Nintendo Goes Download-Only With The 2014 Club Nintendo Elite Rewards

I'm not entirely disappointed, but I really hope that they consider physical prizes again.

Was crossing me fingers for the Super Mario 3D World soundtrack or something like that, but I'll be fine with a free retail game.

It is entirely possible to achieve Gold or even Plat with just a Wii and a DS. Why should Nintendo screw people like that over, who own neither supported system here? :/
On top, they are treating the competitive melee community far batter than us. It's pretty upsetting, they are playing literally one old game and they get special treatment.
I will get the highest priced reward available, and not hold my breath for next year.

EXTREMELY disappointed.
I wanted a soundtrack. Seriously.

I'd prefer a mixture of game downloads and physical items to pick from, but I can't say I'm too bummed out. NES Remix here I come. I'm more curious why they chose to do it this way, if the influx of members from either the 2013 holidays or something or even the MK8 bundle, maybe it's not as effective to send out real world things at this moment? I'm more annoyed that we're gonna have to have a year or more with people whining and complaining about how yet another thing is so awful about the world and Nintendo. As if there isn't enough doom and gloom over pointless crap for Nintendo, this can be added on top.

Wow, that's disappointing. As a Platinum Member for the past 6 years (or so) I buy A LOT of games. I either have most of these already, or wasn't interested in the ones I don't have.

I like how full games are included in this, the problem is I have the ones I want already. So I guess I am going to go with Mini's on the move as its the only one I am interested in somewhat and don't have.

I would of much preferred the traditional swag related items.

Well I was hoping for a shirt or a cool accessory. I haven't picked up nes remix. I have gold and platinum. So I hope I can get it because I own every game on there except remix and minis on the move. I'm not sure if I have DK returns on 3ds it's a remake right?

A larger selection would be nice. My wife and I hit gold and platinum last year, and on the first of this year as well- mostly because we already own all odd those games except two of the platinum ones, and there's a reason we don't own them. Ah well I'll give one a try, and give the other code to a friend.

Slap in the face to people that bought 90% of these games already to get to platinum status in the first place. So disappointed. If you're going to do all digital rewards, at least give us something exclusive like the Doc Louis Punch Out fight.

@DankyKong While it isn't a terrible reward, to get platinum that is the equivalent of spending $600, which comes out as maybe $300-$500 with extra coins depending on how savvy you are. You'd think for their biggest fans, they'd offer something besides games, or even a larger selection. I myself own most of these games and essentially have to pick something I don't really want. With a unique physical reward, I'm pretty much guaranteed not to own that, at least.

Is it possible to sell a code or is it bound to my account?

@Warruz It can be sold to anyone in your region.

Game and Wario?!

Time for my second free retail game this year!

@Prof_Clayton Well then, I think Il sell my code and put it for Donkey Kong 3DS. Then use the money to take advantage of the Buy one get one deal for Best Buys next week.

After 3 years of losses, I'm surprised this didn't happen sooner, however, I like the rest of you, find this disappointing. I would have loved a soundtrack from Mario 3D World or Mario Kart 8.

A total joke, seriously Nintendo?

...sigh Guess I'll get Wario Land 2 I guess... :/

Hadn't picked up NES Remix yet, so I went with that. Would have rather had a cool figurine or something similar, though.

Any of the Virtual Console stuff feels pointless honestly cause it's so cheap.

There are a couple of games I'd actually want, but they are Wii U games and my Wii U has no space left to download stuff. A physical reward would have been better for me.
I guess I can get Donkey Kong Country again, but I sold that game before because I didn't really get into it. Side scrolling platformers tend to not be my cup of tea...Anyone want to trade something for a DKCR3D code?
Too bad Shovel Knight on 3DS is not a reward. I really want that game. I can't buy it because I kinda lost my job...No money.
And to think, last year's reward of the Majora's Mask soundtrack was really awesome. I want more stuff like that.

I have to decide between remix and DK returns I never got that one.

@River3636 I'd go DK returns, it costs more. :3

Eh...I have no opinions on this since this is my first time getting Elite Status.
I don't mind games this. I picked up Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D.

Been meaning to get that game anyways for awhile now. I can always get NES Remix some other time.

@Prof_Clayton Thats what i did! I can always get Remix some other time.

Got DK because me love the series, and I saved 29.99.

Isn't Donkey Kong a full price game though? If they had a wider selection of games which are of about equal value ... that would have been nice. I mean I'd love to get DK for free, that would have been great, but I already got it ... Same for Minis.
Still I think it's good they went with digital games, next time a more balanced and wider selection please!

I wish the European store did this. All my points go on Wii shop cards and it feels like such a waste. I have no interest in cleaning cloths and notepads. Hugely jealous of seeing the cheap/free VC games in North America.

On second thought, DKCR3D takes up 17,693 blocks! I don't have that much space left on my 3DS. Man, big bummer. Now what? The ones I want are all too big.

@River3636 Yes its the Wii DKC remade!!

I mean I will admit. Club Nintendo merch would've been cool. A hat. A t-shirt? Wrist band? A trophy? A badge? Something? Something that shows off our loyalty. Things that would make non-club Nintendo members curious.

I literally have every game offered!! What is my choices now? If they did this at least twice a year it wouldn't be so bad but I waited a whole year to get some sweet rare Nintendo swag only to get nothing because I already own the games!! Thanks Nintendo!!

Amazed. I remember up until yesterday when everyone wanted Earthbound but it was said that wasn't likely because it was a "blip" for Nintendo. the Internets are always disappointed with their free things.

As for me, I've got to try to decide which I'm getting, there are 4 there that I want and don't have; Game and Wario, NES Remix, Earthbound and Dr. Luigi.

This is a kick in the pants. I won't be worried about getting platinum next year.

wow.... I have almost ALL of those already.... Like what the hell? What are they thinking. If people got to platnium status then they spent $600 on stuff so would they expect a lot of platnium status people to already have most of these?

@Crimzonlogic Delete something your don't play much for now, redownload it when you expand on space.

@Th3PlaidHatter Earthbound is a great game as I'd Retro Remix. I'd go with Earthbound personally!!

This years rewards are pretty weak, I mean they had the figure set a couple of years ago which was cool and they have gone downhill ever since. The Luigis mansion figure was great but I didn't get one, now that I have a ton of coins to use and Platinum status, there is nothing worth getting. Seems a bit unfair to spend the money to reach that status and are basically rewarded with a $10 credit. Give us something unique or useful, how about putting the extended wii u battery on the site, people would actually have a use for that.

Seriously Donkey Kong country Returns 3d is one of the options? Seems kind of out of place considering the rest is Virtual console.
Edit: My bad. It isnt all virtual console.

I don't object to the rewards being digital, but I do object to them not being exclusive. Their biggest supporters will have already bought all these games. The elite rewards are supposed to be "special" but there's nothing particularly special about these rewards. This is only good news for people that do the bare minimum to reach platinum and have a good selection of games to choose from that they haven't already bought.

I have three platinum reward Nintendo posters still in an unopened box in my basement since last year.

I will gladly take a free game download over some corny doll or poster I would never put up in my house.

I have achieved Platinum status since club Nintendo started. In the beginning the rewords where grate now they are offering games that I have or ones that don't interest me. You would think the big N would offer something unique to loyal customers.

I'm leaning towards Game & Wario.

My family tends to keep the Wii U in the living room, so it'd be nice to have another Nintendo Land-esque game for everyone to participate in.
Not to mention, with the Deluxe Digital Promotion, this'll net me five bucks. Maybe I'll finally get Shantae...

Must say I'm pretty disappointed. Anybody can get these games if they have the money but the physical rewards are something you can't get in stores, only from Club Nintendo! Don't get me wrong its cool i'm getting a free game but i want exclusive Nintendo stuff. I'm sure by this time next year all club nintendo rewards will be Digital games which is a shame BTW i got Game & Wario!

I hope the EU Club Nintendo will adopt a reward system like this nothing wrong with free rewards.

@Jazzer94 EU's club Nintendo is far superior to NOA's, I'd gladly trade systems as there is actually decent stuff on yours.

I would have much preferred Dillon's Rolling Western: The Last Ranger.

But, Oh well, Game and Wario it is!

@Hrudy19 I have to second this - and what about people like me that compulsively buy the games they want? I already have all of the games here that I want. That is how I got platinum status (and hit platinum status AGAIN on July 7th). So I guess I will have to choose Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D - even though I already own it on the Wii (sans 3D). They should have thrown in Wii Sports Club (like 1 sport) - to promote the online features or something. I dunno. Why not like a $10 credit for Gold and a $20 credit for platinum so I can choose the game I want? Really there are like 2 or 3 games left on the eShop that I want. It seems that they didn't think of their best customers when they did this one.

This is the first year I decided to participate and go platinum member hoping for some unique Nintendo merchandise and all I get is some meh download games? Never again Nintendo

@Caligvla I agree - Just give me an open credit on the eShop!

Bring this to the UK

@Crimzonlogic You don't have to download it this second. Just choose it and get your code.

This year sucks since im gold most of the games I want are not only not the preferred platform want to I play it in, but I have on my gbc. Whatever i'll just get wario land 2 and do a giveaway next time I stream on twitch.

My only complaint is that I'm not able to redeem all of the rewards, like two years ago. I would really love to redeem everything and make my DDP account fatter and fatter. But this is the good sad, not the bad sad.

This is a bit disappointing. I was looking forward to getting something great after finally hitting Platinum status, and instead the reward is just a few games, most of which are Virtual Console titles I could pick up for less than $5, if I didn't already own them. Honestly, if they're going to force us to choose digital rewards, than I'd have been happier with eShop credit; then I could buy whatever I wanted.

@Prof_Clayton It seems to make good business sense to me that they are using the club to push people to new hardware. They haven't made money in years, it is about time that they start using their resources to start doing so.

I actually really like this! I hope this becomes the trend for their CN rewards.

This is pretty much what I wanted. Wow look at all the hate in here! O.O

Anything else they would've offered me would've been junk anyways. Either the kids play with it for a few days or it gets broke of which I don't really care. Physical stuff in the end is boring and I don't have the space for it so GREAT job Nintendo. You read my mind!

@ikki5 3 OSTs and a Game and Watch all of which are very expensive starwise I wouldn't call superior the rest of the rewards are tosh.

@Ralizah Great minds think alike, and only 20 secs apart!

@Crimzonlogic

I would gladly take your DKCR3D code and give you one of the gold awards and one of the current Club Nintendo rewards.

Not to mention I don't have to wait half a year to receive this gift. It was quite ridiculous we had to wait that long.

VERY disappointed. I'm let down that there are no physical options. Even the Majora's Mask CD from last year, at least it was something.

Oh well, I think I'll cut my losses and get Game and Wario. Never got around to that, heard it's pretty fun and if I can get it as a reward why not. (By the way, there's no reason to get Dillon's Rolling Western as a reward. I paid like $2 for that a while back unless it was just a sale at the time)

Chances are most Platinum members have the majority of the games listed as Platinum rewards! Thankfully I haven't got Game & Wario yet so I'm grabbing that!

@Spoony_Tech Evidently. I mean, I really liked the Nintendo playing cards I got from them, but this way I'm immediately rewarded with a GAME rather than having to wait half a year for a poster or a CD or something.

