rectified but your frustration is understandable.

                  1. Oh and you know that for a fact?

                    Nope. Just wishful thinking at this point init?

                    Nintendo has a LOT of lessons to learn. You better hope they do it quickly lest the be left in the dust again, relying on casuals to sell consoles again.

                    1. Yes because they said this in a Nintendo Direct

                      Not my fault you’re not up to date with everything

                      What does that have to do with anything and have you SEEN the Wii-U’s launch line-up? There are at best maybe 3 casual titles and then 20+ titles for the core.

                      1. You obviously don’t know what “core” means. Not my fault you’re making excuses for a weak ass launch lineup.

                        And even the “core” titles are getting SHIT reviews all over: ZombiU is crap (and yea, I played it several times), NSMB U is a clone of the Wii game for all real intents and purposes, and Pikimin? Really? Who gives a fuck? The game was minimally popular on the GC; hardly a blockbuster title.

                        Oh, and then re-releases of games that have been out for months on other consoles? Batman? It’s been reported that it looks exactly the same, and the controls aren’t better: they’re tacked on and feel cumbersome. Mass Effect? Runs like utter shite; Assassins Creed 3? That is the ONLY decent title on the whole console, and it’s been out for weeks and been beaten by hundreds of thousands of people that didn’t want to pay $300 on top of a full price game just to play it 3 weeks later than everyone else.

                        I never said the console sucks; I said it sucks NOW, and the launch was terrible. It’s also underpowered and has less memory bandwidth than even the 360, which means more than just inferior graphic capabilities, mind you.

                        It still could be a great console, if they got their heads out of their asses and stopped thinking that “being different” is always better than doing something that has been proven to be successful (ie. system wide party chat, system-wide achievement system, online multiplayer for first party titles, etc).

                        They need to worry less about “offensive” messages on MiiVerse and worry more about actual games and performance of those games.

                        1. Yeah I fucking do, dumb ass. Clearly this is your first launch and you were expecting Metroid, Mario, Zelda, etc. at launch like a dumbass child who knows nothing about how game development works or is aware of past console launches

                          Zombi-U is getting MIXED reviews and it’s a love it or hate it sort of thing. I like it and you don’t. It’s called a fucking opinion. NSMBU I can agree with. Pikmin 3 isn’t a launch title and what do you mean who gives a fuck? A lot of people who played the first two on the GameCube do, like me. Just because YOU don’t want it, doesn’t mean others don’t.

                          WOW! Congratulations! You just described several other launches! You want a cookie? Also, Mass Effect runs like shit on all consoles, not just the Wii-U. Also, for Assassin’s Creed III, I’ll be enjoying the ability to use the second screen and I still have other games to play. Stop acting as if every fucking gamer gets games at launch, most generally wait for a price drop and a three week difference won’t prevent the Wii-U version from getting a price drop at around the same time.

                          *Facepalm* Wow, you do realize that the eDRAM hasn’t even been taken into account? Also, since when does RAM ONLY determine the graphical capabilities of a console? Wow, you really are a fucking dumbass. You’re lack of technical knowledge is showing.

                          Are you fucking kidding me?! NO console had ALL of that at launch! NONE! Are you THIS blind to the past?! Were you HERE and saw what went on the PS3/360 at launch?! The 360 didn’t even cross game chat at launch or online multiplayer for first party titles (It didn’t have have 1st party titles at launch) and the PS3 didn’t have achievements at launch or online multiplayer for first party titles (Same as the 360). Every console has hiccups and problems at launch, at least since the 360 and, if you have been fucking caught up with news, you’d realize that Nintendo said not every feature will be available at launch due to them still working on them.

              2. @superfakerbros

                just stop. you are giving false information. Nintendo NEVER said you can log into a different wii u in a future update. All they said was you can log in future nintendo devices and pcs, etc. It’s clear they don’t want you to log into another wii u console. stop giving false hope—it wastes everyone’s time.

