Topic: EarthBound Listed to Appear on the Wii U eShop Today

[Ceric]

...
PSN and XBLA are full of $5-$15 new titles of comparable quality to full retail titles like Earthbound was.
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I take issue with that statement simply because $10 is smack dab in the middle of the range of Comparable Quality.  So what your saying is in Earthbound's Peer group their are $15 games and also $5 games.  That makes Earthbound at a Median price and not a premium price.

I still argue that it's a premium price for what's pretty much just a ROM dump.  You want a more apt comparison?  Fine, I can go onto PSN right now and buy the considerably newer Psychonauts (another cult classic game that failed at retail) and Persona 3 FES for $10 each.  Final Fantasies 4-9 on the PS1 are also $10 on PSN, and non-Square Enix PS1 games are commonly priced at $5.99.  Are you going to tell me that an SNES game should cost more than a generation-newer PS1 game, or for that matter that a ROM dump of a 30 year old NES game like Ice Climbers is worth just $1 less than a ROM dump of Resident Evil 2 on the PS1?

Like I said, I paid my $10 for Earthbound, and aside from the slowdown issues I don't have much of a problem with the product.  However, Nintendo's VC pricing in general makes absolutely no sense when you look at the competition, both on and off Nintendo's digital download services, and I don't think Nintendo's justified the value proposition of their premium pricing.

All those examples reinforce the $10 price.  In fact I would argue that Psychonauts is a rip off at $10 because its been relatively easy to get it for vastly less than that.  In fact I have 2 copies and I paid all of $5 total. 

The only thing your argument breaks down to is:

Earthbound is older therefor it must be cheaper.

Its software there is literally no damage to the actual product by aging.  Unlike Physical goods.  Which is why in general older is less expensive.

Final Fantasy 4 was released in 1991 and its on Super Nintendo Entertainment System, PlayStation, WonderSwan Color, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, Virtual Console, FOMA 903i / 703i, PlayStation Portable, iOS, and Android.  There has been no shortage of platforms and way to get that game.  In fact I'm sure some of those are cheaper then $10 but by your argument it should be cheaper than Earthbound.

Final Fantasy 5 the game was made in 1992 but its first NA release was 1999.  Not real shortage of options their to experience it.

etc. etc.

Earthbound is being priced the same as games who have had Multiple re-releases with no enhancements from around the same timeframe.  They as well should be ROM dumps for all intents an purposes.

The price is currently fair market value.  The next time they release Earthbound not so much.

[Ian Sane]

I won't download it for $10 because I already have a cartridge copy and, well, don't a Wii U.  But it's $10 for a game where the only other legal way to obtain it is at least $100.

My only beef with this is that Nintendo will charge a premium for some VC games but otherwise doesn't take into account the true market worth of the game.  Some NES games are far too primitive and, to be frank, shitty to cost $5.  VC prices should take into account the actual demand for the game and should have sales like Steam or GOG have.  Now such a setup would allow Nintendo to also charge a little more for the really good games that are hard to come by in their original form.  Though with Earthbound Nintendo is kind of trying to just get the part they like in charging a premium without offering discounts on other titles.  Still $10 is totally worth it.

The most overpriced VC game is probably Super Mario Bros, not because it's a bad game but because it's so common.  I've gone to flea markets where copies of SMB (usually with Duck Hunt) are going for 99 cents because the seller always has a big pile of them.

[UncleBob]

I've gone to flea markets and have seen sellers with the SMB/DH cart for as much as $20.

I didn't bite.

[Fatty The Hutt]

Minor quibble but, it's not a ROM dump. It is enhanced with all those Wii U exclusive features. It is not comparable to, say, throwing an mp3 up on rapidshare or whatever.
Now whether you appreciate the Wii U features or not is a different discussion and basically comes down to the same assessment made by thedefalcos above as to whether the particular offering has value to you.


You know, now that I thin about it, all of the arguments pro or con about VC pricing basically boil down to that  personal value assessment. So, I declare this thread trite and meaningless.
You're welcome.

[Ian Sane]

There is the possibility of Nintendo using EarthBound's VC sales as an indicator for whether it is worth it to finally officially release the rest of the series in North America.  But there is a problem with that - EarthBound's VC release is a Wii U exclusive and the Wii U has a pretty small userbase.

