Club Nintendo Gold and Platinum awards announced

Here's what you've been buying Nintendo games all year for! Well, hopefully you've been buying Nintendo games because you want to play them, but here's the secondary reason: Nintendo announced the Platinum and Gold Elite Status Gifts for North America's Club Nintendo.

Those who reached Gold status (300 coins or more since last July) get a calendar, and Platinum status holders (600 coins or more) get this neat Mario figurine thing. To claim your reward, you have to sign into Club Nintendo and provide a shipping address. The prizes will ship by the end of this year, according to Nintendo.

And now ... the process begins again. It's time to start registering games for next year, like that copy of Sin & Punishment you were just about to buy.