I thought last years platinum was bad but these are worst. I'm glad I only went to gold this year. But I guess it's better then nothing (Sony & Microsoft).
Lamest freaking "thank you" from a company that has made thousands of dollars off me, ever.
I was really hoping for the mario pillow. I really shouldn't be surprised, Nintendo has shown little care about America. That's OK though, they'll be the ones begging come Wii U launch. I know very few people buying that thing. Good night and good luck.
EDIT: and really, I'd just rather them not offer anything at all instead of these things.
When I was 10 or so, my brother and I decided to start our Halloween trick or treating at our neighbors who had just moved in a few months prior. Excited by what we thought would be the start of a massive candy haul, we trotted on over and rang the doorbell. It took a while but the new couple eventually opened the door. We did our best "TRICK OR TREAT" but they just stared at us confused until one said, "uh wait here a minute". The guy came back with a handful of broken Oreos...still cold from their fridge.
That's what this years Club Nintendo "prizes" are. A handful of second-hand, give 'em whatever's laying around, broken Oreos.
Nintendo Apologists: "It's Free", "First World Problems", "You should be grateful".
I guess so. I picked the playing cards (shrugs shoulders).
"One of the ways I gauge a DS game is by recharges. "...Tycho (Penny Arcade)
I am relatively disappointed with the cards this year, but I guess its to be expected. I didn't even get a choice of all the other stuff though just the cards, or calendar and that was it. I wonder what happened.
There is only one way to describe the feeling:
http://youtu.be/vinR0n0xqsk
I am actually excited for the playing cards. Little things like this can really spice up my collection. I hope they come in some sort of container.
Just checked mine and underwhelmed to say the least. Oh boy, a choice between a calender and games I already have. Meh.
Not as excited about the options this year as I was about the statue and pins, which I thought were pretty cool, but I'll go with the cards. They are okay I guess.
I was really hoping for the gold nunchuck... I went for the posters. At this rate my future mancave will be nothing BUT Club Nintendo posters...
I have to wonder if the prizes that are awarded are inversely proportional to how many members make Platinum status... that is, the fewer people who make platinum status, the more extravagant the reward. Could be a cost thing... if there's 100,000 people who make Platinum status, it would be far more cost effective to have a print run of posters made than have 100,000 custom statues produced. Yeah, it's a bit lame, but I'm looking at it strictly from a business and budgetary point of view. If they only have so much budget set aside to produce these prizes, they'll probably go with something cheaper to ensure that everyone gets something.
And yeah, I know people are going to say "I purchased those games for the coins therefore I deserve better prizes!". For one, that's a stupid argument, you should be buying the games because you want to PLAY them, the coins earned should be a pleasant bonus. And two, I'm pretty sure Nintendo knows that many people cheat a little to reach Platinum status. Hell, I helped a few people on this board reach Platinum status just before the deadline with some un-used Club Nintendo PINs I came upon. Considering some of the changes they've made to the program over the past year, I'm positive they're aware of this.
I also wonder how many people in the US reach Platinum Status versus Japan... could be interesting to find out what the difference is, and if that does indeed affect the quality of the prizes.
I doubt this argument will persuade anyone who's dead set on the idea that "Nintendo hates America/Gamers/Freedom", but I just wanted to put a more constructive idea out there and get it off my chest. Take it as you will. I'm sure plenty will take offense and call me a brain-dead fanboy, but whatever. *shrug*
Now to see how much those gold nunchucks are going for on eBay.
*checks eBay*
Oh, f*ck that. I'll just swing by Lowe's and pick up some spray paint.
I went with the trading cards but wow did nintendo drop the ball again, I can't say I am surprised because they have constantly for the last couple years.
I am dissapointed by this though.
"With Great Power Comes Great Responisibility"
Wanting to Collect full set of Super Nintendo Games as well as Dreamcast Games.
http://users.ign.com/collection/Lothars
I also want to say that if anyone doesn't want their buttons from last year I will trade you these cards for those. I like those and missed out
I can see why some people are underwhelmed by the choices this year, but I personally can't complain too much. A deck of playing cards is completely fine by me. Its probably not something I'd buy from a store, so if its an added bonus for my purchases throughout the year (some of which were gifts, friends giving me thier codes, or being lucky and finding them inside used games.) I'll take them. My friends and I have poker nights here and there too, so my gift from nintendo will be useful to spice up the boring traditional decks we usually use.
On a side note, although most of us already have the games they offered as downloads for Gold/Platinum members, at least they chose good ones!
I'll go ahead and say thank you to Nintendo, i appreciate it.
FYI, that snazzy 3DS game case is back in stock.
https://club.nintendo.com/rewards-details/a/24002.do
I actually received my cards a few weeks ago and forgot to post about it (doh!) I don't think they are bad by any means. It *is* a free gift afterall (yes, you have to buy games to get the points) and one that is unique. I liked looking at how they treated the different suits as well as the Jack, Queen, King, and Joker cards. I probably will never use them because I don't want to bend the cards!
Can't complain about the free gift. Funny thing is that registering Wii U at Nintendo club get you the same point as 3DS XL. I would think the Wii U should worth 350 coin for deluxe and 250 for regular. Instead both are 160 coins. Ouch.
.:Collection Pics:.
Just a reminder for everyone who has been sitting on coins for a couple of years: check your balance for coins expiring on June 30th!
Just go to club.nintendo.com, log in, go to "account and coins" on the upper right, then "coins and status" to find out if you are going to lose any at the end of the month.
I used up my soon-to-expire coins on the pen case about a month ago after Nintendo sent out the emails to inform people of expiring coins. It sure is a pathetically tiny little thing. I'll probably store some GBA carts in it or something.
Is it just me or does it seem like Nintendo is phasing out physical rewards? When I got that email recently and logged in after goodness knows how long, I was shocked at how much smaller the selection is compared to how it used to be, and with everybody rushing to use up their expiring points, it's gotten smaller yet. I know they could just as well give us nothing, but it'll suck if the rewards switch exclusively to digital-only stuff. Then again, maybe this is just a temporary thing so they can get a fresh start. A lot of the current physical items are based on old games and the DS and Wii. If they introduce a bunch of new, more relevant items, this old stuff will take forever to clear out, so maybe they want to force people into claiming the less desirable goods.
None of my coins are expiring this cycle, thankfully because I do hope to get a Wii U at some point before they go.
"And the book says: 'We may be through with the past, but the past ain't through with us.'"