Today is the day 3DS early adopters have been waiting for, as Nintendo has launched its 3DS Ambassadors program, which enables people who purchased a Nintendo 3DS prior to its price drop to download 20 games for free from the Nintendo eShop.
How-to download instructions are contained below.
The 3DS Ambassador Program contains two elements, the first of which starts today, when Nintendo 3DS Ambassadors can download 10 NES Virtual Console games at no charge — and before they’re available in the Nintendo eShop to the general public. These games, including Super Mario Bros., Donkey Kong Jr., Balloon Fight, Ice Climber and The Legend of Zelda, are slated to become paid downloadable games, but Ambassadors get them early and for free. Once the paid versions of the games are posted to the Nintendo eShop later in the year, the updated versions will be available to Ambassadors for download at no cost.
The second element will go into effect by the end of 2011, when Nintendo will provide Ambassadors with 10 Game Boy Advance Virtual Console games. These include games like Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Mario Kart: Super Circuit, Metroid Fusion, WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$ and Mario vs. Donkey Kong. These games will be available exclusively to Ambassadors; Nintendo currently has no plans to make these 10 games available to the general public on the Nintendo 3DS in the future.
So you may be wondering: How do I download Nintendo 3DS Ambassador games? Glad you asked. Here are step-by-step instructions:
- From the Nintendo 3DS HOME menu, select the Nintendo eShop icon
- Scroll left and select “Settings / Other”
- Scroll down and select “Your Downloads” to view a list of transactions (The NES game will be listed here once it is available to download)
- Tap “Redownload,” then “Download” — The game will now be downloaded to the SD Card
To enable these downloads, you’ll need the Ambassador Certificate. This certificate can be used to receive updates regarding the Ambassador Program, such as when new titles are available to download. If you delete the Ambassador Ticket or associated Extra Data, or the touch screen says “Don’t Receive Notifications,” you will not receive updates on the Ambassador Program. So, how do you accept it? Here’s how:
- Download the Ambassador Certificate from the Nintendo eShop
- Select the icon to unwrap it and tap “Open.” A message will scroll across the upper screen in English, Spanish, and French
- Tap “Notifications” then “Receive.” The button should now say “Receive Notifications.”
To verify that you are eligible for the Nintendo 3DS Ambassador program, enter the serial number in the box at this page. The serial number for a Nintendo 3DS is located on the bottom of the system — just below the barcode — and starts with the letters CW followed by 9 digits. Be sure to include the “CW” as well as the last number in the box.
