Nostalgia getting old? Virtual Console sales heading south

Very few people would question the current success of Nintendo’s latest console. Whether you like it or not, the numbers simply don’t lie. However, while the console is still selling out consistently, not all aspects of the sales data surrounding the Wii is quite as positive. Despite the ever-increasing user base of the Wii, Nintendo president Satoru Iwata noted that the Wii’s Virtual Console sales have been slowing down.

As of January 24, over 1.5 million games had been downloaded from the Virtual Console. Given the low cost for Nintendo inherent in the Virtual Console system, this was a remarkable show for a collection of age-old games that would have otherwise been mere memories. From February until now, though, sales were in the 1.8 million range; a strange occurrence given that the console's user base has grown substantially since early January. Iwata's comments suggest that in the first two months Nintendo was selling 750,000 titles each month, but that has dipped to 600,000/month since February. Those aren't bad sales numbers, but with many more Wiis in use today than in December, the downturn is surprising.

The blame game

Though I've downloaded and enjoyed a few choice games from the Virtual Console, I believe that the sales decrease is a reflection of both the limited selection of the VC and the fact that none of the games have been tuned or refined in any way—some have even been limited on the new downloadable platform. With the games found on the PSN and Xbox Live Arcade, users are attracted to the new upgrades, online multiplayer, and other various additions that go alongside the expected gameplay.

Unfortunately, the Virtual Console has no such luxury. This leads to more stringent purchasing decisions, which I'm sure most Wii users could attest to. At $5 for an NES game, $8 for a Genesis/SNES/Turbografx game, and $10+ for the latter consoles, most users will buy only their most favorite games from the past and not take the chance on a dated experience they aren't familiar with. To combat this, Nintendo has been playing it slow with the big titles that everyone wants to buy, which is likely a move to sustain the platform. Whether or not the current sales trend will continue, and if Nintendo’s current strategy will continue to work, is anyone's guess.

Source : http://arstechnica.com/