Yesterday, September 3, 2020, we had confirmation of the rumors that had been circulating about a collection of 3D Mario games. Nintendo announced Super Mario 3D All Stars for Switch, featuring Super Mario 64 (Nintendo 64), Super Mario Sunshine (GameCube) and Super Mario Galaxy (Wii).
Unlike other recent re-releases such as Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, Spyro Reignited Trilogy and Tony Hawk's ™ Pro Skater ™ 1 + 2, the games received little improvement compared to their original platforms. Away even from the traditional collections of remasters, popular in the seventh generation.
However, this translates into a genius in terms of business. And there are a few points I want to make, showing how Nintendo is one of the most efficient companies in the gaming industry:
1) Low investment: with basically "emulated versions" of the original games, the company saved all the cost of reconstruction or in-depth treatment that competitors, such as Activision, gave their games. The investment to build this collection with that spent on Vicarious Visions remastering Crash is unmatched. Here we have a point of high efficiency of capital employed.
2) High selling price: the ideal selling price is composed of a series of factors, such as product and brand perception. Nintendo has a lifestyle factor linked to its products, similar to what Apple has in its devices. This, together with the quality of the games, allows the publication of low investment collections like this for a premium price. A privilege that Actvision does not have, even with a product of higher production quality.
3) Removal of alternatives: with the release of this collection, these games are being removed from the eShop on Wii U as a way of not having a lower price benchmark. If it were possible to buy these games individually for 50, 60 would not make sense. So the only other alternative is the used-car market, where prices go flying through the ceiling.
4) FOMO (fear of missing out): I understand how the great genius of this launch. Knowing the importance of these titles for its fans, Nintendo uses the FOMO technique to speed up sales and wall consumers. There is no way to expect a lower price in a year. There is no way to be part of this lifestyle after March. Either buy it now at the asking price, or you're out. It is a great way to bring value and sales to a low investment product.
With these four great actions taken together, I understand that Nintendo is teaching business classes to the industry as a whole. It becomes a benchmark on how to get to know your client, on how to be highly efficient on investment, on how to return value to company owners. It's scary how the company knows how far it can go and not get scratched in the process.
