Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Costs $60 On Switch

Certainly not ideal but I'm willing to get it, it's a great game and I pretty much buy everything in voucher form these days anyway.

Games in the Mario universe are vastly more popular than Metroid so they can get away with charging more. If they thought Prime Remastered would sell well at $60 they’d have charged it for that too.

It is a really fantastic game but even the original Wii game didn't cost 60 dollars. Most of the highest profile first party games were around 50. Third party stuff got marked down to 30 pretty often and the shovel ware could be found in bargain bins for 20 bucks.

Considering they priced Skyward Sword at $60 and Luigi's Mansion 2 at $60 it seems like they they're fine with pricing these ports at these prices.

Really it just makes me miss Nintendo Selects.

Anyone else feel like Wii wasn't all that long ago? I mean damn playing Mario galaxy for the first time still seems like yesterday.

Not really surprising or confusing considering DK has a lot more appeal than Metroid.

Wow. One of my favorite platformers of all time, but $60 is wayyy too much. Especially considering something like Prime Remastered which was $40, and had much more effort put into it. This game should be $30, $40 at most.

How is this the same price as TTYD? TTYD was a full remake with some new stuff and great QoL changes. This looks like a port with some new textures and some effects taken away. Pretty ridiculous that these both have the same price tag. Original TTYD is even a $100+ game sometimes, yet Original DK Returns is around $30 I believe.

I love DK, I just wish that we'd get a new game, or at least add more to this game or make it cheaper.

I done told ya...I...done...told...ya.

I mean I'm still gonna buy it, so it doesn't really matter to me. The choice to make Metroid 40 is baffling, though. I consider that to be the weird outlier.

We can not like it, but they are pricing it that way because they can get it. Switch games are selling. This will sell at that price, so why shouldn't it be. If you think it's too much, then you don't have to get it.

Boy, we got a deal on Metroid Prime Remastered, didn’t we?!

Way to make me refuse to buy a game on principle, Nintendo

@Truegamer79

"Anyone else feel like Wii wasn't all that long ago? I mean damn playing Mario galaxy for the first time still seems like yesterday."

I completely relate. I had moved into my first apartment with my highschool girlfriend, and we waited in line at WalMart til midnight on launch day for our Wii. Stayed up all night playing Wii Sports and Twilight Princess.

Obv when Galaxy came out we played it non stop til we beat it, unbelievable game and the high point in the series imo 👍👍

I'm 38 now and it feels like it all happened yesterday. 😅 they were excellent times. ✌️

@BrianJL

that's one way to treat people who want to play the game but can't afford or justify 60 dollars. if youve got the money and get to play the game, maybe just enjoy your good fortune graciously and let people have their grievances. ✌️

It’s not all that surprising. Nintendo is a business and they want to make money, so they release products that makes them money. Like it or not, Metroid, frustratingly, doesn’t make Nintendo money like Mario/Luigi, Zelda or Donkey Kong does.

Never played this... so the $60 price tag doesn't bother me personally. I missed out on a lot from the GC/Wii/Wii U era, so every game they bring over allows a chance to catch up

@BrianJL Not enough people refuse to get it, which causes Nintendo and greedy companies in general to not lower the price.

Use a brain and not support corporate greed.

Hahahahahahaaaa

Wish they’d have just remastered 1-3 instead.

This is so disappointing and I love Donkey Kong.

I think I’ll just get the 3DS port

@TheBigK Would you buy Metroid Prime for 60/70$?

Prime Remastered ruined it. Literally any remaster priced higher than that is robbery.

Lower the price and you get more sales which will equal more profits.
Have the price higher and not as many buy it, therefore the profit margin is lower

So much of Bowser’s claim that Nintendo prices games on a case by case basis. We’ve seen one game get that consideration, Zelda TOTK. Perhaps Metroid Prime at $30 was another. But other than these two games, Advance Wars, Luigi’s Mansion and DK Returns should all be $30-40.

Remember how Metroid Prime Remastered cost $40 USD?

And there was a physical edition of Pikmin 1 and 2 that only cost $50 USD?

Because it seems Nintendo sure as flip forgot!!

And Nintendo wonders why so many people emulate their games 🙄

The answer is money. They like money.

Quite frankly, I'm insulted on behalf of Retro and NST. Mostly NST cause they remade Donkey Kong 5 completely from scratch AND added 2 more worlds, but that was only $50. Not to belittle the work Forever is putting in, but it's nothing compared to the absolute miracle Retro 3.0 was able to pull out with Prime. This is FIFA levels of "cause we can get away with it" customer loyalty abuse.

@MovieBuff

"60 dollars is too expensive for this game."

vs.

"It's worth what someone will pay for it."

I think both can be true at the same time. ✌️

there was a time when a company like Nintendo specifically would VALUE something like customer goodwill itself, but clearly we have all outlived that era and they are on to something else.

If it had even more additional completely new levels and cost at 50€, I'd get it. But not like this.

@LadyCharlie Pikmin 1 and 2 are older and have only gotten their resolution increased and nothing more.

It almost seems like for Metroid Prime it was just a typo they had to live with and vowed to never make that mistake again.

Yeah I'm not buying it now. I can't justify it when I can buy a Wii and a copy of the game for less than $60.

considering metroid prime is now one third of the trilogy which was sold for 50 bucks back in the day, I'd say metroid prime is priced correctly as are the others.

Some fans are confused that water remains wet.

mmm. I have this game on 3DS. I never got the Wii version because I have a disdain for waggle inputs. But I never really got very far in the 3DS version anyway.
I was thinking of getting this version, but certainly not at full price. Might as well just play the version I already have, or wait until I can find it secondhand for cheaper. Or just not bother at all, i dunno. People seem to have mixed opinions about this game anyway.

@Ultimapunch HEY! You don't sully the prime name. It was worth it.

Nintendo is recalibrating hard after leaving money on the table with overly affordable Metroid Prime Remastered and Pikmin 1&2.

