A few months ago, we suggested how Nintendo could fix the Club Nintendo program to better appeal to their fans. Rather than heed our advice, it looks like the consolemaker has decided to scrap the whole thing and start over with a new loyalty program later this year.
Announced earlier this morning, Nintendo has revealed that Club Nintendo will shut down for good in June. Wii U and 3DS owners may still collect Coins by registering products or completing surveys through March, but all Coins must be spent by June. To help deplete your virtual bank account, Nintendo plans to add a ton of new physical rewards and game downloads to the Club Nintendo program beginning in February.
“We thank all Club Nintendo members for their dedication to Nintendo games and their ongoing love for our systems and characters,” said Scott Moffitt, Nintendo of America’s Executive Vice President of Sales & Marketing. “We want to make this time of transition as easy as possible for our loyal Club Nintendo members, so we are going to add dozens of new rewards and downloadable games to help members clear out their Coin balances.”
As a further thank you to users of the program, Nintendo has announced that every Club Nintendo member will be able to download Flipnote Studio 3D for free. The free game offer will be available in February and must be redeemed by March 31.
Nintendo will announce plans for a new loyalty program “a later date.”
