Gaming fans are baffled by Nintendo pricing
Nintendo fans are confused about the company's bizarre pricing structure and how its AAA games rarely seem to go on sale.
12th Jul 2023 14:58
Images via Nintendo
Gaming fans are baffled by Nintendo pricing
Nintendo fans are confused about the company's bizarre pricing structure and how its AAA games rarely seem to go on sale.
12th Jul 2023 14:58
Images via Nintendo
While the big three of Microsoft, Nintendo, and Sony duke it out in the great console wars of this generation, the House that Mario built is happy being off and doing its own thing. As Microsoft and Sony lock horns, Nintendo's first-party catalogue and family-friendly image mean it's largely left alone.
Still, that hasn't stopped the gaming giant from picking up similar habits to its rivals - especially when it comes to pricing. Gamers were shocked when The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom bumped its price despite running the same graphics as 2017's Breath of the Wild, but to be honest, it fits Nintendo's brief.
Gamers confused by Nintendo's pricing structure
Over on Reddit, gamers are questioning Nintendo's notoriously scattershot pricing approach, with rereleases and a lack of discounts meaning you can sometimes be paying more for a game years after release. We presume the OP is pointing to the likes of Skyward Sword HD and Metroid Prime Remastered.
One wrote, "Nintendo's stance is that a game doesn't have any less of an experience and isn't worth less just because it is old. Which I somewhat agreed with," while a disgruntled gamer grumbled, "Nintendo is the Ferrari of gaming companies."
Another mused, "Nintendo is a very Japanese company, and the Japanese don't really view discounts or price drops the same way as the West does. To them, they put in the effort to make the product, and no amount of time passing takes away from the effort of the team or from the quality of the game.
"The fact that a decade might have passed doesn’t mean the game has become worse, and so it’s is valuable." The big one is the fact that Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey are still hovering around the same price they were when they helped launch the Nintendo Switch in 2017.
Nintendo has promised $70 price tags
There were grumbles when Tears of the Kingdom got slapped with a $70/£60 price tag - up from Breath of the Wild's $60/£60. It quickly led to fears this would be the standard for future Nintendo releases, with a spokesperson ominously confirming it'll be on a case-by-case basis.
It's true that you can get the likes of Tears of the Kingdom for less if you know where to look, so it's not the end of the world. Still, as Sony holds strong that new-gen games deserve a new-gen price, the debate about whether Nintendo's titles are truly new-gen rages on.
Bethesda's Starfield was caught in the 30 FPS debate, but as Tears proved by running at that and wiping out the competition, Nintendo should continue what it's doing. Even if the Switch 2 has the same power as the PS4 and Xbox One, don't pretend you won't be buying it!
About The Author
Tom Chapman
Tom is Trending News Editor at GGRecon, with an NCTJ qualification in Broadcast Journalism and over seven years of experience writing about film, gaming, and television. With bylines at IGN, Digital Spy, Den of Geek, and more, Tom’s love of horror means he's well-versed in all things Resident Evil, with aspirations to be the next Chris Redfield.
