In a surprise move, Nintendo recently updated its My Nintendo website with three physical rewards. Users can trade in their Platinum Points to obtain a Xenoblade Chronicles-themed phone ring holder, a set of three Xenoblade Chronicles sticker sheets, or Splatoon-themed postcards. You earn Platinum points by completing various “missions” on Nintendo’s websites or within mobile games.

Don't confuse these with Gold points, either. Gold points are earned from buying games from Nintendo and can be redeemed on the eShop for discounts. Platinum points are for smaller rewards via the My Nintendo Rewards program.

From what we can see so far, the only apparent downside to this new offering of physical stuff is that shipping is $5 USD per order. But since you actually buy them through the Nintendo Shop, you can combine shipping if you order them together.

The announcement of several physical items that can be “purchased” with Platinum Points is especially unexpected because up until now, only digital content has been offered since My Nintendo launched in early 2016. Of course, longtime Nintendo fans might remember that Club Nintendo, the rewards service that My Nintendo replaced, offered some very cool and collectible physical rewards while it was active from 2008 until 2015.

Club Nintendo members could register their games using a digital code to earn “coins,” which could occasionally be exchanged for limited items such as a coveted gold Wii nunchuk peripheral (perfect when paired with the gold Wii remote that came with the Collector’s Edition of The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword).

And we can't forget the impressively-crafted statue of Luigi from Luigi’s Mansion: Dark Moon. I might still be a little sore about not having enough points to redeem for that one. Just look at it!

Club Nintendo also offered annual rewards for reaching a cumulative number of coins, with a Gold and Platinum tier. The annual Platinum tier reward (earned for registering around a dozen games within a year’s time) was typically a physical item, with the more memorable rewards being a plastic statue of the Mario cast and a deck of Mario-themed playing cards. And one can’t forget Doc Louis’ Punch-Out!!, which was a downloadable mini-game that allowed Punch-Out!!’s Little Mac to beat up on his candy bar-loving trainer.

With Nintendo finally offering physical rewards with its My Nintendo program, there is hope that we will be able to use Platinum Coins to obtain rare collectibles rather than codes for discounted digital products, 3DS themes, or mobile phone wallpapers, which made up for the majority of what has been offered since the program launched alongside Miitomo.

It’s also possible that this signals another significant change to how Nintendo is approaching its rewards program. Whether they rebrand the program yet again or stick with My Nintendo, there is no denying that change is needed. Especially since many of the rewards available in recent years have been geared toward Wii U and 3DS owners rather than the lively and passionate Switch-owning demographic.

What Do You Think?

We want to know your thoughts on the My Nintendo rewards shake-up. And on top of that, what are your favorite rewards from either program? Did you get the gold nunchuck or Luigi statue?

Would you prefer to save up points in the hopes that a high quality premium item appears in the shop, such as the elusive Club Nintendo Game & Watch: Ball recreation?

Or would you rather have a number of smaller, more easily-obtainable items (a personal old favorite of mine is the 18-card 3DS case)?

Let us know what you think in the comments!