Topic: Here's the problem I have with Russian eShop pricing

Okay, I can't sit still and I have to share it with someone.

There's Snake Pass on sale on the Russian eShop. 1399 roubles cut down to 699. Seems reasonable. A 50% discount is nothing to scoff at.

Bu then it's also on Steam. For 209 roubles, down from the regular price of 419. Here's a big question for the big N: which one are most people likely to buy?

Think about it: even with a 50% discount Snake Pass on the eShop is 60% more expensive than Snake Pass on Steam at full price.

Granted, Steam has some kind of a region lock in Russia, so that games bought here can only be activated on Russian accounts. (Based on user's IP probably?) And I would be fine with that. Nintendo has to get at some point that these prices simply don't make sense for 80% of Russian customers. Okay, I'm willing to spend 1/5th of my salary on a Zelda or Mario cartridge. But on digital multi-platform titles? I simply see no reason. (And please don't tell me that reason is playing them on the go!) I'm sure the same is true for Latin America and other countries with weaker economies.

Finally, here's another one for you. The top-selling game on the Russian eShop for the last month has been Enter the Gungeon. The reason? It costs 349 roubles, which is an expected price for a digital title like this one.

So is it up to the developers? Publishers? Nintendo? Either way, something has to change.

P.S. Hey, look, it seems to be my first forum post and I'm already bashing Nintendo! But... that's because I simply love them and want them to get even better.

I'd guess snake pass' pricing is more up to the developer/publisher than it is to Nintendo.

@pinta_vodki
a) Steam will nearly always undercut any prices you can find on the eshop
b) Snake Pass will very likely go cheaper on the eshop at some point, but if you're expecting sales of 75% off on the eshop within the first year of release you're dreaming, I think only Oxenfree has done that, and that's an older game that was very much the exception currently.

Eshop and steam are two completely different markets.

It's the same when people try compare the app store with eshop.

Don't blame Nintendo. Blame the publisher of the game itself.