Support NeoGAF

[Orniletter]

I agree with the others that 6.50 € / $ would have been the sweet spot.

But lower than that ? Come on, we are talking about high quality GBA games here.

 

[Stratostar]

Newsflash: Video games cost money to make.

Breaking: They cost money to buy now, too!

Give me a break, you cheapskates.

 

[Plinko]

How's the Amazing Mirror? I have all those other carts besides that and Advanced Wars (lost ).

I've tried numerous times to play it but I have no clue what is going on.

 

[chronosic]

I've tried numerous times to play it but I have no clue what is going on.

I might bite on it anyway. I generally like Kirby and it's the only one on the list I haven't played.

 

[Zen_Arcade]

Are those Collector's Editions priced comparatively to new releases? Yes. That's not the case with VC titles. Heck, if you count save states as a feature, they're updated, too. Point is, being old doesn't instantly mean lower price, in any form of entertainment media, and games should not be the exception. If the game is good, why should $8 be considered outrageous?

If you count one extra ability to save where ever you want you have pretty low standards for updated features. If you want to compare the upgraded features of a Bluray the better parallel would be those PS2 collections like Sly Cooper. They both have updated visuals and a few extra features. VC releases are like buying the DVD again because there is an extra commentary track.

And again, you're completely ignoring the fact that it's not just an old movie, it's an old movie with extra features, updated visuals, and the ability to resell and are collectors editions. These are things that these VC titles lack, except for one or two things like button mapping. If Nintendo updated the graphics in some way like companies do with Bluray maybe they'd have a good reason to charge as much as they do. Your Citizen Kane Bluray example is a bad one because at the very least they updated the visuals for it to make it look better then any other copy of Citizen Kane you've ever seen.

Also, it might not instantly make something lower price (Because of variables you keep ignoring like limited releases, or collectors editions) but generally the older something is, the less they charge for it at retail in electronics. Next year Thor 2 will be $5-10 cheaper because it's older and whatever new movie that comes out that month will cost as much as Thor 2 did the day I bought it.

It matters because I have a limited time and budget and don't see the point in digitally buying an old game with very few minor changes when I could either use that money to download something else, or throw a few more dollars in to add the actual cartridge to my collection.

 

[Oersted]

Pretty good games. Any additional features?

 

[Snakeyes]

Sweet. I would pick up Fusion, F-Zero, Advance Wars and Golden Sun the minute I buy a Wii U.

 

[Scullinator]

Do you think we will ever see TMNT: Turtles in Time for SNES as a vc download?

 

[Aaron Strife]

I can't wait for them to only release the remaining 3DS Ambassador titles as a slow trickle throughout the year and then shut off the faucet.

 

[-Eddman-]

WTF! Nintendo releasing that many VC games in a single month? Awesome.

Hopefully the trend continues, but I'm not very optimistic. Will get Advance Wars, F-Zero, maybe Mario & Luigi. I'm not sure about Golden Sun, I really liked it, but I already played it years ago, on the other hand buying it raises the possibilities of seeing the second one, which I never played.

 

[MarkusRJR]

I only really want to replay Golden Sun 1 and 2...

Oh and Nintendo give us the SNES version of Yoshio's Island. I mean fuck, you've had like 2 years. Instead you release the inferior VBA version that will look super dim due to their emulation. I can't even.

 

[Davey Cakes]

If I buy a VC title on the Wii U, will I have access to that game when the VC emulators for the 3DS are finished?

There's no cross-buy functionality with Nintendo systems. You will have to buy each version separately.

 

[ThatStupidLion]

I feel like this is too little too late. Shoulda debuted on 3ds and came out on wii.

 

[LegendofLex]

If I buy a VC title on the Wii U, will I have access to that game when the VC emulators for the 3DS are finished?

No.

Also, don't expect VC for any other platforms besides GB, GBC, NES, and Game Gear on 3DS.

 

[Davey Cakes]

Also, don't expect VC for any other platforms besides GB, GBC, NES, and Game Gear on 3DS.

I will say I'm wondering why this is.

Is demand for the other classic systems low? Is it the tech?

