Pricing For Retro Games on the Wii

schnikies79 writes to mention an Ars Technica article revealing the pricing scheme for retro content on the Wii. From the article: "Iwata revealed that games for Nintendo's "virtual console" that will allow Wii owners to play old titles on their consoles will be priced at ¥500 and ¥1,000, roughly US$4.50 to US$8.99. For reference, classic retro games for the Nintendo GameBoy sold for upwards of US$35 for some titles, US$19.99 for others. Uptake was understandably low, as gamers were reticent to pay that much for old content." The piece goes on to say that they're ramping up DS production to meet command, and that connectivity with the DS will be a major selling point for the console when it releases.

Comments

Sony... Microsoft...

[HoosierPeschke]

...Are we paying attention?? You can make millions and make your customers happy without gouging your customers.

Re:Sony... Microsoft...

[grammar fascist]

...Are we paying attention?? You can make millions and make your customers happy without gouging your customers.

Microsoft tried, actually, but the number of available retro games is pitiful. Nintendo starts with a gigantic library that they already own.

Microsoft couldn't have done it the way Nintendo plans to. Sony might be able to with PS1 games.

Re:Sony... Microsoft...

[JeffSh]

one problem with that is that all of the sony PS1 games are entire CD images (500-600 mb) while nintendo's games are small roms, at maximum 16 mb and mostly 100kb to 1 mb... this makes the nintendo system much more efficient and far less costly while offering, in my opinion, better games.

Re:Sony... Microsoft...

[AnyoneEB]

Actually, there are eight 64MB (512mbit) Nintendo 64 games that I know of, and there are several 32MB (256mbit) Nintendo 64 games, but your point remains. Even in comparision to the built-in 512MB of flash, most ROMs are tiny.

DEmand, not COmmand.

[theGreater]

Unless you live in Soviet Russia. I hear there they really -did- have command-side economics.

-theGreater.

$5 is more than fair

[Tiberius_Fel]

If they're going to include some of the old titles from SNES for sale, I would gladly pay $5 or $9 for it. Some games - Super Mario World, Super Mario RPG, Link to the Past, et cetera - were and are hours and hours of great gameplay. And at that price point, I'm sure they'll sell like mad.

Re:$5 is more than fair

[grammar fascist]

And nobody pays development or duplication costs.

Nintendo has some up-front costs for setting up the service, and some minimal costs to keep it running. Basically, they're sending you free bits (for them) for your money. And you're glad to pay it.

I will be, too. Everybody wins, but especially Nintendo.

Re:$5 is more than fair

[Burning1]

I will be, too. Everybody wins, but especially Nintendo."

Except for the ROM pirates. They are likely to see a crackdown on ROM distrobution.

Re:$5 is more than fair

[EggyToast]

Eh, I don't think so. How are you going to track and stop something that, as has been said earlier in the comments, deals with files that are in many cases less than 1mb? You can dump the entire NES catalog to someone via FTP in a few minutes, it seems, and if you focus on just the good games for each console, it's trivial to move those files around.

Nintendo has been trying to crack down on ROM distributors for a while now, and failed. People keep playing them and Nintendo never really gains anything from stopping one. To me, this is their response to the ROM dilemma -- distribute the games yourself, from a centralized location, and charge an arguably fair price.

I personally see it as a bit expensive for a digital copy of an old game that, in many cases, is higher than the used market for these titles. I may be surprised, and the purchase be "lifetime" purchases that work on not only the Wii, but future Wiis and future consoles. What would be even nicer is if the Wii could transfer the games to the DS or the "GBA 2." But I'm firmly convinced that Nintendo figured "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em," and worked out a way to digitally offer these games. They know people aren't going to track down the original cartridges and old hardware just to play them; they want to play them from the comfort of their computer or current system.

Better and Better

[DorkusMasterus]

I really was not expecting to purchase a Wii when I first heard about it. However, after the excellent showing at E3, plus the news that the console will likely be $200-$250 at launch, as well as this news that games will be exceedingly moderate in terms of the retro downloadables... it's definitely going to be on my wish list for Christmas (and if I don't get it, I'll of course buy it.) Nintendo is seemingly making all the right moves right now... Congrats to them. Good marketing, good development, and most importantly right now, good pricing scheme so far. It's really a rock-solid console right now.

Sounds Fair

[kubevubin]

Considering some of the outlandish pricing for cell phone games (which are choppy and short in comparison to console games), this really doesn't sound all that bad.

Color me impressed

[grasshoppa]

I have to say, nintendo is serious about taking a chunk out of both MS and Sony in this round. They are getting my money, that much I can tell you. Just for the zelda titles alone.

