Nintendo has made Super Mario Bros. 3 and Pokémon Rumble available for purchase directly on their online store on the web, though if you live in a few select states, you’ll be paying sales tax.
For those not wanting to keep refilling on Nintendo Points, you may have something to rejoice about due to Nintendo allowing consumers to purchase the two titles directly from their online store without pre-purchasing points. The two titles are priced at $5 and $15 respectively and upon successful checkout will provide you a code that you’ll redeem in the Wii Shop Channel.
This is not the first time a title has been available to purchase outside of Nintendo’s shopping options on their consoles. World of Goo (WiiWare) is available for purchase on Amazon.com for $15 currently.
For those living in Washington, New York, and Texas, you’ll be charged tax due to Nintendo having operations setup in those states. However, upon checking California, I found there was no sales tax charge and the fee was a flat $5 for Super Mario Bros. 3. Nintendo currently has an office setup in San Francisco, though they have no retail outlet there. The same can be said for Texas as well where Retro Studios is based, though the check out charges tax in that state.
I’ve sent word to my Nintendo representative about this issue and await any clarification as to why there is a discrepancy. Until then, those in California might want to enjoy saving a few cents!
