Nintendo has sparked widespread controversy following its announcement of the Switch 2 pricing. The console's $449.99 pricetag and the &79.99 cost for Mario Kart World have drawn fierce backlash from players, with some joking that "suddenly $100 for GTA6 seems reasonable."
Former Nintendo of America PR managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang bluntly described this as "Nintendo's crisis moment" in their latest YouTube program. They criticized the company for deliberately avoiding price disclosures during its Direct presentation, forcing players to piece together pricing information themselves – a practice they condemned as both disrespectful to consumers and creating informational chaos.
The ex-executives specifically highlighted that the tech demo game Switch 2 Welcome Tour requires a separate purchase of 1,000 yen (about $9), while Sony's comparable PS5 title Astro's Playroom comes free with the console. Ellis argued this pricing strategy appears to exploit fan enthusiasm to justify high costs, while Yang called it "insulting consumers' intelligence."
They analyzed that since the passing of former president Satoru Iwata, Nintendo has lost its sensitivity in communicating with players. The current PR team is likely urging the company to issue a comprehensive statement, but bureaucratic processes are causing delays.
Notably, this isn't Nintendo's first pricing controversy. In 2011, the 3DS received a price cut less than six months after launch, forcing then-president Iwata to issue a public apology. The current situation is further complicated by U.S. tariff policies, leading Nintendo to suspend American pre-orders.
Despite mounting pressure, the former executives predict minimal chance of pre-launch price adjustments. They warned that upcoming offline demo events could become new flashpoints for criticism and advised Nintendo to unify its public messaging urgently.