I can not complain. I am happy to finally have earthbound.

@Ralizah Lol, look at my very next post! You're stating to scare me.

Most of the games I already have. About the only thing I would get is DKC since I don't have it and it's still expensive. The rest are cheap downloads. I've been a Club Nintendo member since day one and I loved getting exclusive merchandise but this is a bit disappointing.

Oh and those looking to dl DKCR 3d, just a fair warning that the dl size is one of the biggest on the 3ds. Make sure you have the room.

Best game on that list imo!

I really like the game download options. Really better for me then any more junk laying around the house but they do need a larger selection. Guess I'll choose between Game & Wario or Dr. Luigi.

@Jazzer94 Those sound tracks was better than all these combined, plus the key chains, and the Wii Points cards.... these are worth far more than what these platinum rewards especially when you already own pretty much everything and those things plus the game and watch you mention. There is tons of great stuff on the EU club Nintendo which is FAR better than having a club Nintendo that is cheaper but nothing on it anyway. Face it. EU Club Nintendo > NOA Club Nintendo.

@FernandoMachado
Don't expect a lot from Game and Wario. I got about 10 hours out of that game. Very little content. The best minigame on there is the one when you are trying to play the video game in bed without your mom finding out.

Worst Club Nintendo year ever?

Alot of people saying they cant cpmplain, what about the people who have these games? They get literally nothing, honestly,

I have nearly all the games here. Aside from that, I'm disappointed because when I save up my coins, I'm usually getting something good that I can't buy anywhere else. Nintendo seems to be getting lazier and lazier lately...

I do not know what all the hate is for in this comment section because personally despite the fact I managed to earn Platinum the only of these games I own are NES Remix and Dillon's Rolling Western. I am getting Donkey Kong though just because I spend most of my money on Wii U games because I prefer home console and this will give me something to play on my 3DS. Now the only game that I want for my 3DS is Fire Emblem Awakening must find by end of year.

@ikki5 Wii point cards are over priced so are the keychains I'd rather just be able to buy VC games with my stars instead and the other added perks.

So it hasnt occurred to anyone yet? They are not giving physical rewards because of ebay resellers. That is my theory at least.

I agree that they could have used exclusive stuff. No bragging rights this way! I will claim Earthbound then.

They should have just given out eshop credits if they were forced to go digital with this.

Decided on Game and Wario and it's downloading now. Will I get credit towards the Deluxe Digital Promotion for this? And not to be "this guy," but if anyone already has these games and chooses Dr. Luigi or DKC Returns 3D, I'll gladly use your code. (I know there's no real "reward" in that, but just thought I'd say it.)

I'm on the side of favoring these options. Physical rewards lose their appeal to me. Games are infinite. I assume the Wiiu games will go towards the DDP. So it looks like NES Remix for me.

@Naoiko Agreed! Maybe they'll go down that route next year, who knows.

I've been suspecting that Nintendo of America were phasing out physical rewards on Club Nintendo especially with the huge reductions in the overall physical rewards as of late, but I didn't expect it to be THAT bad!

well i'm gold... so i can only download these games..
problem is i alredy have those!
Uh... does anyone want to trade an Earthbound code for whatever you want from the gold list? if anyone wants to, i'd be really grateful really been looking into playing earthbound

I guess I'll grab Fluidity

I will miss the calendars they were always nice looking with great artwork. This is probably a quick and easy way to do rewards though

I haven't touched the pins, cards, or MM soundtrack. I'll get a lot of time out of DKC. So I can live with this one!

I haven't touched the pins, cards, or MM soundtrack. I'll get a lot of time out of DKC. So I can live with this one!

Lame. These rewards have declined each year since the Mario Statue.

@Drac_Mazoku I think you can just give it away? im gold and i alredy have all the gold games, do you want to trade an earrhbound code for any gold code? D:

this is awful! i have every single game. they don't even offer a calendar?

I am extremely disappointed. Considering I already have most of these games and how much money I spent to earn this, I'm very upset at Nintendo for this. Maybe this is a sign that they are in some kind of emergency due to the Wii U failure...

I'm quite envious of these offerings. As a UK resident it's great to have physical items available, however beyond soundtrack cd's (which most people seem to put on eBay and sell on to others) there is very little of interest and on the odd occasion that something decent does show up you have to have twitch like reactions to get hold of them as everyone and their brother is hoarding points anticipating.

So, being realistic the chances of me not owning a game on offer is better than wanting a Link notepad or a Yoshi binder.

Welp, this disappointing. I mean, this is really, realllly disappointing. BUT! Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D is game I haven't played yet, and while I would have bought it physical at some point, this seems like a good opportunity to pick it up. Besides, the only other game I'm interested in is Game & Wario, but I don't want to get any Wii U games since my brother owns the Wii U. (And when he moves out, so doeas the Wii U) I just, really wanted some sort of nice physical reward. Maybe we'll still be able to get Tropical Freeze soundtrack as a normal reward. Seriously Nintendo, you know how much people love the soundtrack, why haven't you given us one yet?!?! Oh, and Ice Climbers. LOL!!!!

Does someone want to trade a Donkey Kong Country Returns code for one of the Gold rewards and one of the current monthly rewards?

@Th3PlaidHatter Free? They have touted the Rewards Program as a way to get cool Nintendo Merch - and I have spent HOURS doing their surveys. Free? Are you kidding me? They pulled a bait and switch. They gave us peanuts when in the past we got a pizza. That's why people are mad. I already have all of the games I want in this list. So I have to choose between Minis on the Move (yawn) and Game and Wario? Or should I get DKCR3D even though I don't have the space on my 3DS and I already own it on Wii.

"Thank you for buying all those games and getting Platinum! Now here's some choices of games to download that you either already have or don't want."

Wow and I thought European Club Nintendo was getting worse by rarely updating the stars catalogue selection. At least the European Club Nintendo can net you the Super Mario 3D World soundtrack for 3000 stars, this NA selection is horrifically bad.

wow this is actually awful its like i did all those surveys for nothing i already have any games on that list i would want I cant believe they'd do something like this

UGH! I AM SO DISAPPOINTED... because I deliberately held my coins back and didn't achieve Platinum status! The last two years I hit platinum and took the Gold level games anyway (LoZ:MM & LoZ:LA). I would have chosen Game & Wario or NES Remix or Dillion's. Instead I'll probably get Zelda 2 (or maybe Mario Land 2). But I love this. I have little interest in merch.

Isn't earthbound on sale right now?

Hmmmmm. Mother is one of my favorite series, and I've been meaning to get EarthBound for a while; the only reason I haven't gotten it yet is because I already finished it more times than I can count. On the other hand, I've been increasingly curious about NES Remix.

I'll try and solve this conundrum until I get home tonight.

I'm debating between any of the Wii U games. I have most of the 3DS games. I don't know if I will get Dr Luigi or Game & Watch Wario.

There is one problem with giving away games. The way we get to gold or elite is by buying games. Most people acquired the coins by getting the games they want. By giving away games they are either giving away games that people have already acquired or are giving away games that we didn't buy in favor of other games.

The physical items give us an unique item, The Mario cap or the statue that they gave away the first couple years were prime examples of items people would not normally have.

I like it, but I really feel like I have no say here since I never do anything with my club nintendo account.

Not gonna lie, I like the idea of download-only, but the game selection is awful. IMO if you spend 600 dollars on Nintendo stuff in a year, you should be offered a bigger selection than this. This is basically Nintendo flipping their middle finger to their biggest supporters.

Guess I'll pick up Game and Wario since it's one of the few I haven't actually played.

I'm thinking either NES Remix or Fluidity: Spin Cycle. Which one do you guys think? Is Fluidity good?

I wish they choose better games! I didn't go for Platinum status this year because I forgot... The last two years I hit platinum and got great games that time, but this year I didn't buy anything.

Almost all the gold games there I already have since 2011 from the Ambassador Event, I don't have Wario Land 2 (Is that any good?) but I never played EarthBound, NES Remix & Game & Wario. I don't mind a trade for a game since I'm Gold status & already have almost all of them.

Now that I'm thinking about it this would have been a good time to give away an amiibo statue as a physical reward. It usually takes months to prep the physical rewards anyway. they would have been out by time they shipped them.

@sinalefa They are selling the codes on ebay already. Same with the codes from Mario Kart.

I wouldn't mind this if it wasn't for the poor physical rewards all year long.. and the choices of games being older. I feel if they had newer titles (Like the recent GBA virtual console titles), or perhaps one physical reward for those who want it, it would have been a bit better.

I'm too am disappointed that there wasn't any psychical gifts. But I am glad to get a free game that I normally wouldn't buy. So I picked up DK Country Returns 3D. I haven't played the DK Country games since the SNES days. I guess it's a good thing there are Mario Kart Happy Meal toys out now.

@SirQuincealot You can sell your code.

Compared to last year's elite status gift, this year was definitely better for me. Game & Wario for free, well that saved a few of my money there.

Well that sucks, I have all of those games besides ice climbers wii U, DK3 and fluidity on 3DS. So it's a selection of the suck to choose from.

Oh wait I don't have DK 3D, that would be my best option even though I have played most of it on wii.

While it's unfortunate that there aren't any physical rewards, I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Now, to decide which one...

@vitalemrecords Very weird definition of payment. I have always paid for games and received free items through the Club. I've never paid for a Club giift.

In any case, I encourage you to not waste your time filling out surveys or registering items that you buy since you don't get anything for free.

A better platinum would have been continuing the 10% past this year for Wii U owners.

So wait, with my digital promotion I can get Game and Wario - then when the $3 bumps back into my account - I can pick up one of those game boy games - then do all of the surveys and have a chunk taken out of the next game I download. Not a bad plan - but its too bad I don't WANT any of those games. I already bought most of the games I want. Why not just an eShop credit so I can choose?

Nintendo of America has just proven that they really dropped the ball on Club Nintendo's Gold/Platinum rewards for multiple reasons. What were they thinking?!

• The lack of physical rewards
• All of the offered games were released before the end of 2013
• The lineup isn't exactly the best
• Huge disparity in terms of value between rewards

All ranting aside, I think Game & Wario would be the wisest choice out of the bunch for me.

@vitalemrecords Because they aren't in the business of not making money, and probably chose the gifts they did for strategic reasons?

@Th3PlaidHatter Is it THAT weird of an idea of payment? Have you never heard of a "Paid Survey?" Those exist - in fact there are thousands of paid surveys conducted every year. This wasn't one of those, but they aren't weird.

It isnt really the download-only rewards that disappoint me....it's the choices. I got quite a few of those through club.nintendo already and quite a few of the other options dont come across as a "platinum reward".

Would've been nice if this reward came along with a bonus discount for certain eShop games like Tomodachi Life or Yoshi's New Island. Maybe an interesting way of releasing the first gamecube game on WiiU VC....i dont know. Luckily I havent picked up Earthbound or DKCR3D, so it'll be between those for me.

@vitalemrecords But we are talking about the club, not the world in general, right? I'll take your download code since it offends you. Get Earthbound for me, I got my free Game And Wario already.

I literally own every game on those lists. An absolute waste.

Here's the problem as I see it, and as it affects me: If you are platinum, chances are you already have a LOT, if not all of the titles they are offering. I mean, sure… first world problems to be sure. But there isn't really anything that I want.

