Shigeru Miyamoto , 65, said that Nintendo is evaluating different ways to charge people for games, avoiding the free model that has become a source of income in the gaming sector, which moves US $ 140,000 million.
Instead, he called on his peers to publish titles at fixed prices without charging players too much, which will create more sustainable long-term businesses.
“We are fortunate to have such a giant market, so we think that if we can publish games at reasonable prices and destined to as many people as possible, we will get great profits,” Miyamoto said at the Computer Entertainment Developers Conference (CEDEC), on Wednesday. in Yokohama, Japan.
Miyamoto’s criticisms come at a time when the free model – which includes rewards boxes and microtransactions – generates record profits.
Instead of charging a flat rate in advance, publishers are giving away games or selling them at reduced prices and then press players to constantly buy products related to the game, such as virtual costumes, or encourage them to bet money to win rare items. .
It is an income model especially common among games for mobile devices and personal computers.
Nintendo Longevity
Advocates of the free model say that it increases the longevity of each title and creates more predictable businesses, which attracts investors and boosts employment. But opponents say it hinders creativity in the development of games and promotes a behavior similar to that of gambling, which led to lawmakers in Belgium and the Netherlands prohibiting the boxes of rewards this year.
“I can not say that our fixed-cost model has really been a success,” said Miyamoto, who is usually sincere. “But we’re going to keep pushing until it takes root, so everyone can develop games in a comfortable environment, and by focusing on bringing games to as many people as possible, we can continue to drive our gaming business for mobile devices.”
These comments come almost two years after Nintendo introduced Super Mario Run, the first smartphone game developed internally. A flat fee was charged for the title, which many users criticized for being too expensive for the amount of content provided.
Then, the company adopted the free model for the following two titles. One of them, Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp, was criticized for focusing too much on profits at the expense of fun.
Miyamoto also said that game developers should pay attention to the lessons of the record industry, which is still struggling to recover since consumers learned to consume free music through the exchange of MP3 files, YouTube and streaming services.
He added that subscription services should play a more important role in games, but said the key is to develop a culture of payment for good software.
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