Nintendo has recently announced the surprise discontinuation of Club Nintendo in the coming months, with a replacement loyalty programme to take its place later in 2015. While new catalogue items are promised in multiple regions to help us dispose of leftover stars and coins, there'll also be a left-field freebie - Flipnote Studio 3D.

The app has been long-delayed in the West; it was initially held back in summer 2013 by high traffic from the Japanese release in the online galleries and services, and effectively disappeared from Western schedules when the free / friend distribution galleries in Japan were closed due to "offensive materials" being posted. Paid galleries - through a subscription service - remained online in Japan (as they're moderated) but the app drifted through month after month with silence from Nintendo of America and Europe.

Its emergence as a free download for Club Nintendo members is welcome, but it's looking like an offline experience is coming, aside from the ability to transfer your own animations from the DSi's Flipnote Hatena - Nintendo of America's press release only mentions the ability to share animations locally, not online. The official sites in Europe and North America both ignore the previous subscription details; it was a detailed system of galleries, posting, curating and rewards that earned in-game currency, all with a non-contract price of £0.89/€0.99/$0.99 per month. A diagram from 2013 - showing off the concept - is below:

It'll be nice to create animations and share them locally, of course, but are you disappointed by the prospect of the subscription-based World Galleries being absent. Do you hope they'll be added in future? Let us know.