'We Thought It Would Be Fun': Nintendo Has a Whole FAQ on Why It's Selling Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Separately for $20 Each - IGN

https://piefed.ca/c/games/p/539440/we-thought-it-would-be-fun-nintendo-has-a-whole-faq-on-why-it-s-selling-pokemon-firered-and

'We Thought It Would Be Fun': Nintendo Has a Whole FAQ on Why It's Selling Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen Separately for $20 Each - IGN

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I know lemmy really has a strong sentiment against Nintendo, but for me personally, I am happy about this. I think its fair to download and emulate games when there is no legal version being offered anywhere. I would also say that being offered through subscription only doesn’t change that either. But if there is a version for sale by Nintendo, I am happy to buy that instead. I don’t think piracy is justified just because you are angry at a company. If I can purchase a copy on my modern system, that is the way I’m gonna go.

If a company shows no respect for its consumers by nickel and diming them for everything, then there is no reason to show a company respect by purchasing its products.

If they re-released their entire back catalogue at reasonable prices—not locking them behind a subscription—with a commitment to letting users transfer them to future consoles without an upgrade fee, then things would be different.

I’m curious, what is a reasonable price to you for these games? Because as far as I’m concerned, buying both games for the price of buying one of them 20 years ago feels pretty reasonable. I agree that they drip feed the fuck out of us on actually providing a way to play these games. But releasing these games in a way that you can bring forward to additional systems, and not putting them behind a subscription is a move that should be prasied. I just think it’s a step in the right direction. I’ll take the ability to own one game on my modern system over owning zero.

Unlike physical cartridges, a digital, emulated copy of FireRed has no resale or collector’s value. Also, as the primary cost in developing such titles is the emulator, Nintendo could release additional GBA games in this manner with minimal additional effort.

Considering those factors, and the Switch having a higher install base than prior systems (over ten times Wii U unit sales), maintaining the Wii U and 3DS price points is the most reasonable means for Nintendo to monetize their back catalogue in a way that makes piracy less enticing for many people: $3 per GB, $4 per GBC, $5 per NES, $7-8 per GBA, $8 per SNES, $10 per N64, and $20 per Wii game price point.

Given that each console only requires an emulator to be developed once (something Nintendo has already done for NSO) to support hundreds of paid titles, there’s no need to increase prices when the games will sell several times more than they had any chance to on the Wii U.

Given how many games NSO includes, they could continue offering them that way for people who prefer renting their library. Consumers want meaningful options; pricing a GBA game at $20 is not that.

Fair enough, I would personally prefer those price points too. I agree that this isn’t a particularly meaningful option. But it is significantly more meaningful than what existed before it. I think the big disparity on the pricing is a symptom of everything having a subscription nowadays. Not justifying it, just acknowledging it. They probably tell themselves that $20 for one game is fair becuase they could have charged $20/month if they added it to NSO. It does feel high, but just the added value of not having to pay a subscription every month or year to play this game feels significant to me. I recognize that’s a bit dystopian, but it feels like a little breathing room in this gaming landscape.