Revolution's historical back catalogue NOT free

[RancidLunchmeat]

But I don't agree that giving the games away on Revolution means that those games are gone and can never be sold again. Nintendo have sold many of these games many times over and even if tens of millions got them free on Revolution they can still sell them again, on handhelds for instance.

Perhaps. But unless I'm mistaken, this will be the first time that N would have given people copies of its games in this type of format. Not a cartridge or dics that can be broken, lost, or suffer compatibility issues.

I could be wrong, but its my understanding there's a pretty large market for all things nintendo, even going back to the SNES. I'm under the assumption that's because those things don't work on their Gamecube. If they open their library on the Revolution, all the those old cartridges and discs will become instantly worthless. (Except as collector's items)

Like I said, I think Pay per Play is a viable profit model and will work. The only thing that needs to be worked out is how much for how long.

 

[Evil_Cloud]

I suppose we can expect prices similar to the ones being asked in China for iQue titles, around $4 (Chinese dollar?). The price might also be lower since the iQue games had to be translated (additional cost) and the device is new.

 

[jarrod]

I also see plenty of 3rd parties getting in on the action by rereleasing their classic NES/SNES/N64 libraries, especially on the Japanese side. Square Enix will make a killing off this.

Square Enix has been selling significantly retrofitted versions of old games with the full prices, so it's questionable that Nintendo's new scheme works well with the Square Enix business model.

Square Enix is selling total remakes at "full prices" (FF1+2 GBA, Sword of Mana, Romancing SaGa MS, Dragon Quest V, etc) but not the FC/SFC/GB originals. Even the mobile releases of FF1-2 or DQ1-2 feature redone visuals/audio and added content. I can see Square Enix USA going for higher "premium" pricing though, since most of the back catalog would need english translations (and even the NES/SNES stuff that came west would probably demand new translations too... though DQ1-3 and FF1-2 & 4-6 were all retranslated recently enough).

Square Enix has been overwhelmingly positive about Revolution though, there's no question they'll be on the download service I think. Famitsu even used Final Fantasy V as the reference for "downloadable games" in their Revolution article. I think it's a given at this point.

 

[cthellis42]

Tell me.. You wouldn't REALLY spend 25 cents RIGHT NOW to just log onto the internet and play a game of Pacman? Especially if it had RANKINGS that told you how far everybody else in the WORLD got on that same 25 cents?

No. Honestly, I wouldn't want to even if it cost only $0.01 to play a game. It's simply the mindset... KNOWING that every time I want to play a game it will cost me money. (And if I get interrupted and have to come back to something later...?) I'm much more comfortable with monthly payments, as they happen all at once and then you can ignore them. You play at YOUR pace and at YOUR comfort level, and there's no overhanging irritation every time you press "Start."

The appeal of arcades was always to have a plethora of amazing-looking games all around you, people to compete against, and a "culture" to enjoy, as it were. At this point, most arcade benefits have been neutered and they primarily offer advantages you still can't easily get at home (sitting in cockpits and having huge controls at your disposal, wielding enormous guns, using high quality rugged dance pads, etc.). But the general feeling about those types of games are long gone. (Heck, even now arcades are best-off in a huge "gaming" arena like Dave & Busters, which brings drinking and dining into a more party-like atmosphere.) And honestly, no one really wants to think about paying-per-game anymore. Why do you think per-minute and per-hour charges for phone companies, ISP's, etc. are all mainly a thing of the past? Even if people end up paying more over the course of a year, they're simply more comfortable with a subscription or pay-outright model.

It doesn't matter if some WILL pay 25 cents for a game... it's simply that most won't. That kind of pay model is just plain discouraging, and people don't like playing with restrictions. They just want things simple and contoured to the way THEY want to play, whenever they want to play it.

 

[Magnum PI]

they didn't include DVD on gamecube, explaining they don't want their console used for something else than playing games, as it could make consumers buy less games.

would they would give access to their old game library for free, damaging sales of their current software and their profits ?