Anti-Consumerism in Gaming
Words by Tyler Hernandez
Graphic by Timofey Guz
Nintendo is synonymous with some of the most revolutionary leading innovators in all of gaming. However, in the last few decades, their sterile image has become cluttered with greed, confusing business decisions, and anti-consumer practices that make their competition seem more appealing by default. In a lot of ways, Nintendo is no longer about the power their consoles have - in fact, that stopped sometime after the “Super Nintendo Entertainment System” was competing with the “Sega Genesis” in the early 90s. Nowadays, Nintendo is leveraging the two things that still keep gamers and fans alike coming back - their iconic IPs (Independent Properties) and their focus in the handheld market. A lot of people have a Nintendo Switch family of consoles. In fact, the “Nintendo Switch” has outsold the “Wii” to become Nintendo’s highest selling console.
So… why does this all matter? So what - a giant corporation is making money, good for them. The problem lies more in with what modern gaming is slowly becoming. For those that are fans of retro gaming, Nintendo in the past has enlisted the “Virtual Console” service for devices like the “Wii U,” “3DS,” and “Wii,” where gamers can pick and choose specific games they want to download for a minimal price. In an age where streaming reigns, it seems that gaming is also leaning more and more towards that model each day, especially with the “Switch’s” own service, “Nintendo Switch Online.” The service is pretty harmless at first glance - you pay a set amount for either yourself, or a group of people, and are given online service for titles, as well as access to a scarce library of “Nintendo Entertainment System” and “Super Nintendo Entertainment System” games.
This is pretty standard, if not a little bare bones compared to what Microsoft is doing with “Xbox Live” and “Xbox Game Pass,” or Sony with “PlayStation Plus” and “PlayStation Now.” However, unlike those services, Nintendo’s online servers don’t run on “Windows ‘98” servers and actually function. Sure, “Mario Kart 8 Deluxe” and “Splatoon 2” work just fine online, but the wide array of other titles? Have fun playing “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate” at 4 frames per second! This only scratches the surface of how behind Nintendo has become in terms of hardware.
Power has never been one of Nintendo’s major focuses, but the Switch’s hardware is so outdated, that most modern ports that come to Switch have to be so heavily downscaled to the point where it’s a miracle anything coming out for the current generation can run on practically 7/8th generation hardware. The reason this isn’t much of an issue is the inherent hybrid nature of the Switch, the idea of people playing their favorite games on the go is enough for some to ignore graphical flaws or frame drops. Where I draw the line however, is Nintendo’s recent business practices, especially as they relate to consumers. Remember when prices would drop for games that had been out for months? Nintendo seemingly forgot this as first-party games such as “Super Mario Odyssey” or “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” are still $60 five years later.
If they ever go on sale, it will either be exclusively digital, or $10 - $15 off max depending on the retailer. To add insult to injury, “Nintendo Switch Online” received an update late last year titled “Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pass.” This gives players the option of now playing “Nintendo 64” games and ironically, “Sega Genesis” games in a set service akin to the “SNES” and “NES” games that were mentioned before.
The catch? The price has dramatically jumped. Instead of paying $20 for an individual account, it is now $50, and instead of $35 for the family pack, it is now a whopping $79.99. $80 for an online service that barely functions, with old retro games I can play on my computer for free (which arguably look better than what they are offering).
The only reason this is upsetting is because as a college student, $80 isn’t exactly cheap. Especially when jobs pay minimum wage, and you have other set responsibilities such as student loan debt, bills, etc. $80 for what you are receiving is not only a real slap in the face, but a real rip-off as well. Unfortunately, people are willing to pay this much because, well maybe they don’t have much of a choice. Maybe someone’s favorite game is in the “N64” library and they don’t exactly know how to emulate or have original hardware.
It’s a slippery slope that Nintendo is using to lure in people with nostalgia. One that they will keep using to their benefit - it won’t be long until we see “Game Boy Advance,” “GameCube,” or “Wii” services join the line up. As the consumer however, the more we say we don’t like something in great numbers, the more likely we are to have a say in the matter - maybe even in how much we pay for products. Nintendo, to me, is a shell of their former self. I will still love their IPs and still check in to see what they have cooking, but I can’t deny that the company has become a little too cocky.
The real issue is that the “Xbox” and “PlayStation” aren’t even technically competing directly with Nintendo. Nintendo is a whole other beast. So until someone or something challenges Nintendo’s complacency, not much in what they’re doing now will change for the better.
