By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy and our Terms of Use. Close
Soundwave on 09 February 2015
Edit Thread
zorg1000 said:
Soundwave said:


Well the 3DS did get a pretty massive price cut early on. 

With the Wii U, I think people simply don't want one. It's not all that complicated. Nintendo's concept of a family friendly console primarily driven by their sugary sweet mascots without the third party support just doesn't resonate even with kids anymore. And they lost the entire casual/fad Wii crowd to Apple so that became a dead end for them. Just like people wouldn't buy a GameCube even at $99.99. 

Nintendo has an audience problem moreso than a price problem in other words. 

Yes it did and has not recieved a price reduction since then which was 2.5 years ago (not counting the 2DS because downgraded revisions have never in the history of handhelds or consoles had a lasting affect on sales). That's like if the GBA SP was the launch model then 2 years later they introduced a cheaper model without the clamshell design and backlit screen, the redesign wouldn't have done anything for sales.

3DS is still $169 and the XL $199 while the GBA was $79 and the SP $99 at this point.

Wii U is currently $299 while GC was $99 at the same point in its life.

So Nintendo hardware is 2-3 times as much as the 6th gen counterparts at the same point in their lives. Price isn't the one and only issue but it most definitely is an issue.

If Nintendo didn't include 3D or the Gamepad then they could have realistically released their devices at a lower price point and had further price cuts since then. Super DS releasing Sept 2011 for $149 with Nintendogs+Ocarina of Time+Mario 3D Land in the launch window and Mario Kart the following Spring would have gotten off to a much stronger start than 3DS did. Having Super DS at $129 with Super DS XL at $149 by now would likely be selling more than the current numbers at $199. Super Wii releasing Sept 2013 for $249 with a Motion Plus and Nintendo Land+Wind Waker HD+Mario 3D World in the launch window and Mario Kart the following Spring would have gotten off to a much stronger start than Wii U and being priced at $199 by now would likely see sales better than the current $299.

$169.99 is very affordable for a game console today, electronics don't remain static in price, you can't get shit for $169.99 these days. $99 in 2002 is about $130 today so that's pretty close to the 2DS/3DS. 

The GameCube not being able to sell even at $99.99 to me illustrates that a lot of people won't buy a machine just for Nintendo games at any price. 

To be honest I think we overthink these things too much and deify hardware too much. The consumer doesn't give a shit about what your brand is, they just want the widest selection of games. 

You may say "well that Call of Duty game you're buying isn't innovative! Wouldn't you rather play this game X/Y/Z", but man, when its their money and they bust their ass at work/school all day, and all they want is that type of game to come home to ... you better damn well have that game on your platform or they're going some place else. 

And I can't say I blame them. Taking brand politics and nostalgia out of the equation, would I want a DVD/movie disc format that only had movies from one studio? Hell no. Would I switch from Netflix to a similar service that only has 1/3 of the movies? Hell no. Would I choose a cable service that only gets 1/2 the channels? No. 

I think it's just that simple. Regular people don't deify or fetishize console hardware, they just want the games. And the system that has the best selection of overall games almost always does great, from the NES to SNES to Playstation to PS2 etc. etc. We make the console wars more about the "brand" rather than looking at it from an average consumers POV.