Last call at Club Nintendo
While Nintendo, at least in North America, has been in the news repeatedly of late for what they aren’t offering, their latest trip to the headlines is all about what they are . . . but not for long.
Today, Nintendo of America announced an end to the Club Nintendo loyalty rewards program. Big N is shuttering the program worldwide, but North America is going first.
Any game made after Jan. 20 (it’s unclear if this means games with a release date after Jan. 20 or games printed after Jan. 20) will no longer come with a Club Nintendo code. March 31 is the last day for creating a new membership and also the last day to register products and earn coins. This means a three-month early deadline for Gold or Platinum Elite status. While you can no longer collect coins after then, you can still spend them until June 30. The Club Nintendo website closes on July 1, but any download codes for digital prizes can be redeemed until July 31.
Speaking of Elite status, there will be a final round of Elite gifts, consisting of the member’s choice of a downloadable game with no offering of physical prizes. These must be claimed by April 30. In 2014, the downloadable software consisted of mostly virtual console titles for Gold level while Platinum had digital versions of retail games, some eShop exclusives, and Earthbound.
While Nintendo of America’s Club Nintendo program was often criticized for being very late to the party (the program was twice as old in Japan and Europe), having a tiny rewards catalogue, low stock and often not including fan-favorite awards from the other regions (I suppose NoA not releasing the regular-size New 3DS shouldn’t have been surprising at all), it apparently won’t go out with a whimper.
The plan is to use the service to clear out some yet-to-be-announced swag coming sometime in February. Supplies are sure to be very limited, so I expect only the eagle-eyed to walk away with the goods. Also sometime in February, all club members will get a free download of Flipnote Studio 3D for the 3DS, which looks pretty decent but makes me wonder why Nintendo never made a new Mario Paint for the original Wii and DS.
Club Nintendo will be replaced by a new rewards program (hopefully consistent through the regions). Old Club Nintendo registration codes will not work with the new program, and new games are not yet carrying redemption information. Every detail of this new program has yet to be announced, other than its existence. It could be quite a while before it launches.
Personally, I hope it means we finally see some more soundtracks. But then again, the last time Nintendo of America bothered to offer a soundtrack, Club Nintendo closed soon after. Coincidence?
About The Author
Drew
Features Editor | Drew started behind the 8(bit)-ball in the video game world. He first became interested in anime by chance exposure on the Sci-Fi channel. Drew's the creative force behind blog-wide features, works the movie and food beats, and pioneered Damage Control’s entry into video, podcasts and streaming.
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I saw this earlier and thought about Power Stamps. I saved up an assload (slightly more than a buttload, but not quite as much as a shit-ton) of those things as a child and when Nintendo Power announced they were soon going to do away with them, I quickly mailed my entire pile in hopes of buying the assortment of delicious soundtracks offered in the catalogue. After a long, patient wait, I received every single one of them back in the mail. They were no longer of any value at that point, too, so that made no sense. On the other hand, those pricks kept the check that was meant to pay for my shipping and handling, and gave me TLoZ action figures, instead. I felt absolutely miserable.
I still have those action figures, and I kept the box they came in, but they don’t play music. They don’t play music at all.
I spent most of my super power stamps on player’s guides and pogs. Not that I ever actually played pog. I missed the boat on the last hurrah for those, and I might still have a couple stamps hiding around here somewhere.
I’ll be happy if the A Link Between Worlds soundtrack comes from one of these programs. Or that, you know, they just start releasing soundtracks as separate goodies.