Luigi’s Mansion 2 strikes me as overpriced, and so does this Kong game. I’ll probably pass on both of them. Was Tropical Freeze also full price?? I don’t remember.

It sure would be better if it was a lower price, but a casual reminder that the main target audience for these re-releases are people who haven't touched a Nintendo console for a long time (if ever), not those who definitely bought the original version; for this broader audience, it may as well be a new game.

Of course it is full price. They charge full price because they can. It's a popular IP and people will still buy it even if it's just a cheap HD port of a Wii game with a couple of extras. Just look at Skyward Sword. Metroid Prime was cheaper because it doesn't sell nearly as well.

I'm not buying any of these full price remasters of Wii and 3DS games because I hate the precedent it sets, but millions will, regardless of the price and the minimal effort. It's a license to print money, so I get it in a business sense, but I will never support it with a single dime.

I"ve never been a fan of how the DKC games feel. The weight and collision has always just been off for me. This also looks like an XBLA game. I doubt I will pick it up.

@-wc- I'm not saying that people can't be upset about it, but when they ask WHY it is that price, it's because the market will support that price. Actually, if enough people refuse to buy it at that price then they will lower it - I just don't think it's going to happen.

I mean I get they did this with skyward and Luigi’s mansion but he was already on the 3d and for a way cheaper price I can kinda kinda get those two (not by much) but this is pretty absurd, I might as well get it on the 3ds. Shame I was exited for this too ): guess Metroid prime was just a rare occurrence.

@nessisonett True but you can like money and not be greedy.

In decisions like this, corporations are slimey enough to understand that people will support their products no matter what. Why lower the price if they will get their money anyways?

Not surprising but money is money and they need money. Metroid being priced less is because it isn't as popular compared to Mario or Zelda or DK.

Still not sold on how it will run so will wait and see.

Also reminder that they're testing the waters of this port, and if it doesn't sell well probably no more DK games.

@MovieBuff Of course they shouldn't ...but they will. If people stop buying these basic remasters by the millions and their enormous profits drop, though ...maybe we'll get some better efforts and perhaps even a new Nintendo Selects line? One can dream ...

@Vil I’m saying I obviously agree with you. Sorry if I made that unclear.

I too can’t wait for the day of consumers demanding more. I’m honestly shocked how much slop takes over media nowadays.

Hard pass. For this and for Luigi 2. I didn't mind the $70 for TotK and would have paid for any additional DLC. But hell to the no on these two games.

@BrianJL

Thanks for clarifying your position.

Nintendo is free to price their product what they wish. I'm sure they've decided that economically alienating X% of their fan base is worth it to squeeze extra $ out of their paying customers, but I might argue that it isn't. ✌️

for my part, I have no problem not buying this game and every other 60 dollar rehash they've come up with lately. 👍

I've accepted that this is the "new normal" with video game pricing. Doesn't mean I'll pay it, I can judge pricing case-by-case also, but I've accepted msrp increases.

@Truegamer79 That's correct, the original Wii game cost $50 in 2010, which is the equivalent of $71.77 in 2024. Thanks for the price cut, Nintendo!

60 is the new 40.

I'm not usually one to complain about price but this hurts.

I mean, it's not ideal, but it's still a better value than the vast majority of 60$ releases. I mainly just feel for people in other regions where the price is less affordable.

I do wish it was cheaper, maybe 45 or 50 would be fine…

But this was one of the few games I was absolutely not expecting and was really excited for in the Direct, so I’m still going to get it, even if I own the Wii version

@N8tiveT3ch That's my point. Prime remastered was literally one of the greatest HD remasters ever. And it was only $40. Any remaster charging more than that is just insanity.

Also, awesome picture of angry DK for the thumbnail. Got a good chuckle out of me.

Again, it's not rocket science. Someone makes something and sells it for what they think it's worth. It's how capitalism works. Did gamer IQs drop this generation or something? Sorry Metroid fans, Nintendo don't think it's a huge seller. And if we are being honest, compared to Mario and friends...Samus isn't. Nintendo's commercial team are as on top of their game as their artists are lol.

I have it on 3DS and bought it as a budget “Nintendo Selects” title so at this ripoff price it’s a solid pass

I'm not entirely sure how I would price this game. It's easy for me to sit here and say it should be $30 or $40 based on its age, but I don't what kind of work was done in the background to get it to this state.

I'm starting to think upconverting games from 3DS, which I know this is the Wii verison with those levels, might present challenges from resolution, file format, control schemes and other things I'm not aware of under the hood. The original version had motion controls, so I know control mapping actions that could have been gestures might not be an easy task.

I think Metroid Prime Remastered was an easier move from its GameCube roots. It's a matter of working with the assets, importing the code and mapping out the control schemes to the new layout.

Again, I don't know what it should be priced, but Nintendo seems keen on sticking with $59.99 for many of these remasters.

whatever, its fine. No pointin crying over the price of a game i probably wasnt gonna buy in the first place for me at least

@Danrenfroe2016 true !

@Ultimapunch Metroid is far more niche and doesn't pull big numbers like Nintendo's other IPs. So it makes sense for them to make a port of an older Metroid game cheaper.

Good game for sure, but I grabbed it for $20 on my 2ds so I doubt I'll double dip.

I imagine this will result in the game selling less and Nintendo will not take the right lesson. They will think DK is dead when in fact their pricing sucks a ton. May have grabbed the game if it was $40

It all comes down to brand appeal Metroid prime while a fantastic game I'd even argue a masterpiece. It's still not as popular as Mario, Zelda, DK, etc. That being said I do wish the price was lower.

Disappointing but not surprising. They legit feel like these lazy remakes/remasters are worth the same as a fully new and original game. Whoever's deciding the pricing structure feels woefully out of touch.