Game & Wario
Fluidity: Spin Cycle

Between the Ambassador Program and purchases, these are the only two games I don't have. And Fluidity: Spin Cycle as a Platinum reward?

Also, this whole program just lost it's vibe. Platinum used to be something to get excited about and Nintendo's rewards made you feel kinda special. Like the company was really happy to reward your loyalty. This feels phoned in, lazy and completely sterile.

There were only 2 games that I don't already own and have any interest in at all... and 1 of those games (DKCR) I already own on a different platform.

Yes, the selection is "good", but the more games you own the less helpful that is. Yes, a free game is "good", but especially for people like me who aren't keen on digital downloads this is a huge disappointment.

Oh well. I guess hoping for one of Nintendo's wonderfully orchestrated game soundtracks really was too much.

This is awesome, since I prefer games over merchandise.

And,........don't we get Club Nintendo points from whatever game we decide to download here??? DKCR3D should give me enough points to get download Paper Mario for free!!!

@Th3PlaidHatter No - we are talking about the world.

I mean the least they could do if you are going all digital is to give us anything available on the E shop
And even then would giving us 2 games kill them? I agree it's supposed to be unique nintendo type items that not just anyone can obtain. Now I have a ton of coins I won't be able to spend and they will eventually expire
Doesn't seem like a nice way to treat those that support them the most

DKCR3D is 17kblocks whaaat?! Still getting it, tho, had to delete attack of the Friday monsters and code of princess

Some of the comments are just unbelievable, you guys act like you are entitled to get special things and can't appreciate what Nintendo offers! Whenever Nintendo offers, you ask for more or be disappointed. THEY DONT HAVE TO DO THIS. They could be like another company where you can buy their game or system and thats it. But the arrogance here just pisses me off to another level, yea I get that some "rewards" are better then others but none of you take in to consideration that it's FREE. Just because you buy their games doesn't make you a fan. Hell the ones who complain about this or how they think Nintendo is just being lazy, YOU ARENT FANS. It's free stuff and somehow people complain. In the off-chance that you do have all of these games, give one to a friend or someone who doesn't, you don't always have to be greedy. But I can't stop you.

@Th3PlaidHatter Yes, they chose the game for strategic reasons. Their strategy was ill-planned. As game developers, they should have been able to look at it from a Sims perspective and see that their bread and butter (customers like Me) would already have all of these games. Maybe they should have said Gold gets these choices, but Platinum gets to choose anything. Since the Platinum members have more games that they want, let them choose more freely. I'm already platinum again for this year mind you, and I'm not sure what I have to look forward to for next year.

Kinda disappointing. It's cool to get something "for free", but the time it takes to do all those surveys isn't really worth getting something I could pay $15 for.

This truly sucks, this is the no cost option. They are basically saying with this, we do not want to spend money on you.

@sevex I don't mind the price points of the items - I just wanted more choices. I buy tons of games - and I want to be able to be rewarded with something I WANT rather than like - "Meh, ok, I'll get that one."

It's free stuff, so can't complain too much.

But maybe just keep is simple Nintendo. Gold status means you can download any 1 VC title of your choice.

Platinum status you get any eshop title you want, with maybe the only restriction being games that cost $40+.

B/c lets face it, too many Club Nintendo users buy 1st party only and own most of these games.

I think I'll get Dr. Luigi since it's one of the higher priced games and it has online. Need to let Nintendo know I want online in my games!

(I also think this is due to another bad financial year for Nintendo, saves them money.)

@XCWarrior I honestly think if that approach was taken, most platinum members would choose Fire Emblem Awakening as their free game due to that Smash Bros. trailer on Monday.

The self entitlement and hate in these comments are ridiculous. Seriously are people ever satisfied? They offer up something new and you all complain because its not physical. Not everybody has those games on offer How could you be mad at them offering Earthbound for free to those who don't have it? You really need to stop being so ungrateful and appreciate what you have

And...this is why I save my eShop credit for DLC or a non-VC digital-only game.

As someone who finds the Club Nintendo thing as a bit of a nice bonus, I must say that I'm quite happy and sad with the rewards this year.

Happy because I never spend cash on VC games (and now have the option to at least get one), and I live in the Philippines, which details any option for a physical shipment.

Sad because, can't they just give me $20 in eShoo credit? Come on, EO4 is on sale, and I don't have any credit...

@RichardsShadow

They can be sold, but they can't get as much money for these codes as for a physical reward that is somewhat unique.

Nothing cool about the rewards this year, oh well.

To be quite honest though, Club Nintendo should really just be an afterthought. If you like Nintendo's games, I would assume you'd be buying the ones that appeal to you regardless of coins and trying to reach platinum status in their rewards program. Could the rewards have been way better this year? Definitely. However, it's important to remember that you buy the games first and foremost for enjoying the games themselves, not for some potential cool little collectable that could await you at the end of the year.

I'm not sure what to make of these rewards. I love that I'll be getting Game & Wario for free, but in the end it's just a game. These rewards are great, but they have nothing to do with achieving Elite Status. Unlike past rewards like statues, pins, posters, and CD's, anyone can go out and buy these games. Honestly, I was kinda hoping for a 3D World soundtrack, or maybe a CD of the Zelda symphony.

That said, this is still awesome. Nintendo's giving free games, including retail games. There's not really anything to complain about there, especially when you compare it to what competitors give (pretty much nothing). The rewards could have been better, but they're still good and they're still free.

I wonder if Game & Wario will count towards the Deluxe program like Wind Waker did. Assuming it does, that'll be a free game plus $3 eshop credit.

I am so terribly mad that Nintendo decided to give me a free game of up to 50 dollars value instead of waiting a half a year to send me a piece of plastic or paper! I have no use for video games, if I liked video games I would have bought video games and reached platinum status! Wait...

Bummer they picked Donkey Kong Country Returns for 3DS. It's a huge download and something I'd prefer to get a physical copy of. Woulda loved Star Fox 3D. Ah well. Love the digital download rewards though. I could pick most of these games and I wouldn't have any of them.

I wish there would have been some physical rewards but oh well. Even though I have it already I'm leaning towards Game and Wario so my girlfriend can play without needing to borrow my 3DS.

Last year, my son talked me into a calendar for him ... which he never used and had no idea how neat it was.

I am sure I will find something to download. After all, this is a FREE gift — which is not something the others do. Personally, I would like some physical gift choice as well. But in the end, this is not something that Nintendo has to do and i get something for FREE.

Got a Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D code for my nephew. He loves the game, but due to it being a download on my machine, can't play it very often. So this is perfect.

I was actually expecting something like this. Kind of disappointed as I like tangible items, and always see Japan get the cool swag. I have a lot of the games listed, so settled for Dr. Luigi as the best of what remains. Would of been nice if they let Platinum members choose 2 games (one for Platinum level and one from Silver). That would of at least made it more satisfying. Still its a free game so can't complain too much.

As a poster previous mentioned, this sucks for anyone with only a Wii/DS system still as they get nothing. Well I guess they could sell of the code for some return at the very least.

To the question above, the redemption of a Wii U title does count toward the digital deluxe promotion. So there is that at least.

I'm really glad now that I was waiting on Earthbound! I've really, really been wanting to play it, but I figured both that I didn't have time in my backlog and that, if I waited long enough, it would go on sale.

Now I'm getting it as a free reward!

I can see why other people are annoyed though if there's really not much you don't already have.

NES Remix for me, but not even a calander this year? I feel that CN is going to be gone soon. They are only putting games up there.

@TrueWiiMaster "They have nothing to do with reaching Platinum status."

Wait what? What does that even mean? Why does Nintendo have to make you feel special? Why wouldn't you want everything offered to the entire community anyway?

I actually like this. I'm getting Game & Wario, which will be my second free retail game this year after the MK8 promotion. Thought about DKCR3D, but i already own the origjnal on Wii, and the file size is ridiculously huge, so no thanks.

Game & Wario for me. If I had to choose between last years Zelda soundtrack or this years Game and Wario...

Wow more games that everyone owns! Thank you Club Nintendo! It took you two darn weeks to put up rewards and all you can give us is this! There's only 6 rewards on Club Nintendo you can get right now and they all suck ( Not including Gold/Platinum rewards). Nintendo fans lets unite and start a riot! Give us better rewards! I'm sick of this crap!

Really bad selection.
I either own or not interested.
This is incredibly disappointing.
Maybe sell code? what a pain, horrible decision from Nintendo.
If they're going all digital why not a broader selection instead of this?
What a waste!

Game & Wario for me because there is no way I would buy it, but a $29.99 dollar game that will probably also give me 300 points towards a $5 eShop credit plus Club Nintendo points is an easy pick. Besides, this might be the first Wario game I enjoy and if not it will be a few hours of entertainment at no cost (I would have purchased the games either way).

If this is the direction they're planning on going, I will likely stop messing with Club Nintendo. I appreciate all the rewards in the past, most of them were excellent, but I'm disappointed to see them cutting out physical rewards completely. Digital items are worthless in my eyes as they really have no collective value since they can be duplicated an endless number of times (should Nintendo decide to release them for sale) and these items cannot be sold without selling the system they're installed on. I'm with others, I will likely end up just selling the download code.

This is somewhat curious, although not entirely surprising given the downward decline in quality of rewards over the past years. Honestly, it makes sense that as there are more Club Nintendo users it becomes harder to come up with rewards that are economically feasible to produce and distribute to everyone, which is why physical rewards have been in such a limited quantity as of late.
That said, I'm getting Game of Wario but would have been very disappointed if I owned all of these games. Seriously, I'm going to be more wary about buying games in the future if there's the chance they might show up on Club Nintendo for free.

I understand that Club Nintendo is free to join and receiving any prize at all throughout the year is a bonus, but I'm extremely disappointed with Club Nintendo in general. I have two accounts (don't ask, it's Nintendo), with one being platinum and the other gold. I got two posters for a game I'm not into, and a pouch????? I was looking forward to the Platinum/gold rewards because in years past the prizes have been good. I was wrong. While I'm not 100% disappointed with the DL only prizes (I'll find something I don't own on the list) I really feel like they could have included a more balanced line-up or just gave eshop credit. Why not eshop credit!!!!!! In fact I wouldn't mind if they got rid of Club Nintendo and the Digital Promo and just rewarded everyone with eshop credit that they could use on whatever game they choose. It would be like the Digital Promo only you wouldn't have to only DL games on the Wii U.

Interesting reading all the "I have yhese games already, thats how I got my status" comments. Reminds me of all the PS+ people who pay $50 to rent games they already bought.

Nintendo fans wanted digital games, now we have digital games. You know ehat they say about being careful what you wish for.

As for me, thanks to @Sony for reminding me I can get DDP credit, so Im getting Game n Wario. The demo at Gamestop was only ok, but I like the free money. Thats my reward.

Oh, I have 2 cool decks of cards, a set of pins and 2 calendars, so yes I would have preferred physical swag. They REALLY need at least 1 Wii and 1 DS game though, those people are COMPLETELY SCREWED, and thats just downright rude.

Maybe if we all hold off for a few days Nintendo will change its mind. At least offer $10 eShop for Plat, $5 for Gold for those who already own all of these, or simply dont want them.

Figures. The one time I hit Platinum, they don't have any physical prizes.

