Topic: Changing Nintendo ID on 3DS

I originally set my son's 3DS up with my Nintendo ID. I would now like to replace my ID with his own. He is beginning to add friends he goes to school with it's time to get his own. However, when I tried to do this on the 3DS, I found two confusing options. 1. Delete the Nintendo ID which I believe would not only delete the ID on the 3DS but also over Nintendo's entire network. 2. Format the 3DS? So my question is this, if I format his 3DS, will it delete his game save data and is there a way to go about his differently? I would hate for him to lose his streetpass progress and his Kart 7 progress. Everything else he could lose without a problem.

Please help!

Yes if you format the 3DS you will lose everything, including saved progress in games, games you bought digital etc. Have you tried contacting Nintendo?

No, not yet. You really shouldn't have to go through all this.

He could take a save data back-up and restore it later, couldn't he?

Also, there's no way to change ID without formating, I think they stated that before you made your account

Bummer! Oh well, I guess he's stuck with my nintendo ID until he's cool with formatting.

Thanks for getting back to me.

I think the best course of action would be to back up your save data. Any 3DS game that's played using a game card that you have to insert is safe, because save data is stored on the card. DLC is not safe, it's stored on the SD card.

Anything downloaded including DLC or games purchased from the eShop will be deleted if you delete the NNID. Any balance on the eShop will be removed as well. Deleting the NNID removes its entirely from Nintendo's servers, so if it is linked to a Wii U, all data tied to that account will be deleted as well.

Holy Derp! I never knew that!!! Come on Nintendo really? Man cannot change his account without going through this peril? Honestly.

Update: We picked up a second 3DS for the family and I had to create a second NNID and a second Club Nintendo Account to take advantage of the free Pokemon game. It really wasn't a big deal to create them or manage two accounts but it's highly annoying.....especially the two Club Nintendo Accounts. Now I have two Club accounts with all of my points split! I love Nintendo, and like most on this site, I've been playing since I was a boy. I now have boys of my own. You would think Nintendo would be on top of this. I'm still lucky my kids are playing Nintendo though.

Alternatively, you can format the system to only remove the ID rather than deleting it.

Couldn't you have made a family account?

I actually wanted to do this but my 7 year was starting to tear up when I told him that he would need to start over with his Mii Plaza progress. I called Nintendo and they told me that he would lose all progress if I did this so we went a different route. Thanks anyways though.

It's too late but this is the first I heard of the "family" account. What is it?

A family account is a special account where you can have multiple users and you pool your coins together. It's especially useful because Nintendo prohibits multiple accounts using the same address, although it is very simple to get around that. Now, for the Pokemon promotion, it wouldn't give you the code if you used this type of account, but if you contacted Nintendo they'd do it for you. But I guess it's too late now as you said.

"Family account" refers to Club Nintendo, not the Nintendo ID. It has no use for the systems themselves

You're failing to see my point. Yes, another 3DS had to be bought to take advantage of the promotion and a NNID had to be created, but the OP is complaining that another Club Nintendo account had to be created to take advantage of the promotion when that is not the case.

Off subject update: So I have bad luck.......or I over complicate things and take the fun out of stuff. Our brand new 3DS now has two stuck pixels in the middle-bottom of the top screen after less then a week. Our first 3DS is still going strong though so I know we just go unlucky with this one. This would have a simple fix if I had not already downloaded our free Pokemon game. I would simply exchange the system at Target and get a new one. However, if I do this now, I'll lose the Pokemon game! I'm going to call Nintendo for the second time this week and see what they can do. Who knows, maybe they'll send me a new code. If not, I'm going to see if Target would allow me to do a transfer after exchanging, but can you imagine trying to explain this the people at target? Video games should not be this complicated.