It’s pretty convenient that we live in an age where our gaming machines can download new titles whenever the mood strikes us. Of course, it would be more convenient if buying these new games via our Internet-enabled gaming machines could somehow earn us a monetary equivalent that might be redeemed for even more games, but that’s some kind of crazy pipe dream. Or at least it was until Nintendo announced the Wii U’s “Deluxe Digital Promotion.”
As you may have gathered from its name, the Deluxe Digital Promotion is an offer available only to those who pick up the $350 Wii U Deluxe Set, a special all-black version of the Wii U that also includes a gratis copy of Nintendo Land as well as several other items you won’t find in the Basic iteration of the Wii U. Assuming you own the Deluxe Wii U, this scheme offers you roughly 10 percent credit back on any eShop purchases you might make.
Nintendo breaks down the math and covers all the additional caveats of this promotional stunt:
All Wii U Deluxe Set owners who purchase digital content for Wii U, including downloadable games in the Nintendo eShop for Wii U and download codes sold at select retail stores, will earn points with a value equivalent to approximately 10 percent of the Nintendo eShop list price of each purchase. For example, a game priced at $59.99, such as New Super Mario Bros. U, would earn 599 points. For every 500 points they earn, participants will receive a code worth $5 in credit to be used in the Nintendo eShop for either Wii U or Nintendo 3DS. Points will be earned on all digital purchases made on a Wii U Deluxe Set from Nov. 18, 2012, until Dec. 31, 2014. When the Deluxe Digital Promotion website launches in December, participants can see the points they’ve earned and receive codes for Nintendo eShop credit by signing in with their Nintendo Network ID and password. Codes must be received at the website by March 31, 2015. Received codes must be exchanged for Nintendo eShop credit on Wii U or Nintendo 3DS by June 30, 2015. Nintendo eShop credit on Wii U and Nintendo 3DS does not expire.
As for the corporate motivation behind this scheme, Nintendo of America’s executive vice president of sales and marketing Scott Moffitt claims that this initiative is designed to introduce new and long-time Nintendo fans to the arguably copious number of excellent titles available on Nintendo’s various eShop iterations. “The Deluxe Digital Promotion is our way of encouraging Wii U Deluxe Set owners to explore the Nintendo eShop and discover how Wii U offers an incredible combination of fun, innovation, convenience and value,” Moffitt said.
While Nintendo’s attempts to court the same kind of online functionality seen in the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 are normally myopic, we support this plan wholeheartedly. There really is a ton of great stuff available on the eShop (even if Nintendo has been a bit stingy with eShop releases of late) and pushing players towards older or lesser known titles that they may have never heard of previously is a worthwhile endeavor, especially since the company has revealed plans to delay some of its launch titles to pad out the console’s game selection throughout the 2013 fiscal year.
