Should the Gameboy Micro be cheaper than the Gameboy SP?

[bingbangboom]

These things are not really selling like Nintendo had planned and I think it has to do with the pricing. The standard pricing is $100 with some places having it for $90.

The SP is standard $80 everywhere.

I would think dropping the GBMicro to $50 would cause alot of the units to sell to casual gamers. I honestly wanted one but settled for a DS Lite instead.

What do you think? Maybe throw in a game with it so it justifies the pricing.

[yukine]

If the Micro launched cheaper, and Nintendo didn't release the updated SP. I think the Micro would of sold pretty damn well.

[javeryh]

I always thought the micro was a limited time only type of deal. If you don't get it now you won't get it at all - this way they will eventually sell out at $100.

[amusedtoe]

Well I think the Micro shouldn't have launched at more then the SP, though I'm of the mindset that it was an entirely unnecesary product that was unhealthy for the market. I'm in the vast minority in that one though. :D

[Michaellvortega]

waiting for the GBA Nano and the DS Lite2

[Scobie]

Well I think the Micro shouldn't have launched at more then the SP, though I'm of the mindset that it was an entirely unnecesary product that was unhealthy for the market. I'm in the vast minority in that one though. :D

I'm pretty much with you, man. When it came out I was sitting on the fence between never getting one and maybe considering it if it dropped to $70. I was lucky enough to get one at a TRU store closing for $60 and have been moderately pleased with it.

The screen's nice, it doesn't cramp my hands that much, and it travels easily in any pocket, but I definitely agree that it's an unecessary product, and I still find myself playing my old front-lit SP about as much as I do my micro.

[Rocko]

It seems like a nifty gadget, but not for the price. I'd much rather have a backlit SP2 for $100, but I can get it for $80, making the Micro even less appealing to me. If it dropped to 60 or less, then I'd consider it, but until then, regular SP and DS work just fine.

[amusedtoe]

Well at $100 how much sense does it make when you can drop another $30 on the DS.

[DocRamon]

i think the price point is fine... it's appealing to a different market.

why get a micro for $100 when you can get a SP2 for $80?

cause the SP has a stigma to it... it's a toy. kids play the SP while sitting in the shopping cart while their moms grocery shop at walmart. the micro is sleek, more impressive, and looks like a gadget, not something built for a child.

why get the micro for $100 when the DS is $130?

the DS requires more to play. there's a touch screen, a microphone... the experience is more interactive than just sitting in a chair and pounding buttons. sometimes, portable gaming conditions are not always ideal for this type of interaction. plus, the DS is a small brick. i couldn't carry that thing around in my pocket. the micro is tiny, compact, and lets me play without attracting too much "that fool is playing video games" attention.

because of who the micro targets, portable gamers who don't want to look like idiots, i think the price is great. and once you get your hands on the thing, carry it around for a while, find uses for it, and really take advantage of the size and abilities... the micro becomes worth the $100.

[asianxcore]

I didn't buy the SP over the Micro because with the SP, oddly enough, my hands felt more cramped than when I was playing the Micro. Also I look like an idiot whenever I play video games, so that really isn't a problem. :)

I do agree though, the Micro would've sold a whole lot better if there weren't two other choices (SP, DS).

[SpottedNigel]

No. It's higher tech than the SP... it helps that its a peice of gaming art (I own a 20th anniversary edition)

[Scobie]

I do agree though, the Micro would've sold a whole lot better if there weren't two other choices (SP, DS).

It was really the price point that killed the micro.... $100 was too rich for most people's blood when -- as has been previously stated -- a $30 upgrade gets you a DS.

Also didn't help that although the GBA platform is still kicking, it's clearly in the autumn of its years. There wasn't really an onslaught of new, worthwhile GBA software to coincide with the micro's launch, IIRC. It just kinda sat there in the shadow of the emerging DS and with no fulfillment of the "fashionable accessory" promise, i.e., more faceplates than what came in the box. And then there's the W-T-F moment with the anniversary micro being released in the U.S.... with the Japanese Famicom color scheme.

DocRamon has some good points, but in my view there are an equal, if not greater, number of drawbacks to the micro. All in all, it doesn't seem like Nintendo really had their heart in it.

[Aleryn]

Yeah I think it should be cheaper.

I've got both the Micro and a SP2, paid 90 and 80 for them respectively. And personally I think the Micro should be somewhere between 55-70 at retail. However I could see them pricing it higher at the possibility that the TINY electronics in the Micro actually cost more than the SP. Only real way I can justify it though.

[banpeikun]

I picked up a FFIV Micro shortly before buying my 4th SP. I haven't opened it yet :D

[DocRamon]

It was really the price point that killed the micro.... $100 was too rich for most people's blood when -- as has been previously stated -- a $30 upgrade gets you a DS.