Well this sucks. I wanted retail downloads, but only 1 or 2 total.

Look, I get all the hate but Nintendo doesn't owe us anything. We should be grateful for what we get because last I checked Europe gets NOTHING! Club Nintendo has a nice list of physical items you can spend your regular coins on and if your platinum then more then likely you can get any one item you want anyways so what's the big deal.

My plans for the future is to not register any of my products with Nintendo unless I see something that blows my mind or in case they do a promo like they did with Mario Kart 8 or 3DS/Pokemon. The only redeeming matter with the "Club" is that they ran both those great promos! They were really great promos! I took advantage of both and I'm very thankful Nintendo ran both.

This is perfect! I'm good on Nintendo chotchkies at the moment.

@AlexOlney
Me too! Americans say it is so much better than the NA club Nintendo, but the European club Nintendo is only filled with crappy toys, in my opinion...

@Coldpancakes
That's kind of the point of clubs and rewards. People who aren't in the club don't get club-exclusive items. People who don't "earn" the rewards don't get the rewards. If anyone can just go out and get them it makes the club somewhat pointless.

Also, none of these games have "up to 50 dollars value". Game & Wario and DK3D are both $30.

I was hoping for some posters, like for SM3D World, DKC: Tropical Freeze, and Kirby: Triple Deluxe. Plus, I have a good number of these already.

I agree with the other Europeans - we've been waiting for years to get some kind of download game as a reward. I've contacted Nintendo of Europe before to ask if they have any plans for updating; they were quick and polite in their response, but ultimately the answer was no. Perhaps NintendoLife.com could reach out and try to put a bit more pressure on them? I think a reputable website's comments would hold a bit more ground than a single disgruntled customer.

@JJthe Texan
Same here! More mini game fun for me! Like others pointed out, at least it will count towards the DDP credit for me. I don't have a few other games but with the credit I'll receive from Wario, I can almost afford to DL the others with my credit. The only other game I might get would be DKCR 3D. I have the original but it would kind of be cool to have it on my 3DS too.

Wow, this is just awful. LOL I knew I wouldn't miss out on anything by missing even gold this year. It wouldn't be so bad but you know, Ice Climbers and Donkey Kong effing 3? REALLY?
It would have been fine if the selection was a little better. But come on Nintendo.

This kind of screws me over. Me and 3 siblings are all on the one club nintendo account, and don't own a Wii U. It's not fair for just one of us to get the download game, but we can't get the VC title on the Wii for all of us to share.

Pathetic im very upset

It would be great to play EarthBound! But i'm Gold

Soundtracks and posters are lame. I'll get Game and Wario or Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D. Extremely satisfied.

Going game and Wario just for the digital promotion points

@Spoony_Tech - "but Nintendo doesn't owe us anything."

It's not about owe, its about expectations. You wake up 5 years Christmas morning getting presents, then one year you wake up and your parents tell you your some religion that doesn't celebrate Christmas. I personally spend a lot of time filling about registrations and surveys - we have a Wii U and three 3DS so thats a o tof games per year, so Nitneod kind of pulled the rug out from under us. Would have been better if they had physiacl this yar w/ an email explaining/stating Nintneod wold be doing only digital in the future.

Thats a pretty limited list to wake up to. Both my boys were NOT amused.

Why do you want physical rewards? to sell on ebay? loyalty my ass! "I already own all of those games, i bought them so I could reach platinum status" yeah sure, I'm platinum and besides dillon's I have none. BUT if you really own all of those I'm open to receive your codes, make someone else happy, that's a cool reward XD

I think this is the first year I'm bummed for not hitting Platinum (last time I got it was when they gave out Doc Louis Punch-Out. Got Gold every year since then) because Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D has been on my wishlist for a while. Oh well, I'm getting either Wario Land 2 or Donkey Kong 3 as I have the other prizes in one form or another.

I don't know how I feel about digital-only prizes. Usually I would send my physical prize to my nephew as an early birthday present (a Nintendo calendar or something), so it feels strange getting something this year (my nephew has all but abandoned his 3DS for his Android tablet with Minecraft, otherwise I'd send him a code for Super Mario Land 2).

@mike_intv games with gold and ps plus, both for the Price of one Wii u Game Will give You full service for a year and 2-4 games a month, same Price on Nintendo? Will get ypu ome maybe 2 games but You Will still Be short 500 coins..
_{Watch the insults please — TBD}

I should try to be a bit more positive... Well, at least you don't have to wait until December for delivery... and there's a decent (and much bigger) selection, and I may either pick up Game & Wario for myself, or give my girlfriend DKC: Returns.

@rjejr
Must be a select group of "PS+ people". I could never buy all the games PS+ gave me for my subscription. Even now with a lot of them being old and pre-owned, it would cost me a lot of cash. The constant discounts and flash sales have been stellar too.

@truewiimaster
That's exactly the problem. A rewards program is only worth the rewards put out, especially for its "elite status" members. Most reward programs (this includes the DDP....run by Nintendo) would give you a coupon so you could spend it however you please in their store.

I'm reading comments about buying the amazingly sub-par Game&Wario for the DDP coupon....but they arent realizing how round-about that sounds. "Hmm, I'll just settle for this meh-game and get points for Nintendo's much better rewards program that'll give me a coupon for anything on the eShop".

To all the people saying why complain are you actually platinum reward members? This is a good idea but the selection is terrible. Most of them are good games but most are already going to be owned by platinum members anyway.

Hell they could have did something cool for high selling games on both systems. An exclusive cart for Mario Kart and outfits for Mario golf.

Game and Wario or DKCR3D? I tend to play my 3ds more but the file size is huge. The DDP points for Wario would be a nice plus but the single player aspect seems limited. Tough decision. I'm sure I will regret not choosing the other game when I decide but hey it's a nice bonus for buying games and filling out a few surveys once in a while.

@setupdisk I'm platinum and complaining. Once again, nintendo has completely lost me as far as hype and customer satisfaction goes. Too bad, I was on a spend all my money on nintendo games and accessories craze. Just spend around $500 since e3, but now I won't be getting anything until smash.

You can sell or give away digital codes easier than you can sell on physical goods. Plus no waiting until November.

Would have been nice to see the traditional calender on offer and Doc Louis Punch-Out though.

@ikki5 If we use 1 coin=5 stars as a conversion factor the Wii points you want so badly work out at 800 coins for 1000 while you regularly get games worth about that for less than 300 coins.

As for the CDs Mario 3D World is 600 and the Mario Galaxy ones go up to about 1000 coins. Let's not even get into the buyable platinum prizes (spend 1400 coins for something that was given away for earning 600, thanks...still did it as the Mario statue is great and there was nothing else I wanted).

As for our platinum prize it was great. Here it is, in the backets:
( )
Thats right there is nothing there. Remember for earning a platinum prize you also have 600 coins to spend so personally I would be more irate at how that part of the club nintendo system seems to have gone on vacation as that is meant to be the real prize, the platinum is just a bonus.

@Shepdawg1 a gift horse implies There Is something to look into, This Is like someone giving You a second identical tractor, but the first one waant even That good, plus There only one Person to drive them, plus theres no space for it, and it costs a poopoodoodoocacapoopledoople load for insurance, at least with a gift horse worse case it dies, but This tractor Will Just sit There for years rusting away and destroying yout feilds
_{Please watch the profanity — TBD}

Not only is Kid Icarus part of this Month's Game Rewards, but it's part of the Gold/Platinum Rewards section too.

Yeah good job on delivering this year Ninty.

I would just be happy if Disney Magical World was finally released in Australia (a game people in NA have had for months now). Whilst people are complaining about not getting good free things from Nintendo... I am starting to get really depressed myself actually.

Anyone who defends this is definitely a drone. I mean, You spend hundreds of dollars reaching platinum hoping for special posters or a figure, but you end up getting a CHEAP download game. They're so terrible, they didn't even give a full retail download of $50 or $60.

@2Sang Yeah I mean I was expecting another Soundtrack. or a Statue or a Luigi Hat (It was Luigi's year last year.)

I'd go for the highest retail priced game, but I'm not risking any more space on the incredibly limited stock space in my wii u (I never planned to buy any external hard drives because they cost a pretty penny) with all that said, I guess i'm forced to go with DKCR cuz my 16g SD....

The only good thing I can say about this reward is at least there is something I kind of wanted but didn't get yet...

Since the Platinum rewards SUCKED the past few years, I wasn't as concerned with getting all the coins I earned and let quite a few surveys slip by and expire because I thought there really is no point in being Platinum anymore. If I had completed every pre-play, product registration, and post-play survey, I would be Platinum. But since I didn't I was less than 100 coins from it and just stayed Gold. And now I see the rewards, I am really pissed.

Nintendo: Oh thank you platinum members who supported us in our time of need, thanks to your great loyalty, you get a $10 download only game code that you probably own anyways.
Nintendrones: Thank you so much we love everything you do ninty

Here's a cost listing of the games:

Platinum Level Rewards

Game & Wario (Wii U - $29.99)
NES Remix (Wii U - $14.99)
Earthbound (Wii U - $9.99)
Dr. Luigi (Wii U - $14.99)
Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D (3DS - $29.99)
Fluidity: Spin Cycle (3DS - $10.99)
Dillon's Rolling Western (3DS - $9.99)
Mario and Donkey Kong: Minis on the Move (3DS - $9.99)

Gold Level Rewards

Ice Climber (Wii U - $4.99)
Kid Icarus (Wii U - $4.99)
Super Mario Bros. (Wii U - $4.99)
Zelda II - The Adventure of Link (Wii U - $4.99)
Donkey Kong 3 (3DS - $4.99)
Wario Land 2 (3DS - $4.99)
Metroid (3DS - $4.99)
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins (3DS - $3.99)

Complainers! These are free gifts... Personally I'll take games over more little statues or posters or whatever other junk they wanna get rid of.

Sad sign of the times...everything going digital is ultimately not a "good" thing for the consumer.
I will cherish the physical rewards I have collected over the last many years....

RIP Club Nintendo

I get what people are saying about entitlement and appreciating what's offered. I do appreciate getting a free game (NES Remix in my case).

But this is still a disappointing year of rewards. Nothing exclusive, nothing physical, and a selection of games that many Platinum members probably already own. It's awesome of Nintendo to give prizes away, but this is the least appealing year for me since Club Nintendo starting giving away prizes.

That said, given their current financial situation (not awesome) and the fact that coins are easier to get than ever before (so probably more people able to claim rewards) I understand why the prizes are what they are.

Oh well. Life goes on.

@ElliotVA

ha! maybe you won't be a lazy ...bones this year...

Picked up NES Remix because it's the only game on the list that I KNEW I was going to eventually purchase. Already have the 2nd one and love it.

This is my first year being in the rewards program so I'm not sure how I feel about the download-only rewards.

@2Sang
Hell I was at platinum well before Christmas and a lot of times I never even bother doing the coin surveys. I don't expect anything that spectacular but give me something unique.

This is past a slap in the face territory and closer to a urination on a grave.
Hell send out a luigi hat or something. I love having those figures and other unique things around my PC and console areas.

This is crap.

Whilst in Australia we get nothing at all. What are you people in NA complaining about? I would be happy with anything they offered at all. Seriously, anything.

