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[Jofamo]

Something occurred to me while recently setting down some preorders on upcoming Wii U games. Each and every one of Nintendo's first party releases this year so far, including titles landing in the coming months, has been released at a lower than average or budget RRP of £34.99.

This is something I haven't really seen talked about around here much, especially with some new Wii U owners finding prices of previous years titles still going for around £40-£50 (Pikmin 3, Mario 3D World etc).

It seems to have begun with Captain Toad Treasure Tracker back in December/January. For those unaware, Captain Toad is a spinoff title to Super Mario 3D World, greatly expanding the Captain Toad levels into their own game while reusing a bunch of assets to keep the costs down. It was a stopgap release with a much smaller development time, and so when it was revealed the RRP of the title was £34.99 and not the usual £49.99, a lot of us were very pleased, if not exactly surprised.

However since Captain Toad each Nintendo first party release this year has kept this same RRP, even for titles you wouldn't typically view as a budget release. Titles such as Mario Party 10, Yoshi's Wooly World and even their big new IP Splatoon. Just take a look at the Nintendo UK online store , who sell at RRP to see what I mean (I've included an Amazon link to Yoshi's Wooly World, as it is not listed on Nintendo UK at this time);

Captain Toad Treasure Tracker - £34.99
http://store.nintendo.co.uk/games-wii-u/captain-toad-treasure-tracker/11029174.html

Mario Party 10 - £34.99
http://store.nintendo.co.uk/games-wii-u/mario-party-10/11073629.html

Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush - £34.99
http://store.nintendo.co.uk/games-wii-u/kirby-and-the-rainbow-paintbrush/11095320.html

Splatoon - £34.99
http://store.nintendo.co.uk/games-wii-u/splatoon-t-shirt-m/11100904.html

Yoshi's Wooly World - £34.85
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00KL324J6/

It's an interesting move from Nintendo, especially for their big name IP flagship games. Traditionally they'd be price quite high, and retain their value for a long, long time. So what's changed?

Well, the elephant in the room is lacklustre sales of the Wii U itself. It's certainly more enticing to pick up a Wii U console if the games are cheaper than the competition from day one.

However, I think that we also have the success of Amiibo to thank for these lower priced releases. Nintendo want to sell Amiibo to their customers (big surprise I know!). With titles such as Splatoon and Yoshi's Wooly World releasing alongside dedicated Amiibo figurines (Inkling Girl, Boy and Squid, and Yarn Yoshi's), Nintendo can now suggest you to pick up the game, and an Amiibo for the old RRP of £49.99. If you don't want an Amiibo for whatever reason, then it's all peachy! Enjoy your new title for just £34.99.

If true, it's an interesting business decision from Nintendo, sacrificing a percentage of their profits from new game sales at the risk of selling Amiibo, and it seemingly works out better for everyone. People who are only interested in the game can pick it up cheaper, the lower base cost will bring in new customers, customers may also pick up an Amiibo as well (and when they do, I imagine many will buy more than one).

I wonder how this will affect their remaining releases in the second half of this year. Miyamoto has already teased that Starfox Wii U will include Amiibo support, so will we see that title release at this lower RRP? Xenoblade Chronicles X I think will still be full priced, but what about Zelda Wii U?

What do you think?

 

[PetrCobra]

I just assumed they were all smaller games, and as such were priced lower. We will see once something really big hit the market, like Xenoblade X.

 

[IdreamofHIME]

No way Zelda or Mario will launch at those prices.

 

[ZhugeEX]

It's the same pricing structure they've always had.

£44.99 for big titles
£34.99 for smaller titles.

I think it's similar in the USA as well, $60 for big titles and $40 for smaller titles.

 

[Leafhopper]

I just assumed they were all smaller games, and as such were priced lower. We will see once something really big hit the market, like Xenoblade X.

You would think so but I believe Splatoon is a $60 in the states at launch. Could be wrong though.

 

[Shiggy]

Yup, they decreased the RRP for most of their titles to €44.99. Kirby even seems to be €39.99. Then again, most of their Wii U titles have seen some price drops by retailers.

 

[MatrixMan.EXE]

No way Zelda or Mario will launch at those prices.

