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Putting an amiibo against my controller to unlock something does not feel fun.

J

jph139

Member
I think it is fun. You say in the OP to disregard them as collectables but that's an intrinsic part of the appeal.

Like, I bought MK8D, pulled out my amiibo, and scanned them to get a bunch of costumes. I had the figures anyways - I didn't buy a Pac-Man figurine for $10 in order to unlock a dumb Mii costume. I don't even race with Mii all that often. So I had got a cute little bonus for free because I bought something I wanted anyways. And in this case, the only way to do so is by interacting physically.

Like, when a game gives you a little bumper sticker for having save files for other games on your console. It's not saying "rah rah, spend $60 to get this bumper sticker!"
 
P

Peltz

Member
jph139 said:
I think it is fun. You say in the OP to disregard them as collectables but that's an intrinsic part of the appeal.

Like, I bought MK8D, pulled out my amiibo, and scanned them to get a bunch of costumes. I had the figures anyways - I didn't buy a Pac-Man figurine for $10 in order to unlock a dumb Mii costume. I don't even race with Mii all that often. So I had got a cute little bonus for free because I bought something I wanted anyways. And in this case, the only way to do so is by interacting physically.

Like, when a game gives you a little bumper sticker for having save files for other games on your console. It's not saying "rah rah, spend $60 to get this bumper sticker!"
Click to expand...

What about locking modes behind them though?
 
PAULINK

PAULINK

I microwave steaks.
Amiibos are awesome. At the height of BOTW popularity, sheik was selling for $60. Long live amiibo.
 
Charles Brandon

Charles Brandon

Member
I think there is a disconnect here between people who like the toys and want then for their own sake, for whom the DLC is just a bonus and people who couldn't give two fucks about a plastic statue and just see it as an expensive and difficult to obtain physical content paywall. If you're looking at it done the former perspective, then it's all good. If you're just some dude looking to unlock something in a game and discovering that that entails spending £60 and an afternoon on eBay then it looks awful.
 
J

jph139

Member
Peltz said:
What about locking modes behind them though?
Click to expand...

Potentially shitty, same as any sort of DLC, but I don't think the means of distribution is really relevant to that discussion. I'll fully admit there's issues with amiibo as a content distribution method. But this thread is arguing that there's NO merit to them, which is where I'd disagree.
 
Z

ZombiePlatypus

Member
Eh I prefer amiibo to regular DLC. I like that the content comes with little figures. My only issue is I wish Nintendo was better at stocking them. Otherwise, I wish all DLC across the board was made this way tbh.
 
CharminUltra

CharminUltra

Member
I don't have a huge collection of Amiibo. I just stick to buying my favorite Nintendo characters.

That said, I have fun scanning the Amiibo I own whenver I get a new game that supports them. I don't always get something, but when I do it feels pleasant.

Geoff said:
I think there is a disconnect here between people who like the toys and want then for their own sake
Click to expand...
This is me. I just like them because they're pretty good quality Nintendo-themed figures that I can display at my desk.
 
Nydius

Nydius

Member
ZombiePlatypus said:
Eh I prefer amiibo to regular DLC. I like that the content comes with little figures. My only issue is I wish Nintendo was better at stocking them. Otherwise, I wish all DLC across the board was made this way tbh.
Click to expand...

Wut?

Imagine a world where to get the next DLC pack for a AAA game, instead of paying $14.99 to $19.99, you have to spend $30-$50 on a "collectable" which includes the content either in an implanted NFC chip or inseparable USB or microSD card. I could just see Activision salivating at the prospect of selling model CoD guns at $10 each with NFC chips to unlock weapons and perks. No thank you.

Speaking of Activision, Disney Infinity already tried a similar model - gating entire DLC levels and modes behind individually purchased playsets - and it ended up failing.

This issue here is options. Take the MK8 content, for example: Nothing there warrants the expense of the amiibos themselves. At best, it's $1/each cosmetics. Or take my prior example of Splatoon 1: The extra challenge modes could have been sold solely as a 14.99 stand alone package on the Nintendo eShop. I'm failing to see why Nintendo can't offer it as stand alone purchases. People who still want to collect toys can do so. The content will be as a bonus for the toy.

Also, Nintendo should start making cards for people who want to collect but don't want a bunch of toys. Looking at some of the Zelda BOTW Amiibo cards on etsy and eBay, there are a bunch of VERY well made designs that I'd buy FROM NINTENDO (assuming they charge less than the figurines, that is) because I'd rather collect cards than plastic toys.
 
J

Jhoan

Member
Why are people asking about the OP's age? It's quite clear that he's a 30 something with a full time job who happens to have some extra cash to collect Amiibo like half of the people that buy them. See: Dan Ryckert as an example.

