Do you consider AAA and indie Nintendo games as equals?

[Marc]

I'm curious what you guys have to say about this. In a recent interview, it was revealed that Nintendo considers AAA and indie games as equals and they do not promote either just because they're different.

On Nintendo platforms, we don’t really differentiate between AAA titles from established firms and indie games. In actuality, they’re lined up as equals in the Nintendo eShop. We don’t specially promote indie games just because they are indie games, and conversely we don’t prioritize them below AAA titles either.

Do you consider AAA and indie game titles as equals?
Do you think they deserve to be promoted differently in the Nintendo eShop?

 

[Duffy]

Hmmmm although I don't think of them as equals, I do think they shouldn't be neglected in the eshop. AAA games already have marketing budgets on their own and can sell a ton of physical games, while indies might not have that money and might not be physical. So if Nintendo puts them next to big games on the eshop I think that's only good for them, and possibly part of the reason indies sell so well on Switch. And saying stuff like this to the public will probably just attract more indie developers to the Switch.

 

[Starry Windy]

While I don't think of AAA games and Indie games as equals because each of them are unique, I do agree that they should share the same spotlight so that AAA games and Indie games can attract any Nintendo gamers.

 

[EstebanTill2]

I think they are equals as long as they are games, that means, they are created to entertain, to be played, to have fun with them, to tell a story. Sometimes, I feel that indie games have much greater stories to tell than those of certain triple A game. I don´t really care if a game is called triple A or doublé A or just A, the only thing I care is that the game is fun to play and has a good story to tell. Take owlboy for example, it is an indie game and not because of that has fewer merits than those developed by huge companies.

 

[NintendoBoi61]

In regards to this discussion, AAA games and Indie Games are different, but Nintendo promotes them equally which is good news for everyone. The key difference between AAA games and indie games is that one takes a lot of cash to make, the other doesn't. What Nintendo is doing is absolutley right, as both games get equal attention and gives them a good image(by them I mean the games creators and Nintendo). On a side note, the Switch Eshop is a bit untidy.

 

[scottypops]

While I don't think of AAA games and Indie games as equals because each of them are unique, I do agree that they should share the same spotlight so that AAA games and Indie games can attract any Nintendo gamers.

I'm in agreement with this. Neither should be promoted above the other, but they are in different categories by necessity owing to their budgets/resources differing so drastically.

 

[Artisan]

Yes. Some AAA games can end up bad and some indie games are uber hard but top notch for making it beatable. Both have the power to make good games and it's up to the gamers to snoop around for the good indie games. There's less risk buying indie games too because they are normally cheaper and can still support themselves. They are equals and no one can call one better than the other. That's just being rude or egotistical.

 

[Kitsune_Sakura64]

No, simply because of lack of resources for the indie games. Because there aren't as many people to check and re-check for bugs, you end up with ridiculous things that could easily have been fixed, such as two "increase/decrease" options being mislabeled, or a name (just one) that factory resets every time you turn the game on, when it's supposed to let you name it whatever you like.

I am referring, of course, to Rune Factory 4. Normally you could argue "they could release an update to fix it", but the company disbanded after going bankrupt... Maybe with its revival on switch, an update is a reasonable expectation?

^^ Going along with that, in Culdcept Revolt a lot of its rules go unexplained, which, fine, but when some of the cards have been mis-translated, it's more than frustrating.

 

[28142]

Because there aren't as many people to check and re-check for bugs, you end up with ridiculous things that could easily have been fixed

Just wanna point out from both a dev and a QA side, AAA games are actually the worst for this.

Sure, there can be low quality games from indies, but that more falls under a severe lack of quality control on the eshop rather then on the devs who most likely tried their best. It aint easy being say, a Japanese studio with no one that speaks english, then having to try and translate an entire game into it.

I wont go through and explain it all cause it'd be a long and boring post, but yeah. It's both a mix of quality control on Nintendo's end, and also newer devs who don't have as much experience with it, or the budget to fully polish a game.

 

[Eric Cartman]

I feel triple A titles are prioritized over indie titles mainly cause they are made by Nintendo and of course Nintendo wants to earn money so they put their games first. But indie titles are still represented just not as much. At least now they are doing partnership directs.

 

[Gram]

In terms of quality, AAA games can potentially be equal with indie games. I've played some AAA titles that were much worse than even an average indie game. I've certainly played indie games that stand shoulder to shoulder with AAA titles as well. If anything, I think indies are more bang for your buck, since AAAs are premium priced every time and hardly ever go on sale. So in that way, indies would get more exposure in the eshop actually, since they are constantly featured in the deals section. I only ever see AAAs in the best-selling section, which makes me wonder if there really are that many people buying full-priced digital AAAs or if Nintendo is just putting them there for visibility.

I'm not sure I believe the promote them equally though. Both can be found on the eshop, but there are constant news pieces conveniently featuring AAA titles almost daily. You rarely will see many AAA titles listed in these pieces more than once, but I've seen games like New Horizons featured all the time in news pieces like "games with turnips" or "games on an island", which seems pretty blatant. Perhaps Nintendo sees their coverage as equal overall, but it's obviously in their best interest to push their own high-priced, never on sale titles to make more money.

A land of equal representation, where AAA's and indies can coexist in harmony is a nice dream, but Nintendo is a business.

 

[Sunny_Meows]

I'm curious what you guys have to say about this. In a recent interview, it was revealed that Nintendo considers AAA and indie games as equals and they do not promote either just because they're different.

Do you consider AAA and indie game titles as equals?
Do you think they deserve to be promoted differently in the Nintendo eShop?

My answer is yes and no. No because at best, they're must have quality games, meaning more people buy them. And at worse, they're roughly equal to the indie games in terms of sales. AAA games have the advantage of a bigger budget. Meaning more advertising and marketing. Indie games often have no such thing, and are usually not seen by the average switch owner who just plays animal crossing. Hardly any indie games have physical releases too, which is a shame because that's usually how people buy video games, as most people don't even know what an eshop is lol. But in terms of quality, they can be equals, even though very good AAA are always better in some way because of their stupendously large budget when compared to an indie title's budget lol.

 

[Deepak]

No. They are not equals. AAA games have a standard quality while indie games don't always have that. I'm not saying indie games are bad by any means. I'm just saying that there's a higher chance of getting a quality game and enjoying it if it's AAA. But AAA games tend to cost more too. And sometimes, they're not really that fun. So, I think they should be treated as equals even though they're not. Indie developers have a tough time building up tons of hype for their game as it is. Giving AAA games priority would just make this way harder. And we don't want indie developers to die off do we?