Gadgets

Wii U: New Zealand Pricing Eclipses U.S., Americans Get Best Deal

Jonathan Charles

The $350 pricing for Wii U's Premium Edition, including the console, accessories, and a game, may seem a little expensive, but New Zealand's pricing for the next-generation console is confirmed and it is more expensive than the US, lining up with other non-U.S. regions.

The Basic version, with the console and 8GB of RAM, costs NZ$470. The Premium edition, with 32GB of RAM and a copy of Nintendo's NintendoLand minigame package, is NZ$570. Nintendo claims the pricing is due to conversion rates and said to refer to stores' prices, according to CVG. In the UK, retailers effectively have a free-for-all, as any price can theoretically be set. It is similar to the launch of Nintendo 3DS, which caused supermarkets to offer the handheld cheaper than in game stores like GAME.

On face value, the price seems expensive, which is partly correct. Converting the figure to US Dollar reveals that the Basic edition is $387 while Deluxe costs $469. The recommended price in the UK is £250 and £300 for Basic and Deluxe respectively. That is $405 and $486 respectively. It appears that U.S. customers are getting the best deal.

Nintendo announced prices for U.S. customers at its New York event September 13. The reaction from press seemed to be mixed: Nintendo showed off known titles like Super Mario Bros. U, though new -- and exclusive -- games like Bayonetta 2 surprised fans. The company also announced a new digital TV service TVii, streaming content played on television to Wii U's Game Pad. Consumers are yet to see the service used in practice.

Nintendo announced last week that Wii U will launch on Nov. 18 in the U.S. and Nov. 30 in Europe, New Zealand, and Australia. The console is the first next-generation console from Microsoft, Sony, or Nintendo. The former two companies are expected to reveal the consoles at E3 2013 with a view to launch Q4 that year or early 2014. Unsurprisingly, news on next-generation Xboxes or PlayStations is scarce. 

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