Disney Channel’s Nintendo Switch Family Showdown tests your gaming skills

By Gabe Gurwin June 18, 2018

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The Nintendo Switch is a great choice for families looking to play games together, and since the system’s launch last year, your own family has likely honed its skills across several different titles. Now, Disney Channel is giving you a chance to prove your family can play with the big boys.

The Nintendo Switch Family Showdown is a special competition that will have families competing against each other, including at Super Mario Odyssey, Mario Tennis Aces, and Just Dance 2018. We aren’t sure we’re ready to see moms and dads busting a move, but perhaps we’ll be pleasantly surprised.

The Nintendo Switch Family Showdown will air this August on the Disney Channel, Disney XD, and the DisneyNow app. In order to be eligible, your family must submit a one-minute original video explaining why you’re the “ultimate Nintendo fans.” Though you could use this opportunity to show off your Mario or Zelda collections or demonstrate your skills in Splatoon 2, we suggest using the time to plead with Nintendo for the return of Advance Wars, which has been cruelly ignored for several years.

Assuming you want to use your video to win a trip to Los Angeles and compete on the show — and not bring back a beloved tactical series — you must submit your video by July 2 at 2:59 a.m. ET. If you’re selected to compete, you and up to three over your family members will head to the show to compete on August 4. One of you must be between six and 18 years old in order to win, and for a full list of requirements, you can check out the competition’s official rules.

Those competing will be eligible to win additional Nintendo Switch consoles, eShop cards, and controllers, and there will also be one runner-up family, who will receive a Nintendo Switch console. If one of the four competing families is unable to attend, the runner-up will take their place and will get to keep the console, anyway.

We can’t wait to see families compete in the Nintendo Switch Family Showdown this summer, and we really can’t wait for someone’s grandparents to refer to Link as “Zelda.”

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Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…

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