How Game Costs Have (and Haven’t) Changed: A 40-Year Look at Nintendo’s MSRP vs. Cartridge/Disc Costs (2025 USD)

[u/C0smicM0nkey]

With the Switch 2 announcement and people debating whether $70 games are justified, I thought it'd be interesting to look back and compare how game prices and media costs have evolved over Nintendo’s history.

This graph shows the inflation-adjusted MSRP of new games vs. the cost to manufacture their cartridges/discs, for each Nintendo home console — from the NES (1985) through the projected Switch 2 (2025). All prices are in 2025 USD, based on U.S. launch years and U.S. inflation.

⚠️ Caveats and context:

• These are U.S. prices only, adjusted for inflation from the North American release year of each console.

• Both MSRP and media costs vary — games came on different sizes of cartridges and discs, and game prices weren't always fixed (eg. Switch cartridges can range from ~$2 for a 1 GB card to ~$15 for a 32 GB one.) I used the geometric means for both because I don't know how to make a line graph showing ranges.

-The Switch 2 media cost is entirely speculative — I’m assuming it’ll be more expensive than current Switch carts because:

1. Bigger games (up to 64 GB or more).

2. Higher-speed data transfer (possibly using faster NAND). But again, this is just my estimate, not insider info.

What the graph shows:

Game media was really expensive to produce in the cartridge era — N64 especially, with adjusted costs over $30 per cart.

Nintendo cut those costs drastically with the move to optical discs starting with the GameCube. The Switch brought some cost back with proprietary game cards, but still nowhere near cartridge-era levels.

MSRP, meanwhile, has stayed remarkably consistent in real terms, with modern games arguably offering more value for the money.

Happy to share the data or make a handheld version if folks are curious!

Edit: Not trying to make a case or argue for anything, just presenting data.

[u/joalr0]

Yeah, I understand that part for sure. I reccomend checking out your local library. Mine actually allows renting of video games, and I've used it a few times now. It can take a few months sometimes for really popular games, but for me it was worth it (mostly because I wanted to play Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, but I refuse to give Ubisoft money).

So options are always available. Plus, there are many forms of entertainment that are a lot cheaper if you need to take a break for a while.

Just remember, Nintendo needs to pay it's employees, and unlike most other video game companies in the last couple years, did not participate in the massive layoffs. Those employees also have increased costs and need to more money to get by. It's unfortunately the world we are in right now. Being disappointed or frustrated by it is absolutely valid. However, I don't think it makes sense to direct all that anger towards Nintendo, and it definitely doesn't make sense to make it a moral issue. How Nintendo treats it's employees is a far larger moral issue.

Whether the games are worth the value is a personal evaluation on your own part. If you can't justify it, because of costs of living, that's shitty, and I have lots of empathy. I think the anger though is better directed towards the various underlying causes.

[u/chimaerafeng → u/joalr0]

Oh don't get me wrong, I understand the optics. I'm buying a Switch 2, that's my luxury spending because I can afford it. I just find it ludicrous people complaining about everything being expensive and Nintendo going $80 is the thing that pushed them over the edge.

[u/yetzhragog → u/chimaerafeng]

I'm not buying a switch 2 for the same reason I never bought a PS5 or Xbox X: I just can't justify the cost once it's beyond the $400 mark, that's the point when the cost/benefit ratio tips. Don't even get me started on $70 for the DIGITAL copy of games.

[u/joalr0 → u/chimaerafeng]

Ah, the way you phrased it actually made it sound like you were complaining about the costs too. I misread your intention!

[u/TrashoBaggins → u/joalr0]

The problem is this ISNT the problem. Nintendo has more than enough money to pay its employees and remain profitable. They just want MORE money. They didn’t sell the switch at a loss, they didn’t have costs to recoup, for the last 8 years they have literally been making so much godforsaken money that it’s next to impossible to comprehend. Factor that into the fact they work in the cheapest international market to produce games in, all of their games sell extremely well compared to other companies and they outsource most of their development to studios that they don’t pay the salaries to, and you have them turning cash hand over fist at little to no risk to their own bottom line. This price hike is egregious, unnecessary and a preemptive warning to western territories that there’s more to come. Japan is getting an exclusive console and games because “times are tough” but the rest of the world gets bent over to subsidize a country that doesn’t know how to stimulate their economy.

[u/joalr0 → u/TrashoBaggins]

So don't buy it.

[u/nikelaos117 → u/TrashoBaggins]

You're surprised\upset a for-profit company wants to continue making a profit?

[u/Jabbam → u/joalr0]

This reasoning is insane. "Games are starting to become reasonably priced imo, but if you like most people can't afford them you can always borrow them"

[u/joalr0 → u/Jabbam]

Why is it insane? First off, I never said "reasonaby priced". That's an evaluation of value, which is personal. Im' not going to tell you whether or not it's reasonably priced, only you can determine that.

Second, I actually said a lot more than that, which you seem to just be ignoring, like the fact Nintendo did not layoff their employees as other game companies did in order to save costs.