Any ideas why Overcooked 2 physical is 10$ more expensive on Switch than on PS4/XB1?

Tito · Jul 3, 2018

Minsc said:
Even with DS and 3DS games? Were they also similarly marked up (asking honestly here)? Like an indie release on the DS/3DS is typically $10 more than it was elsewhere (granted, I'm not sure how many multiplatform DS/console games would be applicable here, but surely some are).

There was the RE Revelations price fiasco.

You also have to remember that DS and 3DS had almost standardized game prices. The Switch is the first time a mainstream portable has $60 games, and different MSRPs for different games; prior to that, there were 2 price points, the Nintendo games price ($30-35) and the 3rd party price ($40-45).

Wamb0wneD · Jul 3, 2018

Aaron D. said:
LOL, is this some strange new offshoot of the Lazy Dev meme?

No? Wasn't even talking about the devs in particular but the company as a whole. Doubt a dev made those prices.
Weird take you got there. Could you show me where I mentioned devs please?

Grim Patron · Jul 3, 2018

Sgtpepper89 said:
Nintendo magic

Accurate.

Shengar · Jul 3, 2018

Most likely because they can get away with it. Reading from this thread, there is no way 2GB cart warrant an extra $10 over bluray.
Yeah, definitely buy this digital if you can.

Samuel Cabral · Jul 3, 2018

the cost of the SD CARD.

chobel · Jul 3, 2018

Switch owners are stupid, so devs and pubs by being a business will exploit that.

Sly Chimera · Jul 3, 2018

If publishers do this then I have no problem checking the other country eshops for deep discounts.

Klyka · Jul 3, 2018

Because Nintendo pays it's workers a fair wa- pffhahahah

Sorry I couldn't keep it up.

It's cause they can and people will pay for it.

The Albatross · Jul 3, 2018

Switch Tax. Most of the multiplat games I switch tend to be more expensive. I don't think it's an actual 'switch tax' but because the market is different with less competition in that marketplace. There's less competition for other games, there's less competition across platforms, the need for sales and price drops is less compelling for publishers.

If you're looking to buy a game on the Switch, you're probably interested in that platform for a reason that the Xbox One, PS4, and PC can't provide... Likely, portability or some other benefit of the Switch. Where as, a gamer who has a PS4, Xbox, and PC could compare all three of those on price and buy whichever's cheapest or has some other perk. Also, there's just a much smaller library of other games competing for your attention on the Switch, less need to grab attention on price.

SinCityAssassin · Jul 3, 2018

I think the main problem with people arguing about cartridge production costs is that the game is literally only 2 GB large and other indie devs have the same prices and others don't. It all depends on the publisher sees if they can make better margins.

Diarrhea Day-Lewis · Jul 3, 2018

1. Because they can
2. Maybe the game is worth $40? Even if it is sold for less, doesn't mean it can't give you $40 value
3. I can't imagine an 8GB cart costs the same as a BR disc. I imagine it's in the $2-$5 range.

darthpaxton · Jul 3, 2018

Alcibiades said:
Don't make up stuff. Besides, Microsoft doesn't offer options for publishers who can only buy in small quantities, hence why many indie games skip the platform entirely for physical releases (and often also digitally).

I'm not making anything up. Read this article about the game Rime. They said that the Switch version was more expensive because it's more expensive to develop and publish on the Switch. Directly from the article: "We set prices for our products based on the costs of development and publishing for each specific platform."

Another great example of how destructive this policy is was 2K avoiding using a larger cartridge for NBA 2K (opting to use an 8 GB because of the cost). By only opting for the 8 GB cartridge, the game launched with a 16 GB patch for the physical version, so after you bought and put the game in, you still had to download 16 GB of data. This also meant the game barely fit on the Switch's included 32 GBs of flash memory. (Source)

One more weird example of Nintendo's archaic indie policies is the NBA Playgrounds patch. They wanted to patch their game, but the patch was too big for Nintendo's policy, so they had to essentially create an entirely new game and make it available on the E-Shop. (Details here.)