@vitalemrecords That's kinda how I feel. All of these items are easy to obtain, so if they were truly enticing I'd have bought them already.

My previous rewards were a calendar that was never used and is still in a drawer, and three posters I didn't want (because I wanted a game soundtrack CD even less) that have never been taken out of the box.

A free download of Game & Wario, plus the $5 download credit I will get back makes this the best reward yet.

Well what I want the most from there is Earthbound, but I can easily pick it up for $10 so maybe I'll go for the most expensive Game & Wario, unless I can find somewhere where it's already $20 or less.

@setupdisk totally understand your frustrations, as with many of the people here are upset.

EARTHBOUND

Oh game and wario is only 29.99. So no way

Game and wario is only 29.99 so that digital promotion would put me over but that game is not my cup of tea.

The Nintendo Reps that visited the store I used to work at would give out better things than this, honestly. They'd come once a month and give us anything from lanyards to patches or bumper stickers, sometimes posters. It's great that you're offering so many digital options, but I was really hoping for something special. Even if it was an exclusive digital download, like Doc Louis' Punch Out, that'd be better than this.

I'm a Elite this time(Was Gold last time), disappointed with the overall selection, I only have a 3DS , so was rather limited, and just like last time, I had the majority of those games already.

I got Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D, was meaning to get this game actually, didn't know if I wanted to suffer motion controls on the Wii or less framerate on the 3DS, but I guess now I didn't have a choice

ALSO JESUS CHRIST THAT DOWNLOAD SIZE, what is the game made out of titanium? I'm glad I upgraded my SD card to 16 GB awhile ago, this is definitely the biggest retail game I've downloaded, I think it's bigger than Shin Megami Tensei 4.

I don't mind downloadable rewards, but the lack of exclusivity bothers me. Anyone can get these games, not just platinum Club Nintendo members. Doc Louis Punch-Out is a good example. Not to mention that by nature of the program Nintendo is offering these games to the people MOST likely to already own them. Good grief Charlie Brown...

FINALLY.. digital downloads! Something that is actually useful!
Thank you so much Nintendo!
Posters & Figures are gay...

Hard to believe everyone here already has DK3.

I was initially very angry at this, but now I'm content with their decision. This gives me more time to collect the Platinum rewards from years prior! They had to cap it off at some point, and this upcoming year is my chance to take advantage. I'll be picking up NES Remix because I want Game & Wario and Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D in retail boxes.

@ElliotVA I did the same thing! Never bothered registering Super Mario 3D Land because I figured the elite games would be the same for Gold and Plat and I'd be wasting coins. I feel ya, brother. Plat next year!

This is pretty cool if you don't already own the retail games on the list.

Secretly was hoping for Starfox on 3DS... sigh... Donkey Kong it is.

Zelda 2 and NES remix for me. I think I would be disappointed if I didn't need any of the award games, but I do so I'm not!

I was hoping for a deck of cards as a reward. Maybe next year we'll get some exclusive amiibos!

I'm kinda both ways here. I've always been happy with my Club Nintendo Elite Rewards (MM Soundtrack, Giant Mario Bros. Figurine, Deluxe Mario Pin Set, etc.). But they've all eventually ended up doing the same thing. Sitting on a shelf in my house to look at once in a blue moon.

I will most certainly be able to enjoy my reward this year: Donkey Kong Country Returns 3D. I never got to finish the Wii version, and this will let me take it on the go. I just finished Tropical Freeze, and I've been hankering to play some more DKCR. I think it would've been nicer had they gave some games that were on par with the MK8 promo, but I'm happy with what I got.

sad.... all games i already own. anyone want a free download code>?

@Axed84
Agreed. I am five years platinum in a row. I own all of these except Donkey Kong returns 3D....which I own the Wii version. Great game and had great reviews...but.. Eh.. Rather let down. Most of the time I like sending the cool exclusive prizes to my brother as his birthday is around the time I receive the physical ones in the mail.

@Ryo_Hazuki-san

I'll take a free downlaod code

I'd prefer Mario vs DK as it's one of the 2 on the 3ds I don't already own.

@Ryo_Hazuki-san I'd love NES Remix. XD

@Prof_Clayton I agree with you on Wii, but 3DS is over 3 years old at this point, so I'm fine with them no longer offering rewards for original DS.

Holly Moly that download is up there like bravery defaults.

If any disenchanted Plat folks just want a Gold prize and want to trade, I'm game! Let me know

i guess i'll download dkcr, prob wont even play it but oh well

@Prof_Clayton At the same time, that money spent was for a product, not coins on Club Nintendo. You spent $500 and got games, so ANYTHING is technically a bonus on top of that.

Been wanting to get DKC Returns.

I am happy with it. Why complain about something that is free? I don't get crap from Microsoft or Sony.

Kids want Game & Wario and I want NES Remix. I think I should get to choose since they picked Pikmin 3 for the free game for buying MK8.

Ummmmm well this is a surprise, not even a calendar!??!?!??!?? Odd...still I am glad I hit Platinum there 3 games up there that I want and have yet to get on my old U!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NES Remix, Doc Luigi, and of course Earthbound. I'll head over to my DDP page and see how many points I need to hit another $5 eShop card. Probably NES Remix, still glad we're getting something!

There should be an option for "We're in Europe, so we don't get any of this good stuff".

I think this is proof that people will just complain no matter what. I don't know; I think it's a nice bonus. But I guess I just buy games and register them, not to get a particular amount of points. I feel bad for the people who were hoping for a collectible.

Although I have Platinum status, I own none of these games. It'll be my chance to try something I probably would not have given a chance otherwise.

@Grumblevolcano I'm sure some people will, but the whole reason that many FE people are in the game is b/c lots of people bought that game already.

I understand people who own all the available games being upset, but try to remember that Nintendo, like most other game publishers, didn't have to offer anything extra for your game purchase.

Nintendo has been good to me this past year, in the past year I've collected: Wii Fit U for purchasing a Fit Meter, Pikmin 3 for buying Mario Kart 8, $35 in eShop credit through Digital Deluxe, Multiple games sold at $0.99 the past year, and multiple games for coins through Club Nintendo. Not bad when the next best company was when Microsoft used to offer games through Bing Game rewards and Xbox Points for Bing Credits (Amazon Credit now).

@World that's part of the incentive to buying extra games. For me, there's games I will and won't buy regardless, but there's some I end up buying because of the promised platinum prize. If I wasn't already platinum this year, I wouldn't bother and probably won't bother going for it ever again.

DK returns is the only logical choice it's clearly the best game for the buck but that download is enormous

@2Sang

If you really want a Club Nintendo collectible so badly (assuming they bring them back next year) why not just go on eBay afterwards and spend $30-40 on buying the one you want, rather than spending $500 on games to "earn" it?

I really like these
I hope they do more of downloadable only games so we can have a wide range of choices like this.

@2Sang Really? I could see saving up for one of the physical rewards that are there, but I guess I hadn't considered saving up for the status rewards! Perhaps because every year I forget that this is coming.

@Beetlejuice becasue there's always the possibility of missing out on something like doc louis' punch out.

While the lack of ay physical rewards may be disappointing for some, there are several likely reasons for the switch that make sense when you think about it. First, having users choose from digital items already on their store is HUGELY more practical from a cost/benefit standpoint for Nintendo over, say, creating molds for and manufacturing physical miniatures, curios, or other items. Also, it's a subtle way for Nintendo to gage interest in particular genres or franchises for possible future releases, either digitally or at retail.

Of course this isn't the only thing Nintendo has changed recently in the interest of being cost-conscious; their recent switch during E3 from expensive stage presentations to all-digital events was another measure done to save money. Why? Perhaps its at least partially due to the Wii U's sales not meeting expectations early on, and they're attempting to recoup what they can for their investors; business decisions, in the end, are ALWAYS about money.

At any rate, I'm very glad they picked Earthbound as one of the offerings. I definitely plan to snap it up once the program opens.

Why are there always just Nintendo games when it comes to promotions?Yes I know a Nintendo deal would call for Nintendo games but they really should include 3rd parties. Obviously people buy Nintendo games the first week it goes on sale

Not disappointed that it's download games only, i'm disappointed that it's all games I already own.

@Yorumi I see your point. I don't really like collectibles all that much (maybe plushies?) and I do think it's cool that there are retail games there, but I can understand being disappointed if you were waiting for the one-of-a-kind statue and got...Fluidity.

I joined Club Nintendo to get cool swag I couldn't get anywhere else. Now many of these games are great, but I already have the ones I want and have no interest in the others. :/

You peeps are lucky...donkey kong returns 3d is an amazing game and still around 25 bucks used on amazon and ebay. Best deal by far. I am going earthbound or nes remix, or possibly minis on the move for 3ds...i prefer download only on portable if forced, and im PRAYING nintendo does a mother collection, sells the crap out of it, and does a mother 4 for wii U. Cha ching!

At least with download codes you get a free game, extra coins and if you go Wii U, you get points toward $5 gift card if you have a Deluxe. I am going with Earthbound.

This is great! I'll download Minis on the Move. I wasn't going to buy it but since it's free why not right? I enjoyed the previous DS iteration. (Not the DSi one though, yuck)

I literally spent an two hours grinding the day before the cutoff to be a Platinum member, and I am really bummed out. I loved the Majora's Mask Spundtrack last year, and I feel like the choices are worse than the free game with Mario Kart 8. Very upset. I'll probably take DKCR3D and give it to my friend as an incentive to buy a 3DS because I already own it and only go for physical retail games.

It's a bummer for anyone who bought all of these games already, they're essentially being duped out of a proper reward. But for me, considering this is my Club Nintendo year, I'm pretty satisfied.The lack of a game ost is disappointing, but I was going to buy EarthBound soon so it being a Club Nintendo reward is perfect timing!
I hope next year will have a bit more variety to it though.

@Yorumi Yeah, I get what you're saying now. You store up the points in the hopes of cool surprises. Makes total sense.

And I don't have any of these games, but I'm not sure I particularly want them either. I like the quirky ones that fly under the radar a little. That's how I build up my points. So in that way, yeah, I guess I understand a bit that part too.

Funny this is I got most of my points from downloads so there's really only 2 or 3 or these that I don't have. Is Earthbound good?

@paburrows I really enjoyed it. It's got this charm to it and you can say you played one of the SNES classics.

I'm debating between NES Remix and Game and Wario. Pleased with the game downloads as opposed to posters and buttons.

The value, price disparity in the titles is shocking, really the only choice if you want to get maximum value for your reward is G&W or DKCR. I kinda wish they had just given eshop credit. Then I could have spent it on a game of my choosing.

@TrueWiiMaster "That's kind of the point of clubs and rewards. People who aren't in the club don't get club-exclusive items. People who don't "earn" the rewards don't get the rewards. If anyone can just go out and get them it makes the club somewhat pointless."

That is in no way shape or for the point of this. Nintendo doesn't have to make you feel special by giving you something "exclusive." And anyway, they ARE giving you something exclusive: a free copy of two games, along with any other rewards you have already received by accumulating coins over the year. If you have a Wii U, you can also almost be at another 5 dollar credit, along with any other credits you've accumulated buying digital games this year.

"Also, none of these games have "up to 50 dollars value". Game & Wario and DK3D are both $30."

