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Why do people think the Switch is overpriced?


CriticalMiss
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This is a complaint I’ve seen around various parts of the Internet occasionally, especially after the January Direct. But if you look at past consoles, the Switch at $300 isn’t that expensive. The Wii launched at $250 and the Wii U launched at $300. And if you account for average inflation rates from 2007-2016 (obtained from http://www.inflation.eu/inflation-rates/united-states/historic-inflation/cpi-inflation-united-states.aspx), the gap between the Switch and Wii launch prices becomes even smaller: the Wii would cost about $297.72 in late 2016/early 2017 dollars, nearly the same as the Switch. Video game consoles are in general are expensive, but the Switch seems pretty fairly priced. 

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19 minutes ago, CriticalMiss said:

This is a complaint I’ve seen around various parts of the Internet occasionally, especially after the January Direct. But if you look at past consoles, the Switch at $300 isn’t that expensive. The Wii launched at $250 and the Wii U launched at $300. And if you account for average inflation rates from 2007-2016 (obtained from http://www.inflation.eu/inflation-rates/united-states/historic-inflation/cpi-inflation-united-states.aspx), the gap between the Switch and Wii launch prices becomes even smaller: the Wii would cost about $297.72 in late 2016/early 2017 dollars, nearly the same as the Switch. Video game consoles are in general are expensive, but the Switch seems pretty fairly priced. 

37$+ for half of a controller definitely feels like a kick in the pants.

Backwards Compatibility existed on the Wii and Wii U, and also does so for the 3DS and its variants. PS4 and Xbox 1 X box 1 one box X both have it. You're definitely getting more bang for your buck if you can run your old Breath of the Wild for Wii U on the Switch...except you can't, so go shell out more $ or keep an obnoxious powerslot sucket and collective of behind-the-tv wires if you wanna play some of that oldschool goodness in things that you already own hardcopies of.

 

It's a crusher for me. I'm deliberately not buying a switch due to the lack of backwards compatibility, because the 300$ price tag references a whole new piece of tech, not an upgrade.

Edited by Elieson
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48 minutes ago, Elieson said:

37$+ for half of a controller definitely feels like a kick in the pants.

 

Well, the Joy-Cons can be used individual controllers, in which case $37 for a controller seems like a pretty good deal, especially when PS4 controllers normally go for $60. Beyond that, the Joy-Cons can be pretty versatile. I suppose whether you think the pricing is fair depends on if you care about local multiplayer and handheld mode. If you generally just play games at home alone or online, then I could see why you think they're overpriced.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, this would not be an issue for those who only want to play at home and alone/online either because a pair of Joy-Cons are included with the Switch, meaning you would not have to pay for any controllers. So, from my perspective at least, the Joy-Cons seem like they are very reasonably priced no matter how you want to play.

I would point out though that the Switch currently does not charge for online play. I know that it will eventually have a paid subscription, but that's a year in advance and is currently slated to be priced at $20 a year, 1/3 of what other consoles charge. So, in some ways, the Switch accessories and peripherals actually cost less than what you would have to pay for other consoles.

 

48 minutes ago, Elieson said:

Backwards Compatibility existed on the Wii and Wii U, and also does so for the 3DS and its variants. PS4 and Xbox 1 X box 1 one box X both have it. You're definitely getting more bang for your buck if you can run your old Breath of the Wild for Wii U on the Switch...except you can't, so go shell out more $ or keep an obnoxious powerslot sucket and collective of behind-the-tv wires if you wanna play some of that oldschool goodness in things that you already own hardcopies of.

 

I mostly understand this, except for having to pay for BOTW again. If you already have it on Wii U, then why do you need to buy it again on the Switch?

 

48 minutes ago, Elieson said:

It's a crusher for me. I'm deliberately not buying a switch due to the lack of backwards compatibility, because the 300$ price tag references a whole new piece of tech, not an upgrade.

I think there's an argument that it being an entirely different piece of tech makes the price more worth it. Think about it like this: the PS4 is an upgrade to the PS3. That means that the PS4 does pretty much the same thing as the PS3, but with better hardware and some additional features. On the other hand, the Switch is very different from the Wii U (you can see a progression from the Wii U to the Switch, but that's a different discussion). Therefore, the Switch can fill a different role in your gaming life than the Wii U did, whereas the PS4 is just an improvement upon the role played by the PS3. In other words, the Switch offers an appeal different from what previous consoles have, so there is better reason to buy it than just another upgrade.

