1UP Wii :: NintendoRAW

Used Game Prices Dropped 23.7% by End of 2008

In yet another indication of the myriad ways the recession is effecting the videogame industry, Video Game Price Charts reports (via Gamasutra) that the average price for a used game saw a significant drop in 2008, ending 23.7 percent lower than where it started in January.

As you can see in the chart above, the average price for a used game started at $12.69 at the beginning of January last year. But by November 3rd, the price tumbled to its lowest point of the year -- $8.57, a 32.5 percent decrease from the starting price. The average price ticked up again in the remaining days of 2008, and finally ended at $9.68, which was a decrease of 23.7 percent.

What's particularly interesting about these numbers -- and where you see the real effect of the recession -- is when you compare them to the price fluctuations of 2007. As you can see in the chart below, the average price of a used game saw a similarly downward trajectory in 2007, indicating a decrease over the year is natural. But the extent of the drop was far less drastic than that seen in 2008. The lowest point of the year was a 30.4% drop from the starting price, but then the price ticked back up by 26.6% for a total loss of only 11.8% of the starting value.

Eduardo the Samurai Toaster Announced for WiiWare

Semnat Studios announced today that it will be releasing Eduardo the Samurai Toaster for WiiWare this winter. The old-school shooter features a colorful art style as our hero Eduardo battles pastries and fruit, and it's already been rated E by the ESRB. The game will deliver drop-in 4-player cooperative play, ~~showing a real sign of faith in the Wii's online capabilities.~~ [the developer informed us that co-op is offline only - ed.]

Semnat is a independent developer, exactly the kind Nintendo stated they were hoping to entice with the low development costs of WiiWare. The service hasn't seen many top-tier releases, but maybe more developers putting their time in will change that perception. Check out the screens while we wait for more details on the delicious action title.

Molyneux Questions Game Prices, Release Schedules

Lionhead boss Peter Molyneux recently questioned the stability of current game prices and the traditional release schedule in an end-of-year report from BBC News. "Everyone says games are good value for home entertainment, despite the relatively high price," he said. "I'm not so sure. I think we're going to see a lot of price pressure put on games." We've recently heard analysts echo similar statements that the traditional $50-60 price model for new titles may be more flexible in the current economic climate.

He also questioned the wisdom of saving big titles for the holiday season. As an example, he cited Little Big Planet's "superb artistry and fatastic marketing," but lamented its disappointing sales. "I wonder if Christmas is really the right time to release a new title," he said. "We've got into a rhythm [of sequels at Christmas] which is all fair and well while people are buying games, but we have to make sure we don't get complacent."

It's hard to argue that the prices of games could stand some readjusting, but for now they're staying fairly solid. It will most likely take one developer making a solid profit on a reduced-price game to prove to others that it can work. While you're waiting for that to happen, it might be a good idea to check out our recession gaming feature for ideas on how to save a bit of money.

Kirby's Dreamland 3 Now Available on Virtual Console

It's a new year, and Nintendo is settling back into new Virtual Console and WiiWare releases. Unfortunately, there are only two new games for your perusal this week.

First up is the Super Nintendo's Kirby's Dream Land 3 for 800 points ($8). This game has the distinction of being the final first-party title released on the system, though you may find the music and the difficulty somewhat weaker than usual. Take this as a nice way of saying that your mileage may vary.

Your WiiWare offering is Konami's Sandy Beach for 500 points ($5), which lets you construct "elaborate sand castles." Those with a creative bent can simply build, but there's also a tower defense mode in which players must defend their castle from invading crabs.

Michael Pachter Offers Guesses on Holiday Console Sales

You probably gathered by now that the Wii did pretty well this holiday season, the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 perhaps not as much. But we want educated guesses, and for that, we turn to Wedbush Morgan oracle Michael Pachter.

Pachter offered his thoughts on the upcoming NPD figures, telling videogaming247, "I haven't done the work for NPD yet, but my guess is that 360 sales were flat or up a little, PS3 sales down a little, and Wii sales up more than 100%."

He added that he figured that would amount to "1.2 to 1.3 million 360s," around 700,000 PS3s and 3 million Wiis. So that would mean that things remained pretty much the same this holiday season despite Microsoft's aggressive pricing strategy and the PlayStation 3's LittleBigPlanet. Seems like the trends for this generation are pretty much set.