The story begins on a random school night when my dad came back from the gas station with a Nintendo Wii console and two games – a memory that will forever be engraved in my mind as one of my most joyous childhood moments.
That same console would entertain me through the best and worst times in my childhood. Little me would play Wii sports for hours, make Mii characters of every person she met, beg her dad for all the newest Nintendo games.
My love for Nintendo was set in stone a couple years later when I was gifted a 3DS, a little console that I could carry around anywhere. I would bring it with me to my grandma’s house for Christmas, to my best friend’s house to beat him at Mario and Sonic Olympic Games, or to the airport on the way to the United States to visit family.
The most important thing about the consoles was the bliss they brought across generations. My dad grew up glued to his original Nintendo Entertainment System with his mom in the 1990s, while his siblings played the newer Nintendo 64 console.
Nintendo products were a bonding moment for our family, the times where we could all gather at someone’s house just to play Mario Party together. Moments like these are some of my most cherished memories.
Unfortunately though, new generations of children may not experience the same levels of nostalgia and joy with the new consoles due to the Nintendo gouging prices on its new Switch 2 console, as well holding $60 price points for games that are nearly 10 years old.
Think about that. When talking about the Nintendo company, did the word greedy pop up in your brain?
Recently, for many gamers across the nation, “[Nintendo’s] greediness is ruining it for everyone,” according to online forums. The Nintendo Switch 2 has recently been announced at a shocking $450 price tag.
Although the Switch 2 is being released with a $150 price increase since the original Switch’s release, it is not much of an issue for diehard gamers. The price increase accounts for a larger screen, enhanced performance, 200 gigabytes of increased storage, along with dynamic speakers and magnetic Joy-Cons.
Instead, across several social media platforms, gamers’ attention revolves around the price of each individual game.
Most Nintendo Switch 2 edition games, including those that were previously out, have had a price bump of about $20, making most games now cost $70 to $80. Not even a decade ago, most Nintendo Switch games fell within a $40-$60 price range.
One of Nintendo’s biggest titles, Zelda’s Breath of the Wild, first released on the Wii U and Nintendo Switch simultaneously, bumped up by $10 simply because it’s going to be on the Nintendo Switch 2.
“Why is BOTW (Zelda — Breath of the Wild) $70 just because it’s for the Switch 2?” asked one of many gamers interviewed across the nation.
Gamers feel as if the Nintendo Switch 2 is jacking up their games’ prices because they are sure that children will obsess and crave the new games, and parents will meet their children’s demands. Parents will come out of the Nintendo store with empty pockets if it means their children can now see a more vibrant pink Kirby on their screens.
Even out of the wide catalog of games destined to come out on the Switch 2, only a few appear to be brand new and releasing exclusively for the Switch 2. There are a lot of games releasing with a Switch 2 edition or other external franchises with games finally releasing to the Nintendo Switch, which is splendid, but Nintendo fans who have been waiting for years only get a couple of new original Nintendo games? Only a new edition of Mario Kart and Donkey Kong?
Gamers continue to display their discontent with the gaming company’s sudden increase on the prices, stating the “$80 game standard they’re pushing is going to be bad.”
The price is at risk of rising even more, some fans speculate, because of the ongoing negotiation of tariffs on Chinese manufactured goods making it more expensive to ship the new Switch consoles and games to America in the coming months.
Gamers have labeled these economic problems as “one more spit on the face by tariffs.” But are tariffs the only problem causing Nintendo to bump up their prices? May it be other factors inside the company such as corporate greed? Are these pricey Nintendo games even worth the cost anymore?
Raiquan Standfield, a student at Atlantic Coast High School (ACHS), has been an avid Nintendo fan since grade school. Throughout his life, he has owned multiple DS’s, the Wii and Wii U’s, and a regular Nintendo Switch Lite.
When asked about some of his favorite Nintendo games, he said, “I love me some Pokémon games, used to play Mario a lot, lots of niche games, basically played everything because I can’t commit to one game.”
With all his Nintendo consoles and the multitude of game franchise disks owned, he can’t seem to still be entertained with just a couple of games.
Standfield, like many kids globally, eventually get tired of the games they have and go to the store to buy new games whenever they find themselves bored out of their minds. A major problem with this is the fact that parents will have to be the ones to pay for their children’s entertainment, spending a whooping $70 every time their children outgrow their current games.
Now, he’s indecisive if he’ll even stay on the Nintendo bandwagon due to the new prices and lack of originality. “Yea, 8/10 overpriced … [The Nintendo Switch 2 is] not worth the price just for stupid Mario Kart World,” Standfield said.
Standfield is likely not alone. What student wants to be caught in the knots of Nintendo’s greediness?
Parents, equally as much, continue to be targeted with Nintendo’s increasing console and game prices as they know their kids will continue to beg, and parents will continue to provide. Compared to other gaming consoles, Nintendo specifically caters to younger audiences. Parents feel obligated to continue giving their money to buy Nintendo products, knowing that despite the expensive price points, their children will continue playing kid-friendly and entertaining games.
Students at ACHS on the other hand, feel as if they’ve grown out of that phase and would rather play the games for fun, but with the prices it feels impossible, if not outright wasteful. It’s getting expensive for student gamers, all at the stake of a “mediocre” console.
Do better Nintendo or expect a generation of kids who grew up loving the console to turn its back in disgust on the obvious greed that is the new company philosophy.