Edited by CriticalMiss
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32 minutes ago, Elieson said:

PS4 and Xbox 1 X box 1 one box X both have it. 

Since when? The PS4 can't play PS3 games, and it only plays select PS2 games, which aren't YOUR PS2 games, they're emulated PS2 games that you have to buy again. 

The Xbone is BC with select OG Xbox and 360 games, but it's far from a complete feature. And this feature only came out last year, when the Xbone itself was still $400.

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People think the Switch is overpriced? I remember many people, myself included, being relieved when the price was reveled to be around $300; I had been expecting it to be at least $350. As a bonus, it comes with two controllers (Being fair, using a lone joy-con isn't ideal and getting a pro controller to go with the bundled joy-cons is probably a good way to go.) while the PS4 and XB1 come with a single controller and they launched at $400 and $500 respectively (While the prices have decreased, the PS4 Pro and XB1 X are set at those same prices last I checked.). As for backwards compatibility, the Switch doesn't have it because they switched to an entirely new game format, meanwhile no console this generation seems to truly have backwards compatibility; the PS4 has select emulations and ports for purchase, but not proper backwards compatibility. The Xbox One has it better, but that functionality was only recently added and does not include every game in the previous library.

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4 minutes ago, Chconroy said:

People think the Switch is overpriced? I remember many people, myself included, being relieved when the price was reveled to be around $300; I had been expecting it to be at least $350. As a bonus, it comes with two controllers (Being fair, using a lone joy-con isn't ideal and getting a pro controller to go with the bundled joy-cons is probably a good way to go.) while the PS4 and XB1 come with a single controller and they launched at $400 and $500 respectively (While the prices have decreased, the PS4 Pro and XB1 X are set at those same prices last I checked.). As for backwards compatibility, the Switch doesn't have it because they switched to an entirely new game format, meanwhile no console this generation seems to truly have backwards compatibility; the PS4 has select emulations and ports for purchase, but not proper backwards compatibility. The Xbox One has it better, but that functionality was only recently added and does not include every game in the previous library.

Not everyone thinks the Switch is overpriced, but I have seen a lot of people complain about it. Take this article from US Gamer, for instance.

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Expectations and miscommunication played a big role. The switch isn't just the next handheld, it's their next home console at the same time. Historically If you wanted to play all the newest nintendo games, you had to buy two systems, and that's a 500 dollar price point comparatively. It really took game announcements for people to wrap their head around Switch. New mainline pokemon for switch? Oh, so that's where my pokemon games are going, I need the upgrade. Switch had an awkward presentation to start the year off. Some weird, Wii-like gimmick with its controllers, and a bunch of Wii U ports including Zelda. That is not a good sell, and suggested the Switch was just their next handheld that's powerful enough to run Wii U (still last gen) games.

So people saying the Switch was overpriced made sense a year ago, but I never heard that complaint post launch, except in cases where they didn't have the luxury of buying a Switch at 300 dollars when their only option was some dumb retail bundle or through a secondhand seller. Obviously people don't generally find the system overpriced when the demand is this high.

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I thought it was overpriced when it was first released, but nintendo seems to be selling a good amount of them with the current price (and it was supply restrained for a long time), so it's factually not overpriced. Nintendo won't drop the price considering how fast they're selling it.

I think the reason some people think it's overpriced is due to the fact that it's more expensive than the more powerful PS4 and Xbone.

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10 minutes ago, Glennstavos said:

Expectations and miscommunication played a big role. The switch isn't just the next handheld, it's their next home console at the same time. Historically If you wanted to play all the newest nintendo games, you had to buy two systems, and that's a 500 dollar price point comparatively. It really took game announcements for people to wrap their head around Switch. New mainline pokemon for switch? Oh, so that's where my pokemon games are going, I need the upgrade. Switch had an awkward presentation to start the year off. Some weird, Wii-like gimmick with its controllers, and a bunch of Wii U ports including Zelda. That is not a good sell, and suggested the Switch was just their next handheld that's powerful enough to run Wii U (still last gen) games.

