So... A hardware price increase, Gamepass price increase, $1,000 handheld, and most likely a $1,000+ new console (if that even happens) and LESS exclusivity.
Please, make this make sense 🤣
...yeah Microsoft is sabotaging/gutting it's Xbox division. Slow painful death but they should do really well in the 3rd Party ecosystem.
@CaptainCluck I don't think there's a single person on this site that loves GKCs... it's not that simple.
There are, however, two opposing perspectives on this issue. You either believe that the decision to release on GKC was made a long time ago by the 3rd party. Thus, the game was never going to be released Physically period, and GKC was the only other option.
or... you believe that this is a "case by case" decision and that with enough outrage and withholding of purchases, 3rd parties will reverse their production strategies moving forward.
Personally, I think that these decisions were made long in advance, and that the writing has been on the wall for quite some time.
@KociolekDoSyta You both Replied to me Directly... not the other way around. I never even dropped any names in my original comment. Thus, if you took my comment personally, it says much more about you than me.
@SillyG Agreed... that's not Stephen Hawking's definition of intelligence (that I posted in Bold) nor is it my own...
Nobody's asking you to placate anything... the industry is obviously changing. You can either adapt to those changes or you can continue to post the exact same thing on every article. It just really gets old, and it's typically the same people. I can almost hear the sad violin music playing, with every comment.
@KociolekDoSyta Dignity has nothing to do with how one chooses to spend their money...
Dignity has everything to do with how an adult spends their time (especially when they don't get what they want) i.e. bombarding internet comment sections repeatedly, on their soapbox, screaming to the heavens about how they hate GKCs.
@Medic_alert This statement alone, from the article above, clearly shows that a 3rd party dev is the one that must see the value in releasing physical...
This follows comments by CDPR's Vice President of Business Development Jan Rosner, who spoke earlier this year about offering a "complete" physical edition of Cyberpunk 2077 for Switch 2 – stating at the time how "Nintendo at physical retail is still strong, and retail is, in general, not going anywhere".
He further noted how physical releases are "especially important for the Nintendo audience", acknowledging how "the right thing to do" was to have Cyberpunk 2077 "on the cartridge".
There is no GKC/digital vs physical "debate". The decision is up to only one entity, the 3rd party.
Third-party Dev releases game on physical cartridge = Commenters praise Third-party Dev
Third-party Dev releases game on keycard = Commenters blame Nintendo and threaten to boycott Switch 2
It's amazing to me when adults refuse to "put two and two together". It is up to the 3RD PARTY whether the game releases physically or digitally. Games that release on GKC were never going to see a physical release, and this was determined by the 3RD PARTY in advance.
Man... those YouTube boycotts really taught Nintendo a lesson. Maybe those same individuals can rally an Xbox boycott next, since they could really use a sales boost lol.
Also, it appears that Mario Kart World is back from the Dead.
@jojobar it's not just Square... a lot of 3rd parties have already chosen your 2nd option. And to be even more frank, a lot of first parties will be choosing your 2nd option as well.
I'm not saying that I want this to happen, again, I'm saying that the writing has been on the wall for quite some time now. If you believe that, in this day and age, companies will all of sudden start producing more physical games than less then don't hold your breath.
@jojobar if they "totally get this message" then why are they still totally releasing on Game Key Cards?
My friend, if I'm not mistaken, social channels have been complaining since Day 1 and yet... not a single physical release game was announced at this Direct.
I am personally far more upset Square Enix won't release 2D-HD Chrono Trigger but... I won't allow myself to go down that angry rabbit hole right now.
My 2 cents, I used to be physical games only, until I got married and... got tired of my wife nagging me about all of my "physical video game junk". I eventually switched to all digital and the funniest thing happened. Believe it or not, the Sun still rose in morning and set in the evening lol.
Sheesh people, my God, I can understand a vent every now and then but... anyone who has been paying attention to the industry saw this coming. By boycotting Game Key Cards, all you're accomplishing is motivating these companies to move to all digital formats even sooner. Instead of next Gen, it will be this Gen. Mark my words, they'll look at the sales data and determine that there's no point to even offering any alternatives to digital games.
There's no other alternative... physical game releases are on the way out. Once they're gone, they ain't coming back. Even the companies that are still doing it will not be doing it for very long.
I have to admit, originally I was disappointed about this being a live-action film but... "in Miyamoto we trust" lol. I'm actually really excited for Shiggy. I bet he's having a blast putting this whole thing together.