That being said, I've only ever owned one Amiibo and that's the Chibi Robo: Zip Lash one which is still in its original box sealed. The only reason I bought it is because some brilliant idiot at Nintendo suggested to lock out an extra world with multiple levels behind a figure that needs to be tapped in. That's a flip of the bird to everyone else who bought the standard edition of the game because it isn't available for purchase as DLC.

I hated the concept of the Amiibo from the moment it was introduced because of the Cabbage Patch Kids culture that Nintendo unintentionally created. Plus having only a limited supply is a load of crap.
 
P

Peltz

Member
jph139 said:
Potentially shitty, same as any sort of DLC, but I don't think the means of distribution is really relevant to that discussion. I'll fully admit there's issues with amiibo as a content distribution method. But this thread is arguing that there's NO merit to them, which is where I'd disagree.
Click to expand...

I literally said it's fine if you like to collect them. I never argued there's no merit to them.
 
P

Peltz

Member
Jhoan said:
Why are people asking about the OP's age? It's quite clear that he's a 30 something with a full time job who happens to have some extra cash to collect Amiibo like half of the people that buy them. See: Dan Ryckert as an example.
Click to expand...

Pretty sure everyone wants to know my age because this is clearly a sexual thread or something.

I'm 30.
 
G

Gnomist

Member
I have yet to break any of my amiibo out their packaging so all this DLC I now own isn't getting much play time. But I am starting to run out of room so maybe some day soon!
 
Z

ZombiePlatypus

Member
Captiosus said:
Wut?

Imagine a world where to get the next DLC pack for a AAA game, instead of paying $14.99 to $19.99, you have to spend $30-$50 on a "collectable" which includes the content either in an implanted NFC chip or inseparable USB or microSD card. I could just see Activision salivating at the prospect of selling model CoD guns at $10 each with NFC chips to unlock weapons and perks. No thank you.

Speaking of Activision, Disney Infinity already tried a similar model - gating entire DLC levels and modes behind individually purchased playsets - and it ended up failing.

This issue here is options. Take the MK8 content, for example: Nothing there warrants the expense of the amiibos themselves. At best, it's $1/each cosmetics. Or take my prior example of Splatoon 1: The extra challenge modes could have been sold solely as a 14.99 stand alone package on the Nintendo eShop. I'm failing to see why Nintendo can't offer it as stand alone purchases. People who still want to collect toys can do so. The content will be as a bonus for the toy.

Also, Nintendo should start making cards for people who want to collect but don't want a bunch of toys. Looking at some of the Zelda BOTW Amiibo cards on etsy and eBay, there are a bunch of VERY well made designs that I'd buy FROM NINTENDO (assuming they charge less than the figurines, that is) because I'd rather collect cards than plastic toys.
Click to expand...

Yea it'd have to be without the scarcity mark up. Wouldn't be there for it if it's more than 13-20 bucks, and if the digital content is parcelled into super tiny, flimsy additions per figure.
 
G

Gotdatmoney

Member
Buying DLC also isn't fun but that's all this really functions as. I don't mind ammibos since nothing they hide matters to me but I would prefer if they just let you buy the content after a year or so.
 
NeonZ

NeonZ

Member
I like when the Amiibo are tied to obvious extras that usually wouldn't exist without them, like the themed skins in Yoshi or Mario Kart, old FE characters in Codename STEAM and Fire Emblem Fates.

However, more and more it does feel like they're holding basic extras that usually would be part of the core game behind the Amiibo, like with the Metroid example in the op and also Splatoon 2, which sets bad precedents for the future.
 
D

DeathbyCheerios

Member
NeonZ said:
I like when the Amiibo are tied to obvious extras that usually wouldn't exist without them, like the themed skins in Yoshi or Mario Kart, old FE characters in Codename STEAM and Fire Emblem Fates.

However, more and more it does feel like they're holding basic extras that usually would be part of the core game behind the Amiibo, like with the Metroid example in the op and also Splatoon 2, which sets bad precedents for the future.
Click to expand...

DLC should almost not be hidden behind scarcity either. DLC sucks, but I much rather pay $19.99 for DLC than $15.99 for a figure with DLC on it that you can never find or have to pay scalpers $60+ for.
 
A

atr0cious

Member
I feel people who complain about amiibo unlocks have no clue what a "value proposition" is. Nintendo announced from the beginning that the amiibo line was a platform that they would be supporting for years. All of the amiibos are universal and can be used wherever possible across 3 different consoles, like my splatoon 1 amiibos being used in 2. The things they unlock, were specifically made for the amiibos, they weren't pulled from the game and hid behind a figurine, or is anyone really going to argue that Mario Kart 8 was always going to have a Mega man suit. So folks complaining, might as well be mad they can't play the PSVR parts of games that come extra, just because it's locked behind a $400 visor.
 
