My point is more that new/launch technology is always more expensive at launch, until economies of scale can kick in; and this is the first console launch after the 1-2 years of post-COVID double-digit inflation globally.

It sucks, and I’m not trying to excuse it or hand-wave it away - more-so just pointing out that it was kinda foreseeable, given the current state of things.

If you think this is bad, wait until the next round of console launches in ~2027 from Sony.

[–] pathief@lemmy.world 2 points 23 hours ago (1 children)

I can understand the console being more expensive, especially since we don't really know its specs yet (or at least I don't). Why is Mario Kart 30 euros more expensive, tho? It doesn't paint a good picture.

[–] thatKamGuy@sh.itjust.works 1 points 21 hours ago

I’m an old curmudgeon, and I remember (my parents) paying ~$50 for SNES back in the early-to-mid ‘90s; so I’m not exactly shocked that Nintendo have lifted their sell-price.

Compared to back then; gaming is still somewhat more affordable, which definitely feels counter-intuitive - I know!

Japan has for the first time since 1991 had >2% annual inflation for 3 straight years, definitively ending their 2+ decade of stagflation. Developer wages are going up, and games take longer to develop - those costs need to be covered. I am in support of paying a fair market price if (and only if), that increase goes to the labour, and not shareholder profits.

Seeing as the Executive team at Nintendo opted to take a salary-cut, rather than lay off staff, following the failure of the WiiU — they have exactly one credit from me, for the benefit of the doubt.

But that is where my good graces end; other developers are going to take this as the green light to further increase prices on their own (unfinished, rushed, micropayment-laden) titles, across the industry. Heck, there are rumblings that the base version of GTA6 may be $100USD!