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<p class="speakableTextP1">When <span class="link" section="shortcodeLink"><a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/the-legend-of-zelda-skyward-sword-hd-hits-nintendo-switch-on-july-16/">The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword</a></span> launched for the Nintendo Wii back in 2011, the motion-controlled adventure was priced at $49.99. This week, Nintendo announced a remastered version of the game for the Switch: The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD, priced at $59.99, adding a dollar to the price tag for every year that's passed <span class="link" section="shortcodeLink"><a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/is-the-legend-of-zelda-skyward-sword-the-wiis-last-great-game/">since the original game's release</a></span>. </p><p class="speakableTextP2">Nintendo fans everywhere let out a quiet sigh of resignation. Skyward Sword, a 10-year-old Wii game, is more expensive than it was when it first came out a decade ago -- and it's going to stay expensive, because first-party Nintendo Switch games almost never get price drops. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, a <span class="link" section="shortcodeLink"><a href="https://www.cnet.com/reviews/mario-kart-8-deluxe-review/">port of a Nintendo Wii U game that launched in 2017</a></span>, still sells for full price almost four years later. Super Mario Odyssey does too, as well as <span class="link" section="shortcodeLink"><a href="https://www.cnet.com/news/three-years-on-im-still-recovering-from-breath-of-the-wild/">The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild</a></span>, Super Mario Party, and New Super Mario Bros. 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Everyone dislikes this. In fact, it feels wrong. Nintendo's competitors, like Sony, routinely and permanently drop prices for big-budget AAA games. God of War for PS4 launched in April 2018 for $59.99, but by October the price was permanently lowered to just $39.99. Today, it costs under $20. Marvel's Spider-Man was released that same year and was given a similar $20 price drop in February 2019. Xbox, PlayStation and PC game releases often see big price drops within the first year, or not long after. It feels like an industry standard practice. As buyers, we've come to expect it, and that expectation makes Nintendo's consistently high prices feel jarring. Like Nintendo is being unfair. </p><div class="newsletter-subscribe-form desktop -inline " section="subscribeNewsletter" data-track="newsletter" readability="6.5">
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