Image of Nintendo console displaying mourning message was created as a joke

A viral Twitter post, which has also been shared on Facebook, claims that Nintendo gaming consoles in the UK are not able to function during the official mourning period following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. This is not true, and the post was created as a joke.

The image shows a Nintendo 2DS XL with a black and white photograph of the Queen on one of its screens, while the other carries a message saying: “Queen Elizabeth II 1926-2022. This device is unavailable for the Royal period of Mourning and will continue to be until Monday 19 September [the date of the Queen’s funeral].”

Although many social media users recognise the post is a joke, others seemed unsure. 

Although Nintendo UK announced on 12 September that it would not be broadcasting a Nintendo Direct live stream (a regular broadcast about upcoming content) in the UK on 13 September as a mark of respect during the mourning period, Nintendo did not prevent its consoles from functioning. 

A spokesperson for Nintendo confirmed to Full Fact that the image had been “fabricated” and said the company had “not made any of our consoles ‘unavailable’ during the UK National Period of Mourning.”

Twitter user @LucasIsPersonal told Full Fact that he had created the image as a joke after being inspired by two other joke tweets.  At the time of writing, his post has been retweeted more than 43,000 times and liked more than 564,000 times. 

He added that he was “surprised” how many people believed the image was genuine given that he created the image using a Nintendo console that is no longer in production and “how easily it could be proven false.” 

He has also posted on Twitter to express his surprise at how widely it has been shared. 

Similar satirical Facebook posts joked that other gaming consoles would not be functioning during the mourning period.