ScreenSplitter
Member
Well you had a better experience than most. Didn't see it for such low a price untill after the price cut. The situation was handled very poorly by Nintendo.
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Wii U: Amazon distributor claims Nov 11 release, $249 price tag. 3 Bundles
- Thread starter nickcv
- Start date
Well you had a better experience than most. Didn't see it for such low a price untill after the price cut. The situation was handled very poorly by Nintendo.
Gianni Merryman
Member
Back in the day what price was the DSi launched at?
IIRC around the 180-200$/€ mark, whereas Wii launched at 250$/€, just a little more.
I know it may sound crazy, but let's not forget that handhelds are not cheap, no matter how underpowered are in comparison with home consoles.
I pre-ordered mine at Amazon for £199.99, later on I just cancelled my pre-order and got it for £169.99 including a game somewhere else. Even if you pre-ordered at GAME for £230 you could always cancel and get it for far less somewhere else. Fact is its not really accurate to say that its launch price was £230.
A thousand times this.
Maybe I'll have a look around tomorrow and find out. I only remember the round about prices, not the stores that sold at each price.
Gianni Merryman
Member
If that turned out to be the real price, no one could reasonably complain about it, and I would pick one at launch as well.
Yeah, I kinda hope it isn't that cheap, because I will definitely end up impulse buying it.
ScreenSplitter
Member
It's pretty much impulse buy level for electronics like this. Wouldn't hurt so much if the launch sucked either, as I can't see it ever dropping much below that.
To be fair, I didn't mean that to sound quite as hostile and accusatory- perhaps my memory is a bit rusty and I didn't shop around enough, sorry dude.
Gianni Merryman
Member
Actually he's got a valid point.
250$ is cheap enough to appeal a wide share of potential purchasers from the very start, so in a year time WiiU could be leading easily by a good margin, besides if competitors are going to price their next consoles in the 350$/400$ and over, it could be Wii all over again, if Nintendo was able to win mass market the same way another time, despite smartphones and tablets' increasing popularity.
It's not price fixing, it's just that some sales channels have more buying power than others, amongst other factors. Also, the situation between European countries can vary wildly- currency and shipping differences make gaming in Ireland far more expensive than the UK a stones-throw away for example, let alone Northern or Eastern Europe, some of whom find it cheaper to import from the UK than to buy locally. Before region locking on the 3DS, I also used to import DS games from the US as it worked out cheaper to ship across the pond than to buy from over the road. It's crazy, but there isn't a broad 'European' pricing rule, it's still very much dependent on the market by country.
The UK situation in a nutshell:
Game are probably the most visable retailer to the mass-market, and they are generally the most expensive.
Amazon/Play/Zavvi etc and the online stores undercut them by at least a tenner per item.
The big supermarkets like Tesco and Asda sell popular items (usually only the top 10-20 games and new consoles) cheaper still as loss-leaders, especially in the run-up to Christmas.
Competition between all of the above means that the prices can change on a daily basis in the run-up to a high-profile launch.
This means that if Nintendo gives a trade price of, say, £180, you could see the same item sold for anywhere from £160 to £250 depending on where you look, which day you look and which bundle you go for.
Not only that, but software is generally sold by the online stores from the channel islands, which avoid tax if an item has a value of £18 or less. This means that a popular game can drop from £40 to £17.99 in a couple of months if too many copies are on the market.
This is why Eurogamer and a couple of other news sites do price roundups close to launch that seem to change all the time.
Barack Lesnar
Banned
Nintendo has to be careful about pricing it too low which could diminish it's value in terms of perception. It's already being compared to the 360 and PS3 so much. For us, though, this is awesome.
The new iPad mini. Rumored to be in the 199-299 range. People will go nuts for it.
AwakenedCloud
Member
Do you guys really think Nintendo will launch the Wii U without a bundled game, even after seeing how much Wii Sports pushed initial Wii sales?
They could do what they did with the 3DS and include inbuilt games.
I didn't think so until I saw those ads at Gamestop. Why would they advertise a game they're planning on packing in? I'd think they'd rather spend the money on a game that's not included with everyone's system.
