Nintendo’s reward program has evolved and devolved over the years. There was a really nice sweet-spot during the Wii era, where lots of great games earned you points and those points could be redeemed for awesome physical prizes. I enjoyed that period and collected a lot of exclusive merch that made me feel like a part of the—well—club.
Things are different with today’s program, My Nintendo. The approach pivoted from rewarding surveys to gameplay accomplishments and task completed instead, which is a sensible exchange. However, with the new program, we’ve firmly waved goodbye to physical goodies like tote bags and hanafuda cards, left to spend our Gold and Platinum coins on in-game outfits, themes, and digital wallpapers.
Turns out, it’s no replacement. I was excited at the onset of My Nintendo, as a few games were offered for redemption: WarioWare Touched!, a DS title, and a Zelda-themed Picross game exclusive to the loyalty service.
Eager for more rewards like this, I quickly became disappointed when I found nothing worthwhile to spend my coins on.
Worse, the digital currency was a ticking time-bomb. Expiration dates loomed over my Nintendo piggy-bank, which threatened to disappear if I didn’t hurry up and spend it on a bunch of themes I would never use.
I don’t feel particularly rewarded by Nintendo, which is a problem when you consider that I’m their best customer: a day-one early adopter, a collector, a completionist, and a brand ambassador dedicating my life to working for them free of charge.
If their customer loyalty program isn’t for me, then who is it for?