This. I don't expect Xenoblade to cost that much either. With that said, it's nice. I have Kirby on pre-order for £23.99 and Splatoon for £23.99. Feels good man, and I know they'll have more content than most £40 games. Oh May will be a good month.

 

[Z..]

It's the same pricing structure they've always had.

£44.99 for big titles
£34.99 for smaller titles.

I think it's similar in the USA as well, $60 for big titles and $40 for smaller titles.

How is Wind Waker HD a big title?

This. I don't expect Xenoblade to cost that much either. With that said, it's nice. I have Kirby on pre-order for £23.99 and Splatoon for £23.99. Feels good man, and I know they'll have more content than most £40 games. Oh May will be a good month.

Where from?

 

[ZhugeEX]

How is Wind Waker HD a big title?

Where from?

http://www.gameseek.co.uk/pd/VideoGames0t91cpr51s/

And Wind Waker HD is Zelda, so it's big haha.

But I'm not denying that Wii U prices have decreased in the UK. Just there has always been two price points.

 

[Monkeylord]

It's the same pricing structure they've always had.

£44.99 for big titles
£34.99 for smaller titles.

I think it's similar in the USA as well, $60 for big titles and $40 for smaller titles.

I bought my Wii U when The Wind Waker HD was released (Wind Waker bundle, actually) and at the time almost every Wii U game was £55 instores. Wind Waker itself was £45.

You've been able to get Smash Bros pretty consistently for £35 or less (once again, in store) on and off since Christmas.

Nintendo don't have an RRP in the UK anymore.

 

[ZhugeEX]

Nintendo don't have an RRP in the UK anymore.

MK8 and SM3DW had £44.99 RRP. As did Wind Waker.

SSMB for Wii U launched at £39.99

 

[Jofamo]

http://www.gameseek.co.uk/pd/VideoGames0t91cpr51s/

And Wind Waker HD is Zelda, so it's big haha.

But I'm not denying that Wii U prices have decreased in the UK. Just there has always been two price points.

It's true that there has always been two price points, for bigger and smaller titles. However my point with this topic was to point out that there are titles releasing now which in the past would have been considered "big".

We're looking at Splatoon, and Nintendo is throwing everything at this title to make sure it is known when it lands. It is a brand new IP, with a big marketing push. I'd say that counts as a big title. Not to mention Mario Party 10, which comes from a legacy of high sellers. Yoshi's Wooly World is quickly becoming a decently sized release as well.

 

[Shiggy]

Nintendo don't have an RRP in the UK anymore.

While they officially don't, the prices at which games are sold to retailers give an indication. Based on that, WW HD was a full price title.

 

[Monkeylord]

MK8 and SM3DW had £44.99 RRP.

Interesting. I thought they totally gave up on RRP in the UK after that whole "Price Fixing" thing.

 

[ZhugeEX]

Interesting. I thought they totally gave up on RRP in the UK after that whole "Price Fixing" thing.

Well there is always going to be a launch price as such.

 

[MatrixMan.EXE]

How is Wind Waker HD a big title?



Where from?

The Game Collection. I think they've both hit that price a couple of times, so keep an eye out. In fact I'm pretty sure Splatoon was as low as £19.99 on there at one stage.

 

[_Spr_Drnk]

Perfect pricing with perfect print runs. Gotta catch 'em all!

 

[Refreshment.01]

It's true that there has always been two price points, for bigger and smaller titles. However my point with this topic was to point out that there are titles releasing now which in the past would have been considered "big".

We're looking at Splatoon, and Nintendo is throwing everything at this title to make sure it is known when it lands. It is a brand new IP, with a big marketing push. I'd say that counts as a big title. Not to mention Mario Party 10, which comes from a legacy of high sellers. Yoshi's Wooly World is quickly becoming a decently sized release as well.

All the titles listed are mid tier titles for Nintendo. How much did Smash sell for? How would Xenoblade or Zelda sell for?

And what's the big marketing push Splatoon is getting? It is a mid tier new IP with the "potential" to go big.

 

[ZhugeEX]

Also just a quick note here.

The Nintendo 64 launched March 1997 and sold through 620,000 units to end users by the end of the year (10 months).

