This is in the EU and NA right?

Great news. Kirby's Adventure here I come.

woohoo!

now to make some coffee and decide what to get....

Wrecking Crew for me.

How does the "Connection Ambassador Promotion" EXACTLY work?

There's full instructions for it now on Wii Shop Channel, which helpfully I haven't read...

Can we download the Import NES games from the Hanabi festivals for free?

No. Only 500 point NES games. The same price as your 500 point Internet Channel way back when.

Yee, but I still can't decide which NES game I will get.

@Bass X0 - Thanks for clearing that up. Damm it, I wanted to get Startropics II. I'll probably go for Balloon Fight or Castlevania then.

Here I come FF!

Do the instructions only appear if you bought the Internet Channel? I poked my head into the Wii Shop Channel just to see what the instructions were, but nothing was there about it (I got the free version of the channel).

@Sean Aaron: You're downloading the NES version of Ice Climbers? Surely there's something better you haven't bought yet!

@Golgo: Good choice! It's a childhood favorite of mine. So naturally, I downloaded it the day I bought my Wii last year.

@Terranigma: That stinks, but it's not really surprising. If you navigate to the "free NES game" button, it basically leads you to a list of all 500 point NES games, with "One Free Game" listed for anything you haven't already downloaded, and "Already (something that basically means bought, but I don't remember the exact word)" for stuff you downloaded beforehand.

I just downloaded River City Ransom for free. Should be a good deal, I guess. I'm certain I could do worse (like Ice Climbers, or DK Junior Math).

EDIT @mjc: Yeah, they only appear on the Shop Channel start menu if you have a free game coming. Once I downloaded my game, the free NES game button disappeared. If you got the Internet Channel free in the first place, you'll never see a thing.

Didn't download the IC for 500 points, so this is oblivious to me. Me =

Alright, thanks for the info Stuffgamer. I think I know someone who should have the free game coming, so I guess the message I'll pass along will be "go to your Wii Shop Channel and see what it tells you about getting a free game, I can't say more because I didn't have one coming to me."

We should set up a scheme for making the most of Connection Ambassador, maybe a forum thread. People who haven't gotten their Wii set up post there, then the first "ambassador" to respond to their post (preferably inserting the requester's username to avoid confusion) gets dibs on the bonus. You wouldn't be allowed to be greedy and list loads of people in one post though, maybe limit it to one per post. And maybe a dead-time enforced between helping to stop people just slamming Refresh until someone else posts.
...But then again, how many people here are likely to have not connected their Wii online yet? Maybe not then.

I got Super C cuz of it's awesome multiplayer.

Holy crap where did that guy get that hat.

14: You saved 500 points by not paying to download the internet. before today, you were 500 points richer than those who did pay for it. now everyone is equal. plus you're not limited to spend them only on a NES game, you can use the points you saved on anything you want.

I bought FF

sorry "got" is a better term

Finally got my Legend of Zelda; somewhat of a challenge.

Alright! since its October and close to Halloween i might get one of the Castlevania games

Wish they would have just given us the 500 points back. oh well.

What about dsi ?

I got Castlevania III with it. I already got all the games I wanted from the NES VC. I'm not a fan of the old style Castlevania games (especially how awkward movement can be) but I have never played that one before and the only other game I was considering was Zelda II which I have played before and found to be quite average and have on the Zelda Collection Gamecube disc.

Now I just need to choose which game I want. I think I will leave the free game until closer to the expiry date, and see if anything interesting pops up. Otherwise I think I will get SMB 2 (Doki Doki version - I already have the JP Lost Levels version), or Kid Icarus.

It also looks like the ambassador thing is up in Australia. Interesting, considering Nintendo Australia has never mentioned it. (Although, they never mentioned [or even gave a release date for] Metroid Prime Trilogy, which was released last Thursday).

I sort of agree with JJ. To be honest, I'm not sure why those chose to make it a free NES game in the first place. Maybe an effort to make more casual Wii owners who have connected to Shop Channel and used the Internet Channel but not downloaded a lot of games pay more attention to VC? Meh, seems like a bit of a stretch. On the other hand, this IS Nintendo, masters of doing things that don't seem to make much sense.

Anyway, I just played a little over an hour of River City Ransom (it's now 8am and I never went to bed last night ). It's pretty good, if a bit tough. Figuring out what food does what is tricky, too. I suppose I could find a FAQ to help with that easily enough, though. And how could I really complain when it was FREE? Nintendo certainly didn't HAVE to give me the $5 back...it's still really weird that they chose to do so at all, really. Thanks, Ninty!

I havent decided yet!!!!!!!!!!!

Zelda II, Castlevania III, Super C or Kirby's Adventure??????

