You should know about the Nintendo Badge Arcade. It's a 3DS free-to-install application. It's pay-to-play, as most free games are, but this one takes the form of an actual arcade. The distinctly styled cranes have you putting in actual money to earn little 'Badges' that can be pasted on the home menu to make a scene. They look like Nintendo-themed characters and objects, and cranking in real money to earn digital Rupees and Toads sounds like a waste of time enough as it is. But it's addicting. The arcade gives you two free plays every day, but most of the time that is only enough to uncover the rare badges and remove the obstacles. That alone tempts you to pay. After all, it's just a dollar, right? But 35 years have taught Nintendo well, and the flashy effects, bright appeal, and easy appearance slyly hide the casino-worthy mechanics. Getting the 'chase' badge of any given machine will likely put you out $3 or more. And this isn't even mentioning the bunny. The real trap is the arcade's mascot, an excessively annoying pink bunny bent on getting you to spend as much money as possible. Any conversation you have with it anywhere will always end in it asking you if you'd like to pay for more plays, sometimes in such misleading and deceptive ways that even I was fooled a few times. The creepy bunny will stop at nothing to have you pour money into Nintendos' bulging wallet, while looking like a family-friendly, innocent mascot. Let's not forget that this game is targeted towards kids. Adults have a hard time quitting problem gambling, and this innocent-lookinggame is setting the next generation up for absolute disaster. Kids will pay money to acquire digital badges of their favorite characters, even when they conveniently are nearly impossible to get. They won't stop; they won't have a reason to, and by the time their parents' money runs out, it will be too late. The bunny is even an Assist Trophy in the recent Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
This is more than just another cheap move by Nintendo to get a few extra dollars. This is child gambling. It's revolting that a company with so much integrity would pull out the floor from under us. The arcade needs to close. Or, at the very least, remove the paying feature. Because this, this is truly making a negative impact on the world. It's setting up our children to fail and giving Nintendo our money in the process.
This is more than just another cheap move by Nintendo to get a few extra dollars. This is child gambling. It's revolting that a company with so much integrity would pull out the floor from under us. The arcade needs to close. Or, at the very least, remove the paying feature. Because this, this is truly making a negative impact on the world. It's setting up our children to fail and giving Nintendo our money in the process.