@The_Nintend_Pedant At first glance, "and yes, that's a good thing", can seem "icky", sure...
but the dev quoting Miyamoto actually does believe that it is a good thing. he admires Miyamoto's perspective to his own development process. i think that this quote is being misconstrued by some commenters, as Miyamoto taking a stance on whether or not video games as a whole should be viewed as art.
@progx This ...and thank you for being "that guy", aka the voice of reason amongst the echo chamber.
i try to be as empathetic as i can about this one. Switch 1 was my first gen going all digital, but my God... i would never resort to campaigning online in any Comment Section, fully knowing that i'm accomplishing next to zero.
@Mokabe_brotha Nintendo fans overreacting is never News. Especially, on this site. I witness it everyday.
The Update itself is the News, at least I would assume. Besides, Nintendo could literally Update the game again next week, and "fix" this "game killing" experience. Honestly, do you think that would receive the same sensational Title/Headline?
@pawlslax Agreed... Title should be revised too. The Update itself is the actual News, unpopular or not. Instead, we get Nintendo KILLED Mario Kart World 🤣
@PinderSchloss My friend... I've beaten the game twice and do not recall 50 hours of collecting any item whatsoever.
Anyways, I understand not being able to enjoy a game and I won't fault you for that but... lazy design? You simply cannot be serious? I'm just so shocked by that statement. The crafting and fusing mechanics alone, screams multiple hours of painstaking development.
Furthermore, I started my very first playthrough at the same time as two other family members. Within 2 hours, we had all gone in completely different directions. My point is, there are so many options to how you can play this game. I would argue that it's damn near impossible to play TOTK twice the exact same way.
It's amazing to me, how TOTK continues to live in the heads of certain commenters rent-free. I can understand disliking a game or a change that a longstanding series has taken, but my God... I cannot imagine devoting so much of my time criticizing a game that I did not enjoy.
@jake1421 My comment has nothing to do to with "defending their IP".
With all due respect to the developers, this looks like a Copy-Paste Job with minimal features added after the fact.
Unique Cars: Choose from a lineup of distinct, rad vehicles. Each car comes with its own set of strengths and weaknesses, adding a strategic layer to the race. Find your perfect match and dominate the competition!
In my opinion, there's nothing distinct about these "rad vehicles", they look almost identical to the cars in F-Zero. Even the colors are the same. Furthermore, it has the same Boost and Energy strips. Not to be mean, but as a consumer it comes across as distasteful and I have no interest in supporting it.
As a Nintendo only gamer, my WiiU made me appreciate my 3DS so much more. With the exception of Smash, I decided to go handheld-only for the remainder of that Gen.
The Wind Waker's ReDeads are my hands-down favorite. I haven't played TWW in a while, but I will never forget that part in the dungeon when they emerge from their coffins screaming... so epic.
@Yoshif3 You deserve an Olympic Medal, for the amount of mental gymnastics it must take to turn these awards into a sudden "moment of truth" for the Zelda franchise.
This isn't even necessarily bad news for TOTK. Not only did it win an award, but it was also almost certainly under consideration for GOTY.
@GameOtaku My point about "voting with your wallet/money where your mouth is" was that the F-Zero ship has already sailed. It's too late now. Gamers did not support this series enough on past consoles (including Virtual Console) to entice Nintendo to offer a more traditional offline release.
For the time being, this is the closest thing to a new F-Zero that we're going to get. Hopefully, if this game does well, F-Zero may get another shot and you'll get a chance to support the franchise in a way that doesn't involve a subscription.
@GameOtaku I can't even agree to disagree with you on this one...
F-Zero 99 is marketed to online subscribers. As a subscriber myself, my subscription is the exact same price now, as it was before the game was released. There is no perpetual fee, because there is no price increase. The game is simply a perk for subscribing to the service. Frankly, if you weren't interested in paying for online already then this game wasn't meant for you (Spoiler Alert: it's an online game).
Lastly, I love F-Zero but the series has not met sales expectations for quite some time. Infact, I remember reading that every entry has sold less than the previous one. This is just an unfortunate reality. Furthermore, I've been around this site long enough to know that at least half the people clamoring that this isn't the game that they wanted, are the same people who would: wait for a sale, nitpick about framerate, or whine about some other tedious non-issue. All the while, if there was ever an IP that needed gamers to "put their money where their mouth is", it was F-Zero.