So people saying the Switch was overpriced made sense a year ago, but I never heard that complaint post launch, except in cases where they didn't have the luxury of buying a Switch at 300 dollars when their only option was some dumb retail bundle or through a secondhand seller. Obviously people don't generally find the system overpriced when the demand is this high.

I can see that. I remember being very excited by the January Direct, but I might have just been blinded by love for Nintendo.

 

6 minutes ago, Nobody said:

I thought it was overpriced when it was first released, but nintendo seems to be selling a good amount of them with the current price (and it was supply restrained for a long time), so it's factually not overpriced. Nintendo won't drop the price considering how fast they're selling it.

 

In fact, if you want to get into supply and demand conversations, there were worldwide shortages, meaning the Switch was underpriced.

 

7 minutes ago, Nobody said:

I think the reason some people think it's overpriced is due to the fact that it's more expensive than the more powerful PS4 and Xbone.

This could be true, but the PS4 and the XBone were both more expensive than the Switch when they launched, and that's without even accounting for inflation.

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1 hour ago, Slumber said:

Since when? The PS4 can't play PS3 games, and it only plays select PS2 games, which aren't YOUR PS2 games, they're emulated PS2 games that you have to buy again. 

The Xbone is BC with select OG Xbox and 360 games, but it's far from a complete feature. And this feature only came out last year, when the Xbone itself was still $400.

Oops; I was thinking PS2->PS3, not PS3->PS4. Xbox still stands though; it's a feature -now- and Xbox/PS4 can still both play my DVDs and Blu-Rays, making them way more 'Home Console' compared to the Switch

1 hour ago, CriticalMiss said:

Well, the Joy-Cons can be used individual controllers, in which case $37 for a controller seems like a pretty good deal, especially when PS4 controllers normally go for $60. Beyond that, the Joy-Cons can be pretty versatile. I suppose whether you think the pricing is fair depends on if you care about local multiplayer and handheld mode. If you generally just play games at home alone or online, then I could see why you think they're overpriced.

EDIT: Now that I think about it, this would not be an issue for those who only want to play at home and alone/online either because a pair of Joy-Cons are included with the Switch, meaning you would not have to pay for any controllers. So, from my perspective at least, the Joy-Cons seem like they are very reasonably priced no matter how you want to play.

I would point out though that the Switch currently does not charge for online play. I know that it will eventually have a paid subscription, but that's a year in advance and is currently slated to be priced at $20 a year, 1/3 of what other consoles charge. So, in some ways, the Switch accessories and peripherals actually cost less than what you would have to pay for other consoles.

 

I mostly understand this, except for having to pay for BOTW again. If you already have it on Wii U, then why do you need to buy it again on the Switch?

 

I think there's an argument that it being an entirely different piece of tech makes the price more worth it. Think about it like this: the PS4 is an upgrade to the PS3. That means that the PS4 does pretty much the same thing as the PS3, but with better hardware and some additional features. On the other hand, the Switch is very different from the Wii U (you can see a progression from the Wii U to the Switch, but that's a different discussion). Therefore, the Switch can fill a different role in your gaming life than the Wii U did, whereas the PS4 is just an improvement upon the role played by the PS3. In other words, the Switch offers an appeal different from what previous consoles have, so there is better reason to buy it than just another upgrade.

As I said just above; PS4 and Xbox1X are more "Home Entertainment Console" in their DVD/Blu-Ray. Xbox1X features backwards compatibility, so if my old Xbox1 is getting kind of up there in age and such, I can simply upgrade to a new piece of technology and still be able to play my old CoD BlackOps 2 games and watch the Die Hard trilogy that my folks got me for christmas three years ago on DVD without issue. 

