Wii U online maintenance planned today

Nintendo will carry out extended maintenance across its online services today, in preparation for the Wii U system update.

Online services for the Wii, 3DS and DS networks will also be affected from 1pm PST to 7pm PST today.

Nintendo announced details for the Wii U system update last week, which will dramatically reduce loading times and allow users to install software while playing a game.

The Wii U Virtual Console is also set to launch in the US following the maintenance, allowing players to download classic games for the Wii U.

Check out Nintendo's network maintenance page to find out more.