Comments 386
Re: Nintendo Reveals New Line Of Metroid Merch, And We Want It All
Hmmm... I dunno... 🤔
All this cool Merch has such an Open World vibe to it...
Really hurts my feeling of isolation...
I think that I should complain
Re: Microsoft On Its Gaming Business Going Forward: "We Want To Be Everywhere"
So... A hardware price increase, Gamepass price increase, $1,000 handheld, and most likely a $1,000+ new console (if that even happens) and LESS exclusivity.
Please, make this make sense 🤣
...yeah Microsoft is sabotaging/gutting it's Xbox division. Slow painful death but they should do really well in the 3rd Party ecosystem.
Re: Pokémon Legends: Z-A Scored US' Biggest Physical Game Launch Since TOTK
B... Bu... But... Surely it will be Doomed this Holiday Season, right?
Re: Opinion: Sonic Racing Crossworlds > Mario Kart World, And It's Not Even Close For Me
Neither... F-ZERO 99
Re: Video: SEGA Shares "First Look" At Yakuza Kiwami 3's Combat Gameplay
@CaptainCluck I don't think there's a single person on this site that loves GKCs... it's not that simple.
There are, however, two opposing perspectives on this issue. You either believe that the decision to release on GKC was made a long time ago by the 3rd party. Thus, the game was never going to be released Physically period, and GKC was the only other option.
or... you believe that this is a "case by case" decision and that with enough outrage and withholding of purchases, 3rd parties will reverse their production strategies moving forward.
Personally, I think that these decisions were made long in advance, and that the writing has been on the wall for quite some time.
Re: Game-Key Cards A "Sales Strategy Decision", Says Resident Evil Requiem Director
@topsekret Cowardly... Moi?
Honestly, I didn't want to respond you lol. But... you've replied to me twice... so...
Thank you, for calling me Witty. That was very kind.
Re: Game-Key Cards A "Sales Strategy Decision", Says Resident Evil Requiem Director
plays sad violin music
@KociolekDoSyta You both Replied to me Directly... not the other way around. I never even dropped any names in my original comment. Thus, if you took my comment personally, it says much more about you than me.
Re: Game-Key Cards A "Sales Strategy Decision", Says Resident Evil Requiem Director
@SillyG Agreed... that's not Stephen Hawking's definition of intelligence (that I posted in Bold) nor is it my own...
Nobody's asking you to placate anything... the industry is obviously changing. You can either adapt to those changes or you can continue to post the exact same thing on every article. It just really gets old, and it's typically the same people. I can almost hear the sad violin music playing, with every comment.
Re: Game-Key Cards A "Sales Strategy Decision", Says Resident Evil Requiem Director
@KociolekDoSyta Dignity has nothing to do with how one chooses to spend their money...
Dignity has everything to do with how an adult spends their time (especially when they don't get what they want) i.e. bombarding internet comment sections repeatedly, on their soapbox, screaming to the heavens about how they hate GKCs.
...we get it ...we heard you the first 20 times.
Re: Game-Key Cards A "Sales Strategy Decision", Says Resident Evil Requiem Director
"Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change" - Stephen Hawking
...this is dedicated to the 5 - 10 GKC Warriors. Let it go... First World problems and we're all adults, right? Embrace your dignity 💯
Re: Capcom Switch 2 Launch Title Gets Its First Big eShop Discount
@Lizuka
Yeah... I don't think the price will get any lower. You should buy it.
Re: Nintendo Direct September 2025: Every Announcement, Game Reveal, Trailer
I'm a very biased and stubborn Gamer... 10/10 😁
10/10, for Fire Emblem alone 🔥
Metroid Prime 4 looks awesome... and Mario Galaxy 1 & 2 are my favorite 3D Mario games ❤️
Perfection 💯
Re: Ubisoft Employee Explains Why Star Wars Outlaws Is A Game-Key Card
You know that your "debate" has gone stale, when Ubisoft enters the conversation as the Voice of Reason...
Can't wait for the incoming mental gymnastics from Comment Section Armchair Developers lol
Re: CD Projekt Reveals 75% Of Cyberpunk 2077 Switch 2 Sales Were Physical In Opening Month
@Medic_alert This statement alone, from the article above, clearly shows that a 3rd party dev is the one that must see the value in releasing physical...
This follows comments by CDPR's Vice President of Business Development Jan Rosner, who spoke earlier this year about offering a "complete" physical edition of Cyberpunk 2077 for Switch 2 – stating at the time how "Nintendo at physical retail is still strong, and retail is, in general, not going anywhere".