Slam Tilt · Jul 3, 2018

Klyka said:
Because Nintendo pays it's workers a fair wa- pffhahahah

Sorry I couldn't keep it up.

It's cause they can and people will pay for it.

Is Nintendo publishing this game?

blondkayvon · Jul 3, 2018

darthpaxton said:
It doesn't show the power and reach of the system. It shows the difference in the cost of physical media for the device and how antiquated Nintendo's thinking can be. Overcooked 2 is from an indie developer who can't afford to buy physical media (especially the Switch's expensive cartridges) in bulk for a discount. This is just another way Nintendo is short-changing indie developers with the Switch. More information is available here.

Can you enlighten me on what a non-antiquated solution would be for physical games on Switch?

N00MKRAD · Jul 3, 2018

Cart prices

Mars People · Jul 3, 2018

Nintendo charges devs and arm and a leg for carts.

Same reason they don't use the high capacity ones and make you download half a game.

Doskoi Panda · Jul 3, 2018

We here at ResetEra have already collectively decided that any price discrepancy on Switch is neatly explained by nonspecific ambiguous cart prices. After all, there has never been a price discrepancy across SKUs in the entire history of video games that couldn't be explained in this manner. That's why it made so much sense for us to jump to that conclusion every single time, and then just sort of stay there. We're just good at science like that.

Metallix87 · Jul 3, 2018

I actually think there's a certain appeal for having new physical cartridges in the modern day for a modern platform, and publishers know consumers will pay more for that.

Mars People · Jul 3, 2018

Solid said:
We here at ResetEra have already collectively decided that any price discrepancy on Switch is neatly explained by nonspecific ambiguous cart prices. There has never been a price discrepancy across SKUs in the entire history of video games that couldn't be explained in this manner, which is why it made so much sense for us to jump to that conclusion every single time and then stay there. We're just good at science like that.

Your sarcasm aside. Do you have a better explanation?
One that isn't 'greedy devs'? Because not all devs are greedy arseholes.

The carts (especially the big ones) being expensive is the only logical reason.

Alcibiades · Jul 3, 2018

darthpaxton said:
I'm not making anything up. Read this article about the game Rime. They said that the Switch version was more expensive because it's more expensive to develop and publish on the Switch. Directly from the article: "We set prices for our products based on the costs of development and publishing for each specific platform."

Another great example of how destructive this policy is was 2K avoiding using a larger cartridge for NBA 2K (opting to use an 8 GB because of the cost). By only opting for the 8 GB cartridge, the game launched with a 16 GB patch for the physical version, so after you bought and put the game in, you still had to download 16 GB of data. This also meant the game barely fit on the Switch's included 32 GBs of flash memory. (Source)

One more weird example of Nintendo's archaic indie policies is the NBA Playgrounds patch. They wanted to patch their game, but the patch was too big for Nintendo's policy, so they had to essentially create an entirely new game and make it available on the E-Shop. (Details here.)

Why would I trust a developer that released a broken game on Switch just so they could cash in? 8GB cartidges are the same price as blu-ray disks, we know this from insiders. Stop defending scummy third party practices.

Metallix87 · Jul 3, 2018

dan2026 said:
Your sarcasm aside. Do you have a better explanation?
One that isn't 'greedy devs'? Because not all devs are greedy arseholes.

The carts (especially the big ones) being expensive is the only logical reason.

These aren't all big ones. This is a 2GB game. It could probably use one of the smallest Switch carts, which we know are comparable in price to Blu-Ray discs.

darthpaxton · Jul 3, 2018

blondkayvon said:
Can you enlighten me on what a non-antiquated solution would be for physical games on Switch?

If you're Nintendo, I think you need to eat some of the cost of going physical or encourage developers to go digital-only by providing a store-front on the device that is much easier to find new stuff or discover new things AND better market and brand the E-Shop so families and parents understand that buying physical games are not really the only way anymore.