Depends where your interests lie really. For myself, I would choose Super C.

i chose galaga

@Bass X0 Thats the problem, I have interest on all of them.
I never played Castlevania and Super C. Never finished Kirby and Zelda (the only Zelda I havent finished along with Four Swords Adventures, but Im working on that currently)

@Sean Aaron: I'm going to need a much larger list of NES games you already have before Ice Climber starts to look like your only option. Do you already have Wrecking Crew, Clu Clu Land, both Lolo games, StarTropics (the first one wasn't an import title for you guys, was it?), both Zelda titles, Kid Icarus, Excitebike and River City Ransom? I think I missed one game I have and would therefore recommend above Ice Climbers...oh, well. There's a nice list of suggestions, anyway.

I got Super Mario Bros. — the first game I ever played. Ever.

@Sean Aaron: If only it WERE the arcade version. My point has not been so much that Ice Climbers sucks as that the NES version of Ice Climbers sucks. But...try it at your own risk, I guess.

Damn it. I got the free version. I was ripped off. I could use a NES game about know, probably StarTropics or something.

I've got no idea what to download. I'm gonna browse through the VC NES games list to see if there's something I still want to have.

I was ripped off.

If you're serious, how?

I think I'll wait until Dec 27th to pick my game. First because I cannot decide yet and second, I want to see if they will release another NES game that may worth pick up. That may make the decision harder but I don't want to make the same mistake I made with The Last Ninja shudders

i got Crash 'N the boys street challenge, for free! not a bad deal

I can't decide what to get... Maybe River City Ransom.

Darn there aren't any nes games i want right now, hopefully pro wrestling will be released by the end of the year.

NES Final Fantasy for free!!!!! Thank you, Nintendo!!!!

I'm so excited! Now I'm glad I bought the Internet Channel! Wahoo! Now I just have to decide what NES game to get...

I can't decide what I should get.
Megaman 2 or Kirby's Adventure?

@Sean Aaron: Depends on how you look at things, I guess. From my point of view, it's a risk taking one free game that's likely crap instead of another free game that's more likely to be good. If the free game is crap, you just wasted your freebie! I expect that's a concern of mine mainly because I have a constant severe cash flow problem lately. You likely have much less of one, making it less of an issue.

@Xkhaoz: Only way I'd even SORT OF believe you'd been ripped off is if you'd paid for the Internet Channel, then it became free and you weren't reimbursed. Even then, it's a shaky concept because you'd have had access to it for a lot longer than the new freebie downloaders.

Honestly, why is everyone who didn't pay for the Internet Channel feeling ripped off, or left out, or something like that? We're getting reimbursed for a purchase we made in the past. You didn't make that purchase, you don't get a free game of equivalent value. Why is this a problem?

@Jolted85: Me too! Good choice.

Metroid worth getting?

Yesterday, I created a topic in the news section because it was offline.
I also mentioned the free NES game and the 500 point promotion, and now it's all true .
I have downloaded SMB3, I need some practice before starting with NSMBWii.

Free downloads are appearing in the charts. Bubble Bobble, Kirby's Adventure and Zelda 1 have reappeared in Europe. Check the VC charts for your region to see if any NES games have reappeared.

i`m keeping my free nes offer for as long as possible. you just never know what may turn up before the december 31st deadline.

I just want a NES game.

PUNCH OUT!

interesting. I don't feel ripped off, at all, but would have loved a spare 500 smackers. I only want Shootanto at 500 right now, though. Also interesting how many people didn't get it free the first time, I figured most people here were launch people, and I thought it was free for a while after that.
I still think handing out 500 or so points now and again to everyone with a Wii would be a fantastic marketing ploy that they don't seem to grasp, even though lots of "casual" players don't even touch the download Wii service. Like a hollday time thing or something, it would really wake up those who aren't using it to just browse all that classic goodness.
All those Wii fit housewives would gobble up some 2D mario games if they knew it was just a few bucks for the same stuff they played at 13 on their brothers nes.

As soon as they announced FF was coming to VC, I knew that was the one.

@ REN I was a launch "people" but I didnt get Wifi until around the time Smash Bros. Brawl came out.

Also I think a lot of people who didn't pay for the Internet Channel feel "ripped off" because we keep using the word "free" when it really isn't. We're being reimbursed for the 500 points we paid in the first place.

When I first bought the Internet Channel I didn't feel it was fair either but I didn't complain. I mean $5 for a TV web browser was a great deal and now that I'm being paid back it's just got better.

THANKS NINTENDO!!!!