He further noted how physical releases are "especially important for the Nintendo audience", acknowledging how "the right thing to do" was to have Cyberpunk 2077 "on the cartridge".
There is no GKC/digital vs physical "debate". The decision is up to only one entity, the 3rd party.
Re: CD Projekt Reveals 75% Of Cyberpunk 2077 Switch 2 Sales Were Physical In Opening Month
Third-party Dev releases game on physical cartridge = Commenters praise Third-party Dev
Third-party Dev releases game on keycard = Commenters blame Nintendo and threaten to boycott Switch 2
It's amazing to me when adults refuse to "put two and two together". It is up to the 3RD PARTY whether the game releases physically or digitally. Games that release on GKC were never going to see a physical release, and this was determined by the 3RD PARTY in advance.
Re: He-Man Is The Next '80s Icon Getting His Own Stunning Arcade-Style Retro Revival
Nice... As an 80's kid and lover of beat em ups, this made my day 😁
Re: Poll: Box Art Brawl - Duel: WarioWare, Inc.: Mega Microgame$!
Blue might be my favorite color, however, this was too easy... NA/Europe.
Re: Switch 2 Has Sold "More Than 6 Million" Units, And Almost As Many Copies Of Mario Kart World
@Haruki_NLI #32 THIS
This Comment should be required reading, before allowing any further comments on Game Key Cards.
Re: Switch 2 Has Sold "More Than 6 Million" Units, And Almost As Many Copies Of Mario Kart World
Man... those YouTube boycotts really taught Nintendo a lesson. Maybe those same individuals can rally an Xbox boycott next, since they could really use a sales boost lol.
Also, it appears that Mario Kart World is back from the Dead.
Re: Octopath 0 Is A Game-Key Card On Switch 2, And Square Enix Has "No Plans" For A Switch 1 Upgrade Option
@jojobar it's not just Square... a lot of 3rd parties have already chosen your 2nd option. And to be even more frank, a lot of first parties will be choosing your 2nd option as well.
I'm not saying that I want this to happen, again, I'm saying that the writing has been on the wall for quite some time now. If you believe that, in this day and age, companies will all of sudden start producing more physical games than less then don't hold your breath.
Re: Octopath 0 Is A Game-Key Card On Switch 2, And Square Enix Has "No Plans" For A Switch 1 Upgrade Option
@jojobar if they "totally get this message" then why are they still totally releasing on Game Key Cards?
My friend, if I'm not mistaken, social channels have been complaining since Day 1 and yet... not a single physical release game was announced at this Direct.
Re: Octopath 0 Is A Game-Key Card On Switch 2, And Square Enix Has "No Plans" For A Switch 1 Upgrade Option
I am personally far more upset Square Enix won't release 2D-HD Chrono Trigger but... I won't allow myself to go down that angry rabbit hole right now.
My 2 cents, I used to be physical games only, until I got married and... got tired of my wife nagging me about all of my "physical video game junk". I eventually switched to all digital and the funniest thing happened. Believe it or not, the Sun still rose in morning and set in the evening lol.
Sheesh people, my God, I can understand a vent every now and then but... anyone who has been paying attention to the industry saw this coming. By boycotting Game Key Cards, all you're accomplishing is motivating these companies to move to all digital formats even sooner. Instead of next Gen, it will be this Gen. Mark my words, they'll look at the sales data and determine that there's no point to even offering any alternatives to digital games.
There's no other alternative... physical game releases are on the way out. Once they're gone, they ain't coming back. Even the companies that are still doing it will not be doing it for very long.
Re: Marvel's New Beat 'Em Up 'Cosmic Invasion' Reveals Two More Playable Characters
Nice... Day 1.
Hopefully, we'll also get Black Panther, Hulk, and Thor. Then I'll have all of my personal favorites in this game.
Re: Nintendo Announces First Cast Members For The Legend Of Zelda Movie
I have to admit, originally I was disappointed about this being a live-action film but... "in Miyamoto we trust" lol. I'm actually really excited for Shiggy. I bet he's having a blast putting this whole thing together.
I wonder who will be chosen to play Ganon?
Re: Miyamoto Views Games As 'Products', Not 'Works Of Art', Says Ex-Nintendo Dev
@The_Nintend_Pedant Hmmm... yeah... i gotta admit, you are right about the subheadlines. i like those better.
