[musicale]

> I don’t understand why Nintendo is so attached to their hardware in 2024,

Yes, you do not.

Nintendo makes a lot of money selling hardware. Switch is the third most successful game console of all time, behind the PS2 and Nintendo's own DS. Switch was always profitable vs. component and manufacturing cost, and this has largely gotten better over time with the exception of covid-related supply chain disruptions. Nintendo has no need or desire to follow in Sega's footsteps.

Switch consoles mean Nintendo can sell physical game cards. Physical media are important in Japan, and important elsewhere since they allow fully offline operation.

Moreover, Nintendo doesn't want to sacrifice its platform fees to the likes of Valve, Apple, or Google.

[selfmodruntime]

> Nintendo makes a lot of money selling hardware

They do, but the majority of their library is not available on current hardware. I think not understanding this as a business decision is a valid opinion.

[oniony]

By restricting access to their classic portfolio, it inflates the value of it so they can periodically release it on new platforms in a time limited fashion.

Disney did the same thing with their classic movies during the VHS/DVD era. If they were all available all the time then nobody would even think to watch them. But by creating scarcity and then periodically releasing them in a time limited special edition they can eke out more money.

So Nintendo do not want everyone to be blasse about their back catalogue. They want the nostalgia to build and then release some of these titles every so often so you buy them over and over again.

[selfmodruntime]

> By restricting access to their classic portfolio, it inflates the value of it so they can periodically release it on new platforms in a time limited fashion.

One would think so, but there are incredible games in their portfolio that have never seen a single re-release - on any platform. The old Pokemon games are among it, as is A link to the past.

[rimunroe]

> One would think so, but there are incredible games in their portfolio that have never seen a single re-release - on any platform. The old Pokemon games are among it, as is A link to the past.

Maybe you're using a different definition of re-release than I am, but I recently played A Link to the Past on the Switch virtual console. I also played the Game Boy Advance re-release of it in the early 2000s. Apparently it's also been released for the Wii, Wii U, New 3DS, and Super NES Classic Edition.

A quick check of Wikipedia shows that in addition to their remakes, Pokemon Red/Blue/Yellow were also released on the 3DS virtual console.

[selfmodruntime]

You did? I'm in Germany and I don't see it. Is it the one where you need a subscription?

[rimunroe]

It was the Switch Online one, yeah. I'm in the US but haven't run my Switch in a while so can't easily check atm

[mc3301]

Physical media in Japan is important for a lot of reasons. Just looking around, the Music CD rental market is still big here... I have spoken to many people who have no streamers, they buy or rent all their DVDs and BluRays. There's the collectors thing, too, with "special edition" and "limited time" offers, etc. Physical media has a lot of love in Japan.

[boredtofears]

> Physical media are important in Japan

Genuinely curious: why is that?

[musicale]

“I’m not a prophet or anything, but I believe that physical media will have more longevity here for the same reason that I think magazines do, which is that anyone can step out of their house and walk five feet [to buy one],” says Ricciardi. “It’s just easier to get to these things in Japan.”

https://www.theverge.com/24055863/akihabara-japan-retro-vide...

[prmoustache]

Because ironically they don't have much room to store them so it becomes a luxury they cherish?