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Does the Virtual Console diminish the accompanying downloadable platforms? [roundtable]
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By which I mean, does the Handheld Virtual Console/Virtual Console diminish (DSiWare/3DSWare)/WiiWare? If we HAD any 3DSWare, I mean? I'm not sure how much actual data we can use here, so I am going to rely on the next best thing: personal anecdotal experience. I don't feel nearly as much excitement in the 'gaming community' for DSiWare/WiiWare as I do for the Virtual Console. People vocally lament when the VC runs fallow, but have almost no noticeable reaction to the movements of DSiWare/WiiWare. That goes for most of the media, as well. But I'm guilty, too. Seeing all of these classic Game Boy games that I've never played come out excites me. Rather than take a chance on an unproven quantity, I could just fill in a missing spot in my classic gaming history. I will say, though, that the videos on the 3DS Shop are great. Those videos, combined with the 'suggested' software lists, are a powerful marketing tool, assuming anyone actually checks them out. There are several DSiWare titles (like Go Go Kokopolo!) that are now on my radar, solely due to the handy promotional footage. Still, would I get Go Go Kokopolo before Super Mario Land 2, or even Mole Mania or Wave Race? Proooobably not. It might also be interesting to bring the other consoles into the discussion. The Xbox Originals section is probably too small to affect XBLA. And nobody gives a shit about the Indies. However, when XBLA launched, it was full of truly independent games. Now that the bigger pubs have started to use the service, I'm not sure a title like Cloning Clyde would even get its money back. As far as the PS3, I honestly have no idea of how that community feels. PS1 games don't seem very similar to PSN games, in general. And only a handful of PS2 games have been announced. URL to share (right click and copy)
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10/06/11, 19:11 Edited: 10/06/11, 19:17
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A scapegoat? I don't know about that. It's competing for the same dollars from the same virtual wallet on the same console. I think that I know a decent amount about WiiWare games. But when it comes down to that purchasing decision on which virtual backlog to hack away at, my thought process still boils down to, like, "And Yet It Moves" vs. "Final Fantasy III".
I couldn't think of a better example.
But, you have a pretty voracious appetite for original downloadable software, Guillaume. No hard proof, of course, but I would assume that my position is closer to the norm.
EDIT: XBLA games are most of what I play on the 360, probably. That stuff IS my 360 software, effectively. Even then, I only get the best of the best of the best. And there are also a handful of WiiWare/DSiWare games that are (or seem) so good that I will buy them without question, but the slightest hint of weakness or compromise sends me running to the VC. |
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I am a freak, that is true.
You do buy a lot of these Wiiware games we know about in advance, though, right? What's your Wiiware/VC ratio?
My point is that of course, if a game you have heard of for a long time shows up on the VC, you'll snatch it up right away, because you've heard so much about it for so long. And of course, if a game you have never heard of shows up and gets a handful of great reviews, you probably won't get it on the spot because it's not something you have been planning to purchase. It's coming out of nowhere.
I think these two phenomenons are independent, and I think the hyped Wiiware games get the same advantage as classics on VC.
Unknown VC titles, similarly, suffer the same fate as unknown Wiiware games, I'm sure. |
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@GuillaumeMy WiiWare/VC ratio? Probably heavily in favor of VC, since most of my stuff was bought early on. I mean, there are many games that I AM GOING TO BUY on both, but I forced myself to stop buying new stuff until I clear out the old stuff. Having a growing backlog on a downloadable platform makes even less sense, like Ludist said. Unless you see a phenomenal sale, which, on Nintendo platforms, you won't. Like Jargsy said, though, a WiiWare game that is hyped by current media (even one of the select few) will never excite me as much as a time-certified Classic that I've never played, the even-rarer exceptions being certain Nintendo-published stuff or games with great demos. |
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If Nintendo can provide a compelling shopping experience with compelling WiiWare/eShop games, then the VC games shouldn't really have an effect. Like someone else said, the VC games are enough of a novelty for people to get into the shop, and then they can find out about what everyone else is playing, what's popular, etc.
I also kind of think that keeping the VC prices too HIGH could backfire a little. On the Wii, I was always faced with the dilemma of "Do I want to get a VC game, OR do I want to get a WiiWare game?" The prices are so close that it always came down to me getting a VC title. I think VC games should be more impulse buys than anything. is there any evidence to support the idea that selling a lot of cheap games negatively affects the sales of bigger games? I mean, I've bought cheap games on Steam, but if there's a game coming out that I really want, I'll still pay for it. Steam is the number one reason that I have a backlog for the first time in my life. |
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