Since April 2’s big Nintendo Switch 2 showcase, the talk surrounding the new console hasn’t been about it’s features, specs, or even release date. Rather, the focus has been on the price of the Nintendo Switch 2 itself as well as—and in some cases more so—its game prices. Now, in a new interview with IGN, Nintendo is defending its decision to charge $80, or more in some regions, for its first-party titles.
During a sit down with IGN, Nintendo of America’s Vice President of Product and Player Experience, Bill Trinen was asked about the pricing decisions by the company. Right off the bat, Trinen justified the decision to charge $80 for Mario Kart World due to the game’s value to players.
“I would say it’s less about the strategy of pricing Mario Kart World, it’s more just whenever we look at a given game, we just look at what is the experience, and what’s the content, and what’s the value?” he said.
“But honestly, this is a game that is so big and so vast and you will find so many little things in it to discover. And there’s still some other secrets remaining that I think as people end up buying and playing the game, they’re going to find this to be probably the richest Mario Kart experience they’ve ever had.”
On the topic of other Nintendo Switch 2 games charging $80, Trinen, again, said it’s because of the value Nintendo sees in its games for players.
“[What] I would say is that we just look at each individual game and we look at the content and the value of that game, and then we say, ‘what is the right price for the value of this entertainment?” Trinen said.
“What I would probably counter to some of that is that really what you’re looking at is for the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, that’s the physical price for somebody that has not bought the base game. For somebody who has bought Tears of the Kingdom or Breath of the Wild, the upgrade packs for those are $9.99. And if you happen to be a Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack member, both of the Zelda upgrade packs are inclusive within that membership. So there’s no additional charge for those.
“But I think overall, our general approach is really just focus on what’s the content, what’s the value, and what’s an appropriate price based on that.”
Regarding the $450 price of the console itself, Trinen said that it had to due with the cost of producing the system alongside the value it brought to players. IGN made it clear that the interview took place prior to Nintendo pulling pre-orders in the United States, leading to speculation that the cost of the system could go up.
What do you think of Nintendo’s response regarding the prices of Nintendo Switch 2 games? Let us know down below, and join the discussion in the official Insider Gaming forums.
For more Insider Gaming, read about when Bungie is set to reveal Marathon gameplay to fans for the first time. And don’t forget to sign up for the Insider Gaming newsletter.
Mike has been covering the gaming industry since 2012, and has reported on some of the largest events in the industry while also working as an investigative reporter. Outside of…
More from Mike Straw
I think I find more value in playing baulders gate 3 or Witcher 3 for less than what Nintendo offers. They set the price high because they know there fan base will pay it, not because of the value the game has to offer.
It’s rich of them to say the price resonates from player value when mario kart is the one game that is fundamentally the same game every time
I would have just responded when he started talking about the “value to players” that they are charging for a tech demo, they have a button that sure it’s gonna work for free the first year but afterwards it’s a button you’ll have to pay to use, the sad part it’s is not gonna matter to much in the end with the new tariffs even if they go back to their original price the games would probably still cost 80-90 to adjust for the tariff more if they don’t lower the price.
I think it looks like it’s worth about 60 dollars
The problem with Nintendo is that they barely, reduce the price of their games. When, and if, they do it is years later when they are barely even supporting them anymore.
Another major issue with this business model is that other companies could easily self-determine that their games are worth $100+ by that very same logic.
It will lead to severe market disruption in the industry until it ultimately self corrects to something reasonable again.
This will also encourage pirating, as that’s what people turn to when they cant afford the media.
Nintendo is being back the gaming crisis of the 80s, ironically being the company that brought us out of it and made quality gaming affordable.
The bottom line here is greed.
Nintendo executives that made this decision have brought dishonor to themselves and the Nintendo brand.
Nintendo = Dishonorable + Greed + Shame
What do I think? I think I won’t be buying very many Nintendo games.
Entertainment value should have absolutely 0 impact on price because it’s so subjective! It shouldn’t even be considered. The considerations should only be production prices, development prices, and the like. This is a bogus argument that they are making and they should be shunned for it.
Nintendo is really bad at pr like this because they just don’t respond to criticism unless it becomes so big that they can’t control the narrative and risk significant brand damage, like in this case. Doubling down in this situation is the worst possible decision they could have made. It’s a complete and utter disaster.
So basicaly what he said is that we gonna make you pay more, because if you buy Switch 2 you will also want those games, so we gonna bleed you money. Someone once said that when Nintendo does not sell to good they lower prices, if everything is fine, then they up prices. Seems legit. Greedy suits always see charts and bars, but they cannot comprechend emotions and needs. Oh well, guess it is better to wait for OLED and buy only physical games that can run offline without digital BS from second hand. Thanks Nintendo for nothing. Trinen… you’re… not smart man, and a BS seller. Hope players combined will show Nintendo that the road they chose is the wrong path.
Nintendo only cares about draining their american customers. Almost 10 yrs later most games that released with the switch are still 69.00 because they dont care about their player base. I used to be a big Pokemon fan and still own about 8 pokemon games but even games that came out in 2015 are still 59.00 or 69.00
What they meant to say was we see value in the game being it is one of the most popular games we produce, and we can make a but load of cash on this single title if we charge for it
So, in other words, they just want to. The value to the customer is a subjective thing. It’s Mario Kart, not the Elder Scrolls 6 or GTA 6. Even if it’s got a full story like Crash Team Racing, it’s just a party racing game. I wouldn’t pay more than $50, so I’m never gonna get it. I haven’t had a Mario Kart game since the DS.
People the value of dollar bills is dropping so more dollars are needed for at least the same value. There is huge replay value in mario kart for instance. Think of how many quarters would be needed if you were playing mario kart in an arcade… way more than 80 dollars worth over years. They are just adjusting to inflation. The criticism of price is unnecessary.
He’s literally telling the world, you love our games, you’ll spend what we tell you to. This isn’t about them being a family company, helping people during crap time in the world. No it’s about bleeding as much out of their customers as possible… so now we get to choose between feeding our family’s and a hobby that keeps us sane. Thanks Nintendo. Wow.
I remember being pissed about the price for the last Mario Kart game on the switch, and they don’t even have household sharing so I had to buy it 3 times. We’ll be sticking with the first generation switch and games until they fall apart in our hands and if these prices keep up we’ll just drop Nintendo games entirely.
And if they’re going to do this to the new Mario party games, Zelda or Pokemon games they better figure out voice acting.
I buy several $30 games a year that offer a more enjoyable unique family experience and repeat playability than most of what Nintendo offers.
Therrs plenty of games out there with replayabikity and Easter eggs, let’s get real here. It’s a money scheme pure and simple. Mario kart isn’t any bigger than say, monster hunter etc, “all the little things” so you’re charging everyone for Easter eggs and content. What a money grab. It used to be an awesome game made money in sales, now it’s looking like you are trying to rake you’re players pockets. But my opinion and others probably won’t matter considering the die hard nintendo fans out there are dumb enough to pay that price. We as players have let these companies spike prices far too long