I'm torn between Mega Man 2, Super Mario Bros 3, Metroid, Kid Icarus and Castlevania. I have Mario 3 All-Stars version on the SNES so I'm leaning towards Mega Man 2 right now which I've never even played. I'm just concerned that it's going to be too old-school hard and thus result in rrrraaaage

Also, is the deadline for claiming definitely the 31st of December? because I'd like to hold off for a bit and not rush into the decision - I'm in the middle of other games at the moment anyway.

Lol, I gifted the 500 Internet Channel from one Wii to my main Wii, and although I technicly didn't pay for it on my main Wii, I was still able to get a free NES game on it!!! XD
Oh, and I got The Legend of Zelda.

Castlevania III time, baby!

Just picked up Mega Man 2 this morning!

@Stuffgamer1 How is Ice climbers for nes a bad game? I played the demo of it on smash brothers brawl then i bought it because I enjoyed it.

i received the update last night, i got castlevania since i wanted to have good memorys and since we are getting a retro castlevania for wiiware

what the sh**?!
that picture looks just like me! i even have the same burger hat and glasses as that guys does

Picked up Metroid. Have not gotten around to playing it yet.

i got FF SWEET!!!!

I think I'll just throw this out here...

Should I get Ghosts 'n' Goblins or StarTropics?

Well, after doing one final thing, I finally updated! My Mappy settings and Internet favourites were erased, but, as a member of dA put this: "I survived Wii Update 4.2!"

I downloaded StarTropics (due to starmen.net). Reading the comments here made me feel bad about not waiting for until the last available week for more options, but, if that Ambassador Promotion comes to the Americas, such is not a real loss.

(By the way, I took pictures of the new screens. However, I did not take a photograph of how the NES Category games look if you access them from the Virtual Console "Search by Console" link instead of the "Free NES game" link.)

I got Super Mario Bros..

I`m still deciding between Zelda and Final Fantasy...I want both of them...hard to decide!

I got Kirby's Adventure. I'm glad I spent my free nes game token on that, because I am enjoying it a lot!

well i've got my wii back in the year 2007, and i was so excited to play wii sports and everything! and later on, i somehow connected online by using my mom's laptop and downloaded the free trial for the Internet Channel. then i found out (later) that there was an update so i downloaded it. and last night i finally updated my wii then the message popped up saying that i could download any NES game for free!! but then, i just remembered that i didn't pay 500 points to get the Internet Channel... man, sometimes life is not fair! for those who have already downloaded your free NES game or games, well i'm glad that you guys are already enjoying playing them.

Kirby's Adventure is fantastic! (I played it back in the day, but don't remember that much about it, the fool that I am/was)

@SeanAaron
If you really want Ice Climbers I'll send you my e-Reader cards for it!

And alas, Nintendo finally answered my question about gifting. Only the recipient of the gift gets it... but he sold his Wii!

@77: Europe has Devil World? So jealous.

I think I'll wait until Monday on the (extremely unlikely) chance that Lolo 3 shows up, but that's an instant download no matter if it were 1000 points. Unfortunately, I already have most of the NES games I want. I'll probably go with FFantasy, although I am tempted by Mega Man 3, and to a much lesser extent Mario 3

i got Kirby's Adventure for my son,he's so exciting for this game!

What's better to download
1) Super Mario World
2) The legend of zelda
3) Megaman 2

Do not try Super Mario World; such is only for SNES.

darn. i somehow got it for free IN JANUARY for no reason

What's funny is, my friend bought the Internet channel for him and he gifted it for me. So I got a free nes game as well!
Btw: ryanknight717 how come you and I posted on the 23rd when it's still the 22nd?

@bonii: That's a little unfair, Shouldn't he get 1000 points back, since that's how much he spent on the Internet Channel?

Nintendo said in the message that only the recipient of the gifted Internet Channel would get the free NES game.

@Ezekiel: IMO, the controls for the NES version SUCK, due mainly to the fact that they basically squished the game to fit a standard TV, just like they did with Donkey Kong and Mario Bros.

@Sean Aaron: Gah, you got Devil World? I still want that game, dammit! Is jealous.

@bonii: The site works on British time, not American. As such, the date changes a few hours earlier for them than for us, and the site reflects that fact.

@briunj04: Is it at all possible that IS a picture of you? Ever held an NES controller to your ear like that?

i chose Super C but is no more available in America. Does anyone knows why?

Can someone help me choose a free NES game? I am hoping for a 2 player game that is played simaltaneously, preferably cooperative but can be against each other as well. Thanks for any help you can provide

@90:
Bubble Bobble and Mario Bros are good choices!

Super mario bros. or the legend of zelda can't decide. What y'all think its better

I got Super Mario Bros. 2. I don't really like the game all that much, but it's kind of fun.