You have to remember that this is Nintendo; they charged (and re-charged whenever a new console was released or even when someone had to replace a broken one since purchases weren't linked to accounts) a premium price...$4.99 NES, $7.99 and up for SNES, $9.99 and up for N64 titles...back on the Virtual Console before it occurred to them that they could bank even more $$$ by using a subscription model where users no longer could actually own the games to begin with. For decades they've been the ONLY publisher to rigidly fix not only the prices of new games at brick-and-mortar stores but ensured the used prices stayed very close to the new. Whether Nintendo actually believes their retro games (and now remakes/remasters) are genuinely worth the prices they ask or not, they are intent on maintaining that "aura" with consumers.

Nintendo may have a family-friendly image, but underneath they are one of the most cutthroat and control-obsessive corporations in the entire industry when it comes to their IPs and profit margins.

It might be worth that much if it had New Funky Mode, without that it should be half the price

@Bolt_Strike I'll agree with you if it doesn't hit number one in the charts and disappears from the top 10 in a week. Otherwise, I would argue they have their finger firmly on the pulse.

Whilst I do believe remasters do deserve financial compensation, these things do take work after all… from the initial trailer, I’m not seeing what about this game deserves such a price tag. I think this will be something I pick up on discount.

I mean, at least Luigi’s mansion 2 has an online mode, those things can be tricky to get working. I’m not sure that makes it quite worth the price, considering Metroid prime was quite a bit cheaper, but at least it’s something.

It’s an odd topic, remasters. No one seems entirely sure how much they should actually cost.

I chose “it’s fine” but I’m also in the “it should be less” group because let’s face it… I’m buying it either way. It’ll look nice next to Tropical Freeze in my collection (which was also a port and was also $60-this is nothing new)

@GrailUK Considering that other remakes have run the gamut in terms of sales we don't need to see what this one does (although it probably will sell a few million because people mindlessly buying based on IP popularity). Nintendo just being greedy and the pricing structure has nothing to do with sales potential.

Can't justify buying this again so I will stick to the 3DS version. As some others have said though, we need a new DK game. Tropical Freeze was about ten years ago now (preferably something new though, something like Odyssey would be nice)

Seems fine to me, don't like, don't buy it.

@PikminMarioKirby I mean almost every Switch game is $60. Far from the first time they've done this even with the barebones remasters. That being said, keep on complaining about it (and even better, not freaking buying into this chintzy crap), then maybe they'll actually quit it.

@Warioware IKR, instead of Nintendo asking us to buy this game a third time, the should have backwards compatibility and a new DKCR game.

@Bolt_Strike Well, I disagree that the price doesn't reflect sales potential. If something is going to be high demand, it usually puts the price up, That's how it works. Look how AAA titles get discounted after their initial first few weeks of hype sales. Now granted, some folk have played it, owned it etc and see less value in it. But I'm afraid the market is much much bigger than those folk. And I'm all for artists being able to sell their work for what they deem fit for as long as possible. And the fact it's 60 quid should show anyone with a brain that GC and Wii titles are years away from being a subscriber service. But anyone that says "everyone has played it already" or "Nintendo wnt us to buy it again" can't see much further than their PC monitor. I don't think they are asking anyone to buy it again, just asking people to buy it full stop. And there are a lot of people who will.

"Should a super old game with upscaled graphics be the same price as a brand new game?"

Can't believe people think "YES!"

No wonder we don't have DKCR 3 yet when Nintendo doesn't even have to make a new game to get more money.

Are the changes significant enough to warrant paying full RRP in my opinion no in fact by all accounts this HD version is worse than the Wii version missing visual effects and is it really all the enhanced.

I still have a Wii connected to a retrotink so I'm very happy with my older consoles and games being upscaled I don't see a need to buy this version but if I didn't I would still hold out for a cheap second hand copy because the care simply isn't there on this one which is a shame because out of returns and tropical freeze I say returns is the better game.

But also the value of the game is overpriced when you're reselling a Wii game with basic visual tweaks and a game like tears of the kingdom for near the same price (actually dk cost more in my region) you can't tell me the same amount of effort went into remastering dk as did totks physics

My son wanted the game for his birthday. He wanted the 3DS version.

Now THAT has me confused.

@Owozifa
Water is NOT wet!
Water MAKES things wet!

There is a big difference.

I usually don’t mind the $60 price tag, after all video games are luxury products which no one really needs to buy unless they want to, but in this case I agree that it’s a bit much. It’s a single Wii game with only the graphics being slightly upgraded. We’ve had both the Mario and Pikmin collections that had more old games for the same price.

That's a hard pass now. I'll just play my WiiU copy on my Steam Deck instead.

Nobody is making you buy it.

You should be well informed on the item. Determining if it's worth the price for you should be simple.

I'm sure it's in part a voucher thing. Makes those that go the voucher route think they're getting a deal when in reality Nintendo is squeezing another sale out of you by forcing the pair for $100. I'm sure they're plenty happy getting $50 for their titles.

-84% think it should be less
-People say they will buy it anyway.
Nintendo: See? Theyre ok with it. Make it 70/80 next generarion.

Whether they’re worth it or not, I completed DKC Returns and Luigi Mansion 2 and have no desire to play either again. There is actually quite a lot of competition to these games leading up to Christmas (both on Switch and other platforms) and I think both will be forgotten relatively quickly in the shuffle.

Even the Epic Mickey remaster is €60. So I don't see the problem, honestly.

İ do not care that much. Yess, İ have played the game and this game is such a good game.
Nintendo can do it $60. İt looks awesome in HD. Nintendo have done it good. İ want to pick it again even in this price. İ do not remember that much about the game anymore. 1 of the reason it is that. That İ want to play it again. İt was a awesome game to.

@Kang81

WiiU copy?

Anyways, If I like a game, I will buy it. It doesn't matter to me if they worked on it for 6 years or 6 months. I'm an adult and I have a job. Gaming is my hobby, it's not the biggest problem in the world whether a game I really like cost $ 40,00 or $ 60,00.