I have it wonder about Wii U as well. Where's the same diversity we saw on Wii?

 

[Stumpokapow]

Personally I feel like $7-8 isn't an insane price for most of these games, HOWEVER that Nintendo's reluctance to more aggressively discount or spotlight VC titles probably hurts them long term in terms of being able to maximize price stratification. They do discount stuff, but rarely, typically individual games rather than broader sales, and with more modest discounts than most other platforms.

I mean, lots of 1990s games come out on GOG for $6 or $9, and while those prices aren't rip-offs really, they're higher than I'm willing to pay, but relatively frequent rotating sales allow me to buy-in at a lower pricepoint while diehard fans of the games buy in at higher price-points. Ditto Steam.

Sales also help fill gaps in the release schedule. Of course Nintendo has so much content in reserve there'd never be any gaps, but...

 

[Chill Penguin]

I don't understand why we get GBA games on the Wii U. Shouldn't it be 3DS gets handheld games and Wii U gets console games? Why am i stuck playing NES and Gameboy games on the 3DS in 2014?

 

[DoubleTap]

I'll take anything I can get for my WiiU at this point. Advance Wars and Golden Sun will be bought.

 

[sikkinixx]

GBA version of Yoshi's Island? Fuck you Nintendo. SnES or nothing.

 

[Terrell]

Yes, but I'm am era where 20GB games are regularly sold for $5 on competing stores I find it hard to accept $8 for decade old GBA games.

I'm in disbelief that FILE SIZE is being used as a measure of game length or quality.

Shit like this is why things are priced the way they are... Under $10 is the sweet spot, no matter what platform it is on, and quality is too relative to base your pricing on. If you base it only on age, as well, PS Classics should have a lower MSRP than all the GBA content.

There's always going to be disparate opinions on the matter, but the value proposition is what it is and there's no real quantifiable measure anyone can base it on. The only constant is "under $10" being the nice little sweet spot.

 

[JoeM86]

Personally I feel like $7-8 isn't an insane price for most of these games, HOWEVER that Nintendo's reluctance to more aggressively discount or spotlight VC titles probably hurts them long term in terms of being able to maximize price stratification. They do discount stuff, but rarely, typically individual games rather than broader sales, and with more modest discounts than most other platforms.

I mean, lots of 1990s games come out on GOG for $6 or $9, and while those prices aren't rip-offs really, they're higher than I'm willing to pay, but relatively frequent rotating sales allow me to buy-in at a lower pricepoint while diehard fans of the games buy in at higher price-points. Ditto Steam.

Sales also help fill gaps in the release schedule. Of course Nintendo has so much content in reserve there'd never be any gaps, but...

What do you mean? Nintendo have done numerous promotions for Virtual Console titles of late.

I will say I'm wondering why this is.

Is demand for the other classic systems low? Is it the tech?

I have it wonder about Wii U as well. Where's the same diversity we saw on Wii?

It's the tech, for the most part.

Iwata said in the investor meeting in January that they have finally overcome an issue that was holding them back with the Virtual Console, which is why the DS Virtual Console has now been announced, and the GBA one is finally going forward now. I fully expect the N64 and so forth to come shortly.

In Japan, the MSX and PC Engine Virtual Consoles started recently on the Wii U, too, if memory serves.

 

[nubbe]

So weird to have GBA games on the WiiU and not 3DS D:

 

[Archaix]

I love Nintendo. I feel like they operate in an entirely different universe than the one I inhabit. I had to come in this thread to find out what SMB3 meant, because it couldn't possibly have meant Super Mario Bros 3, because the Wii U has been out for a year and a half and there's no way that game isn't already available on the service. And then I come in to find not only was that assumption wrong, but I get all this extra entertainment from seeing what they are doing with Virtual Console.

 

[cacildo]

At $1 - $3 I would buy almost every game offered. At $4 - $5 I would buy most games. At $6 - $8 I would only buy a very select few games.

me too

except the $4 - $5 range

 

[Linkhero1]

$8 seems like a lot for straight ports, or maybe I am just cheap.

It's pretty high.

and people wonder how Nintendo stays afloat. I'm tempted to buy Golden Sun, but that price tag...