P

Peltz

Member
atr0cious said:
I feel people who complain about amiibo unlocks have no clue what a "value proposition" is. Nintendo announced from the beginning that the amiibo line was a platform that they would be supporting for years. All of the amiibos are universal and can be used wherever possible across 3 different consoles, like my splatoon 1 amiibos being used in 2. The things they unlock, were specifically made for the amiibos, they weren't pulled from the game and hid behind a figurine, or is anyone really going to argue that Mario Kart 8 was always going to have a Mega man suit. So folks complaining, might as well be mad they can't play the PSVR parts of games that come extra, just because it's locked behind a $400 visor.
Click to expand...

Comparing amiibo to VR just doesn't work at all. Sorry, but that's a terrible analogy.

One offers a new way to play and/or view games. The other is amiibo.

And I'd maybe agree if my Samus amiibo unlocked everything in the Metroid universe. But it doesn't. They release new amiibo with new games all the time, and lock new content behind them, all within the same series. So it doesn't have the value proposition you claim.

And a difficulty mode + gallery has existed in previous Metroid games without amiibo. So your argument completely fails.

I think the Mega Man suit is an okay implementation of the amiibo concept. But locking modes away is not.
 
W

WordAssassin

Member
The thing about the "this shitty DLC locked behind a figure paywall" argument, I totally get that people don't want to collect figures. I think Nintendo should also offer some kind of Virtual amiibo for those people.

However, IMO comparing amiibo to normal DLC is totally, 100% missing the point.

When I buy a Mario amiibo, that "DLC" works across like 15-20 different games at this point, and will continue to work for more games in the future. And it cost $12. That's $12 for Mario Kart skins, for coins and health in like four different Zelda games, for items in Animal Crossing, items in Kirby, etc etc. It also currently works across three different hardware platforms. No other DLC on any other platform works like that. When I buy a costume in Dead or Alive, I just spent $3 for a costume in Dead or Alive. It wont work in Dead or Alive 2, or Crash Team Racing, or PlayStation All Stars, or God of War, or Horizon Zero Dawn. It ONLY works in that one game. If I pay $12 for a new level in Spyro Remastered, then I get that one level and that's it. Nothing else in any game, ever.

In this aspect, amiibo is the BEST version of DLC any company could ever make - especially if Nintendo made a virtual version of them for people who don't want the clutter of owning the actual figures. Have a Virtual Mario amiibo tied to your Nintendo ID? Then you get all the perks across all those games that someone with the figure would too, without having to own the figure. Then you make a one-time payment for a DLC unlock across dozens and dozens of games on multiple platforms for the foreseeable future.
 
A

atr0cious

Member
Peltz said:
Comparing amiibo to VR just doesn't work at all. Sorry, but that's a terrible analogy.

One offers a new way to play and/or view games. The other is amiibo.
Click to expand...
They're both platforms with specific media dedicated to them. If you want that media, you pay for it. All the complaining comes off as hollow when you consider that these games tied to amiibo are usually packed with content, so all it sounds like is folks want something because they know about it. If this was about how crappy it can be to get an amiibo, I agree, as the rarity sucks. But the actual content unlocks are mostly benign repeats of things already in the games, with the rare exception of BotW, that still finds ways of making the unique unlocks little more than trinkets mechanically.
 
Charles Brandon

Charles Brandon

Member
People arguing that Amiibo rarity is some minor downside when it's a huge problem.

You guys are making all this noise about what good value some of these things are (and I take issue with that but I'm not making that argument right now) but that value means fuck all to me when it's not actually possible for me to purchase the fucking thing. Or, if is possible, it's going to cost me serious money on the second-hand market, in which case the "value proposition" argument turns into a huge bag of bollocks.

You might say that I should have been smarter, I should have paid attention to this stuff earlier and picked up these toys when they went on the market but fuck that. I'm into games not toys. I spend enough time hanging out on forums to get the game stuff that I want without getting into a whole secondary market of blink-and-you-miss'em limited edition figurines.

Like I said before, you guys that like your Amiibos, more power to you. To the rest of us, they are just a giant pain in the fucking arse.

edit to add: Another thing about these Amiibo and they way they unlock content in games not even announced at the time they are released, combined with their rarity, is that, because you know you won't a second chance and because you don't know what stuff you might be missing out on down the line, if you want to ensure you're not going to miss out on something you want in a future game, you have to buy all of them, just in case.
 
W

WordAssassin

Member
Geoff said:
People arguing that Amiibo rarity is some minor downside when it's a huge problem.