I really don't care about the price of video games. I'm an adult, I have a job and disposable income. A $20 difference is nothing these days. Well done to Nintendo for realising that quality, in demand games will sell no problem at high profit prices.

$50.00 USD at most. I just don't understand Nintendo price gouging for this title.

If you buy physical, you can get new games for substantially less than the RRP. Right now, TTYD has been ~17% off everywhere since launch. The RRP is just to make the actual price look like a good deal. For TTYD, it absolutely is, because it's also an excellent game.

For digital, this doesn't hold, but this is part of the marketing strategy. Nintendo knows the value of having a retail presence, so they're steering sales towards physical.

Yet people are still ranting about corporate greed, just for the sake of it. I'd be more worried about the prices of essential goods and services, than the price of a video game, tbh. Games are just a hobby, and hobbies are funded by disposable income. Just save your time and money for the games that you think are worth it.

@Qwiff

That's correct. All the fuzz about a difference of a couple of dollars. Someone even says: "$50,00 USD at most"

You will be able to get it for around that price very shortly after release, maybe even at launchday. It's just complaing for the sake of it, as you said.

The pricing seems to be all over the place. I highly doubt I'll get it for full price. I already own the game on Wii and 3DS, so it hardly seems worth the money at this point, for only a visual upgrade...

Somebody has to pay for all those bananas……

they know that parents know the names donkey kong and luigi so that's what they'll grab for their kids without understanding they're being ripped off

Sorry but as an owner of both Luigi and DK games on the 3DS this is a hard sell for me. Might pick at some point with a good discount but not a full price.

@jake1421

How are they "ripped of"? Does Nintendo force them into buying this game or do they need to buy this game in order to survive? Will they be put in jail if they don't buy this game? Are they buying a Donkey Kong game that's not a Donkey Kong game? Is Nintendo hiding that this is a remake of a remake?

And do you think their kids will have a blast with DKCR on the Switch? Big chance that they don't know the original(s).

They must be so rich Nintendo with the great success of the Switch and games sold etc.

It is simple vote with your wallets and just Nintendont.

I wonder how many people complaining about Nintendo’s prices were also whining about all the mass layoffs that all the big companies other than Nintendo were doing earlier this year. Perhaps someday they’ll learn how to connect the dots.

I'm not surprised at all.
If nintendo was an insect, it would have been a nasty parasite.

So this will be the last DK game for a while. Because people are gonna skip over the price and Nintendo will go “looks like DK has waned in popularity “.

Personally the price doesn’t bother me as I just see it as a new switch game price but I am sure others feel differently.

@MovieBuff Pretty much yeah. I expect nothing from corpos because they aren’t our friends, no matter what parasocial relationships fans may have.

I would click on: "It should cost less...but it's fine."

I would also click on: "What are we going to do?...not buy it?"

@Ashunera84 If you're well-informed about the product you're probably not going to buy it. Most of the sales of games like these are probably coming from people that aren't aware that this is a remaster of an older game, and so Nintendo keeps doing it regardless of how valid the complaints are. Simply deciding for yourself doesn't really help much when the rest of the market is making dumb decisions.

@Cyrax77 I mean it's not obvious to the uninformed parent that this game is a remake, so they're wasting money on an old game that's probably going to be less fun for the kid.

This is priced too high for me to want to double dip which is a shame.

@Bolt_Strike

It's as much obvious as the rest of all the remasters (it's not a remake) in the world of gaming these days. It has the same name as the original with "HD" on it. If you google the title, you can read that it's a remaster of the Wii version. Beinig not informed is almost impossible.

I do beg to differ DKCR HD will be less fun for the kid tbh. Most kids so small that parents will buy games for never played the original. Those who did are old enough to know its's a remaster (it's not a remake).

It's absolutely brand-related. With a few exceptions (Mario vs Donkey Kong, Captain Toad, WarioWare, etc), Mario-related games will retail at $60 or whatever the regional equivalent is.

When Switch 2 launches, all of those games will cost $10 more.

With these things i just wait, and buy it second hand for €30

@GrailUK “Now granted, some folk have played it, owned it etc and see less value in it. But I'm afraid the market is much much bigger than those folk.”

This gets overlooked in here all the time.

It will have been longer since the original DKC:R when it re-releases next year than between the previous DKC instalment in the 90's and when DKC:R originally released. It is essentially a retro now. I'm tired of these ancient games getting released at modern day prices. It better be loaded to the gills with bonuses.

@Bolt_Strike if the rest of the market is making luxury purchases without looking into it, clearly the money isn't a big deal for them. If the money is a big deal, they are likely to seek more information.

This is the best practice for a market. Set a price, give people information on the product, and let them decide. Nobody is being misled.

If you want to complain about monetization, there are plenty of games full of ads and loops meant to be addictive and predatory. This isn't such a case.

I would happily pay 60 bucks for Zelda TP HD or Wind Waker HD but a DK Country game that wasn't made by Rare just doesn't appeal to me as much. I would have picked it up for 40 bucks. Maybe i'll just wait until there's a sale. It's not a priority for me.

I don't mind paying $60 for a well done port, but DKCR HD has no new content from the 3DS port (that we know of) and feels like a graphical downgrade of in lots of areas from the Wii, when the whole purpose of a port is a "refresh" of the visuals, controls etc for the newer console.

Guess I'll wait for a sale before picking it up.

Is it even a surprise anymore? Yet another selects title being sold for more than double its previous price.

If you're a digital person and NSO-subscribed, just get it via voucher, or use DekuDeals and put it on your wishlist so you can be notified when it goes on sale.

It is bananas that it isn't peanuts.

No, I just wanted some Monkey puns.

As others have said, this is Nintendo's RRP. You will probably be able to get it cheaper in some places on launch or, as Discostew said, use a NSO voucher to make it £42.

At least there are some extra levels thrown in to make it more complete. I do think the sheer memability of throwing in
'+ added Funky Mode' would sweeten the deal for many though.

