A new Nintendo Switch Online app update appears to contain the foundations of an unannounced Event Gifts system for Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2. The discovery comes from dataminer Ben, known as idocode01, who examined the latest applet update and found references to a system specifically identified as “Event Gifts.” Nintendo has not announced the feature, so its purpose and release plans remain unconfirmed.
The datamine points to more than a simple reward-claim interface. Files and services associated with the update reportedly include a new endpoint for receiving event gifts, along with a dedicated loading animation showing a gift package and a roughly two-second sound effect that plays when a gift is received. The discovery was independently reported by multiple outlets after Ben shared video evidence of the loading animation and receive sound.
The apparent system also has infrastructure for multiple gift events to operate at the same time. Each event can reportedly have its own videos, thumbnails and other associated content, suggesting Nintendo has built the feature around individually configured campaigns rather than a single permanent rewards screen. The available data does not establish what players would actually receive from those events, however, and there is currently no confirmed list of rewards.
One detail identified in the datamine is a new domain associated with Nintendo Switch Online and an event-gift reception service. The presence of a dedicated backend service is significant because it indicates the feature is more than an unused visual element in the app. At the same time, code discovered in an application does not establish that Nintendo will make the system publicly available, or that the feature will launch in its current form.
Nintendo Switch Online already uses limited-time activities and rewards to encourage engagement with the service. In 2026, Nintendo introduced the DK Challenge for Switch 2, allowing subscribers to complete challenges across several Nintendo Classics games and Donkey Kong Bananza in exchange for collectible digital Challenge Cards. The service has also offered limited-time icon elements and other rewards tied to individual games and events.
The new Event Gifts discovery could therefore represent another way for Nintendo to distribute digital rewards through Switch Online, although that connection remains speculative. Nothing in the currently surfaced files confirms whether the gifts will be game-specific items, profile rewards, digital collectibles or something else entirely. The existence of multiple simultaneous events and individual media assets does suggest that Nintendo has designed the system to support campaigns with their own presentation and content.
For now, the Event Gifts system should be treated as an unannounced feature revealed through datamining rather than a confirmed upcoming Nintendo Switch Online announcement. Nintendo has not publicly described the system, its eligibility requirements, its rewards or when it might become active. Further app updates or an official Nintendo announcement could clarify whether the infrastructure becomes a publicly accessible feature and how Nintendo intends to use it.
