The Development of Metroid Prime 4: Beyond — Interview

[Leynos]

curl-6 said:

Pemalite said:

Do mature ratings really impact sales?

I mean, things might be different here... But when I was a kid I had no issues grabbing a copy of Doom, Quake, Duke Nukem and more.

I mean it won't greatly decrease sales, but it may mean less parents pick it up for their kids, and Metroid is already a niche series with low sales, so given the game is likely among the most expensive Nintendo has ever made, they probably wanted to appeal to the widest audience they could.

What kids are playing Metroid Prime? Most Prime fans are adults. If this was Animal Crossing then sure. Not that Metroid needs to be M or anything but I doubt it would affect it at all. Metroid isn't that niche as you make it out to be. Not the biggest seller in Nintendo IPs sure but Dread still sold over 3 million.