"work for the consumer, not your boss", i really love this quote too. would have been nice if this was incorporated in the subheadline.
Re: Miyamoto Views Games As 'Products', Not 'Works Of Art', Says Ex-Nintendo Dev
@The_Nintend_Pedant At first glance, "and yes, that's a good thing", can seem "icky", sure...
but the dev quoting Miyamoto actually does believe that it is a good thing. he admires Miyamoto's perspective to his own development process. i think that this quote is being misconstrued by some commenters, as Miyamoto taking a stance on whether or not video games as a whole should be viewed as art.
Re: Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition Release Date Could Be Revealed Soon, As Switch 2 Rating Spotted
@progx This ...and thank you for being "that guy", aka the voice of reason amongst the echo chamber.
i try to be as empathetic as i can about this one. Switch 1 was my first gen going all digital, but my God... i would never resort to campaigning online in any Comment Section, fully knowing that i'm accomplishing next to zero.
Re: Of Course Mario Kart World Is Being Review Bombed
So immature and self-sabotaging. You waste the opportunity to voice a legitimate concern, in favor of throwing an internet tantrum.
Next, you probably head to your favorite Comment section, to sulk about how you're not being heard and how Nintendo doesn't listen to it's fans.
Re: Fans Reckon Nintendo Has "Killed" Mario Kart World With Its Latest Update
@Mokabe_brotha Nintendo fans overreacting is never News. Especially, on this site. I witness it everyday.
The Update itself is the News, at least I would assume. Besides, Nintendo could literally Update the game again next week, and "fix" this "game killing" experience. Honestly, do you think that would receive the same sensational Title/Headline?
Re: Fans Reckon Nintendo Has "Killed" Mario Kart World With Its Latest Update
@pawlslax Agreed... Title should be revised too. The Update itself is the actual News, unpopular or not. Instead, we get Nintendo KILLED Mario Kart World 🤣
Re: Nintendo Appears To Have Updated Donkey Kong Bananza's Switch 2 File Size
@Automated_Unit_4937 This
@Bigmanfan ...and This
Re: Zelda Producer Responds To Fans Who Want A More "Traditional Linear" Adventure
@PinderSchloss My friend... I've beaten the game twice and do not recall 50 hours of collecting any item whatsoever.
Anyways, I understand not being able to enjoy a game and I won't fault you for that but... lazy design? You simply cannot be serious? I'm just so shocked by that statement. The crafting and fusing mechanics alone, screams multiple hours of painstaking development.
Furthermore, I started my very first playthrough at the same time as two other family members. Within 2 hours, we had all gone in completely different directions. My point is, there are so many options to how you can play this game. I would argue that it's damn near impossible to play TOTK twice the exact same way.
Re: Zelda Producer Responds To Fans Who Want A More "Traditional Linear" Adventure
@PinderSchloss It’s the laziness of TotK I will never accept. There was so much to do and I got bored.
I'm confused... So... TOTK is lazy, because there was too much to do... and you got bored?
Ironically lol, you do know the definition of the word Lazy, right?
Re: Zelda Producer Responds To Fans Who Want A More "Traditional Linear" Adventure
It's amazing to me, how TOTK continues to live in the heads of certain commenters rent-free. I can understand disliking a game or a change that a longstanding series has taken, but my God... I cannot imagine devoting so much of my time criticizing a game that I did not enjoy.
Re: 'Star Racer' Is A Rad Mix Of F-Zero And Star Fox, With Music From Banjo Composer
@jake1421 My comment has nothing to do to with "defending their IP".
With all due respect to the developers, this looks like a Copy-Paste Job with minimal features added after the fact.
Unique Cars: Choose from a lineup of distinct, rad vehicles. Each car comes with its own set of strengths and weaknesses, adding a strategic layer to the race. Find your perfect match and dominate the competition!
In my opinion, there's nothing distinct about these "rad vehicles", they look almost identical to the cars in F-Zero. Even the colors are the same. Furthermore, it has the same Boost and Energy strips. Not to be mean, but as a consumer it comes across as distasteful and I have no interest in supporting it.
Re: 'Star Racer' Is A Rad Mix Of F-Zero And Star Fox, With Music From Banjo Composer
Rad Mix = 99% F-Zero + 1% Star Fox (b/c Star is in the title?).
This is just way too close to the source material for me to support.
