I don't think New Super Luigi U counts. It's DLC that they also made available on a disc. Rockstar did something similar with GTA IV's DLC, having the download version require GTA IV but later giving you the option of playing it from a standalone disc. That practice is nothing new.

So, it remains to be seen if the Winder Waker example is indicative of a trend.

Yeah, pretty much this.

And then it'll be "lolz, nobody buyz downloadable, physical sales are 99%, bomba bomba bomba!!1one!"

I don't think they'll do it with EVERY game, but I do think we'll see that happening more and more. It's smart, since they want to push the digital versions of games to increase profitability substantially, and they know that an earlier release will automatically hook some of those "day one" buyers who don't have the patience to wait a week or two for a physical copy.

Actually it is its own game. if I have a disc of Mario U and I put the Luigi U disc in, where does it get the information from the Mario disc if it is just DLC?

Its a full stand alone game that just happens to not be full retail price because it uses a lot of assets over again.

If it were DLC like you suggest I would need to install Mario in order to play it or put Luigi on the interal HD and put the Mario disc in. That just isnt the case here.

I know it may seem like DLC because of the price but that is just Nintendo being fair and not charging new prices for a game that they didnt need anything new created for.

Also LOL at comparing it to GTA4. The difference here is a month. It took 1-2 years before Libarty city stories was released as a stand alone retail game that didnt need the original GTA to play.

I think it's a great idea and I think they should do it with every major release. They want to push the digital sales, and this is a great way to do that. People who prefer retail might get mad, but really all you've got to do is think of it as the digital version coming early--not the physical one coming late. For all we know they're going to be printing copies of Wind Waker during those first few weeks of the digital release, so getting the game ahead of time is only a plus.

I think so.

The difference in dates will make a lot of people question if they should the extra weeks just to have the retail version when the game is right there for them to play.
And if people get used to it, they will probably do it again.

The problem is they still need to sell a physical system.  With the way the Wii U is selling, I'm not sure it is wise to give retailers another reason to drop it.

Who cares about those douchebags? Here in the real world, the people who actually make games will see more real money and enjoy a more direct relationship with the customer rather than being dependant on intermediaries. Digital customers are better customers.

Bragging rights are nice, but don't let them get in the way of good business. Yakuzaice raises the real concern: How many digital incentives can Nintendo line up before alienating retailers?

Good point.  Maybe they should wait a year or two and then really push digital.  Retailers probably already feel pretty burned after having all their stock devalued by 50 bucks, especially considering they often don't make any money on consoles.