Nintendo have always been very careful when it comes to the online functionality of their consoles. While Microsoft and Sony allow any Tom, Dick or Harry to jump online and begin spouting sexist and racist prose to unsuspecting rivals, Nintendo have guarded the walls of their network with friend codes and muted matches. All this is about to change with the Wii U, but the big N has a new trick up their sleeve to keep innocent kids from joining without express consent from their mummies and daddies.
Although the Nintendo Network is free, it turns out that a one-time charge of $0.50 is necessary in order to verify adulthood. According to Nintendo’s online support page, “a parent or guardian must provide consent to set up a Nintendo Network Account for children under age 13. To verify that a parent or guardian has granted consent, they will need to provide a valid credit card number when setting up a Nintendo Network Account for the child.”
If you’re worried about entering credit card information then letting the kids run wild, have no fear; the information isn’t stored and can’t be used to make future purchases. Also, this fee only has to be paid once; additional profiles can be added without further expenditure. Lets hope that this little safeguard allows the Nintendo Network to thrive and grow, like the other consoles we’ve become accustomed to over the last decade.
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Via: Polygon
Source: Nintendo
