Nintendo says that the Switch couldn't have come with bundled games and still be priced at $300
Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime explains why the console won’t include bundled games.
Following the Nintendo Switch reveal last week, details of the console and launch titles were revealed, and if you missed anything, you can get up to speed over at our Nintendo Switch page hub.
The missing component from the reveal was the console bundles.
Reggie explained the absence to GameSpot citing the price point as the deciding factor.
“We look at every launch uniquely as to what’s the right thing to do for that launch. And I’ve been involved in launches dating back to the Nintendo DS. Each one is a little different.
“For this launch, what we found is that with the range of software that’s coming–not only available day one but through April and into the summer, and including the holiday timeframe with Super Mario Odyssey–that we wanted to enable the consumer to buy the software they want, to look to get to the most approachable price point we could get to.
“That led us to a $299 price point, and let the consumer decide what games they want to buy.”
The company were aiming for a price point of $300 in North America, and after much deliberation as to what was essential to include within that budget, the software just didn’t make the cut.
“Certainly [a lower price] is always better, but at a $349 or $399 price point, we just didn't feel that was the right place to be...And then it's all about, what's going to be included? Obviously the inclusion of the two Joy-Con, critically important; all the right cables, the dock, critically important.
“We also have to do this from a financial perspective as well. Once we got to that bundle, it really needed to be at $299 without a piece of software.”
That seems reasonable enough. What do you think?
Would you have preferred a higher price with bundled games? Or are you happy with the $300 price tag? Chime in below.