Looking around at other sites I see not only the complaint about pricing but that there are people that want EarthBound but only own a Wii, not a Wii U, but cannot justify buying a new console for a VC release.  EarthBound's sales are limited by the size of the userbase of the Wii U and it cannot realistically be expected to increase that userbase.  So the sales might not reflect the true demand of the franchise in the West.  The game would almost certainly sell better if it also had a Wii VC release.

[BlackNMild2k1]

Another reason why VC prices would be more justified if VC was a universal account based platform exclusive to all Nintendo systems.

And I'm not even gonna address some of the ridiculous "comparisons" someone had made earlier in the thread.
Not done others have obviously realized that this issue is now than just the cost of Earthbound, it's with VC pricing in general. Some games are obviously worth more than others, but the general pricing for the majority of these game is too high.

[pokepal148]

i wonder if the 2$ difference is a part of some settlement Nintendo made over some of the rumored legal issues this game had so they could rerelease it in the first place.

[broodwars]

i wonder if the 2$ difference is a part of some settlement Nintendo made over some of the rumored legal issues this game had so they could rerelease it in the first place.

Nintendo has been on the record since announcing EarthBound for the VC about that: there never was a legal issue.

And if you can't see that older=less valuable, you haven't seen a Used Games shelf in your local GameStop in a while.  Scarcity and unreliable hardware are usually the only things that maintain a game's value, which is why games like EarthBound retained their value.

[BlackNMild2k1]

sorry, typed this from my phone... spell check and swype can be a pain at times.

Another reason why VC prices would be more justified if VC was a universal account based platform exclusive to all Nintendo systems.

And I'm not even gonna address some of the ridiculous "comparisons" someone had made earlier in the thread.
Now some others have obviously realized that this issue is more than just the cost of Earthbound, it's with VC pricing in general. Some games are obviously worth more than others, but the general pricing for the majority of these game is way too high.

i wonder if the 2$ difference is a part of some settlement Nintendo made over some of the rumored legal issues this game had so they could rerelease it in the first place.

Nintendo has been on the record since announcing EarthBound for the VC about that: there never was a legal issue.

And if you can't see that older=less valuable, you haven't seen a Used Games shelf in your local GameStop in a while.  Scarcity and unreliable hardware are usually the only things that maintain a game's value, which is why games like EarthBound retained their value.

exactly. Earthbound will get away with it's $10 price tag now, but what about when Nintendo releases the same game on 3DS for $10 and then again won the Wii2U for $10 again.
I know some of you are willing to spend $10 or more for your practically unaltered digital copy, but that doesn't mean that Nintendo isn't still charging more than they should be.

[pokepal148]

but from a marketing perspective the whole one size fits all approach works much better from a marketing perspective then a case by case scenario like what your proposing

granted some leeway would be nice(as seen with GB games) but still.

and nintendo has been kind with the upgrade thing

[BlackNMild2k1]

With the way Wii U is struggling, they should be offering everyone that upgrades in the first year the opportunity to do it for free. That would require every Wii owner with a VC collection that would want it to be semi-portable around the house to go out and buy a Wii U.

and who proposed a case-by-case pricing scenario?
I think they should be universally cheaper all around.

black and white peasoup gameboy rom dumps cost how much now?

[NWR_insanolord]

I think the variable pricing model used for GB and GBC games would be good. Stuff like Super Mario Bros. 3 and the Mega Man games are worth $5, but most of the NES titles on there aren't.

[Kytim89]

Considering how much money it probably costs Nintendo and third parties to put their games onto the Wii U VC there are times when I wish Nintendo would offer a Steam-style discount around say the couple days before and after thanksgiving. It would be nice if there was a unified eShop system account as well. The ability to remote VC titles on my 3DS XL would be nice, too.

[Soren]

Anyone wanna bet the game goes to #1 on the "all best sellers" category of the eShop charts? It's already #17 after just a day and a half. The top sellers (except Super Mario World) are 30 cent games, with Super Metroid #1 right now.

[nickmitch]

I have a feeling that sales will be highly front loaded unless there's a sale. As an EarthBound lover, I have to admit that it IS a niche. I just hope enough people discover it to warrant an eShop release of the sequel.

[smallsharkbigbite]

I was thinking maybe it was $10 because they released the guide with it (albeit not included in the download but on the Wii U site).  Shantae was released for standard $4.99 on the 3DS and that has a ridiculously high market value. 


I wanted to buy this as the first non-Wii VC release but the reality is I'm not a big RPG fan and the extra $2 is making me think twice before picking it up. 

