While freebies through Amazon Prime’s Twitch Prime gaming service typically only include PC games, Nintendo Switch owners now have the chance to snag a pretty sweet perk. Twitch Prime members can get a year of Nintendo Switch Online for free.
The process for redeeming the full year is a little strange. First, you have to claim a three-month subscription here. Once you have the three-month code, you have to wait 60 days to redeem the final nine months to round it out to the full year. The three free months are up for grabs until September 24, and the remaining nine months need to be redeemed by January 22.
It’s likely set up this way because you can get a free 30-day trial of Twitch Prime before paying for the subscription. Essentially, if you don’t currently have Twitch Prime, you can enroll in the trial, get three free months of Nintendo Switch Online, and then cancel your Twitch Prime membership before you are billed. To get the entire year’s subscription of Nintendo Switch Online, you have to be a paying Twitch Prime member, due to the time gap between receiving the first three-month code and the remaining nine months.
If you’re unfamiliar with Twitch Prime, it comes free with an Amazon Prime subscription. So if you enjoy the luxury of free two-day shipping, you have Twitch Prime, too.
Nintendo Switch Online costs $20 per year. So if you don’t plan on using the benefits of Amazon Prime throughout the year, it’s obviously not worth going past the free trial period. Amazon Prime subscriptions regularly cost $119 per year, but students only pay half that ($59).
If you are already an Amazon Prime member, this offer is gravy. Even if you currently have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription, the three months will stack onto your current subscription, as will the nine months after the 60 days.
Nintendo Switch Online grants access to a variety of exclusive features. To play online multiplayer in games like Splatoon 2 or Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, you need the subscription. Nintendo Switch Online subscribers also gain access to a sizable library of NES classics. Nintendo adds two NES games to the program each month. Perhaps the main reason to have a Nintendo Switch Online subscription right now, however, is Tetris 99. Exclusive for subscribers, Tetris 99 is a chaotically wonderful spin on the classic puzzle game that pits you against 98 other users in a battle royale contest.
