While it has been available in Europe for what seems like ages, Club Nintendo finally launched in North America today. The rewards program encourages you to register your Nintendo products in exchange for loot, which is a brilliant marketing campaign, but the launch has been a bit harsh.
If you can get beyond the bugs, crashes and errors, you’ll be able to link your My Nintendo account to the Club, or create a new one with which to register and earn. Answering surveys for registered products nets you more coins with which drop on the less-than-outstanding rewards. For anywhere between 300 and 800 coins, you can grab yourself a sweet Wii Remote holder, DS game-case, or themed playing cards. If you’re nostalgic, you could even trade your gold coins for a Game and Watch DS collection.
Further encouraging you to fill your DS and Wii library is the Gold and Platinum program. If you stick enough games in to your collection, you’ll qualify for Gold and Platinum status, which earns you “special” prizes. How do you get in? Find out after the break.
“Gold or Platinum status is based on the number of Coins earned in a Club Nintendo year. Each Club Nintendo year begins on July 1 and ends on June 30. If you earn 300 Coins during a Club Nintendo year you will reach Gold status. Earn 600 Coins during a Club Nintendo year and reach Platinum status!”
It doesn’t seem too difficult to earn a lot of coin if you’re an avid Wii or DS gamer, as the breakdown of earning coins offers a decent amount per product:
- Wii games = 50 Coins
- Nintendo DS games = 30 Coins
- Wii Shop Channel games and Wii Channels = 10 Coins
You can also earn additional cash for indicating your intent for buying a game or registering the product within a month of its release.
So if you’re interested in grabbing some grab-bags, check it out at Club Nintendo. The Ani-Gamers staff will surely be suckered in to this marketing gimmick in order to earn rad free goodies as well, and we’ll be back with reports on product quality for those who are curious.