Remember, you also get a Gold and you also get any DDP credit for Wii U. So they're only about 3.75 times as valuable as the most valuable past physical rewards? Also remember, you receive coins on these too, which then you can use for more free games.

Is it just that you can't get something 'no one else has?' You shouldn't have to depend on Nintendo to make you feel unique, and more importantly you should feel -good- that everyone else can enjoy the same range of products as you. Why is it a 'good' thing you can have something other people can't?

Bottom line is, there is more value here for the customer and less direct cost for Nintendo (perhaps more sales opportunity cost though).

Or maybe I should finally get Fluidity. Oh man, now I'm stuck...I don't know which one to get...

@Starwolf_UK @Jazzer94

just so you know, Over priced is better than nothing at all which is essentially what the NOA Club Nintendo has ((even though the coins/stars are extra so over priced technically should exist however when there is no point to even having them because nothing is available to you that matters, that is where the problem should be). The best thing we have is a poster set and maybe those pouches. Other than that. it's a joke, NOA has the worst Club Nintendo selection out of the regions that have access to club Nintendo. At least you guys have stuff that is worth spending points on and have the entire downloadable library available to you on the Wii and DSi and not a bunch of free games you don't want or you would already own through getting the platinum.

@Yorumi
Well I love RPG Tactics games, but am only sort of into regular RPGs, I don't have Donkey Kong Country on the 3DS but do have the Wii version so I'm wondering if I should get that or not. I also have never played a Game & Wario.

Woooow, wish I made it to Platinum..

Picked up Zelda II, anyways.

@Ryo_Hazuki-san Yeah, I'd love Earthbound or even better Game and Wario!

I was really hoping there would be another soundtrack of a Nintendo game. You can't really get those anywhere else.

Getting DKR3D and trading my physical copy in at BestBuy for a $10 GC. Then using that on Sunday during their B1G1 promo to get Kirby and Mario Golf for what becomes $27 including tax. That's not a bad elite gift

Anyone willing to trade me that code for donkey kong country return 3ds ill trade you my gold rewards xD. I would get in myself but I failed to reach plat . either way message me

Got Donkey Kong Returns 3DS but I'd would prefer if we had some WiiU retail games there.

With this promo plus the one with Mario Kart I've saved about US $ 79.
Thats awesome!

@salxicha nice. I had a feeling this year they would have something I want. I was just praying it wasn't acnl for I already have that

So if you got Platinum do you get a game from each list or just one game?

Would have been nice if they offered Pikmin or Wonderful 101. I guess I'll go with Wario.

@ikki5 The US one has free downloads that would otherwise have to be paid for. That is far better than the garbage the EU one has. (The exception being the SNES classic controller which would have been good but needed to buy 28 games to get it and I was too slow think I was about 4 off when it went out of stock).

@noctowl They have the ability to lock them to the account (Like they do the digital cashback codes).

I only achieved Gold status this year. I would like some advice on what to get, thank you very much.

Compare this to PSN or XBL where give away free AAA, and critically acclaimed games every other week as well as price cuts.

Where Nintendo fans shell out hundreds upon hundreds of dollars only to get the cheapest of the eShop.

It reeks of Nintendo trying to save money.

@unrandomsam
lol, we have to spend a bunch of coins to get "free downloads".. How is that different than you points cards. You guys get Free points cards that have access to the entire Downloadable library on the Wii.

Free things are great, but if we stack the elite rewards against each other over the years, this one is a huge failure in comparison. If they want people to have the incentive to register software (buy software) in order to get cool exclusive rewards for loyalty, then they seriously dropped the ball here.
I wasn't able to achieve platinum last year sadly - really wish it was this year that that had happened. Cuz my choices are Earthbound or NES Remix...DKCR would have been the obvious choice, if I didn't just get it a few months ago. >__>

Huhhhhhhhhh. I guess Game & Wario ??! -_-

We'll Fluidity, but this still sucks.

People need to realize that not all companies do this....and it just costs a bit of time to write reviews to get. I got a $15 Dr.Luigi and I feel it's worth it, I have my Majora's Mask Soundtrack in a drawer only used once! Anyways, I'll also get $5 for Mega Man 5 on GameBoy! Yay Deluxe Digital! Whoever thinks this is a ripoff is self-entitled. If I had Dr.Luigi, instead of opting for a VC game, I'd rather give one away to another Wii U owner. Leagues better than the 2012 Plastic Cards..... -_- I think this might be the best reward since Pin Set IMO.

@ChemyNoSurfea Just get a larger SD card. They're dirt cheap now. I put a 32GB one in my 3DS and I'll never have memory issues again.

This sucks because there is nothing special about a digital game that could have been bought with a couple of dollars. And those that already have all the games being offered get screwed. Sadly I will not be looking forward to next years prizes with the direction Nintendo is headed.

@Furealz The problem is that Platinum members already have most of these games. I already own every single one and so there is literally no reward for the hundreds of dollars I spent and hours I logged doing surveys. It's completely unfair and lazy.

The poll needs an option for "nothing". I don't think I'll bother redeeming my reward.

@lerobadey If you haven't got Wario Land 2 get that ASAP. It has HOURS of playtime because you can revisit levels for treasure. Not to mention multiple endings and a secret mini-game for 100%. If you are a completionist, by all means look no further. My second recommendation is Super Mario Land 2.

@sevex ill take it for you

@thesilverbrick I wish there was a way to AT LEAST get eShop credit, Man that is unfair. Unless you know someone who you can your code to as a gift I got nothing. If I did have Dr.Luigi I would gladly get my cousin Game and Wario.

Is anyone getting a error that shows warrio? I'm unable to redeem my gift.

I'm really quite disappointed with the changes. They should've has physical items to choose from.

The rewards distinguished Nintendo from other other game companies. This set of rewards is disappointing but expected with their losses. I just wish there was a higher price point of games or platinum members can get two downloads.

Can't decide between Earthbound or NES Remix... Which one should I get??

@ikki5 Nearly all that is 50hz so not worth having. (It is even worse on a Wii U).

@Chocochips21 Earthbound if RPG fan, NES Remix if you LOVE Mini-game compilations. I like my mini-games so I would choose that over Earthbound. It's too overhyped, a great game but doesn't hold up well. I never finished Earthbound, you need to have patience.

Why hello, Dr. Luigi !

I'm actually pleasantly suprised with the selection of games available as I was expecting something along the lines of another deck of N. cards that will collect dust somewhere.

@Furealz I've been wanting to try the Wario Land series. I was not sure if it was worth it. Considering what you said, I'm gonna give it a try. Thank you

@Furealz I've been wanting to try the Wario Land series. I was not sure if it was worth it. Considering what you said, I'm gonna give it a try. Thank you

Another thought is that these games are more entry level or as if they are meant for a monthly subscriber. When really the people who have access have a wide range of games already and might already have these. I will enjoy whichever I decide to get I am sure, just wish I had a better list to choose from.

@Prof_Clayton The 3DS is over three years old. If someone is still using just the DS, which came out a full decade ago, and never upgraded, then they can't really be shocked that they aren't getting special gifts. I'm not holding out for an NES or SNES coupon, either. Shirts would be nice, for the DS owners, but... yeah. It's a ten year old system. Anyone who hasn't bought a new system since Tony Blair and Bush were in office isn't really the Club Nintendo market.

@Nin98 I got it three times. Just try again, the servers are busy.

@noctowl Sure, here goes: the secret is that I bought games.. As a bonus, I got coins. Didn't pay for a single coin. The club rewards are a bonus on top of the games that I pay for.

Hopefully all of these terrible comments don't cause Nintendo to discontinue the program, otherwise the games that are bought will no longer come with free coins that earn Club members free gifts.

I predicted stickers.....this is even worse. Mostly just VC games, which I never even cared to have as rewards in the first place and retail games that most people already either have or don't care about. At least give us a GOOD Wii U retail game as a reward, or some fancy 3D stickers or something.
Club Nintendo is shutting down soon folks.

Guess I'll get Donkey Kong for 3DS,since it's a slightly less stupider reward than every other choice.

I'd preferred a statue or something to put atop my desk, but I've been waiting for an excuse for getting NES Remix.

I remember that a couple the rewards were so underwhelming that I forgot to select one (always Platinum for the last 6 years).

I think Nintendo is trying to cut the costs by forfeiting shipping.

Kind of disappointed. The last time I was a CN Elite there were two prizes, one gold and one platinum, and I got platinum. Now I'm finally back into Nintendo (didn't have a 3DS, came back when I got a Wii U and ended up with a 3DS later) and the only prizes are downloadables. At least DKCR3D is a retail title.

And Club Nintendo is going down every once in a while, luckily I already got my code. The last time I was an Elite, they had this problem too. Haven't they figured this out already?

@Crimzonlogic Sorry to hear that, bro... I hope you find work soon!

Wow, this is incredibly disappointing. At least offer a downloadable soundtrack! I really hope they go back to physical rewards, but they probably will not.

I know I am crazy but I would've loved to see the Platinum have a choice to have the download code to the E3 demo of Super Smash Bros for Wii U or 3ds for unlimited tries! But that's not gonna happen...

I already have most of these freaking games, and the rest I don't want. : /
The only one I MIGHT get is DKCR3D. Seriously, those are some bad choices, Nintendo. smh

@AVahne what is your avatar from? Looks vaguely familiar.

@Chocochips21
Both are very good games according to reviews. Earthbound is discounted and costs way less than NES Remix, so if you are planning on getting both down the road, I suggest to go for NES Remix.

@Furealz thanks for your help! I think I will go with NES Remix.. I just hope they don't make an NES remix 1 + 2, like they did in Japan, because I like to collect retail games!

@Furealz thanks for your help! I think I will go with NES Remix.. I just hope they don't make an NES remix 1 + 2, like they did in Japan, because I like to collect retail games!

Well this is terrible i just hit platinum this year.And i have all these games already except earthbound which i was going to buy right now.Well time to get it for free then, maybe next year it will be better maybe.

@Imagamerboi That would have been so awesome.

@Spoony_Tech I actually enjoy my physical rewards, and already own nearly all of these games. I would prefer a soundtrack. I loved the buttons in 2011, and this 2010 reward was epic:

http://www.pressthebuttons.com/2010/07/2010-club-nintendo-platinum-reward-revealed.html

I was hoping for an unique physical item...oh well. It's free so what the heck.

So the game I would like to get is DKCR3D, but I need to get a bigger SD card now. Thanks, Nintendo.

@Yorumi that's a very good idea!!!

Now THIS was a reward...

http://www.pressthebuttons.com/2010/07/2010-club-nintendo-platinum-reward-revealed.html

These rewards are not free! I could buy all of these games and not reach platinum.

@Vyse You can still get DK, just don't download it right now.

@theberrage you could probably reach gold...

QUESTION

I'm a platinum member. Am I allowed to choose 1 game from each section or am I only allowed to choose 1 game? This is my first year as a plat member (thanks alot Wii U <.<).

@Th3PlaidHatter I know, just didn't want to get a bigger one. However, I would have needed to get one anyway. Thankfully, you can get SD Cards for very little, not like the PS Vita, and their overpriced memory cards.

I am furious about this choice of games. Not one a worthwhile option, meaning I probably won't even use my two platinum accounts in the family. First I own most of these, but even considering that, this is a terrible collection to choose from. I will say no more, because I can clearly see I have wasted too much of my year on Club Nintendo as it is.