On and On they go

[digitalsushi]

Working stiffs like me, mid to late 20s, and a nice Gaussian distribution around me, we eat this stuff up. 40 years from now Nintendo is going to still be rereleasing 8 bit Mario Brothers onto whatever the game platform of the day is, and I'm still going to be paying for it every time it comes out, plus a nice contour with inflation. When I'm 60 years old, hopefully a bit vested, and starting to slow down a bit, think I'll toss down 200 bucks in 2040 dollars to regain 3 hours of my youth? Those damned MIDI tracks so far etched into my brain that it's literally part of my Id? That erotic twinge I get when I rescue the Princhess Toadstool (Peach?) TMI? PERHAPS! But the truth has been spoken. I might very well have a Triforce on my gravestone, and I bet more of you are with me! Don't deny your digital heritage!

Interesting

[Silent sound]

What is interesting to me about this is that they do not seem to be charging significantly differently for an NES game than for an N64 game. I was originally expecting an N64 game on Virtual Console would cost several times as much as an NES game. Apparently that's not how it works.

I'm pretty happy with these prices, $5-$9 is about how much you would normally expect to be paying anyway for almost any SNES or Genesis game, or almost any NES game worth playing, at this point if you were to buy the cartridges used. For some of the titles that have gotten harder to find, like Kid Icarus or the original Final Fantasy, $5-$9 is an absolute steal...

Now let's just hope they offer an appropriately large selection of titles.

editors did it, not me

[schnikies79]

The line with the 'command' problem wasn't in my original submission.

You know what this means.....

[TheChef321]

Now EVERYONE will be able to bask in the glory that is Shaq Fu for $9!

Did the article get mistranslated?

[rhfb]

According to a few posts on the arsforums there and a few webtranslations the article should say new games developed just for the virtual console will be between 500 and 1000 yen, not the classic nes/snes/n64 games that will be available on the virtual console as well. There was another article a few days back, explaining that 3 people should be able to put a game together in a few weeks and sell it on the console for around 5$, can't find it right now though.

Have you read the summary?

[SmallFurryCreature]

They actually tell you that they have been gouging the market by selling retro games for the handhelds at highly inflated prices that turned people off.

So basically what you are saying that Nintendo after years of charging full price of decade old games finally lowered the price to a mera 5 dollars for games that are a few megabytes and cost next to nothing to distribute and for wich they don't have to pay any license fees?

Oh yeah. They ain't gouging. They just decided to reduce themselves to raking it in.

It is a smart business move but don't make them out to be some kind of gaming heroes. A game 10 years old that cost only a few megabyte of bandwidth to distrubute does not deserve a 4.50 price tag. They might be able to charge it but lets face it, the markup on that must make Apple blush. Hell, it would make Sony blush.

I notice this problem with people talking about digital downloads. 1 dollar/euro for an iTune song? I am sorry, you just skipped all the costs of distrubuting and stocking CD's and I don't see any reduction in the cost of an album? And it is only because Jobs knows exactly how much you can get away with that the RIAA doesn't get its way and raises the price even higher. Where are the cost savings going? As if I need to ask.

At least with the retro games for the various gameboys you got the excuse of the cost of the catridge, and distrubtion/stocking costs.

Love the fact that you can play all the old games without needing a ton of old consoles etc etc but Nintendo is going to laugh all the way to the bank. More power to them but that don't make them into some kind of heroes for me.

Re:Have you read the summary?

[Overly Critical Guy]

A game 10 years old that cost only a few megabyte of bandwidth to distrubute does not deserve a 4.50 price tag.

Demand drives pricing, not ROM file sizes. Legend of Zelda 1 is still valuable to a lot of people, and therefore to Nintendo.

Re:I thought I was a Ninty fanboy until I saw /. m

[G-funk]

So, Nintendo was charging too much, it didn't work out, now they've dropped the price. THE MONSTERS!

Sony would have said, "See! Emulation has caused our lackluster sales! Cry havoc and let slip the dogs of law!"

Re:DS connectivity

[AuMatar]

God and Nintendo

You mentioned Miyamoto twice there.

EBGames and GameStop

[strider2k]

As of June 1st, EBGames and GameStop in the USA stopped accepting PS1 and N64 games. The pricing explains the need to discontinue collecting antiques from the customers. There's no way the B&M stores can compete with the relatively lower price of the Wii Virtual Console.

Re:UK pricing

[WilliamSChips]

I think you mean the "Wii get screwed" tax. Sorry, couldn't resist.