Yeah, no way I’m paying $60 for a simple HD port of a 15 year old game. I’ll just stick to the 3DS version.

Madness. Absolute madness. The silver lining is that cheaper, indie titles will sell more because nobody can afford Nintendo

Donkey Kong Country Returns on Investment!

I don't get it, why people judge a price tag of a game by its being a remaster or not. Nobody's OBLIGED to buy any game, right? There might be people who didn't play it and will get it. There might be people who are willing to replay it and will get it. The production value seems to be the only criteria that is more or less objective (although i doubt anyone would say that Forespoken is better than Stardew Valley), and even based on this alone both Luigi's Mansion 2 HD and DKC Returns HD are top-shelf Switch releases. Well, they DID sell Metroid Prime Remastered for less - but what of it? Every remaster should be $40 because one was? I think it should really be based on an individual game's value. Say, I have never played RDR before the Switch release, I played through it, genuinely enjoyed it and never felt I have paid too much, just because it was a game from 2008. It was a FUN game and it's all that mattered.

@tektite_captain
Ooh, I like the inflation game!
I want to participate by throwing in some other numbers!

Average wages didn't increase as much as inflation did in the US (Going for US numbers, because dollar prices), they are only about 15% higher.
So from a consumers perspective, the game should only cost 57,50$, meaning this game is actually a little bit more expensive than before.

Now count in the fact that we are comparing a completely new game to a remaster, which should cost significantly less.
Count also in that the old 50$ might already have been found too expensive in 2010.
And also include the fact that games now tend to sell a lot more units than back then, meaning Nintendo could make more money than before even if they don't increase the price (Mario Galaxy sold 12.8 Million copies; Mario Odyssey sold 27.9 Million copies).

Isn't it funny how that stuff works?

ps.: Before anyone starts: Yes I know, Nintendo charges as much as they can get away with. Doesn't make it fair.

Well. I judge my purchases case by case too.

This is a hard pass from me.

@JoakimZ

Nintendo knows you and others that have acces to the 3DS or Wii version won't buy it. Nintendo is business, they want to make profits. So they have a choice to make.

Will they put more work in the development of the game and try to convince gamers who already have the game on the 3DS, the Wii or both and not willing to double or even triple dip.

Or will they skip those gamers and go for the easy port and aim for collectors, Nintendo addicts and childeren that never played the Wii or 3DS version.

They went for the second option and they have every right to do so. I just don't understand why a consumer cares how much works a company puts in making a luxury product. Gaming to me is about having fun. Playing my favorite older games on new(er) hardware is a blast to me.

What do I care if it cost $ 40,00 or $ 60,00? I have a job and I have way more problems with how expensive everyday life has become. Things I HAVE to pay for in order to get to work, my water, mortgage and stuff like that. A game is just a game, I don't need it.

I’m not a big fan of DK games but I do like the character in the Mario universe. Never finished Tropical Freeze. Price is way too high for me so it’s an easy pass.

$40-50 seems more responsible, but I also wasn't planning on getting it since I had it on Wii and personally think Tropical Freeze was just all around better. Still a great game but not worth the double dip for me.

$60 for a remaster? Nuh-uh. They wanted to charge that much, it should have been a complete new title. It's been long enough.

My concern is what'll happen with the UK - just keep the number, strip the dollar sign and put a pound sign on it?

@ibis_87
If consumers just swallow price increases like they don't care, then that tells companies that they could charge even more.
This remaster might sell at 60$. Well if it does well, the next one might be 70$, then they will bring out the 80$ games...

I know, anyone can decide on their own for each game, I sometimes buy expensive games too, if I really think they are worth it to me (60$ for a Donkey Kong Remaster is very far from that.).

But is it really so hard to understand people being frustrated by this development? People could just restrain themselves, when they see price increases without serious justification, making products for everyone cheaper. Everyone would profit! Including you! But it never happens.

@ShonenJump121 Nintendo select's is gone, because they figured out people gladly pay 60$ for 10 year old games.

If people voted with their wallets, Nintendo would be forced to drop prices on older games.

First party games on Xbox and Sony consoles drops to as low as 5$ bucks due to age even when they mostly had higher budgets than Nintendo games...

They do it because they can, and their games sell well.

What troubles me is why they commemorated the 40th anniversary of the game that helped them survive as a video game company by releasing a remake and a remaster, and a few years after the actual anniversary.

It was time for a new platforming DK. This is the third time they release DKC Returns.

If Nintendo keeps doing this, it would probably be more cost-effective to buy a 3DS and the older versions of these games than to buy the Switch releases. It means missing out on HD, but you do get 3D, and for about a third of the price per game...

Metroid HD was a much more impressive rework than Luigi 2 and DK Returns... it makes no sense that they're more expensive.

Wow. I’ve gone from wanting it to giving it a miss rather quickly.

@Cyrax77 Nailed it...the vast majority of retail outlets sell these games for less than RRP, everyone in here claims to prefer physical, so this is technically just another remaster of SixtyDollarGate by this website to rage bait the hyper sensitive and fake outrage crew. People know how to shop around, they just like stamping their feet.

I remember what the original DKC cost on the SNES 30 years ago, so with inflation taken into account, $60 sounds like a bargain!

Nintendo officially laid both "many sales = cheaper" and "old = cheaper" in the grave many years ago.

You can say what you want about their approach, but at least they're still very up front about "product = price".

@Uncle_Franklin

No worries mate, I won't. You see, I know what I'll be getting with this game. It's no secret, Nintendo is not hiding anything from me.

An insurance scam is a whole different cookie. You know that right? No need to be this cocky with your comment. I'm not stupid because I'm going to spend $ 52,50 on an remake with no extra shizzle other than HD. It's just a choice I make. Your free to make yours, I won't judge you for it.

@Bolt_Strike "so they're wasting money on an old game that's probably going to be less fun for the kid."