@Hy8ogen
Only one game.

hmm.. torn between Dr. Luigi and Donkey Kong.

@Hy8ogen from what I know I think you can only get one sadly. Oh and happy first year being platinum!

@ACK Dude chill out. These are free stuff. We didn't even have to pay for a membership fee! Why U so upset? If you have dem games already, can I have Warior Land 2 from you plz?

@Imagamerboi AWWW THAT SUCKS! Oh and Thanks

While all of you are complaining I'm waiting for that enormous download for DK Returns. I haven't picked up Tropical Freeze yet. So playing through this is gonna be a bonus. I also am sure there is a whole bunch of other levels on the 3ds version . So quit your crying and get over yourselves and get crack n on a game you would have never of purchased. It is Free! Of course I still have over 1700 coins I can't really use. So this help eases my pain.

I also want to say I adore the physical rewards. They are special items, like mementos from a year of excellent Nintendo gaming. I could maybe live with digital stewards, but Nintendo needs to come with something better than this.

The worst part is that these games are practically guaranteed to be the ones in offer throughout the year for coins...
Of which I have more than I can even use because the only time there is a worthwhile reward, it's gone by the time I log on.

@Prof_Clayton

You could get a download code for a game now, and redeem it once you have the system.

And SSB4 isn't doing much for the competitive crowd. Final Destination stages screws us over hardcore (since he's making every stage as gimmicky as possible now that he thinks FD stages will fix the issues competitive players have with gimmicky stages, but it really doesn't because we nee different basic layouts), and the game engine has some flaws (from my own experience, moves seem to have a lot of ending lag on them, they attempted to balance the game in some horrible ways like making Marth, a really balanced character, way too slow and weak). I'm a competitive player, but Sakurai's attempts at making the game better for us have been awful when put into practice, so I'm not happy.

Boo. I didn't meet Platinum last year, so now that I got it again this is the trend they'll be setting? And I can only grab one game!? What a fierce disappointment.

I waited an entire year and they're offering the same crap they usually offer nearly every month.... Fantastic. Like how many times are they going to re-release Metroid??? Jesus...

@Hy8ogen Time is more valuable to me than money. Even year I get suckered in to wasting a day pushing our accounts over platinum. Past years have yielded worthwhile results, with unique memorabilia unavailable elsewhere. Still, dealing with Club Nintendo is like pulling teeth so after all the trouble and actual honestly filled out surveys, this is like a slap in the face considering what has been offered in the past.

This... Is a crappy list of games. There is no way around that. Like I said, these are likely to be available for coins throughout the year. So congrats to us, we get to pick a lame free game that maybe saves us 300 coins down the road. The Majora's Mask OST? Likely would've been offered for over 1000 coins. We haven't even had the SM3DWorld OST made available to us. THAT would've been a solid reward.

i have 4 platinum accounts and i almost have every single game on that list i am disappointed

@ikki5 I will try again. You are crying about the fact you can't spend 800 coins for $10 of games on two dead systems (one of which is pointless in Europe due to NOE deciding they should run in crappy 50Hz). The fact that earning 600 coins you get one of 2 $30 games for free on mordern systems is nothing to scoff at and you then have 600 coins to spend. Sure the physical goods are in dire need of a restock but you have over 2 years for that to happen.

Grass is always bloody greener, isn't it.

@roccochacon Have you not thought that is it because of people like you that the gifts in general are so bad? 4 accounts to platinum, I don't believe you can do that legitimately. Prove me wrong

Yikes.
So much for a special Amiibo... which would have made incredible marketing sense.

@Axed84 Could I get a game from the yearly rewards if you aren't interested ? I didn't even get to gold this year

@AVahne
At this rate, you may be right. Poor offerings (seemingly getting worse and worse) ---> negative response ---> pull the plug. And it's not to say that what Nintendo's plan from the beginning wasn't great with this program, but it's only obvious that it's slowing down. Just look at the offerings - they used to have upwards of 10 physical rewards, now there's only 5. Looks like I missed my opportunity to get the hanafuda cards...

Chill out people you can always get those physical rewards on Ebay

Extremely disappointing. Why the hell would they make the rewards something that's most likely already owned by an individual who spent money to reach platinum? This year is a complete bust.

@Imagamerboi
Yeah, ok. Everybody has their price I guess. lol

@Starwolf_UK

Wii mode? last time i checked, you could use the Wii shop on the Wii U in Wii mode to use your Nintendo points cards. yeah those systems are dead but you can still get the games on the Wii VC. yeah they would be 50 hz for you guys... so you have me on that one. But if you had read my other posts, you'd see the fact that having the ability to get one of two $30 games is useless to me. I own them both. In fact, I used both of them to help get me to platinum Status so that "great deal" s no longer a great deal anymore for the simple reason, redundancy downloads doesn't get me more or better. it gives me the same so my net gain over all is 0. This is the big problem with this way of handling the rewards over all. The bigger games, i am willing to bet that 75-80% of people that got to platinum, they already have them, so that would leave you with a bunch of $5 eshop games which in turn, a lot of people would already have them such as myself. This reward system for this year pretty much makes it so you can get that game you cared less about or possibly never cared about at all. Look at the replies in this thread. it is so easy to tell who is from NA and who is not. The people from the EU, just reply saying how much of horrible people we are because we wanted something else other than something the majority of us already own. The NA people are upset with a few ok with it because their don't have one of the larger titles so this actually benefits them while the majority either get nothing, or something they never cared for because they had no interest in it to begin with.

Reading these comments, I want to make it clear this service is far from "free". First the games cost considerable money. But, more importantly, the surveys have significant value to Nintendo. Long before CN, companies existed that would pay out rewards (like gift cards, gaming consoles, devices, etc.) simply for filling out a litany of marketing surveys for various corporations. Those surveys cost time and effort and Nintendo is the one profiting from the info we provide.

Nobody is entitled simply because they expect an acceptable reward as payment for our service to Nintendo.

This is incredibly disappointing. I had been checking back every day hoping for a soundtrack or some kind of cool exclusive .I'm not big on digital games in the first place as I prefer to buy physical ones. I think the least they could do is allow a platinum member to chose one from the platinum section and one from the gold... this is the first time I got Platinum and I really worked toward it after seeing all the great rewards in the past, and I'm already at gold status for the year. Just incredibly disappointed...

This is terrible... I've made Platinum every year, and the rewards have always been great, but this? ... This is just "Thanks, here's a gift card" except you don't get to decide what you want to spend the gift card on.

I am very, very sad...

@Yorumi Again, they spent their money on products that they received. They did not spend money on coins for Club Nintendo. Nintendo should NOT feel obligated to give them more complimentary things. This whole entitlement BS is getting rather irritating

Is anyone having trouble getting on Club Nintendo right now?

@Yorumi Thank you for reminding me how much I've spent this past year. T_T

@Imagamerboi Heavy traffic I assume. It went under "maintenance" several times today. I suggest waiting until tomorrow to prevent glitches

@Crimzonlogic You don't have a 64 GB yet?!

SERIOUSLY NINTENDO WTF IS THIS!!

its the 5th platinum awards and i have all of them and these are by far the worst

Like we spend 600$ and we get rewarded with games we already have.....
Would have rather got a gold calender...
Very dissapointed :/

"I buy games for Club Nintendo pins!"

Feels like I see a lot of this today.

@Unca_Lz and @ACK
I think most people's complaints stems from what's been offered in the past compared to this year. At least that's my disappointment anyways. We usually have an expectation of something slightly cool, but these rewards are pretty lame in comparison. Not the end of the world by any means, but it's just surprising.

@Unca_Lz kind of like the Mario Kart 8 situation.

@yoshi5852 It's like pay 600$ get one free game that you already own...

I'm partially disappointed. While something more exclusive and special would be nice, I also like game downloads. But this game list to doesn't quite hold the same value as last year's Majora's CD or other rewards. I doesn't feel like anything special at all.

This is really pissing me off. I don't want some stupid freaking download!! I want a flippin' TANGIBLE item!

Thanks a lot Nintendo. $600 for a game download that I don't even want.

it was a hard choice for me, i couldn't decide if i wanted DR Luigi or DKC3D so i chooses DKC3D, because i was planning get it before DKCF for WII U

List of platinum rewards:
2009 - Mario Hat
2010 - Super Mario Characters Figurine
2011 - Mario and Friends badge set
2012 - Platinum Mario Playing Cards OR Limited Edition Platinum Poster Set
2013 - Three-Poster Set OR The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask Original Soundtrack
2014 - this

My reward for spending a lot of money on Nintendo products is...a free download of a bunch of games I already own. WAY TO GO, MORONS! After all the previous years' rewards, this could only be a bigger letdown if they said "sorry, your Elite status gets you NOTHING this year." I thought the point of a customer loyalty program was to make people HAPPY they're spending so much money on you...

@Spartacus3765: Don't forget Doc Louis' Punch-Out!! the first year...that's what I took instead of the hat. Sure, it was a downloadable game...but it wasn't available any other way!

This is utter horse feces. This goes to show the garbage quality that Nintendo is showing in their games. It all stems from Splatoon, Project Guard, and that other piece of trash IP that Miyamoto showed us. Frankly, I don't want him touching my Star Fox anymore. Down with Club Nintendo and down with Miyamoto.

@Coldpancakes
Actually, that's exactly the point of this. Just look on Club Nintendo. They say you should join for special rewards and exclusive benefits. Getting a free game is nice, but it's not a "special reward" if you can pick it up in any game store.

No, you only get one game. Platinum users can choose from the Platinum and Gold games, but they still only get one game. The DDP gives you $3 if you get Game & Wario, $1.50 or less for every other game.

"So they're only about 3.75 times as valuable as the most valuable past physical rewards?"
Actually, the most valuable reward, the SNES Wii remote, which didn't come to America, sells for well over $50 on ebay. Other rewards sell for $20-50. That value comes from the exclusivity you seem so against.

This isn't an exclusive club. Anyone can get in and earn Platinum status if they want to. The Platinum reward is supposed to be a reward for those that actually do, almost like a trophy, albeit without any competition. If the trophy you get can be bought in any store, it's not much of a trophy.

"Bottom line is, there is more value here for the customer"
That depends entirely on the customer. If someone already owns DK3D, and doesn't have a Wii U, the value is $10 at most. If someone only has a Wii U, but already has Game & Wario, the value is $15 at most. Perhaps the strangest thing about these rewards is how they punish customers for their purchases. The more games you bought, the fewer options you have.

@Spartacus3765
Aye...the hanafuda cards are quite nice. They're not as nice as Nintendo's Presidential deck, but are a really nice medium-grade quality. Unfortunately for me, I broke the case, but the cards are still in nice condition.
But....yeah, Club Nintendo is gone.

@Mr_Mojo_Risin
It's from a wallpaper image for an old Korean MMORPG called Goonzu.

I'm very happy with the rewards. I've been wanting Game & Wario for a long time now, but it never panned out. Now, I get it for free!

Also, are people seriously complaining that they spent $600 for their 'reward'? I seriously doubt anyone bought all of those games just to reach Platinum status. Ya bought the games to play, didn't ya? You were going to get them anyways, right? Don't pretend like you just lost a $600 investment when you've still got a cabinet full of games.

these rewards are garbage considering i have gotten platinum since 2009...

