Nintendo already outlined thier plans for thier back catalog and 3rd parties are moving forward with retro titles on Switch. Why are we still talking about a VC? It's not happening.

Cartho said:

That Polygon article had an interesting point about entertainment services.



The article mentioned that they delayed the full online service because they were prioritising these features (voice chat and entertainment).

Anyone else thinking a big firmware update in the Autumn / run up to christmas with Netflix / Amazon etc? I reckon it's a possibility.

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Reggie has no clue whats going on at Nintendo. They just push him out for sound bytes

Chances are, Sega Forever will reach the Switch before VC. Proving, once and for all, that Sega does what Nintendon't

RedSwirl said:

There should be NES Classic and SNES Classic digital bundles on Switch. You'd save money compared to what the prices for the individual games were on Wii and Wii U.

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This is a fantastic idea, and maybe it'd be cool to bundle with a d-pad joy con?

They are planning a way for everyone to transfer their games bought on the VC platform since the Wii.

Also for whoever owns the NES/SNES Mini to be able to unlock all the games from those systems.


No, they are not lol.

kc44135 said:

When you guys say "Netflix style service", you're talking about streaming right? Because if it's anything like PSNOW, then yeah, screw that. Streaming leads to awful compressed graphics, and lag so bad it makes games unplayable. Streaming isn't something that I think is viable for games right now. Too many issues.

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1. It could be a download service like the coming (or is it out already) Xbox service.

2. That would be less an issue with NES and SNES games, and even most N64 games, as they're tiny files. They could store the whole game in local memory temporarily rather than streaming as you play.

Not defending the lack of VC as I think it's lame. Just saying streaming retro games is far different than PS3 games. It would suck for GameCube games though.

they will use VC to fill a period of no good releases. that is not now, I don't expect it this year at all.

Imagine if they did put them up but only a limited amount of downloads. 1500 Super Mario karts availablr. Once they are gone, they're gone.

That's essentially what the "classic system has replaced VC" are saying.

Nintendo is dumb, but no way they're that dumb. VC will come out and will disappoint again.

I'm not expecting to see it until the online service launches, properly.

catfish said:

they will use VC to fill a period of no good releases. that is not now, I don't expect it this year at all.

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I don't think they'll have major droughts anymore to be honest.

They're really just supporting one platform now, as 3DS support is mostly token things and stuff like Metroid shopped out to other development teams.

They've got a grasp on HD development finally.

They're doing more things like Arms, Splatoon that are games as service that people play longterm and they trickle out new content for.

Switch is selling well so it should get solid third party support from at least the 3DS and Vita devs.

There may be gaps between major releases for sure, but VC games aren't a good substitute for those anyway. Some smaller new titles from them or third parties fill those gaps better.

Valahart said:

They are planning a way for everyone to transfer their games bought on the VC platform since the Wii.

Also for whoever owns the NES/SNES Mini to be able to unlock all the games from those systems.


No, they are not lol.

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If only... Though I do kind of hope/expect that we'll see a decent content drop on day one of VC. My hope is that the work they've put into the NES/SNES Classic games can be easily ported over to Switch. I want that those themed UI's and save options but with the ability to buy more games!

I personally think the Virtual Console of any kind will not show up till at least next year and probably not till around E3 2018 where they will make the announcement of Gamecube Virtual Console games.

Tyraniboah said:

I guess I'm having trouble seeing how the return on investment is higher for a miniature piece of hardware with limited access to classic games that costs money to manufacture, distribute, and stock at retail. Whatever cut they end up with dries up as soon as the console sells out, which won't take long when it's only being manufactured for a few months.

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The access is not as limited as you think. Only Switch owners can access Switch VC. That's a $300 entry point. And then you have to wonder how many of those people will actually buy several VC games, let alone many. Each sale is only a few bucks each. And I would bet many Wii and Wii U owners who used the VC only bought a handful of games, or even just one old favorite. Assuming they've learned their lesson and make enough supply, anyone can get a Classic mini at retail or online. And yes, it will dry up. And then they will make other models and still other models.

I find it especially unlikely that potential lifetime sales for virtual console titles on the Switch, which almost assuredly cost considerably less per title to plop onto the Switch and distribute digitally, would be eclipsed by these classic systems. Nintendo could even keep the pricing structure similar to Wii U and 3DS. $5 for NES (and GB/GBC?), $8 for SNES and GBA, $10 for N64, and even toss GameCube games on there for $15 or $20.

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That's a few bucks a pop. Even with the associated costs, the Classic minis net Nintendo several tens of dollars each. And with somewhat limited availability due to them making one each holiday season, they can nearly guarantee they'll sell whatever they make, at least for a few seasons until the novelty wears off.

Nintendo's catalogue of older titles is so massive that the free one month rental (for which I've only seen confirmation of NES titles right now...might have read SNES somewhere though) couldn't possibly substitute access to games a la carte. Plus the sub is required for online, which people will be willing to pay at $20 per year anyway just to play Splatoon or Smash online.

By no means am I trying to be rude here, but I just don't see how withholding VC in favor of limited edition consoles and a $1.67 per month subscription makes any financial sense.

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They do have a massive catalog. And they've also had it all online on a VC for a decade now. They are likely looking at new ways of leveraging this content. There was a question at the shareholder meeting yesterday about legacy content and Miyamoto alluded to hardware/physical as an attractive option. The question was about GBA VC. I think we can reasonably expect GameBoy and GBA Classics in the coming years.

One other option might be physical collections of franchises with special edition extras like Amiibos, all for much higher prices than the typical retail game. And then digital bundles of those games on the Switch E-shop. Again, more money per sale.

They are trying new things right now. They are sitting on a trillion yen in cash. They don't have to be all things to all people. They are doing things that get them the most ROI for every action they take.