Didn't know old games stopped being fun, when is that supposed to kick in if it's brand new to them?

Typical of Nintendo. The price isn't close to what I'd be willing to pay

This game isn't even nearly as good as Tropical Freeze to justify this price. It was neat when this game first came out back in 2010 but looking back it had some pretty irritating trial and error gameplay that was made worse by both it's life system and that annoying pig that shows up if you die too much in a level.

@electrolite77
Yes, I mentioned that in the ps of my first post.

I am just saying that we would all be better off if consumers didn't just decide to buy everything regardless of justification, all the time. A lot of things, not just games, would be cheaper for everyone.

@Kirgo
Well, I see your point and I acknowledge it as absolutely valid, no questions here. The thing is, in my logic, I'm not just SACRIFICING money to Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft/Valve, I spend them on my own value anyway. Sometimes value is not about just getting the best price, no matter how and when. I mean, I can wait, of course, and see if, say, Nintendo gets the message. Maybe it will - but maybe not. Anyway, not playing a game I want to play - and the one I'm able to afford financially - for a chance to maybe teach Nintendo a pricing lesson is sacrificing my own value of spending a good time with the game immidiately. Of course, it will not thwart me to depths of a severe depression, but I still lose something I don't necessarily have to lose. Would I be sure that it will SURELY, like, 100% help me pay less for future remakes, than the game might have been worth the candle. But I've grown up and realistic enough to understand, that there are too many factors involved, and my own decision influences a large multinational corporation marketing decisions only to a very limited extent. So, there's a big chance that I'm not getting to play DKC HD at launch AND that, say, Twilight Pricess HD that might be coming as a next Switch remaster also releases for $60.

@electrolite77 I’m not telling people not to buy it. I’m saying that I think it’s overpriced and it’s a bad deal.

If you want to still buy it, what can I do?

@larryisaman exactly. As much as some dabs may not want to come to tend with it, Metroid is a lower tier IP for them. It didn’t sell well compared to other IPs.

Nah, I'm good. Especially considering it's made by Forever Entertainment.

Pricey; but I'm definitely getting it - probably twice: To support the franchise and to annoy the nay-sayers.

Don't forget; if you don't support this now, this franchise will end up dead - just like F-Zero and Star Fox.

"Nintendo's not evil you guys."

@Maubari This isn't how it works. Nintendo will make whatever they damn well please. They aren't a charity and they aren't a wishlist-come-true machine that dispenses games because enough people insert coins; there would be way more Marios and Zeldas if so.

F-Zero and Starfox didn't die because not enough people gave Nintendo money, they died because of Nintendo.

WOW that's overpriced. Skipping LM2 for this reason. These should be budget titles, no business being $60 usd. And this is in top of the fact that nintendo ended their discounted Nintendo Select titles.

We can complain but truth is we dont know why nintendo prices the games the way they do, prime remaster was cheaper but it is my understanding that it was a remaster done internally by nintendo, this one is being made by tantalus a third party studio. Nintendo needs to pay those developers for their hard work. Also brand perception, Nintendo clearly wants the world to look at dk as a premium brand like it does with zelda. Honestly if you really havent played this decade old game already youre not gonna play it now, and if you really want to there are cheaper ways to play this, it was on wii on 3ds, 3ds eshop on wiiu virtual console so its pretty easy to emulate. And finally dk tropical freeze is the superior game, go get that one instead!

Games upscaled by AI technologies should never cost more than $20.

@ibis_87
Sure I get that, again I do sometimes pay more for games if I really really want them. A new(!) Zelda game, for example, is absolutely worth good money for me. If the game actually provides the value, I will buy it.
But if a Donkey Kong Remaster is worth 60, then what is a Tears of the Kingdom worth? 200? More? Even subjectivity has limits until it just gets outrageous.

Problem with this is just that it will only get worse because of your way of thinking.
You can say it is just realistic to think that what you are doing has no serious impact and that would be a correct assessment, but only because other people think the same. Many think it won't help anyway therefore not many actually vote with their wallet, therefore it will only get worse. We can see this happening everywhere.

I am old enough to understand that this is inevitably what it comes down to, doesn't mean I want to be part of it though. It just means that I came to terms with the fact that people, as a collective, can easily be bled dry by large companies.
Thankfully, at least in gaming, I do have other options from smaller studios.

@Qwertyninty Yep. And even at that cheaper price, last we heard it sold just over a million copies (who knows what number it’s at now, hopefully closer to 2 million but who knows). Great numbers for Metroid but maybe wouldn’t have sold as well at $60 versus Mario/DK games that have no problem selling at full price (and in much greater numbers than Metroid games).

@Moonlessky It's Forever Entertainment that are doing this port. They don't exactly have the greatest track record.

This price is absurd and should be priced at $40 just like Metroid Prime Remaster was. Nintendo can go eff themselves. I wont pay these prices for remake/remasters.

Sad. Never played a DK game before and was hoping to get this since it comes out the day before my birthday. But $60 is too much for this

This is too high for me, but Nintendo can charge that much because they know people will pay that price. Not everyone, but I bet it will sell over a million copies.

Absolutely unacceptable, this is why I never buy at launch unless it's a decent price. Only the most dedicated fans with their rose coloured glasses will get it at that price.

There's no way I'm buying this at $60. Prime Remastered was perfect at $40, so I really don't get why they're doing so many other HD remakes at $60 (Paper Mario being a total overhaul with some bonuses and same with Super Mario RPG I think are fine tho).

Only chance I even get this is with a voucher or a deep sale.

@Okko Being a dedicated fan doesn’t equate to getting off by being scammed.

I LOVE Donkey Kong and consider myself to be a huge fan of all the titles, no chance I’ll buy this at that price.

@Okko or converts who are new to Nintendo via the Switch, aren't skint, missed out on Wii and 3DS, can't be bothered or don't have the time and money to go down that path of building a gaming PC to emulate in 4k, don't even know what a Steamdeck is, loved Tropical Freeze on the Switch and want more of that vibe...