[Adrock]

If you're not a big RPG fan, you made the right choice. Earthbound is a wonderful cult classic, but if it's not your type of game, all the praise it gets isn't going to change your mind. $10 is a lot for something you may not (and probably won't) like.

[Ceric]

This thread just keeps ticking in the back of my head what Iwata said about the phone market eroding game prices.

[EasyCure]

I dunno smallshark' I'm not really into RPGs either but I'm obsessed with earthbound. I know I played it back on SNES but I can't remember if it was before or after Mario RPG. Either way, it left an impression on me to this day.

I can name all the RPGs I've played and completed in my gamer life and earthbound and xenoblade are the only two traditional RPGs I've played and liked, and I'll be honest xenoblade has its moments tasty make me want to stop playing.. Earthbound however, I'll never tire of.

[Traveller]

This thread just keeps ticking in the back of my head what Iwata said about the phone market eroding game prices.

Exactly, people don't seem to value the contents of the game anymore. They want 99c-$5 max, regardless of how much content or how great it is.

Just having a digital distribution model shouldn't mean that the prices have to drop to rock bottom. You are meant to be paying for the game, not counting how much it costs the company to distribute. That said, having a selection of games around $2 would not hurt Nintendo.

[fiendcode]

With all this talk of market value, here's what a loose cart would cost you (VGPC average) for each of the games currently on Wii U VC:

Balloon Fight (NES) $13.00
Donkey Kong (NES) $23.49
Donkey Kong Jr. (NES) $10.00
EarthBound (SNES) $176.41
Excitebike (NES) $3.99
F-Zero (SNES) $5.27
Ghosts 'n Goblins (NES) $9.45
Ice Climber (NES) $12.70
Kid Icarus (NES) $11.44
Kirby Super Star (SNES) $30.33
Kirby's Adventure (NES) $10.28
Kirby's Dream Course (SNES) $10.50
Kirby's Dream Land 3 (SNES) $44.82
Mario Bros. (NES) $15.99
Mega Man (NES) $43.77
Mega Man 2 (NES) $17.86
Mega Man 3 (NES) $16.32
Mega Man 4 (NES) $23.69
Mega Man X (SNES) $28.00
Metroid (NES) $11.56
Pac-Man (NES) $9.00
Pilotwings (SNES) $5.87
Punch-Out!! featuring Mr. Dream (NES) $9.54
Solomon's Key (NES) $5.00
Spelunker (NES) $5.25
Super Ghouls 'n Ghosts (SNES) $12.15
Super Mario Bros. 2 (NES) $10.69
Super Mario World (SNES) $10.52
Super Metroid (SNES) $36.84
Vegas Stakes (SNES) $1.56
Wrecking Crew (NES) $9.99
Xevious (NES) $2.56
Yoshi (NES) $4.86

[EasyCure]

Nice. I paid less for Mother 1+2, Mother 3, and Earthbound VC, versus what an EB cart would of cost me. Good thing I already have the cart from the 90s.

[EasyCure]

Sorry for the bump but there isn't a thread in the console discussion, and if there's  board strictly for VC games, I haven't seen it.

Great read regarding EB's localization. Reading this just reminded me one of the reasons I hold this game dear to me and have for so long; it's not just a fun game but it has heart and it really shines through, not just via the story but through the stories behind developing the game itself. I feel like there just aren't many games out there, even the biggest selling or best known titles don't have heart the way EarthBound does.

Mike realized the power of PSI Heart!
The enemy dropped a present. There was a Cookie inside. Mike took it

PS, I'm Mike

[Mop it up]

How long is this game? I am not sure if i should start it proper, cause i am already going through about four different plot heave games. Can i blast through within a weekend?

It isn't lengthy compared to today's games, but it's long for an SNES game. I'd estimate around 20 hours for a first-timer, and there isn't much in the way of side stuff to extend that either.

[EasyCure]

How long is this game? I am not sure if i should start it proper, cause i am already going through about four different plot heave games. Can i blast through within a weekend?

It isn't lengthy compared to today's games, but it's long for an SNES game. I'd estimate around 20 hours for a first-timer, and there isn't much in the way of side stuff to extend that either.

Unless you're seeking out some of the rare items, like Poos sword that can only be found in one particular part of the game by battling one particular enemy. Trying to get that sword adds a few hours if you don't really know what you're doing