Nintendo NX Will Be ‘Dead In The Water’ If It Costs $399 – Michael Pachter

The trouble with the Nintendo NX at this point is that Nintendo have gone for too long without sharing much about it- while speculating about what the new system amy be may have been fun or exciting at first, at this point, I think most people are just tired of the endless cycle of leaks, rumors, speculation, and insider reports.

Which explains why most people are swearing off of commenting on the actual thing unless we know exactly what it is that we are commenting on. For instance, take Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter. We recently had the chance to talk to him, and we asked him about the NX, and where it fits in with the upcoming PS4 Pro and Xbox One Scorpio- he noted that the system’s price in the market would be instrumental in making or breaking its fortunes.

“If the NX is really a handheld with a docking station, it could have trouble getting noticed,” Pachter mused. “I think that NX will sell well if it gets third party support, and in order for that to happen, it has to be something that publishers think will sell well.  It’s still impossible to have a forecast when we don’t actually know what it is or what it will cost.  If it’s a console and costs $199, it will sell extremely well; if it’s a handheld and costs $399, it’s dead in the water.  The odds are that it’s something in between, but I don’t want to guess until I see what it is.”

Which is fair- Nintendo are refusing to even acknowledge the NX much, and others aren’t allowed to talk about it beyond tantalizing leaks and hints. At this point, educated guesses are the best we’ve got, and Pachter’s assessment seems to be reasonably realistic. In the end, if Nintendo want the NX to succeed, they will probably want to ensure that they price it just right, more than anything else- they can’t afford to repeat the Wii U and 3DS launch pricing debacles again this time around.