Points Card for Nintendo Wii™

One day last week I got an email from Nintendo about new games that were created exclusively for download to the Nintendo Wii. I took a quick glance through the email and then stopped dead in my tracks. There it was - a screen shot of the bubble-popping game of my dreams. Multi-colored, random bubbles that looked like soap bubbles of different sizes against a colorful background. Oh yes, my friend, I love me some bubble-popping video games. (Yes, I'm pushing 40. Yes, I probably have better things to do with my time than play video games. But I have a video game addiction that spans back more than 30 years, so you will have to just deal with it if you think I'm wacked out.) Anyway, I had to have that bubble-popping game. I did some reading and discovered that I needed to get some Wii Points and could then download that game. A few days later I was in the area of Best Buy after a car service appointment and decided to get some Wii Points.


Product Details:

In a nutshell, the Wii Points Card is a plastic card with an exclusive code (like a gift card) that carries 2,000 "points" that can be redeemed in varying quantities for games and other items online through your Nintendo Wii. So if you're online with your Wii and have a Wii Points Card, you can purchase old "Virtual Console" games (more on this later) and new, exclusive games ("WiiWare") that can only be downloaded to your Wii. Once you buy them, they're yours. More on this and other things you can purchase later.

The Wii Points Card currently comes in just the 2,000 point denomination, unlike Microsoft's point cards that come in several different denominations at different price points. The 2,000-point Wii Points Card is about $20 at most retailers. A few retailers have it at a few dollars more.

The packaging that the Wii Points Card comes in is just a plastic blister package with impossibly sealed seams that prevent tampering. Once you open the package, your card will have a small strip that needs to be scratched off, much like a scratch-off instant lottery ticket. Under that strip is a 16-digit code that you will enter into your online Wii account. And speaking of your "account", you can use the same user name and password you use at Nintendo.com if you are already signed up there. The two will "link". If you don't want to link your Nintendo.com account, you can just use a new user name and password.


Using The Wii Points Card:

You don't need to purchase one of these Wii Points Cards in order to add points to your account. You can also purchase points through your Wii console using a credit card. I choose not to do this at this time - I already use my credit cards online enough as it is. I would rather purchase my Wii Points Cards at a retailer and then enter them online. Purchasing these cards at Best Buy also adds to my ongoing purchase total through their Reward Zone program, and I occasionally get rewards depending on what and how much I've purchased recently.

Redeeming the points on the Wii Points Card is incredibly easy. In fact, it's so easy that I was stunned by how easy it was and asked my boyfriend a couple of times if he was sure that was all we had to do! Sure enough, all we had to do was follow these few easy steps (and a shorter version of these instructions are also on the packaging for the Wii Points Card):

1. Start your Wii console and go to the main Wii menu.

2. Go to the Wii Shop Channel.

3. Click on the Add Wii Points option.

4. Click on the Redeem Wii Points Card option.

5. Scratch the silver strip off of the back of the Wii Points Card to reveal the 16-digit code.

6. Click on the Wii Points Card Activation Number section. When you do this, a 10-key pad will pop up. Just click on each of the 16 digits in order and they will appear in a box at the top of the screen.

7. Click on the OK option.

The system will then process the digits you entered and will automatically credit your account with 2,000 points (since that is the amount that is on each Wii Points Card. You will see at the next screen that you have been credited. It takes just a few seconds.

You are then ready to purchase games!

One important thing to note is that you can enter more than one Wii Points Card into your account. There is a maximum number of points, but as far as I know, this maximum is not published. Also, if you have an odd number of points left over after you purchase the games you want, you can carry your point balance on your account for an indefinite amount of time. The points don't expire. So then you can just add another Wii Points Card when you are ready to purchase more games.

There are many times that you will see your current Wii Point balance. I've seen my current balance while browsing at the Wii Shop Channel. You can also see your balance if you choose the Account Activity option. And when you purchase games, the system will display your balance before and after you make your purchase.


Things That Can Be Purchased Using Wii Points:

There are three things that can be purchased and downloaded at this point using Wii Points. The first is games for the Virtual Console. These are "classic games from past systems" such as NES, Super Nintendo, Nintendo 64, Sega Genesis, NEOGEO, TurboGrafx 16. These games are the old versions - but you can play them on your Wii. You aren't going to get new, updated versions - you're going to get the old versions with the same graphics, etc. I haven't counted how many of these games there are, but there are well over 100. Once you purchase and download them, they're on your Wii system and they're yours. These games cost between 500 and 1,000 Wii Points. New games are added on Mondays, so you can check back anytime to see if there are new games available. A few examples of games currently available are Super Mario Bros (NES), Super Mario World (SNES), The LEgend of Zelda (NES) and Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64).

The second thing you can purchase with Wii Points is WiiWare. These are games that are made only for the Wii and are available only for downloading onto your Wii. There are about 30 of them as of the date that I'm writing this review. This is where I purchased my bubble-popping game, Pop. The games here cost between 500 and 1,500 points. My Pop game was 700 points. Considering the price of the Wii Points Card, this game cost me roughly $7, which is very reasonable. It's a beautiful, challenging game and is one that I'm getting addicted to more each day. Like the Virtual Console games, WiiWare games are added on Mondays, so you can check back anytime to see if new ones are available.

The third thing you can purchase is Internet browsing access through your Wii. This costs 500 points and will allow you to browse websites, check internet-based email and shop online. I don't plan to purchase this because it seems unnecessary to me at this point. But this may work out well for the home that has just one computer but more than one person who wants to be on the Internet.

Overall, the Wii Points Card is a snap to use and is very convenient. If you would have told me even ten years ago that technology would be so advanced and that I could purchase a card like this in order to download games in just a few minutes, I would not have believed you! This card makes a great gift for the gamer in your life (young or old) and, in my opinion, is priced fairly. I would have paid at least $29.99 for the Pop game if it were available in a store as a Wii title. Downloading it is much easier and Nintendo doesn't have to produce a game disc, package it, market it, ship it, etc. - and I saved a chunk of money. I will definitely purchase more Wii Point Cards in the future in order to purchase games for myself and my boyfriend.


Price and Purchasing Information:

The Points Card for Nintendo Wii is approximately $19.99. I found mine at my local Best Buy, and I have also seen these at Wal-Mart, Radio Shack and Toys R Us for about the same price, but higher at Radio Shack. Online, it can be purchased at BestBuy.com, WalMart.com, RadioShack.com and GameStop.com, as well as other online retailers.