The current E-Shop is not conducive for just browsing for games you might be interested. If you're not absolutely brand-new (with the sea of low-level content (mainly poorly optimized mobile ports) getting added to the E-Shop every day) or already a best-seller, you can't really be "browsed." You can really only be searched and virtually eliminates any chance of being impulse purchases or even someone finding your game that might be interested in it, but not know the title. Why can't Nintendo do more with genres and ratings to give indie developers more exposure on the E-Shop? I mean come on, there's literally only three sections: What's On Sale, New Releases, and Best Sellers. Hope your game is either brand new, selling well, or on sale if you want to have anyone see it. (Great article from Kotaku about this here.)

John Konstantin · Jul 3, 2018

dan2026 said:
Your sarcasm aside. Do you have a better explanation?
One that isn't 'greedy devs'? Because not all devs are greedy arseholes.

The carts (especially the big ones) being expensive is the only logical reason.

Some publishers with small games might be taking advantage of the price situation created by other publishers with bigger costs due to the size of their games. That sounds pretty logical to me and I'm not saying "greedy devs", it's just businesses making as much money as they can.

It's the same logic behind prices on the eShop. There are less discounts that on PS Store or, specially, Steam, because there is less competition so far which means that they can afford to charge more for the same games.

Majukun · Jul 3, 2018

because cartridges are more expensive to manifacture than blue rays

darthpaxton · Jul 3, 2018

Metallix87 said:
These aren't all big ones. This is a 2GB game. It could probably use one of the smallest Switch carts, which we know are comparable in price to Blu-Ray discs.

Couldn't you argue development cost is higher on the Switch because they have to do what is far and away the most work to get the game on that console. It's much more difficult to port a game to Switch than it is to the Xbox and Playstation.

Metallix87 · Jul 3, 2018

darthpaxton said:
Couldn't you argue development cost is higher on the Switch because they have to do what is far and away the most work to get the game on that console. It's much more difficult to port a game to Switch than it is to the Xbox and Playstation.

If we were talking about a game that really pushed the hardware in significant ways, maybe. As it stands, this thread is about Overcooked 2, not Doom or Wolfenstein 2.

Mars People · Jul 3, 2018

Do we not have any developers who post here?
I feel like there must be someone who can give a definitive answer to this crap.

darthpaxton · Jul 3, 2018

Alcibiades said:
Why would I trust a developer that released a broken game on Switch just so they could cash in? 8GB cartidges are the same price as blu-ray disks, we know this from insiders. Stop defending scummy third party practices.

Uhhhhh, because of the two other examples I provided and the fact that Nintendo won't give anyone but developers a solid answer on how much the cartridges are and they have developers sign an NDA and the fact that this has been a known issue with other games and because Nintendo has always struggled with online infrastructure and quality of life? Would you like me to continue?

chanunnaki · Jul 3, 2018

Maybe due to the phenomenon known colloquially as: "Nintendo-tax"

darthpaxton · Jul 3, 2018

dan2026 said:
Do we not have any developers who post here?
I feel like there must be someone who can give a definitive answer to this crap.

It has been speculated that Nintendo has developers and publishers sign an NDA, because several have been asked and no one has provided an answer.

John Konstantin · Jul 3, 2018

darthpaxton said:
If you're Nintendo, I think you need to eat some of the cost of going physical or encourage developers to go digital-only by providing a store-front on the device that is much easier to find new stuff or discover new things AND better market and brand the E-Shop so families and parents understand that buying physical games are not really the only way anymore.

The current E-Shop is not conducive for just browsing for games you might be interested. If you're not absolutely brand-new (with the sea of low-level content (mainly poorly optimized mobile ports) getting added to the E-Shop every day) or already a best-seller, you can't really be "browsed." You can really only be searched and virtually eliminates any chance of being impulse purchases or even someone finding your game that might be interested in it, but not know the title. Why can't Nintendo do more with genres and ratings to give indie developers more exposure on the E-Shop? I mean come on, there's literally only three sections: What's On Sale, New Releases, and Best Sellers. Hope your game is either brand new, selling well, or on sale if you want to have anyone see it. (Great article from Kotaku about this here.)

I'm not saying that the eShop can not be improved, because it certainly can. But your information and the article you linked are outdated, there is a recently added discover section on the eShop. So I guess Nintendo is aware of the current issues and is trying to improve the eShop. Even if they are doing it much slower than we would like.