Switch's Joy-Con controller duo for a full set + doggy handle is still running up in the 80s, and if I wanna do something like Mario Kart and play with the Combo controller like I've probably played 95% of my time with, and invite a friend over  to play, now I gotta take apart my controller and play with something way different. It'd be like slicing your keyboard in half whenever you wanna play a two player game on your PC with a friend right there. The concept works but with the flexibility comes either an inconvenience within the convenience, or a hefty price tag compared to other consoles. TL;DR, if I got a switch, I'd be playing Mario Kart with my daughter all the time. When she plays solo or when I play solo, we would get used to the standard combo-controller feel, button layout etc etc. If we wanna play together, we gotta rip that shit apart. Convenient because it can be done? Yes. Doesn't change the fact that my big fat hands would prefer the feel of something not teeny tiny to play a game with. This also doesn't accommodate the scenario of the eventual "Charge doesn't last nearly as long as it used to" thing where in 1 year, if the switch Joy Cons power supply simply doesn't last as long, as a consumer, I'm looking at a $65+ drop for just some new joy cons to enjoy wireless playtime in my living room, even if I'm to keep the comfort grip consolidator thingy that holds them together.

    This was something I liked but didn't like about the Wii U too, in that you still needed additional controllers of whatever variety to enjoy the experience of multiplayer in standard ways. I still prefer the feel of the Wii U gamepad when playing Smash, vs any other controller to-date.

Having BOTW for Wii U is exactly what it is, a game on the Wii U. It's one of the only games next to Smash that my family and I continuously play together. If I buy a Switch though; now I gotta battle with my TV's two HDMI slots for one Switch, one Wii U and one DVD/Blu-Ray player, or go out and buy a splitter (which I actually ended up doing). Gone is the convenience that the Wii U gave when we were able to pack back up our old Wii to play three gens of games on one console. That's an extreme inconvenience for me. 

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I don't personally think it's overpriced, but it certainly has more value as they release more games of the quality that BotW and Odyssey are. Good games justify any system.

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To clarify, i don't think that the switch is grossly overpriced, but not having some conveniences makes me want to shell out maybe $250 but not quite $300 for it, I think I'd say. With how much I paid for the Wii U, I don't want to replace it and clearly Switch wants that.

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4 minutes ago, Elieson said:

To clarify, i don't think that the switch is grossly overpriced, but not having some conveniences makes me want to shell out maybe $250 but not quite $300 for it, I think I'd say. With how much I paid for the Wii U, I don't want to replace it and clearly Switch wants that.

If you have a Wii U it's a bit more understandable. But the Wii U is the weakest selling console since the DreamCast, so as shitty as it is, people who DO own a Wii U are basically an after thought to Nintendo right now. 

It'll probably change as the Switch gets more of its own games, but right now, yeah. 

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1 hour ago, DarkDestr0yer61 said:

I don't think $300 for a console/handheld hybrid is that much at all..... However, I do think the pricing on controllers as well as having a... 25 gb? 32 gb? amount of storage space is a bit ridiculous 

I would go further and say it's more "are you serious?"- ridiculous. On top of that the switch system is lacking basic content (uses WIFI but has no internet browser, funny nintendo). Additional content is basically nowhere to be found. Unless FE Switch is a masterpiece, there is no reason for me to buy a switch.

Edited by fOrEiGn sOUl
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I gotta agree with fOrEiGn'S final thought, FE Switch had better be PHENOMENAL - and we'd better get 5mash Bros. soon - if they want me to drop money on a Switch, particularly as I already spent $150 to upgrade my first 2DS to an N2DS for FEW plus am having issues with Nintendo because of how much they want me to pay to fix my second old 2DS that had its LCD randomly stop working.

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I wouldn't call it 'overpriced',  but if you have no interest in mainline Nintendo franchises you'd be hard pressed to justify the purchase.

I think the price of the dock is pretty ridiculous though, as well as controller/storage already mentioned.

Edited by Tryhard
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Demand is a bigger factor for price than what's included. Backwards compatibility or not, the Switch has more demand than the Wii U, hence the same price, despite the Wii U having more features (Miis, BC).

$300 isn't overpriced for a game console, especially considering its competitors are at least $100 more. Not to mention that a good videogame PC costs around 1k. $300 is reasonable for what the Switch offers and its demand.

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Nah, I don't think it's overpriced. I did save up a paycheck to get it and Zelda BotW on release, so that might have something to do with why I'm fine with the price, but even if I didn't, I'd be okay with it. It's totally worth the money.

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If you look at specs alone, the console itself is a bit overpriced. Its gimmick is portability but sacrifices everything else you would expect from a 'modern' home console like BD support which could have been integrated into the docking station. It also has lower resolution compared to the PS4 which is from the former generation.
What's absolutely overprized and should be critized are the single components for the Switch. Paying ~80€ for a glorified HDMI cable (the Docking Station) is absurd.

