Other companies also make high quality games.

lack of competition

look at Horizon for instance, and all the different styled RPGs that released all around it and since. 8 months on, and Zelda has yet to have one RPG to compete against.

it's funny to see a DLC and microtransactions argument though, given Zelda has DLC and Nintendo have a load of Amiibo bullshit in their games now

Company pricing strategy, quality of product, and sales with legs.

Nintendo sets the policy, so people know not to wait for price drops the way an Electronic Arts game drops (Ex: Mass Effect Andromeda this year dropping within week of release).

Nintendo generally makes great games. People are willing to pay $50-60 new game price for Mario a year after release because the brand (company and game series) has trust that it will be great.

Sales are not entirely front loaded the way some companies depend on. Many Nintendo titles sell well months or years after release so Nintendo rarely has incentive to drop price.

Thinking about it, one last aspect is how Nintendo rarely saturates the market with the same experience. For example, Breath of the Wild came out this year, and it had been a long wait for Zelda fans. These same fans likely figure it will be at least 3 to possibly 7 years before they get another grand Zelda adventure. This rarity adds to each entry having a special feeling. I think Assassin's Creed is fine, but there have been so many in past decade I couldn't keep up and they didn't feel momentous when the 8th entry came out within 10 years. Zelda and Mario are events still that even if I don't get at launch, when I get a Switch will be among the first few games I'd buy.

Quality and replayability. Everytime I go to my local GAME Store it's almost impossible to find Nintendo First Party Juggernauts in the "second hand" shelves, and when you find them they have prices way over PS and Microsoft First Party games. People tend to keep Nintendo Games, aside from their quality and replayability, because they "mean something"; I still have good memories from my NES, SNES and N64 games and, while I really enjoyed PS and MS games like Uncharted, Gears of Wars, ICO & Shadow od the Colossus, Forza Horizon, etc., they don't remain as special for the majority of the players as Nintendo games do. I can see myself playing again in the future New Super Mario Bros., Breath of the Wild, DKC Returns, Super Metroid, any Mario Kart, any Smash Bros., any Starfox, etc., just for the fun and the good memories, but I can count with the fingers of one hand the games from other companies that I see myself playing again over and over in the future. So... I think Nintendo games doesn't loose that much value/get price cuts because people really value them (for fun, quality, replayability, special memories, etc.) and keep them for themselves instead of selling them to stores, and that keeps the price higher than games from other companies (For example, I can buy Uncharted I, II and III, second hand, for 9 to 12 euros each, and same with God of War, Infamous, etc. But can't find a second hand copy of Mario Kart Wii/8, Xenoblade, Smash, New Super Mario Bros./U, 3D Land, Skyward Sword, DKCR: Tropical Freeze, etc. for less than 20€ (and they are usually around 29€!)... Even if these games sold millions of units in Europe alone!

That is good thing for their IPs.

Games do discount if they aren't as top notch. Gamestop does mark down things like Amiibo Festival and Zero. However that is rare.

But yes, Nintendo games do generally avoid discounts for a long period of time, mostly because they don't have to discount. The profit margins don't require a price drop for a good while.

Cause they see you like a wet sponge full of money and they want to squeeze you dry.

It doesn't get lower because the sequel is usually in the next generation

The fact many Nintendo games that weren't well recieved and sold poorly and still followed the trend of retaining the MSRP kinda goes against that logic, at least as an absolute.

Many other quality titles still get discounts, the difference being, imo, would seem to point to the fact that Nintendo releases fewer titles within the same franchise per system. This along with quality and many other possible variables would all make sense. Or we could just chalk it up to Quality and call it a day!

Because they make limited amounts, and never discount their own stuff (while their competitors do, to increase sales).

/thread.