You guys are making all this noise about what good value some of these things are (and I take issue with that but I'm not making that argument right now) but that value means fuck all to me when it's not actually possible for me to purchase the fucking thing. Or, if is possible, it's going to cost me serious money on the second-hand market, in which case the "value proposition" argument turns into a huge bag of bollocks.

You might say that I should have been smarter, I should have paid attention to this stuff earlier and picked up these toys when they went on the market but fuck that. I'm into games not toys. I spend enough time hanging out on forums to get the game stuff that I want without getting into a whole secondary market of blink-and-you-miss'em limited edition figurines.

Like I said before, you guys that like your Amiibos, more power to you. To the rest of us, they are just a giant pain in the fucking arse.

edit to add: Another thing about these Amiibo and they way they unlock content in games not even announced at the time they are released, combined with their rarity, is that, because you know you won't a second chance and because you don't know what stuff you might be missing out on down the line, if you want to ensure you're not going to miss out on something you want in a future game, you have to buy all of them, just in case.
Click to expand...
This would all go away if Nintendo just made virtual amiibo - or at least a majority would go away. You'd probably still have those that want certain figures and asshole buying them all up to flip, but on the plus side you wouldn't be completely fucked out of the locked content because you could at least buy the virtual figure.

They could make it like PlayStation Home or something. Make a new Miiverse or Mii Plaza where you can see people's collections. It feels like such a simple concept - if there were PS2 and GameCube games that could check your memory cards for save info (Metal Gear Solid 2 I think?) then I can't fathom a reason why the amiibo hooks in games could be fixed to check your Nintendo ID to see if you "own" the virtual amiibo and unlock the goodies that way.

They've said in the past they'd make cards instead of figures, and that sounded great for those of us imagining a scenario where there'd be Smash Bros cards that we could just buy instead of hard to find figures, but of course the execution was totally fucked and they made them like baseball cards which in some cases can still be just as hard to find AND you'd likely wind up spending WAY more than $12 to get the fucking card you actually wanted.

Virtual amiibo tied to your Nintendo ID that work across all games and hardware just like a physical amiibo does but without needing to hunt down a figure or make room for a collection, DO IT NINTENDO
 
Charles Brandon

Charles Brandon

Member
Virtual Amiibo would be fine by me or cards or whatever. I mean I wouldn't be overjoyed but that way, if I really wanted this or that thing, I could get it and it wouldn't cost me a fortune.
 
NoMoreTrolls

NoMoreTrolls

Banned
Dr. Black Jack said:
the act of using an amiibo is so unenjoyable that i can't wait to use my phone to do it instead
Click to expand...
The act of searching eBay for an undershipped plastic knic knack and paying 2+ times MSRP from a scalper is objectively much more unenjoyable than downloading a .bin file and writing to an nfc sticker that cost less than a dollar.
 
W

WordAssassin

Member
Geoff said:
Virtual Amiibo would be fine by me or cards or whatever. I mean I wouldn't be overjoyed but that way, if I really wanted this or that thing, I could get it and it wouldn't cost me a fortune.
Click to expand...

NoMoreTrolls said:
The act of searching eBay for an undershipped plastic knic knack and paying 2+ times MSRP from a scalper is objectively much more unenjoyable than downloading a .bin file and writing to an nfc sticker that cost less than a dollar.
Click to expand...

Exactly. I feel like not having a digital alternative to amiibo is Nintendo leaving money on the table - if a figure becomes hard to find or discontinued, then they can't make money off of it, but scalpers and resellers can. However if they offered a digital equivalent to amiibo then even once the figure itself is gone from shelves, that content would still be unlockable to people without needing to resort to piracy and they'd still get their $12.

In fact it's even better for Nintendo, profit-wise, to also offer digital amiibo because then they aren't splitting that $12 with retailers and it costs them nothing to ship.
 
R

Rncewind

Member
WordAssassin said:
Exactly. I feel like not having a digital alternative to amiibo is Nintendo leaving money on the table - if a figure becomes hard to find or discontinued, then they can't make money off of it, but scalpers and resellers can. However if they offered a digital equivalent to amiibo then even once the figure itself is gone from shelves, that content would still be unlockable to people without needing to resort to piracy.
Click to expand...

Im actually quite baffled by this, because in a other thread me and other suggested that but then got responses like that would devalue amiibos. However before that, like in this thread, 95 % of the people were writing "oh yeah i have amiibos but i dont use it for dlc" i was like wtf lol. What is it now?
 
D

Dr. Black Jack

Member
NoMoreTrolls said:
The act of searching eBay for an undershipped plastic knic knack and paying 2+ times MSRP from a scalper is objectively much more unenjoyable than downloading a .bin file and writing to an nfc sticker that cost less than a dollar.
Click to expand...

So amiibo are bad because you suck at shopping? 🤔
 
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