Nintendo has finally released the solution to the game-breaking bug in Skyward Sword in the form of a separate downloadable channel. The Zelda Data Restoration Channel is currently only available in Japan. The channel will be available for download from the Wii Shopping Channel when and if it releases globally.

Nintendo has been aware of the issue for weeks, and has distributed a detailed guide on how to avoid the bug until they could create a permanent fix. If encountered, the bug would permanently stop progress in a player’s save file. Sony and Microsoft have the ability to simply issue a patch to fix issues like this, but the Wii does not have the same capability. Therefore, it was impossible to actually fix the game, so instead the channel will walk Skyward Sword owners through a simple process which will just fix the bugged save.

The Nintendo of Japan website also offers the option of shipping in the SD card containing the corrupted save file, where they will fix it themselves and ship it back, a solution Nintendo of America has offered in the past as well. There is currently no indication of how Nintendo plans to handle the issue internationally.

(via Andriasang)