[quote name='rcerboss']I never knocked the AR cards, I said they weren't notable rewards because they were free and everyone with an account had access to them, and because Nintendo host's them free on their own website. I've got all sorts of sizes of the 6 original cards at my house, and my friend for some reason saw fit to print a giant copy of the Spirit Camera's book. It's not stealing in any way; these pdf's are hosted on Nintendo's own website for anybody to grab. Personally I think the whole concept of AR cards is lame (with the exception of Spirit Camera, that was a cool concept) but I know some people out there are into it.
I honestly have a hard time imagining soccer moms or casual gamers taking the time to create an account, register games, fill out the surveys, and racking up enough points to get prizes. Again, I know I can't expect every prize to be a Golden Link Statue or awesome figurine, but when they can't even be bothered to slap on a new label and send out the soundtracks that are so readiliy available in Japan, or bring over simple items, I think that's an issue. I personally wanted the DKCR and KI:U soundtracks and the Kirby frisbee, and have already bought a copy of the Galaxy soundtrack that they started including with new Wii's for some reason
. It's not like they have to translate the music or translate Kirby's face or anything, the work's already done, all they have to do is add it to the store and produce the goods.[/QUOTE]
You see, you have to STOP comparing A to B, because A doesn't equal B here. Just because US and Japan both have a Club Nintendo program, doesn't mean both programs are the same. To make it simple, heres a list...
Japanese Games Cost More - Across the board, all Japanese games cost more. People bitched and moaned about Sumioni being over priced at $20 in the US, when it was $60 in Japan. Honestly it doesn't matter what you buy, you will usually pay $15 dollars more and no I'm not talking about shipping.
Japanese Gamers Care More - My one friend has bought 3 systems, every Pokemon game, every Zelda game and every Kirby game in the past 10 years. However it wasn't until last year he entered a single code. My girlfriends sister is also a hard core Nintendo supporter and she only used her coins to spite me. Honestly speaking, I wouldn't be shocked if you went to a rental store and found 3 - 5 year old working codes. The simple fact is that we can clearly tell there is fall less demand in the US, plus most news sites don't even cover it. While I can't speak for Japanese usage, I like to believe more people use it.
Marketing Data - A lot of people seem to forget that Nintendo "knows" our ages. I wouldn't be shocked if a LOT of these items were made based off demographics and thats why you see a lot of "pointless" kid stuff. Other programs like Disney Rewards are also high in posters, so this could be the explanation.
Soundtracks Are Popular in Japan - Most games in Japan get a soundtrack right around release, which usually sell well. However they're not as popular in the US.
Japan Gets Better Bonus Items - One thing you can find across the board, is that Japan gets better items with games. They do a lot of special edition systems, unique colors, weird bonus items, etc. Some of these are really cool, like Ryu ga Gotoku 4 got a flask, Hokuro Musou got a business card holder and much more. This is just an ongoing theme, so it's not like Club Nintendo is that unique either.
ing hilarious! Is this you Nix?