Club Nintendo Platinum Rewards Ranking in my opinion:

2010 - Super Mario Characters Figurine
2011 - Mario Badge Set
2013 - Three Poster Set OR Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask Soundtrack
2009 - Mario Hat or Doc's Punch Out
2012 - Mario Playing Cards or Poster Set
2014 - ...this

so much butthurt feels in here

I'm glad I didn't get Platinum this year, aside from Earthbound and NES Remix, all of the choices here are crap.

So glad I didn't bother this year. I own the good games they are offering and none of this is worth taking the time to register my codes.

Maybe Nintendo heard the majority of us. The rewards section went down for maintenance!!

If we keep getting rewards like this... I don't think I'm even going to TRY to get Platinum next year! Why waste so much money on Platinum status when I am just going to choose one of the Gold status prizes?

I'm gonna put it out there and assume the people in here mocking those who are upset are people who haven't had received platinum in the past. lol

I'm a bit disappointed since I have a majority of those games to get Platinum and I loved getting the cool Nintendo stuff in the mail in December, but luckily DKCR 3D is the only game that I don't have on the list and I was about to go an get it sometime soon.

Platinum games are pretty okay, but Gold prizes just plainly suck :-/

Wow I either have the game already due to club nintendo points or i don't want or need it. What a waste. So glad I did not waste time entering codes this time around.

Can anyone help me out, please? I don't know what to get... Dillon's Rolling Western, Earthbound, or a retail game to sell...
REMEMBER EVERYBODY, they're bonuses for buying the games you were gonna buy anyways! If you're buying it for Club N, well then you're not exactly doing it the best way in my opinion...

@SuperMikey
Avoid Dillon's Rolling Western, 4 reel.

For me, I'm going for G & W.

@Yorumi
The funny thing is, I don't actually TRY to get Plat status.
I just buy a lot of games, and I'm a very loyal Nintendo customer.
It just FEELS like I wasted money on games when I'm rewarded so poorly.

I typically buy the physical version of games anyway, because they are far more versatile. They aren't just STUCK on your system.
Also, I have a ton of family members who also play/buy nintendo games, and give me their CN reward points.

I only see two upsides to this, which are they can distribute awards sooner and it costs them nothing. I would rather have collectible physical rewards or AT LEAST some full retail games that are desirable. Heck, they could have given the option to get one of the soon to come games (Bayonetta 2, Captain Toad, Hyrule Warriors, etc.) for us, since we spent quite a bit of coin on their games this past year.

@eaglebob345

Now THAT would've been nice. Maybe even a download code for a playable demo as well?

I have a confession to make...

I...

Oh gosh this is so hard....

I buy video games for the super secret pin code inside so I can be part of the super secret cool kids clubs.

Why is the bonus free thing I get after getting normal free things not good enough.

Why Nintendo.

Why do you hate me!!!

I like this decision, if there will still be physical rewards available throughout the year. If this is a sign that all physical rewards are being phased out, I will be very disappointed.

@Tsusasi I can appreciate you like that stuff but to me Its just junk to collect. I have all of this you mentioned and the statue got Yoshi's head broke off rather quickly, the cards are somewhere in the house and they don't function well to actually use them and the buttons got the most use from my kids wearing them a lot with the box thrown away as well why, because I don't really care for it. It's all clutter in my house and is junk to me

At the very least they should've offered this reward with on physical one as well or at least any one item off the list of available items to use coins on.

@Tasuki You are stuck I'm afraid with that gold reward with no way out. Doubt you could even sell it if you wanted to. Best you can do is gift it to someone that really.wants one of those games!

@maceng I wouldn't hold my breath if I were you. It's not like they have a plan B if their club nintendo members gets riled up.

I know this is probably a pipe dream but would someone be willing to trade a gold status game for Earthbound? I've been wanting to play it for a while. I already have most of the gold status games on my 3DS so I don't really want to download them again on my Wii u.

I'm use to having physical rewards for platinum, but I will get Donkey Kong CR3D because I don't have it, it should also give me some CN coins as well!

@Tasuki What do you want instead?

@SethNintendo
The popular opinion here is simply that these rewards pale in comparison to past iterations. To me, the Club Nintendo rewards are 'bonuses' for buying Nintendo products, registering them, taking surveys, etc. That's all. At least how I view them. I just feel they used to have better bonuses. lol

Maybe this is all happening cause iwata took over nintendo of america.... think about it good awards with reggie bad awards with iwata cause iwata is a greedy little devil cause this is costing them nothing....

@aang4526
Make an offer, i haven't redeemed anything yet.

Honestly, I'd prefer an actual game to some poster I don't have space for, or a hat that I'd never wear.

@justlink well, do you like any of the gold status games? I haven't redeemed anything either. So it's up to you.

sigh Whatever. Which game should I download? It's between NES Remix and Game & Wario.

I'll begrudgingly accept your reward Nintendo...

Since I only made it to gold status (I was so close to getting platinum though) I guess I'll get Wario Land II since i own all those other games avaliable on the gold section.

I personally think that the way that rewards are presented is way off balance. Would you choose a 30 dollar retail game or a 5 dollar game? I was also hoping for a physical reward or two as an alternative.

Pretty disappointed, I could have bought any of these if I really wanted them. And the price range is ridiculous, should've at least been all retail choices for platinum. Well, now I guess I should decide between Game & Wario or DKCR3D... Ugh idk which to pick...

Also, do we get this codes right away?

Not disappointed, but probably because I don't know how I can get those physical awards since I do not live in the US.

@aang4526
Message me on Miiverse, and give me the code for Kid Icarus(WiiU) after i give you the Earthbound code. I'm Justlink. I can't access club nintendo right now, but i'll message u the code when i can. Write ur miiverse name here so noone takes the code telling me they are u.

The one, single year I didn't make Platinum, and they give entire games? And I would've made it to if I hadn't forgotten the window was closing... meh. Oh well, at least I got gold so I can get something, woo. I know some are rightfully disappointed probably, but I would've loved to have Platinum and get DKCR 3D. A 30/40 dollar game is sort of a bit better than posters or playing cards like the last two years in my opinion.

Icing on the cake? That free copy of Donkey Kong Returns 3D gave me the 40 coins I was shy of Platinum for 2015. Can't wait to do this again next year.

@Spartacus3765 And your opinion is absolutely fine. They have better bonuses in the past and I'm disappointed that this years pales in comparison. I understand that, I really do. People have expectations, and people get disappointed.

However I am more than thrilled! This is my first year as a Plat and I'm getting DK 3DS! That is a whopping 30 dollar game reward for just BUYING video games! Yeah I don't get the limited physical items my friends got previously, but a 30 dollar game is still pretty awesome!

What I don't get is the people that is getting so riled up and upset over this. People, this is a rewards program, and IT IS FREE. Stop feeling so entitled to everything. Honestly.

I'm incredibly disappointed with the rewards this year. I'm not a fan of digital rewards in the first place and now they've made the entire year-end reward selection digital? I'm sorry Nintendo but this in no way encourages me to reach Platinum again next year and I've reached Platinum each year since the system started.

It wouldn't be so bad if the digital rewards were at least special in some way. I was perfectly happy with Doc Louis' Punch-Out but I don't have much interest in this selection of games that I could get at any time for a lot less effort and loyalty than it took to reach Platinum status.

Heck, Club Nintendo in general has been circling the drain for quite a while with its dwindling selection of rewards and incredibly limited availability of new items. Those Epic Yarn patches have been there for four years and I can't see many people caring to get greeting cards.

I'm sorry but this is a big fail. If anything, I'll get Game & Wario and sell the code on ebay to buy a retail copy (even if there will be a difference to cover).

@Coldpancakes I also would like to reinforce your statment saying that only this year (got my 3DS in Nov and WiiU on May) Nintendo gave more than Microsoft ever did with my Live Gold signature + VIP account (30k points in achievments) since 2009.

Do I feel like been part of something that adds value to the customer?
Totally!

@aang4526
Nvm, i want Mario bros wiiu, ok?

I begrudgingly accepted Game & Wario.
But I probably won't even play it.
Not a huge fan of party games.

@ShadJV You sign at club nintendo and then you choose which game you want.

@justlink My miiverse name is Flyaang.Thanks soo much for this!

@SethNintendo - Right on.

@yoshi5852 It is Nintendo of America that made that choice. (All the others have the cheap mostly worthless junk).

@justlink That's fine. Super Mario Bros. for Earthbound.

@aang4526
ok

@Hy8ogen
And if I didn't already have DKCR 3D, I'd be getting that, too. I may do what someone else on here said, which was to trade in my physical copy of DKCR 3D at Best Buy to get the $10 GC, get the reward through Club Nintendo and download DKCR 3D, and add the $10 GC towards the deal next week.

At least give us a full priced decent retail game! All the games fro this selection are the $30- Downloadable games.

Earthbound is the perfect choice for me.

@AdmiralThrawn You sir are a complete joke. Both PSN and XBL requires a subscription fee while Nintendo club does not require a single cent. Furthermore, once you terminate your PS+ and XBL subscription, your so called Free games goes away as well. Comparing Club Nintendo with PS+/XBL is plain stupidity.

Secondly, calling Splatoon and Miyamoto horse feces? Splatoon is critically acclaimed all over the internet as the next big thing and even Shuhei Yoshida himself even complimented Nintendo for making that game. If you want to troll, at least try harder.

Oh and don't bother to reply as I will completely ignore you. I don't usually reply to trolls, but your previous post kind of struck a nerve.

@Spartacus3765 Sounds like a solid plan! I'm currently torn between DK and G&W...hmmmmm

I can't get physical rewards anyway. So it's pretty great for me that DKCR 3D is a reward!

well game & wario and donkey country returns is both good game . i didnt expect such good reward , i got a 10$ game last year with my platinum reward and i played it once ROFL . already finished DK returns on Wii but i guess i need it on my 3ds to try the new world xD

@thesilverbrick Could I get a game from the yearly rewards if you aren't interested ? I didn't even get to gold this year

@Hy8ogen
Haven't played G&W, but I can tell you that DK is worth it. Based on the review comparison (or unless G&W is more your thing), I'd highly recommend DK.

Club N site is crashing already! lol. Frak.

@Spartacus3765 I already have DK Tropical Freeze for my Wii U. That's why I'm hesitating whether the 3DS DK will give me the same experience as my Wii U's DK. HMMMM!

@Spartacus3765 I already have DK Tropical Freeze for my Wii U. That's why I'm hesitating whether the 3DS DK will give me the same experience as my Wii U's DK. HMMMM!

Anyone else feel the gold rewards are especially lacking though? Gold status is just half of Platinum status and is still "elite", yet Gold gets only 5 or 6 dollar virtual console games (all for NES or no-color GB...) that you could get any time from monthly game reward offerings, while Platinum gets 15-30 dollar recent games... I mean, the least they could've done was give GBA or SNES Virtual console rewards or something. I guess I have only myself to blame for forgetting about the cut off, though... at least I can use my coins to hopefully even better rewards this year

@aang4526 code sent

Dang, missed out on @justlink's kind offer. Anyone else have a Plat prize that they'd swap for any of the Gold ones?