 

[iamaustrian]

I expected 10$ for the GBA games, tbh.

8$ is a steal for games like Golden Sun and Metroid Fusion.
They are some of the best games ever made.
don't be fooled by them being "portable games".
This is high-class software and easly worth the 8 bucks.

imo

 

[megabytecr]

Some of this games are great gems!

The pricing seems off for some games, I think they should price games with a base in mind (bsed on original console) but also based on the actual game. Some NES games on the VC should be $1 or $2.

Would they get more money if they set VC as a service, paying montly or for a year?

 

[richd_3]

Folders please.
Folders please.
Folders please.

 

[cacildo]

What do you mean? Nintendo have done numerous promotions for Virtual Console titles of late.
r.

i saw more people talking about VC sales... when was that? I only remember two sales: the Mega Man X sale and the crappy character sale with 30% off for a few NES games
did we had another sale and i miss it?

 

[sörine]

No.

Also, don't expect VC for any other platforms besides GB, GBC, NES, and Game Gear on 3DS.

In addition to those 3DS already has TG16. I want NGPC and VB to come at least too.

I wouldn't rule out other 16bit systems yet either. There are already emulated SNES and MegaDrive (well, GigaDrive) games on 3DS, just not as part of the Virtual Console.

 

[tanooki27]

Their reasoning is that they don't yet have an acceptable standard GBA emulator on 3DS.

really? would it take an inordinate amount of resources to kick something like that into gear? there must be something else, something related to business.

 

[Penguin]

Do you think we will ever see TMNT: Turtles in Time for SNES as a vc download?

Not sure what the deal is with that license, but the fact that every digital game was taken down a few years ago doesn't bode well for now

 

[LegendofLex]

I will say I'm wondering why this is.

Is demand for the other classic systems low? Is it the tech?

It's because Nintendo (probably rightly) doesn't want to invest too much in building out digital on 3DS (outside of what they've already done) when the groundwork isn't going to benefit their next systems. They learned hard lessons from the backlash to their VC policies this generation (where they thought they could rebuild everything from the ground up and charge people to upgrade) and don't seem to be planning to make those mistakes again.

[C]urrently it requires a huge amount of effort to port Wii software to Nintendo 3DS because not only their resolutions but also the methods of software development are entirely different. The same thing happens when we try to port Nintendo 3DS software to Wii U. If the transition of software from platform to platform can be made simpler, this will help solve the problem of game shortages in the launch periods of new platforms.
[...]
In this perspective, while we are only going to be able to start this with the next system, it will become important for us to accurately take advantage of what we have done with the Wii U architecture. It of course does not mean that we are going to use exactly the same architecture as Wii U, but we are going to create a system that can absorb the Wii U architecture adequately.

http://www.nintendo.co.jp/ir/en/library/events/140130qa/02.html

With so many people complaining about Nintendo's lack of a single ecosystem (me included), you'd think they'd be happier Nintendo isn't wasting time or resources investing in the last bastion of the dark ages.

I have it wonder about Wii U as well. Where's the same diversity we saw on Wii?

I'll admit I'm pretty miffed that N64/GameCube/Sega support seems to be gone, but I very much doubt N64 and Sega did well on Wii's VC and obviously the GC library doing jack shit to move systems back in the day can't be speeding things along.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

I would pay $8 for Golden Sun. On my 3DS.

 

[Bwana Whiskey]

Advance Wars day 1 for me

 

[JoeM86]

i saw more people talking about VC sales... when was that? I only remember two sales: the Mega Man X sale and the crappy character sale with 30% off for a few NES games
did we had another sale and i miss it?

May have just been not America. I know Europe and Japan have had a load

 

[sörine]

i saw more people talking about VC sales... when was that? I only remember two sales: the Mega Man X sale and the crappy character sale with 30% off for a few NES games
did we had another sale and i miss it?

Capcom did discount promos for their SF2 and Final Fight games off the top of my head. The SNES Kirbys and Zelda Oracles had one too, not to mention the crazy 30¢ Famicom Anniversary thing and the coming Mario Kart deal. I bet there's others I'm forgetting.