@NFrealinkling Honestly I recommend Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze if you never played a DKC game before. That game is easily the best 2D platformer from the previous console generation.

60 is ridiculous. I'll just have to monitor ebay and wait until the price drips to a more reasonable 30-40 bucks

I hope newcomers get tropical freeze instead, it is a much better packaged experience

@PipeGuy64Bit yeah, I’ve been thinking about picking it up sometime

@NFrealinkling The SNES DKC trilogy is, IMO, better than the new games, and playable on the basic tier of Switch Online.

@WiltonRoots
You want more of the vibe and that's fair enough, but keep in mind that the game was previously available for £15 under the selects range on 3DS. I get that you may not have a 3DS, but is £50 really value for money here? That's my perspective.

On one hand, this is releasing with all the content and some new graphical effects. On the other, it's releasing with some missing graphical effects and at full retail price. Think I'll wait for a price cut n patch.

@Okko It'll go much cheaper than £50 in places like Argos, Tesco, Amazon and the likes, probably under £40 as these things usually are. I can't see people seeking out a 3DS when they can play it on their big telly in glorious HD, or handheld at their leisure. Age old adage, shop around, get the best prices...

@MovieBuff
I am a fan of Donkey Kong as well but I choose to wait for a price reduction. I was pointing out that you'd have to be pretty dedicated to buy at that price even if the price is unnecessarily high.

I am just glad it's on switch. Hopefully the next one has backwards compatibility because I hope this will be the LAST TIME I purchase this game. It would be worth it in that regard, if Nintendo employs a Steam-style recurring library.

By far most gamers think that Nintendo's pricing for remasters isn't "fair". But Nintendo knows that we are willing to fork out the cash anyway... As for me, I'll wait for DKC Returns and Luigi's Mansion 2 to go on offer in one of those very occasional Nintendo "ever green IP" 30% off sales. So in at least a year from now.

Finally, a poll with clear-cut choices and isn't worded in a way that makes me want to select two options.

@Zeebor15 what the heck is a Donkey Kong 5?

@Nameless_Shame Mario vs. Donkey Kong

@Kirgo Inflation exists, regardless of anything else, Nintendo doesn't exist in a magical world where they can continue to charge the same arbitrary price for games regardless of the current value of a dollar.

Also, why should old games cost less than new ones? Do old movies cost less than new ones? Does old music cost less than new music? Are you angry when you pay the same price to download The Godfather that you pay to download a movie that came out this year? Nintendo charges what the consumer is willing to pay, which is why a less popular series like Metroid had a $40 remaster and a more popular series like Donkey Kong has a $60 remaster. None of this is confusing or hard to understand.

@axelhander oh yeah, I did play the first one on nso, but I had forgotten about it. It was pretty enjoyable

@tektite_captain You shouldn't explain economics when it's clear you don't understand them.

Also the answer to this sort of price gouging (which is what this is, 100%) will just be piracy, and Nintendo will deserve it.

@tektite_captain
I already explained to you that Nintendo can absolutely continue to charge the same price regardless of the current dollar value. In fact, they could go much cheaper than before, even just by virtue of a remaster having barely any development cost, apart from what I already mentioned. If you want to ignore my whole point, fine, but I am not explaining it again.

Btw, I just checked and I can get The Godfather on Amazon for just 20 bucks for the entire trilogy. Even the bluray version only costs 25, much cheaper than any current movie. There is technically even an older boxed trilogy version for just 10 bucks right now.
I don't think you chose a great example there...
There is also the thing that remastering a movie can actually require quite a bit more work than a game, depending on how far they want go, and those are the versions you usually get today. The whole comparison is honestly flawed in a lot of ways.
Not to mention that this is blatant whataboutism anyway.

But don't worry about me being "angry". I can recognize that this is a ripoff without getting angry about it. It's hardly the first game.

The people in this comment section saying they're buying it anyways is the problem... Why wouldn't they increase the price if people are just going to buy it anyways... Vote with your wallets people...

wouldnt buy it for $1, ugly looking game

@anoyonmus This fear-mongering nonsense is a myth. They'll make more Donkey Kong games whenever they see fit, and if they don't, that's on them, not on consumers.

Now we need Fishing Resort from the Wii . They already launched Go Vacation, which I bought.

@Ashunera84 Not really. Western consumers tend to go gaga for entertainment products and they're just suckered in by flashy marketing and big brand names. It's not that money isn't an issue for them. They're just not making sound purchasing decisions.

@Cyrax77 The parents probably don't even know about the original and "HD" is just a meaningless buzzword, they might just look at it and think "Oh, so are the other games not HD? This one's better?". They're not as smart as you think.

@Cyrax77 @WiltonRoots Even without knowing that the game is a remake of an older game, they're still going to be able to sense that this game isn't quite as big or deep as some of the other games they might've played on the Switch. Part of this is a genre problem really, as 2D platformers in general haven't really grown in size or content compared to other genres. Nevertheless, there are bigger games with more content (compare this game to open adventure games like BotW or Mario Odyssey with their massive levels, or the high amount of gameplay modes and/or evergreen content of modern multiplayer games like MK8D, Smash Ultimate, or the two Splatoon games) for the same price point as this 10 year old remaster, it really falls flat. To really provide a comparable value to those games, games like these either need massive increases in content or a price drop. Honestly I feel like Prime Remastered is overrated for this reason, the graphics are improved but the actual gameplay and content isn't quite up to date. But at least that game is discounted so the value is still there. A game like this or Luigi's Mansion 2? That price point automatically brings it into comparison with original, built from the ground up Switch games and it doesn't really hold up there.

@John_Deacon If those two types of remakes/remasters are a completely different class, then why charge the same amount for them? The price point automatically brings this comparison, if you're charging the same amount for a game, it should be providing the same value. If it's not and the consumer still buys it, that's not just their opinion, they're being scammed.

