The new Nintendo Switch gaming console is a rather versatile and flexible device. You can play it in portable mode, with the Joy-Cons attached to the console, or place the console on a table, and play multiplayer games. Nintendo even includes the Switch dock inside the box, so you can start playing on your TV as well. However, if you’re living in a region other than the 4 regions that the Switch can be set to, i.e Japan, Americas, Europe, Australia/NZ, you’ll most probably not be able to access the Nintendo eShop. Which kinda makes the console useless, because unless you’re buying physical game cards, you’ll need the eShop to download games on to your console. So, if you’re living in a region other than the four supported regions, don’t worry, because in this article I’ll tell you how to access the Nintendo eShop from any country:
Creating a Nintendo Account on PC
The trick to getting access to the Nintendo eShop for any country (Japan is a good one for extra games, albeit mostly in Japanese), is to simply create a new Nintendo account on your computer, and link it to a new user on your Switch console. Here’s how to do it:
- Go to the Nintendo accounts website, and click on “Create a Nintendo Account“.
- On the next page, click on “Create your Nintendo Account“.
- Fill up the form, and make sure you select the “Country/Region of Residence” as one of the supported countries. I’m choosing “United States”. Then click on “Submit”.
- Nintendo will send a verification code to your Email address. Simply type in the verification code on the next screen, and click on “Verify“.
Once you do this, you’ll have created an account for that particular country. We’ll need to proceed on the Nintendo Switch, now.
Connecting your Nintendo Account on the Switch
If you haven’t set up your Nintendo Switch yet, you should connect your Nintendo Account to the new user when you set it up. If you already have a user set up on your Switch, simply follow the steps given below:
- On your Nintendo Switch, go to System Settings.
- Scroll down to “Users”, and tap on “Add User“.
- Choose your Nickname and profile icon. Make sure the nickname is the same as the nickname of the account you created on your computer.
- When the Switch asks you whether you want to create a new Nintendo account for the user, or link an existing one, tap on “Sign In and Link“.
- Then, tap on “Sign in using an e-mail address or sign-in ID“. Enter your email address, and password, and tap on “Sign In“.
You will now be able to access the Nintendo eShop for “The Americas”. If you want to access the eShop for other countries, such as Japan, simply use “Japan” as your “Country/Region of Residence” while creating the Nintendo account on your computer.
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Access Nintendo eShop from Any Country
It’s actually pretty awesome that Nintendo doesn’t mind users creating multiple accounts with different countries, in order to access eShops of other regions. This is helpful because there are a lot of games in the Japanese eShop that aren’t available in the eShop for The Americas. Also, while there is only one demo game available in the American eShop, there are two more available in the Japanese eShop.
The Switch is not exactly “region-locked”, i.e, you can use it even if you create an account with “India” as the country of residence. However, if you do choose a country that is not among the select four, you’ll not be able to access the eShop, which pretty much defeats the purpose. So, you can use this method to get access to the Nintendo eShop for any country that you want, and get all the (really expensive) games you want. So, what do you think about the Nintendo Switch? What games do you like the best? Do let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
