Nintendo deserves more credit for the way they monetize--or rather, don't monetize--their games.
Can we take a moment to appreciate that in the current video game industry of EAs and Activisions sucking their consumers dry every chance they can get just to make an extra buck, Nintendo as a developer and as a publisher, well, haven't?
Look at all their big Switch releases over the last few years:
- The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild: Two expansion packs, totaling one $20 purchase for all-new shrines, challenges, and a bunch of in-game goodies. They also patched in a couple of free updates like the Xenoblade 2 crossover.
- Super Mario Odyssey: NO paid DLC to speak of (yet, at least). So many free costumes have been added post-launch, not to mention Luigi's Balloon World, which adds tons of replayability and post-game content.
- Mario Kart 8 Deluxe: No paid DLC, added Champion Link and the Master Cycle Zero from Breath of the Wild completely for free.
- ARMS: No paid DLC whatsoever; new fighters were patched in for free as they became available.
- Splatoon 2: One $20 expansion with arguably more content than the base game. Also, every new weapon/map they've patched in throughout the entirety of the game's life has been completely free and available to all players on day 1.
- Xenoblade Chronicles 2: $30 expansion pass that comes with new Blades, a Challenge Mode, other various features like additional difficulty settings, and AN ENTIRE NEW GAME. This also doesn't include the free things they've patched in such as New Game+ and a bunch of new goodies and Blades to get in New Game+.
- Pokemon Let's Go Pikachu! & Pokemon Let's Go Eevee!: NO paid DLC (you could count the Mew in the Poke Ball Plus but it's a single Pokemon, if you pay for the controller you're paying for the controller and not the Pokemon).
- Super Smash Bros. Ultimate: Free Piranha Plant DLC fighter, plus one $25 season pass or the option to buy individual fighter packs for $6 a piece. Much less convoluted and (if I remember correctly) cheaper than it was in Smash 4.
You'll notice one important, glaring absence from any of the above games: MICROTRANSACTIONS. No loot boxes, no paid currencies, no gambling, nothing. When you buy an expansion for a game you know exactly how much you're paying, what you're paying for, and what you're getting.
Yes, the current online service is kind of crappy and not really worth $20. But can we at least acknowledge that Nintendo is proving in 2019 that you can make damn good video games without throwing paywalls and microtransactions all over everything, stealing your consumers' money at every possible turn?
EDIT: typos
EDIT 2: Wow, gold? Thanks so much!
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