Does the Nintendo 3Ds System Transfer delete the data on the target system

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I want to do a system transfer, but I have different Nintendo IDs for my two systems and I've downloaded games on each of them.

I have quite a few questions because I'm confused with the info on the internet and on the actual systems during transfer:

  1. Will the data on the target system be deleted?

  2. If not, will the games from the source system be combined with the games on the target system? (Will I be able to play my source-system games, as well as target-system games, on my target system?); and what happens if I have the same game on both?

  3. If the games on the target system will be deleted but re-downloadable, does that mean my saves are gone? Is there anyway to keep the saves of my target-system games?

Thanks! 😀

Best Answer

Yes, the data on the target system will be deleted, according to Nintendo Support "you cannot perform a system transfer if the target system has a Nintendo Network ID linked. You must format the target system to remove the Nintendo Network ID link prior to transferring content."

All I know is that only digital downloaded games are tied to the NNID, so if you erase the previous NNID on the target and overwrite it with another NNID you cannot play those games anymore. But I don't know if NNID is stored on the SD card or on the console itself.

Everything you purchased with your source NNID will be available for redownload on the target system after the transfer. What you had on the target before the format will be lost, because it's tied to the original NNID.

Remember that you can have only one console tied to a specific NNID.

I suggest you to look on Nintendo Support for further info.

See also What You Need to Know Before Performing a New Nintendo 3DS XL System Transfer.

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