 

[PadWarrior]

So which is better, Super Mario World SNES or Super Mario World GBA?

 

[jmizzal]

I'm gonna be spending some money on the eshop in April

 

[GuessMyUserName]

Huge Metroid fan but I've never played Fusion.

Thoughts?

Great game, just for much different reasons than Super and Zero Mission are. I've beat the game around 40 times, but one thing that bothers me to hell and back are the Nav points, for a first playthrough it's not too bad, although having to go to them all the time is still annoying, and the text very long and unskippable.

But it's got great boss fights, and best of all, the atmosphere. Again, different from Super - Fusion often has a very terrifying and creepy feel to it thanks to SA-X (honestly one of my favourite game villains because of how well he impacts the game). All the more amazing that her character is well accomplished without any of her own dialogue at all.

 

[coffeehofi]

Advance Wars and Superstar Saga for me

 

[LegendofLex]

So which is better, Super Mario World SNES or Super Mario World GBA?

SNES is more difficult, therefore better. When you take a hit, you revert to Small Mario/Luigi in the SNES version regardless of power-up.

 

[BinaryPork2737]

Folders please.
Folders please.
Folders please.

It's astounding this isn't already available in the Wii U.

So which is better, Super Mario World SNES or Super Mario World GBA?

Depends. There's a list of changes on Gamefaqs. If you don't mind the lower quality music, added voices (that irritate some people), and would like to own a copy of Mario Bros. (since all of the Super Mario Advance games come with it bundled), the GBA version might be worth it for you,

Wish smb3 was the snes version, not the nes.

And I wish it was the GBA version with all of the eReader levels

Spoiler

continually beating a dead horse across multiple threads

 

[Atilac]

Wish smb3 was the snes version, not the nes.

 

[cacildo]

Capcom did discount promos for their SF2 and Final Fight games off the top of my head. The SNES Kirbys and Zelda Oracles had one too, not to mention the crazy 30¢ Famicom Anniversary thing and the coming Mario Kart deal. I bet there's others I'm forgetting.

well, thats why i didnt remember it: thet werent exactly good sales (except the .30 deal but that was one year ago)...

and the fact that i only care about wiiu VC (dont know why but i really dont care about vc on 3Ds...)

 

[Zarovitch]

Folders please.
Folders please.
Folders please.

I want folders too. I want to regroup my games please.

 

[Otakumegane]

Wonder if Capcom will bother to put up the MMBN series.

 

[sörine]

I'll admit I'm pretty miffed that N64/GameCube/Sega support seems to be gone, but I very much doubt N64 and Sega did well on Wii's VC and obviously the GC library doing jack shit to move systems back in the day can't be speeding things along.

You'd guess wrong. The Sonic games especially sold a ton on Wii VC going by Nintendo Channel data and Gunstar Heroes did well enough to warrant later XBLA/PSN versions. N64 games did well enough too, not just the usual suspects like Mario and Zelda but even niche releases like Sin & Punishment, which sold so well it got the Wii sequel greenlit.

Wii VC was in general a crazy success upfront and Nintendo kept issuing statements about it flying past targets in every financial report for the first year and a half or so. Then they moved resources and focus into WiiWare which only served to maintain overall Wii digital sales rather than grow them from what VC was managing alone beforehand. It was a bad move, VC has never performed as well as when Nintendo gave it a full commitment. I'd say the long lasting and diverse support of Sega, Hudson and D4/SNK are also a testament to it's success for them, especially when you consider how short lived and limited their retro efforts were on PSN and XBL in comparison. If Wii VC hadn't been lucrative they'd have all simply dropped it much earlier.

 

[Diddy Kong]

Thank the lord for SMB3 finally! I think I'll give Advance Wars and Golden Sun a shot. I hope we get the Donkey Kong Country games soon now that Donkey Kong Land has been announced for 3DS VC in JPN

 

[HYDE]

GBA version of Yoshi's Island? Fuck you Nintendo. SnES or nothing.

I'm suprised we got actual NES SMB3 and not SMB3/SMA4 GBA version. What a mess VC has become...put portable games on portables Nintendo. Or better yet copy Sony for once and make them cross playable.