The Nintendo GameCube launched May 2002 and sold through 420,000 units to end users by the end of the year (8 months).

The Nintendo Wii launched December 2006 and sold through 190,000 units to end users that month and more than 1,000,000 by August 2007. (9 months)

The Nintendo Wii U launched December 2012 and sold through 80,000 units to end users that month with only 200,000 sold through by the end of 2013, 1 year later.

UK sales, data provided via Gfk Chart Track

 

[Shiggy]

Interesting. I thought they totally gave up on RRP in the UK after that whole "Price Fixing" thing.

The lack of RRPs is unrelated to the price fixing. Not sure why that even pops up sometimes.

 

[PaulLFC]

Makes a nice change given their 3DS games, at least on the eshop, are (or were last time I checked) £39.99, when they're $39.99 in the US.

So at least they're pricing games fairly on console - now they need to do the same on handheld.

 

[stalker]

Yes, I have Splatoon and Kirby preordered for 31. This is cheap even for buget releases, speaking of Nintendo published games.

 

[EulaCapra]

Splatoon is going for lower? Interesting...

Outside of Splatoon/Yoshi's Wolly World which are still tentative for 60 American dollars, Rainbow Curse/MP10/Captain Toad have been budget priced between $40-50 here.

And budget priced rightfully so. Have you seen Mario Party 10? I've had it for weeks and it's still overpriced than Captain Toad considering the presentation effort.

 

[BY2K]

Splatoon is 69,99$ in Canada, what the hell!?

 

[IdreamofHIME]

Interesting. I thought they totally gave up on RRP in the UK after that whole "Price Fixing" thing.

RRP is not price fixing. Its giving the store a price they should sell the game(or other product) at to maximize their profit due how much it costs to buy from the supplier and manufacturer.
Selling the game under the RRP and then underselling the volume can lead the manufacturer to deny returns of unsold merch as the item is seen to have devalued by the seller. Its a pretty sticky relationship, especially with consumers expecting most items to be sold under the RRP to make them feel they got a bargain.

The price fixing in the 90s was Nintendo telling certain stores they sell the game at the price Nintendo dictates it at or you get nothing to sell.
This of course led to higher priced games for consumers and certain stores being locked iut from selling Nintendo games, the EU went after Nintendo with big fine for this shady practice.

 

[ArcaneFreeze]

Nintendo has gone on record saying that titles like Captain Toad and Kirby and the Rainbow Curse are considered "Budget Titles" hence the lower price. Yoshi's Wooly World seems to be the same as well, only Splatoon seems to be the once outlier on that list though in the US it seems to be standard MSRP of 60$.

 

[Leafhopper]

Splatoon is 69,99$ in Canada, what the hell!?

That Canadian pricing. Is that the normal price for a high end WiiU game in Canada? (ie Smash, Mario Kart etc.)

 

[MisterHero]

If they can figure out a way for more games to be sold like this, it'd be a nice buffer for DLC and amiibo-related post-release content.

...I'd pay $60 for Xenoblade Chronicles X anyways

 

[Xun]

Unless I'm going nuts, I'm pretty sure I paid £26.99 for Captain Toad.

£34.99 would be a great price for "standard" prices.

 

[hatchx]

Splatoon is 69,99$ in Canada, what the hell!?

Mario Part 10 was 64.99. Toad was 44.99 or something.

Our dollar is weak right now.

 

[xandaca]

Nintendo differentiate between their top and second tier games in the pricing, which is something the entire industry needs to do more of. Smash Bros, for instance, launched at full price, whereas Splatoon, a game with original characters which will benefit from being launched at a lower price to lure people in, is easy to find for around £25 - I got mine for around £22.50.

 

[hatchx]

Nintendo differentiate between their top and second tier games in the pricing, which is something the entire industry needs to do more of. Smash Bros, for instance, launched at full price, whereas Splatoon, a game with original characters which will benefit from being launched at a lower price to lure people in, is easy to find for around £25 - I got mine for around £22.50.

Which is funny, because Splatoon is a full-priced game in North America.

I think it might have to do with how poorly WiiU is doing in Europe/UK.