Crazypanda_85
Member
Since I've been sold on the Wii U for a long time (and desire for it validated & confirmed at the Wii U Experience a month ago...), I just want them to go ahead and release the information so I can go ahead and preorder this bad boy asap. Since I sold my Wii years ago, I still have a backlog of Wii titles I want to play on it (Zelda: Skyward Sword, Kirby Epic Yarn, Xenoblade, The Last Story, etc,.). I already have Rayman Legends preordered for the wife and Pikmin 3 for me.
well its games that sell systems. you would buy the system to play that game, so they should definitely advertise what is packed in. but I haven't seen said advertising, so you would think the advertisement itself would say if it comes with the system or not. or maybe they still hadnt decided yet at the time of printing. but I doubt it.
You guys will end up getting more Nintendo-published games than us. That part's not bad trade.
Chet Rippo
Member
I'll believe it when I see it.
AndresON777
shooting blanks
If it's real Day 1
Uhmm yeah when there is a game called New Super Mario Bros. U and Nintendo Land alongside it. A game can push a hardware without being bundled, especially if it has an instantly sellable ip.
bgassassin
Member
Baconsammy
Banned
Hahah "reasoning". It was a joke. Lighten up.
megarockexe
Member
I think the options are good for consumers as it makes it more inviting. Though with 3 sets, doesn't that means 6 for the black color? 6 versions of the console at launch?
IrishNinja
Member
this sounds about right by me, and i'm in for the top tier one here. NSMBU brings it to $400, all i need then is a few point cards for some VC titles i want and i'm golden at launch.
That's rather nonsensical. Why would you make a sku for a pro controller and Nintendo Land? They are not exactly compatible. Might as well bundle the balance board with Nintendo Land for $350.
I seriously expect the controller to retail for $79 all the way to $99. Nintendo is basically splitting the hardware of the machine 1:1 with the massive ipad of a controller.
I would have much rather seen the price of the controller go into the console's memory and GPU and kept a more traditional pad, but that's a discussion for another time.
I would have much rather seen the price of the controller go into the console's memory and GPU and kept a more traditional pad, but that's a discussion for another time.
IrishNinja
Member
how you figure? both are going to be items that will likely sell big at launch, and the controller is for VC, wii games supporting CCP (i imagine?) and a ton of stuff forthcoming presumably, so no, i dont think that's accurate at all.
additionally, aren't games like nintendoland setup expecting 1 person to have a wiimote and others to use wiimotes/etc? so why exactly would a pro not work there?
I personally figure the last one makes no sense because I can't see how Nintendo would add $50 just for including the Pro Controller which would probably be $40 at most.
Plus Nintendo is not gonna charge 50 more bucks for Wiimote, and then 50 more for a pro controller
With WiiU coming out Wiimote's will drop in price and a CC pro only cost like 19.99, why spend 50 extra just for pro controller when its almost the same thing?
MatthewB92
Member
I though both a second gamepad and pro controller wasn't going to be at launch?
The pro controller will be at launch, the 2nd game pad most likely wont
Jawmuncher
Member
I'd be fine with that.
Since the buindled game would be nintenoland or something which I have no interest in.
Wow if 249 is the entry price, I might just grab this day 1 with Zombi U
IrishNinja
Member
i hope you're right, $40 sounds right but i could see them starting at $50, weren't wireless 360 sticks and DS3's around that price for a while?
but tier 2 isn't $50 for a wiimote, its wiimote + nintendoland. that sounds more likely to me than even a $50 pro controller.
this one's more standard with the other system controllers though, and doesnt need to be plugged into a wiimote, which is a big plus for me. also uh, power button? i dunno.
James Sawyer Ford
Member
Cheaper 360s and ps3s this fall will seem like a much better deal than a $250 wii u, which merely matches those machines and has an overpriced, underspec'd tablet
The problem with wii u really isn't price though. $250 is ok, not great, but if the machine were appealing it would sell at an even higher price. I expect $400 ps4s and 720s to have much higher demand, for instance.
The problem with wii u really isn't price though. $250 is ok, not great, but if the machine were appealing it would sell at an even higher price. I expect $400 ps4s and 720s to have much higher demand, for instance.
soulassssns
Banned
Problem with that is most people already own a PS3/360 and the Wii U is the new toy to have this xmas.
I see it selling quite a bit this holiday.
whalleywhat
Member
They did it. They did it!
James Sawyer Ford
Member
True. But I still see ps3 and 360 having a good holiday season in spite of wii u's launch, which will certainly sell OK but won't match the hysteria of the wii's launch. The real test, IMHO, will be the post holiday sales.
Supermanisdead
Member
Wow, 249 is insane. I was expecting 349 and maybe a better version for 399. Idk about getting it day 1, but I will definitely get it when the first game I'm interested is out instead of waiting for a price drop.
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