                1. They said you’ll be able to log into your Nintendo Network account on other devices and Nintendo products, including future Nintendo products. I’m not giving false information. They said this in their Nintendo Direct.

                  1. Also, by being able to log onto your Nintendo Network account across other devices later on, you’ll be able to, likewise, be able to log onto your Nintendo Network account on other Wii-U’s as other devices and Nintendo hardware, include Wii-U.

              3. This better be a fucking early apirl fools joke you can’t be telling me that your region locking the system AND account, that’s limiting our fun too fucking far!!!

                1. They said you’ll be able to log into your Nintendo Network account on other devices and Nintendo products, including future Nintendo products. Also, by being able to log onto your Nintendo Network account across other devices later on, you’ll be able to, likewise, be able to log onto your Nintendo Network account on other Wii-U’s as other devices and Nintendo hardware, include Wii-U.

              4. Meh, no big deal, unless my system breaks i’ll have no problem, and even then i can just recover my account, or send it to Nintendo to get it fixed

              5. Hey sickr, I’m seeing everywhere that when people power down/unplug the Wii U during the update, the console “bricks.” Just a bit of news.

              6. So… you can use your NN on your console, will be able to on future Nintendo consoles or handhelds, and other devices such as PCs and probably smart phones… but not your FRIEND’S Wii U? That’s frickin dumb. Then again I guess they only want you to be able to download a game once vs the PS3 that lets you share games with others by downloading it there. Then again (again) is there a reason to use your NN on someone else’s Wii U?

                1. Only for right now, later you’ll be able to use Nintendo Network on multiple devices, as Nintendo is planning to make it a unified online system. For right now, if you’re Wii-U breaks, just send it to Nintendo or, if you’re Wii-U is stolen, contact Nintendo and give them your account information so they can transfer everything to another account. Nintendo’s generally pretty good with this sort of stuff so you shouldn’t go through any problems.

              7. I dont typically “console jump” and I don’t live in a “rough neighborhood” so I don’t have to worry about it being broken or stolen soooo… this kinda doesn’t apply to me. I can see why others might be worried. I am sure you can replace downloads that were lost if you contact Nintendo though.

              8. Pingback: Las cuentas de usuario de Wii U se usarán exclusivamente en la consola que se ha creado | www.nextn.net

              9. what if i bought the console on the 30th Nov. Then sold it just before Christmas to hopefully make a profit. What would happen to my account? Would I be able to use the same account I created on a future Wii U console?

                  1. So if I used the same username which I use for XBL and PSN on the Nintendo Network. There might possibly be a chance I cant recover that account back, especially the username?! Also how could I transfer an account if there’s nothing to transfer to?

                    1. You can recover it back? Didn’t you read the second part and/or keep up with what Nintendo’s saying? In the future, you can log into your Nintendo Network account across other Nintendo platforms and devices, like PC, Tablet, etc. For right now, if you’re Wii-U is stolen, you have to contact Nintendo and present them with your account information, Due to your purchases being tied to your account, you will be able to recover them. If your Wii-U is broken, you’ll have to send it in and get it fixed back. Normally, Nintendo’s pretty good with stuff like this so you should retain your save data, downloads, etc.

              10. They might be doing this to curtail hackers. If someone else found out your password for your Nintendo Network account and was able to log into it on another console, you would be fucked as the hacker would potentially be able to find out your credit card number (if you made any eShop purchases), access other personal information, and could fuck with your account in many other ways. Tying an account to a console stops hackers and makes people safer.

              11. Pingback: Nintendo Can Transfer Your Nintendo Network Account To Another Wii U Console | My Nintendo News

              12. This is also possible if they offer SEO as part of their service.
                They offer so many extras that make starting up a new website so simple that even a complete novice could get a website up and running.
                The amount of space required by a website should also be
                considered while choosing a web host.

              Leave a Reply

              Discover more from My Nintendo News

              Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

              Continue reading