Smash Demo

Nintendo's live Treehouse broadcast kicked off with a bang when it announced details around a Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS demo. It will launch worldwide (with a 30 use limit) on 19th September, but select Club Nintendo members in North America and Europe have today been emailed four download codes to be enjoyed and shared with friends; these Club Nintendo codes have no usage limit.

Unfortunately, a rather neat promotion by Nintendo to reward loyal fans is being exploited by some gamers seeking to make a quick buck. Amazingly, codes for this free demo — consisting of just one stage and five playable characters — are being sold right now on eBay (we won't link to the bids here). Many of the codes are yet to receive bids, yet some are accumulating offers while others have outrageous "Buy It Now" prices in excess of $30; those bids submitted so far seem to be for relatively small figures of a few dollars.

These codes arguably should not be sold for any amount, and it seems a shame that some are seeking to exploit this free offer. It's been heartening to see, however — here on Nintendo Life and elsewhere — strangers that have offered and traded their codes with other 3DS gamers. That act of sharing codes as an act of goodwill will be what Nintendo had in mind when offering four codes to each selected Club Nintendo member.

If you're still seeking a code we hope you'll find someone happy to give you a spare, but if not there's just a short wait before the eShop version arrives on 19th September.