In the end you buy a game console for its games, not for its performance. If you want performance you're always better off with a high-end PC, period. Both PS4 and XBone have the same problem in the first place and all of their technical 'advantages' are pointless against a well-equipped tower that can serve you forever.

The Switch also has a pretty tame introduction prize at 330€ (EU). In comparision the PS4 started at 400€ and even now it hovers around the prize of the Switch despite being several years older. The Switch can only get cheaper as time goes on and whatever the other two companies are planning is guaranteed to be much more expensive.

Not to mention, the Switch has the big advantage of being portable. Sure, you lose even more performance (see XC2 for the most extreme example) but the fact that it doesn't necessarily have to compete with a tower makes it in my eyes more appealing to other stationary consoles (though in general I see handheld >>> home, so probably some bias).

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I would say it is overpriced, it costs like $200 to make the console, but they are wanting a $100 profit for the console, it is crazy I think the correct price would be $250 But that didn't stop me from getting one though.

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Because people don't want to buy it and dig for reasons to justify their standing, generally.

2 hours ago, SoulWeaver said:

I gotta agree with fOrEiGn'S final thought, FE Switch had better be PHENOMENAL - and we'd better get 5mash Bros. soon - if they want me to drop money on a Switch, particularly as I already spent $150 to upgrade my first 2DS to an N2DS for FEW plus am having issues with Nintendo because of how much they want me to pay to fix my second old 2DS that had its LCD randomly stop working.

If you spent half the price of a Switch to get a Nu3DS for FEW and are aware that other games are coming for it (alongside 1st party 3DS support basically being dead), then why not save up the difference and just get a Switch?

3 hours ago, fOrEiGn sOUl said:

I would go further and say it's more "are you serious?"- ridiculous. On top of that the switch system is lacking basic content (uses WIFI but has no internet browser, funny nintendo). Additional content is basically nowhere to be found. Unless FE Switch is a masterpiece, there is no reason for me to buy a switch.

...Who uses the internet browser included in game consoles? Seriously. I've basically never used one on any system I've had that came with one, and I was under the impression that was the case with just about everybody.

2 hours ago, Dandy Druid said:

Demand is a bigger factor for price than what's included. Backwards compatibility or not, the Switch has more demand than the Wii U, hence the same price, despite the Wii U having more features (Miis, BC).

$300 isn't overpriced for a game console, especially considering its competitors are at least $100 more. Not to mention that a good videogame PC costs around 1k. $300 is reasonable for what the Switch offers and its demand.

The Slim versions of both consoles are $300 MSRP, with holiday deals often knocking them down to about $200. Though the fact the Switch was the number 1 selling item on Black Friday weekend despite that is a testament to its appeal and the demand for it.

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13 minutes ago, The DanMan said:

...Who uses the internet browser included in game consoles? Seriously. I've basically never used one on any system I've had that came with one, and I was under the impression that was the case with just about everybody.

Someone that doesn't have frequent access to a working computer or phone, I'd imagine.

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6 hours ago, The DanMan said:

If you spent half the price of a Switch to get a Nu3DS for FEW and are aware that other games are coming for it (alongside 1st party 3DS support basically being dead), then why not save up the difference and just get a Switch?

In this instance, I was intending to upgrade the 2DS earlier, but had unexpected expenses come up and couldn't do so until about a week after FEW came out. I also probably will eventually get a Switch - likely used or on sale if such can be found - but not until there's at least three good games on it that I actually want, which hasn't happened yet(FE Switch will be the first, and I'm hoping for 5mash as well).

6 hours ago, The DanMan said:

...Who uses the internet browser included in game consoles? Seriously. I've basically never used one on any system I've had that came with one, and I was under the impression that was the case with just about everybody.

I don't have a phone, so I've used the browser on my 2DS in the past when my iPod was close to dead or wanted to look something up without, say, interrupting a good game of Cipher(we try to record our matches) or a Tempest Trials grind. There's also the fact that the Switch is supposed to be a handheld in addition to a home console, so that could have something to do with his concerns.

Edited by SoulWeaver
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