@Zeebor15 but in what world does anyone call Mario vs DK “Donkey Kong 5?”

@Nameless_Shame I've made my point about the backwards double standard. Mario vs. Donkey Kong HD is an entry in the classic Donkey Kong franchise, with more dev resources, and yet the spin-off port costs more. I'm not having this argument again.

I think we need to remember this port is not for us (people who played it on Wii/3DS). This is for people who missed out on it or people who don't pay attention to Nintendo fansites. Let's remember all the Wii U ports that sold millions despite being more expensive than they were on Wii U.

Don't point out inflation and mention the leaders responsible. The comment will disappear! Lol.

I would argue Luigi's mansion 2 should be $40. Paper Mario 1000 year door and RPG should have been $50 or so

@stinkyx yep. I would say that is an issue across the industry (and the film industry seems to have done this too) of just remaking or re releasing old games. I love the Persona series but P3 now has about 5 versions, the latest of which probably had a big enough budget to just make a new game. On the Switch I think Ubisoft have put out more new DK and Starfox content than Nintendo!

Nintendo sure knows how to milk their fans...
And as long as people pay these prices, then they will continue to sell remasters at full price.

It's so damn greedy, that they never added a Select line to the Switch.

I think $50 or $40 is a more fair price. I consider metroid prime remaster a steal at $40 with that quality (especially the graphics upgrade), but donkey kong country is more mainstream than metroid so I understand the price from business perspective.

Oh well, it should be way cheaper in my country though since we usually get the (cheaper) region 1 middle east version 😃

Absolutely love the 3DS version of the game but I'm not double dipping for that price, lol. Deep sale purchase it is!

Yea no way im paying 60 for this, the other donkey kong game only drops to 40 on sale and thats too much. This should of been $40 and I'd be willing to pay 30 for it... Since its the 3rd time they're selling us this game

Where were you $60 haters during the first seven years of $60 ports?

DK Returns HD is $60 because the audience already happily paid full price for every other port that came to Switch before this one

Between this and Luigi's Mansion 2 HD being $60, I WOULD say it's because Nintendo knows they can get away with charging full price for any Mario/Mario-related game...but then Mario vs. DK remake and WarioWare Move It were released not even a year ago at $50 so I don't even know what Nintendo's mindset here is.

This pricing is a joke for these old games.

They'll charge $60 for this and it'll never receive a discount.

I feel the game should be $40 at most.

Nobody ever pays full price for these things, and yet people still make out they do...been here years and the complaints never change. No different to a bloke in the pub complaining about the price of a pint. He'll still stagger out drunk at the end of the night.

@Zeebor15 I think there’s been a misunderstanding. I wasn’t arguing with you over double standards involving dev resources or port/remake price differences.

I was specifically confused about your referencing, “Donkey Kong 5,” which is confusing to me because I had no idea what game you were talking about.

I was originally thinking you meant either Mario Vs. Donkey Kong or DKC Returns, both of which are technically the fifth games in their respective series, but nobody ever has referred to either of those games as “Donkey Kong 5.”

I mean no disrespect, I was just trying to figure out what game you were talking about by your use of a title that simply officially doesn’t exist.

@Nameless_Shame Oh... well okay that's on me for expecting hands to be thrown. When referring to the Donkey Kong COUNTRY games specifically I say DKC1, DKC 2, etc on to DKC8. Yes, I count the Paon games every other DKC Talk show host wants you to forget happen.

Jungle Beat is DKC0

It's a weird one. I wouldnt question an old film being rereleased on a new format costing the same as a new film. So why do I question this with games? Especially as it's often a lot more work to get that old game working on the new system. DKCR is a fantastic game, just because it's old doesn't mean it's worth less does it?

But also on the flip side, you try and sell me a NES game rereleased for full price and I'd think you were mad. But it's the same principal.

TLDR: I dunno, if it seems to much don't buy it or wait for a sale?

@Zeebor15 I got no beef with having your own head canon for games as I do it myself sometimes, but I would recommend referring to games by their actual title when explaining something to a stranger online to avoid confusion.

On that note, I think it’s important to keep up with a standardized referendum that if you include the Paon games as numbered DKC games, it is almost detrimental to include the Donkey Kong Land games in the same space as they are not ports of the DKC trilogy, but entirely different games.

@-wc- Thank you for sharing, genuinely. I was 6 years behind you so some of the details are blurry, but man do I look back on my time with the Wii fondly. Perhaps my favorite game was Monster Hunter Tri. I had a wired keyboard hooked up to the back, and I would have all sorts of fun conversations with random hunters. No other Monster Hunter has fully replicated that online experience.

Some nights I would just boot up the Wii weather app and peruse the whole globe, checking in on everybody's temperatures and feeling naively connected to the world through this little white box.

@Nameless_Shame I regard the Land trilogy the same way Monster Hunter fans regard Rise; Number but smaller. Rise is 5 but smaller, therefore Land 1 is DKC1 but smaller

Absolutely insane price. I’m kind of confused on who this release is even really for. It’s not a bad game but i can’t imagine a lot of people are desperate to play it again and most of the people who are probably are the kinds of Nintendo fans that still have a wii or wii u to play the original.
The only thing that makes sense is that Nintendo realized if all their remakes are $40 then the vouchers have no value

$39.99 should be at most

Don't blame Nintendo. Blame the fans (including so many of you here) for willing to accept Nintendo's price gouging. Vote with your money people.

@OorWullie ah my bad, it seems tantalus ported luigis mansion 2 and I got them mixed up. Thanks for the clarification

I find myself going back and playing the SNES games (especially the 2nd & 3rd one) more than the modern ones. Heck, I even play 64 more. I love the series but this is a hard pass. I was really hoping for a new Donkey Kong game but at least Nintendo gave me a good laugh from seeing this announcement.

Why is this news? Nintendo always charges full price for their remakes.

GET OVER IT!!!