Nintendo Performing Online Maintenance Before The Holiday Rush, Starting Today

With Christmas just around the corner, Nintendo knows it's going to have a field day with online gaming. That's because millions of folks will be getting some form of Nintendo hardware that day to hook up and try out, like the Nintendo Switch or the Nintendo 3DS.

And so, the publisher has opted to begin online maintenance in a number of areas over the next 24 hours or so, which means that certain games and devices will be offline for a short period of time while it "bucks up" for the holiday rush that's set to come next week.

The company has laid out its plans, and it doesn't appear to be too severe, as the blackouts only last about two to three hours. And sometimes, it's only for certain games, like Pokemon Sun and Moon and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe.

Here's the full schedule, so you can plan accordingly:

• Sunday, December 17, 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM Pacific: Online play of some Nintendo Switch software
• Monday, December 18, 3:45 PM to 4:45 PM Pacific: Nintendo eShop for Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Game Store (PC), and Wii U
• Monday, December 18, 4:00 PM to 6:00 PM Pacific: Nintendo Badge Arcade
• Monday, December 18, 5:00 PM to 8:00 PM Pacific: Online play of some Nintendo Switch software
• Monday, December 18, 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Pacific: Animal Crossing: New Leaf — Welcome amiibo
• Monday, December 18, 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Pacific: Splatoon
• Monday, December 18, 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Pacific: Pokémon Ultra Sun and Pokémon Ultra Sun
• Monday, December 18, 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM Pacific: Pokémon Sun and Pokémon Sun

While it's a bit of a drag that Nintendo isn't detailing which Nintendo Switch games will be offline with its general listings, at least it's not going to last long. And you can get right back to playing before you know it.

Besides, would you prefer all the networks going down next week and leaving everyone in flux while they try to connect with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe and Splatoon 2? Not really, no. So we'll take this, Nintendo.

You can get more information about the maintenance here.