March 6, 2018

It took a year but My Nintendo members can now redeem Gold Points for digital games and DLC for the Nintendo Switch.

When you buy a qualifying digital game for Nintendo Switch, Wii U, or Nintendo 3DS, or a physical game for the Nintendo Switch system, you’ll earn Gold Points based on the amount you pay (excluding any points or discounts used). You’ll earn 5% for eligible digital purchases on Nintendo.com or Nintendo eShop (Nintendo Switch, Nintendo 3DS, Wii U) and 1% of the Nintendo eShop price for physical purchases for the Nintendo Switch.

Redeem those points on your next eligible digital purchase (including games and DLC) for the Nintendo Switch system. Just look for the option to apply your points during checkout.

According to the Nintendo release, if you buy a $59.99 game on Nintendo eShop, you’ll earn 300 Gold Points. Those points can then be redeemed for $3 toward your next purchase, which will earn more Gold Points, according to the amount you paid (excluding any points or discounts used). So 1 gold point is equal to 1 cent (CAD).

With the addition of Nintendo Switch to the My Nintendo program, Nintendo has made some changes. Previously called “Platinum coins” and “Gold coins,” the value of the revised points has changed. Previously the Gold Coins earned were in tiers. When I purchased Pokémon Silver in the Nintendo eShop ($12.89 CAD) I earned just 10 Gold Coins. Making the same purchase now would now earn “up to 64 Gold Points.”

Overall this does seem like a good change and the arrival of My Nintendo on Nintendo Switch is definitely a great thing.

Blizzard has rolled out a whole wave of unlockable goodies across Diablo III, Starcraft 2, Overwatch, Hearthstone and Heroes of the Storm to celebrate the 20^th anniversary of the original Starcraft on PC. Each game has a different reward to claim ranging from small profile portraits to exclusive skins featuring Sarah Kerrigan (yay!).

Here’s a breakdown of what players of each tittle will receive should they login between today and March 31^st:

Starcraft Remastered (full version) – Starcraft 20^th Anniversary UI Skin.
Starcraftr II – A set of three user interface skins (one per race), a portrait and a decal.
World of Warcraft – /salute a Starcraft mini-pet and receive the “Salute to Starcraft” limited time achievement.
Overwatch – Sarah Kerrigan Ghost Skin for Widowmaker.
Hearthstone – Play the Starcraft themed Tavern Brawl between March 21^st and 25^th and receive 3 free Kobolds & Catacombs packs.
Heroes of the Storm – 20^th anniversary Protoss, Terran and Zerg display pictures featuring artwork from the original game.
Diablo III – Dominion’s Revenge pet.

I’m a little disappointed in the Heroes of the Storm reward in particular. Considering the amount of Starcraft Heroes – like Raynor, Kerrigan, Tychus etc – you’d think they’d have something a little more substantial than three display pictures. Both SCII and Heroes of the Storm even share the same engine! Rumor has it the next revealed hero will be from the Starcraft Universe but the dev team could have done so muchg better here.

For more details check out the official Starcraft II site.

[Image via SubControllers on Flickr]

Gold Coins are now Points; My Nintendo arrives for Nintendo Switch

Blizzard Celebrates Starcraft 20th Anniversary With Cross Game Promotional Event