Regarding carts I think that Nintendo has also made some mistakes. 64 GB carts being delayed without a release date (as far as I know) is bad. Nintendo not using a 32 GB cart for a first party game (and a port) like Bayonetta 1 + 2 it's very bad. If you don't use your own carts because they are too expensive, you're setting a bad example and you can't certainly ask third parties to use them.

Mars People · Jul 3, 2018

darthpaxton said:
It has been speculated that Nintendo has developers and publishers sign an NDA, because several have been asked and no one has provided an answer.

If there truly is an NDA, then that is highly suspicious.

For what other reason would Nintendo want to hide something like that?

And if the cost of one Blu-ray = 8GB cart, that seems kind of bad.
8GB is no space at all, even for Switch games.

Khanimus · Jul 3, 2018

By them being cheap as shit and passing off the costs onto consumers.

John Konstantin · Jul 3, 2018

dan2026 said:
If there truly is an NDA, then that is highly suspicious.

For what other reason would Nintendo want to hide something like that?

And if the cost of one Blu-ray = 8GB cart, that seems kind of bad.
8GB is no space at all, even for Switch games.

I think it's pretty standard the existence of a NDA on provider contracts. Nintendo would not like to shame away third party support exposing what will be perceived as "greed". Also, I bet that Nintendo does not charge the same price to everybody depending on how much they want them to support Switch and how much they think they need to sweeten the deal for that to happen. They wouldn't want other publishers feeling angry and asking for the same privileged treatment.

Deleted member 8593 · Jul 3, 2018

Look, we at Nintendo believe that if you bring value to our system, you should be rewarded for it. What that means is, the effort you put into releasing a game on Nintendo Switch will be met with monetary compensation by our userbase. No more, no less. It is only fair that and it creates an environment where everyone can profit. Nintendo as a platform holder wins, the developers win and, most importantly, the player wins. Everybody wins.

hank_tree · Jul 3, 2018

Welcome to Switch

Gnorman · Jul 3, 2018

If you know for certain one fanbase will pay more for no good reason it's good business sense to take advantage of it.

Supervlieg · Jul 3, 2018

Carts are more expensive to order compared to CDs.

shan780 · Jul 3, 2018

they charge more for it because they can - people will still buy the game

TheExecutive · Jul 15, 2018

Noticed the $15 price difference between the physical and digital versions for the Switch. Is that a preorder price for the digital or is that the price it will be?

Bjones · Jul 15, 2018

Supervlieg said:
Carts are more expensive to order compared to CDs.

Yes but it's the same price digitally .. now you are going to say " but they don't want to alienate the physical users with a higher price "
.... it's sad companies pay hundreds of thousands dollars a year for some consulting firm to feed them this same bs. I literally see it every day.

Vic Damone Jr. · Jul 15, 2018

Megatron said:
There's an Overcooked 2?

Yes, and it has online coop:)

Luchashaq · Jul 15, 2018

Wtf, was going to buy it day one on switch, now I won't buy it at all.

Same goes for any game with a switch tax. Fuck off. Not buying on on the cheaper platform either, fuck em they don't get my money period.

Terraforce · Jul 15, 2018

Shodan14 said:
Switch users are obviously willing to pay more. Shows the power and reach of the system.

I hope this is sarcasm?

But yeah, hate the stupid Switch tax. Unless it's an absolute must day one buy, I'm not touching anything with a Switch tax until it receives a significant price drop.

Cronogear · Jul 15, 2018

I know people say 8GB cards are similar in price to Blu-rays, but perhaps they're talking about companies that order hundreds of thousands of them at a time? Smaller orders of cartridges may be more expensive per unit.

As for retail vs digital, sadly not many retailers will buy your product if you're just going to sell it cheaper through another storefront. Particularly for indie games.

It's not just because "Switch owners will buy it anyway lolololol", that's for sure.

Any ideas why Overcooked 2 physical is 10$ more expensive on Switch than on PS4/XB1?

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