Re: F-Zero 99 Update (Version 1.1.0) Adding New "Classic Race" Mode This Week
Awesome
I don't play as frequently as I used to but the Love is still there. I've always been a sucker for 16bit sprites and I want to support F-Zero.
Re: Soapbox: Ocarina Of Time's Deku Tree Dungeon Is Still My All-Time Top Gaming Moment
Nice Read, absolutely adoring all of the recent Ocarina attention. In fact, I am debating booting up OOT right now lol.
The Forest Temple is still my favorite dungeon of all time, but this is ranked at a very close 2nd.
Re: Feature: Why I Still Love My Wii U
As a Nintendo only gamer, my WiiU made me appreciate my 3DS so much more. With the exception of Smash, I decided to go handheld-only for the remainder of that Gen.
Re: Soapbox: Losing Control - Why Zelda’s ReDead Strike Fear Into Our Souls
The Wind Waker's ReDeads are my hands-down favorite. I haven't played TWW in a while, but I will never forget that part in the dungeon when they emerge from their coffins screaming... so epic.
Re: Soapbox: Ocarina Of Time's Water Temple Was Tough, But It Doesn't Deserve Its Reputation
Nice Read.
Absolutely loving all of the Zelda articles, NintendoLife.
Re: Soapbox: Six Months Later, Tears Of The Kingdom's Sense Of Wonder Is Still Unmatched
@LikelySatan Imo, Vapid by definition, fits the criticism perfectly... Within an hour, you'll see that TOTK is clearly GOTY worthy.
The same people that are bashing the game right now, were bashing it before it even released.
Re: Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom Wins Nintendo GOTY At Golden Joystick Awards 2023
@Yoshif3 You deserve an Olympic Medal, for the amount of mental gymnastics it must take to turn these awards into a sudden "moment of truth" for the Zelda franchise.
This isn't even necessarily bad news for TOTK. Not only did it win an award, but it was also almost certainly under consideration for GOTY.
Re: Talking Point: So, Who Could Play Link, Zelda, Ganondorf In The Upcoming Zelda Movie?
Dude... Praying for Divine Intervention. Please cancel this or make an animated film. I'm having original Super Mario Bros. movie vibes already 💯
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 23rd)
F-Zero 99 has me riding the Retro Wave. I think I'll go with Chrono Trigger and Contra Anniversary Collection.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 16th)
@AndroidiOS No problem, my friend... I'm also a fan of Shredder's Revenge (DLC was awesome).
Italics is an underscore at the beginning and end of your desired text.
...and that's all that I know lol. I never figured out how to post images and just gave up. If you learn any new tricks then please let me know.
Happy Gaming 💯
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (September 16th)
@AndroidiOS Bold is an asterisk at the beginning and end of your desired text.
Re: Takaya Imamura Expresses His Love For F-Zero 99, Awaits 'Revival Of The IP'
@GameOtaku My point about "voting with your wallet/money where your mouth is" was that the F-Zero ship has already sailed. It's too late now. Gamers did not support this series enough on past consoles (including Virtual Console) to entice Nintendo to offer a more traditional offline release.
For the time being, this is the closest thing to a new F-Zero that we're going to get. Hopefully, if this game does well, F-Zero may get another shot and you'll get a chance to support the franchise in a way that doesn't involve a subscription.
Re: Takaya Imamura Expresses His Love For F-Zero 99, Awaits 'Revival Of The IP'
@GameOtaku I can't even agree to disagree with you on this one...
F-Zero 99 is marketed to online subscribers. As a subscriber myself, my subscription is the exact same price now, as it was before the game was released. There is no perpetual fee, because there is no price increase. The game is simply a perk for subscribing to the service. Frankly, if you weren't interested in paying for online already then this game wasn't meant for you (Spoiler Alert: it's an online game).
Lastly, I love F-Zero but the series has not met sales expectations for quite some time. Infact, I remember reading that every entry has sold less than the previous one. This is just an unfortunate reality. Furthermore, I've been around this site long enough to know that at least half the people clamoring that this isn't the game that they wanted, are the same people who would: wait for a sale, nitpick about framerate, or whine about some other tedious non-issue. All the while, if there was ever an IP that needed gamers to "put their money where their mouth is", it was F-Zero.
Re: Takaya Imamura Expresses His Love For F-Zero 99, Awaits 'Revival Of The IP'
@GameOtaku They also could've driven the Blue Falcon to my house and handed me the keys... gimme a break lol.
By your logic, I pay a perpetual fee for visiting this website, because I pay my Internet bill every month.