A recent tweet from Nintendo of America gave that last-minute shout-out for entries into the #MyNintendo Universal Epic Universe SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™ Sweepstakes. And what about the prize? A not-to-be-missed vacation to the very real SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™. Sounds good, right? Well, maybe not for everyone. The tweet was almost hammered with excitement, bickering, and downright confusion over the issue from across the world.
For starters, the good sides. There were some pretty excited gamers. Like, really enthusiastic. One user, @AlexSch00195791, stated they are praying so hard that they will win just to meet Donkey Kong in person. Another, on the other hand, went crazy on Twitter with all emojis and expressed their love for the idea of an actual adventure with Mario and Donkey Kong. Really, is there any man who would rather not run down a life-size Bowser’s Castle or ride with Yoshi in a childhood dream-themed park?
And then…there were the others. Lots of annoyed players. Really annoyed players. Not annoyed because they hadn’t won yet but annoyed because they couldn’t even get in the first place. The sweepstakes is for U.S. residents only, apparently. Cue the roar of protests. Canadians, Australians, and even some folks from Mexico felt snubbed, complaining, “Wait, why do you hate Canadians?” (@RadioMcLean) and “That’s not fair for people who aren’t American” (@monique58977060). Others went on and called it a “ripoff” for being region-locked. Dang.
In the meantime, the conspiracy theorists were fully unleashed. One user, @mmdman886, unleashed the rant, saying, “free ain’t really free since winners will still end up having to pay for stuff such as ticket or shipping fees.” @jazc_007 responded with a roast on the whole theme park trip: “With that money I’d rather buy a car or afford groceries for a year.” Harsh, but fair?
Never mind the fuss, as @PuiPui_goat seized the opportunity to demand a nerf for blue shells in Mario Kart. Simultaneously, @SpaceTimeTrvlr was aghast at seeing Rare DK in the promo, touting, “Wait, I thought Rare DK was dead?” (Spoiler: He really isn’t. At least not yet.) And then @Dave19Brown83 wished good luck to one and all…except for those “no-chancers”. Savage!
Now back to the sweepstakes. It was to promote Universal Epic Universe, a new theme park where SUPER NINTENDO WORLD™ is located. The prize includes a trip for four people plus park tickets and probably a lifetime of great memories. But, with all the regional limitation backlash and double-mindedness on theme park prices, they don’t seem to have convinced anyone just yet.
So it is a pretty nice package for any hardcore Nintendo fan who happens to live in the U.S. The sad part is that the rest of you will be stuck playing the games from the comfort of their living room! Somebody at Nintendo just might listen to the social echo and go international the next time around. Until then, good luck to those fortunate enough to enter, and apologies to everyone else who got left behind.
And hey, if you didn’t win this time, maybe next. Or, you know, fight with emulators. Just saying.
