Nintendo GameCube drops to $99.

It's been speculated for months, but now the truth has been revealed. Today Nintendo officially announced that the Nintendo Gamecube is now available for $99.99. This new, competitive price point which goes into effect tomorrow will give Nintendo a substantial edge over the Xbox and GameCube for consumers looking for a more affordable system.

Retailers have actually suspected that the GameCube would eventually drop the price sometime during the holidays (although a few online retailers reportedly leaked the details prematurely).

Nintendo also announced a special promotion campaign for <b>Mario Kart: Double Dash</b>. Customers who pre-order the game will receive a special preview disc (similar to the existing discs recently released) featuring playable content and previewable trailers. Nintendo briefly highlighted other first/third-party titles to support its belief for a solid, successful holiday season.

At present, Microsoft has initiated their own special Xbox bundle for new adopters, featuring Tetris Worlds and Star Wars: The Clone Wars. SCEA hasn't made any plans to drop the price on the PS2, suggesting that they're confident with the forthcoming holiday lineup.

So what is everyone's thoughts on this? Imminent doom? Smart business move???

doesnt matter much. the thing still wont sell.

heh. i know we're a little "late" but it's hard to beat a fast and furious, well-informed forum. (but now it's official official) :)

funny that they just announced a price drop and its also been announced that an iso ripper and loader will be released shortly.....i smell another Dreamcast downward spiral brewing.

http://www.seminoleherald.com/image/koolaid.jpg

OH YEAH!

I'm happy about it. Yes, it reeks of DC failure, but a $99-dollar Cube is a wonderous thing.

Its definitely imminent doom... and if the Dreamcast is any indication, it wont have that big of an effect on sales, nor will it prompt holiday shoppers to switch from Xbox/PS2 to GC. In my experience, people will buy what they want, no matter the price. Hell, I remember... I think it was a year after the DC came out, it was like $120 or $100 when the PS2 was $300. And the PS2 outsold it like 3-to-1 or something... hell the fucking PSX outsold it. Three weeks after the holiday season Sega ended the DC.

Its kinda funny (and a bit sad, I guess) to see Nintendo being reduced to Sega-like nonsense, though. Oh well, they used to be great.

It's always nice to see price drops.... but I still don't think it would be worth it for me. I'd rather have 2 PS2 or 3 GBA games for that price. There are only a small handful of titles I am interested in and they are not even must-haves.

Well, if the Skies of Arcadia 2 rumour comes true and it's GCN exclusive I'd get one. Hopefully it'd be $50 by then. :p

SGGG~What about the Tales game?

For me, it doesn't matter - I've had a GC since day 1. Though this does smell lke DC-ness, it might also be a hint that Nintendo is all-steam-ahead for their next system. Which really, REALLY sucks, considering the GameCube isn't even 2 years old yet.

*sniffs*

I can't smell anything... :lol:

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Originally Posted by bahn

Nintendo also announced a special promotion campaign for <b>Mario Kart: Double Dash</b>. Customers who pre-order the game will receive a special preview disc (similar to the existing discs recently released) featuring playable content and previewable trailers.

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When's this gonna be official? I don't see it on any retailers' site...

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Originally Posted by Hero

SGGG~What about the Tales game?

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It looks mildly interesting. I just read a preview.. I can't decide if I like the art/style or not. Some things look neat, others less so. :\ If I already had a Gamecube I'd consider it but certainly it's not worth buying a system for.

If I do get a Cube I'd most likely pick up Super Monkey Ball, Wave Race, Beach Spikers, Billy Hatcher, Mr Driller Drill Land, and Knight & Knight (if it actually exists), and a few others. Maybe this one.... Basically, it would be nice for some multiplayer games... but none of those games are must haves. Skies 2 would be a killer app though. ;)

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Originally Posted by ChaoofNee

When's this gonna be official? I don't see it on any retailers' site...

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who said anything about it being on a retailer's website? ;)

mwahahah

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Originally Posted by Dragonmaster Dyne

funny that they just announced a price drop and its also been announced that an iso ripper and loader will be released shortly.....i smell another Dreamcast downward spiral brewing.

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If you are insinuating that piracy lead to the death of the Dreamcast you are mistaken.

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Originally Posted by bahn

who said anything about it being on a retailer's website? ;)

mwahahah

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OMFG TNL EXCLUSIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!111111

...awesome!

ask your local retailers what's up with dem deals.

Well, I think this is indicative of a few things:

1) While it might not be a HUGE spike, $99 at the Holiday Season will certainly increase their sales during that period from what they would have been at the previous price point. More GCs in living rooms AFTER the Holiday Season means, theoretically, more software sales in the 1st quarter/1st half of 2004.

2) Let's not forget how much Nintendo has been heralding the connectivity issue as the Second Coming, or somesuch. The $99 price point will be a key factor in consumers decisions as to whether they think the connectivity is "worth" it, since the feature requires GBA's, and that's what Nintendo is really pimping anyway, trying to ride the GBA wave out to keep them as far above water as possible until it's time to launch the GC2 and GBA2. Expect a big Connectivity marketing push during and after the Holiday Season.

3) Nintendo is feeling the heavy burden of being #3 in North America and Europe and is a bit, how shall we say... panicked? The thing that separates Nintendo from the problems SEGA had, though, is the Big N's balance sheet: It's pristine, the best in the industry. So while they'd love to be making buckets and buckets more money than they are, they aren't in danger of becoming extinct or even completely ineffectual in the hardware business, certainly not this or next generation, and I totally expect that in the next generation Nintendo will have taken a good hard look at what put them in this current predicament and take huge strides from the outset to come out of the gate with a new image.

4) Consider this a bit of a cleaning house, too. They stopped production on the Cube because units were sitting on store shelves and they were still spending money in production when it wasn't neccessary. The $99 price point will help clear inventory faster and allow them to concentrate on the GameCube and GBA successor without putting more money than they have to into GameCube production.

--Scourge .

I hate to say it but Nintendo has to do a LOT more next gen otherwise those cursed mainstreamers are gonna drive them right out of the home console business. I seriously doubt launching at the same time as the PS3 will help much but I suppose it's better than nothing. Pity their current position is almost totally due to the unbeliveably poor choice of carts over CDs way back when (something i think about a lot with anger whenever I hear bad Nintendo news). Oh well, one of my friends who I never thought would get a GC is now very tempted.

Perhaps they'll go agnostic.

(man, imagine that!)

Then again you could buy the Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles GameCube Bundle at a low, low bargain price ;)

Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles GameCube Bundle

actually, it was 151 pieces. ;)

Quote:

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Originally Posted by bahn

Nintendo also announced a special promotion campaign for <b>Mario Kart: Double Dash</b>. Customers who pre-order the game will receive a special preview disc (similar to the existing discs recently released) featuring playable content and previewable trailers.

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Found out more info about this at the Gamestop in which I preordered my Viewtiful Joe. Apparantly, Nintendo's gonna publish two versions of Mario Kart, one including the disc ONLY for preorders, and one without the disc for straight purchases. No disc before the game or anything. Comes with it.
Nifty, I guess.

hooray!!!

If this doesn't make GC sell better than XBox this XMas then may all the cheap fence sitters burn.