Also didn't help that although the GBA platform is still kicking, it's clearly in the autumn of its years. There wasn't really an onslaught of new, worthwhile GBA software to coincide with the micro's launch, IIRC. It just kinda sat there in the shadow of the emerging DS and with no fulfillment of the "fashionable accessory" promise, i.e., more faceplates than what came in the box. And then there's the W-T-F moment with the anniversary micro being released in the U.S.... with the Japanese Famicom color scheme.

DocRamon has some good points, but in my view there are an equal, if not greater, number of drawbacks to the micro. All in all, it doesn't seem like Nintendo really had their heart in it.

i agree that sales were hurt by the decline of GBA support in general. had we gotten better games to accompany its release, more people might have picked it up "for the hell of it" when getting one of the newest A+ games.

and yes... i truly believe that the "fashionable accessory" was always a goal of nintendo with the micro, and i do think that the micro achieves that. but you're right, more faceplates could have solidified that strategy. more specials edition colors. and yes, the famicom release was... odd.

but i don't think it was the price point that killed the micro, rather, as you said, "it doesn't seem like nintendo really had their heart in it." that is what killed it. i don't doubt for a second that the thing would have sold like gangbusters even at the $100 price point had there been an appropriate amount of followthrough on nintendo's part.

[daroga]

No. It's higher tech than the SP... it helps that its a peice of gaming art (I own a 20th anniversary edition)
Higher tech? It does less than the SP. It's smaller, granted, but it's not really more sophisticated. Personally, the shoulder buttons and screen size are enough to make me stick with the SP2 or the DS Lite for GBA games. The SP2 is just perfect, I think. Beautiful screen (I've never noticed any of the ghosting that many here seem to have such an issue with aside from in games like the NES Classic SMB that have ghosting even on the Game Boy Player), nice size, and key over all, the self-protecting clamshell design. Oh, that, and the micro is expensive for what it does (or doesn't do as the case may be).

[yukine]

Nintendo should partner up with Konami and release a special edition Castlevania Micro. It would retail for $129.99 and come with the Castlevania: Double Pack, as well as two faceplates of Aria of Sorrow and Harmony of Dissonance.

I bet that would help move some Micros.

[vietgurl]

In a way, the micro wasn't needed but I personally love my micro. It's hard for me to carry around my DS or even my SP because they're too big.

[Scobie]

In a way, the micro wasn't needed but I personally love my micro. It's hard for me to carry around my DS or even my SP because they're too big.

Hrm.. I can understand the DS (though every girl ought to carry one in her purse, along with a switchblade), but the SP is pretty dang small.

[SpottedNigel]

Higher tech? It does less than the SP. It's smaller, granted, but it's not really more sophisticated. Personally, the shoulder buttons and screen size are enough to make me stick with the SP2 or the DS Lite for GBA games. The SP2 is just perfect, I think. Beautiful screen (I've never noticed any of the ghosting that many here seem to have such an issue with aside from in games like the NES Classic SMB that have ghosting even on the Game Boy Player), nice size, and key over all, the self-protecting clamshell design. Oh, that, and the micro is expensive for what it does (or doesn't do as the case may be).
How does it do less than an SP besides the clamshell, which the size of the machine makes up for?

[daroga]

How does it do less than an SP besides the clamshell, which the size of the machine makes up for?
It doesn't play the GB/GBC games :) Not exactly a new feature, but one that was stripped from the micro.

[bingbangboom]

The Micro was actually supposed to be geared toward kids but for some reason they didn't do that. Smaller for kids, but then they tried to go for the PSP crowd with its advertisement. Didn't work. If the GBAMicro was $50 i would have bought it just for novelty. Would have been more of a quicker gaming system. I still have yet to play a real one though. Nintendo didn't set up kiosk but rather dummy shells. Notice they stopped advertising on it also.

[SpottedNigel]

It doesn't play the GB/GBC games :) Not exactly a new feature, but one that was stripped from the micro.

...Good point. Forgot about that. Been playing Wario Land on my SP since GBA games go directly into my Micro :)

[daroga]

...Good point. Forgot about that. Been playing Wario Land on my SP since GBA games go directly into my Micro :)
hehe, yeah. It's not like I use the GB/C support on the GBA all that often, but it's nice to know it's there. The SP2 will be the system to keep to play all my old GBA games (that and the GBP I suppose).

[b3b0p]

No!

The micro is the best Gameboy ever.

The screen is hardly any smaller.

It is super bright.

The battery lasts forever.

Perfect form factor.

Built in screen protector.

However, 2 sholder buttons and only 2 face buttons is criminal. It's like borrowing the fat kid next door SNES controller. Nintendo should have gone all the way with the GBA.

Get the famicom version, it kicks major ass.

[crazytalkx]

I was waiting for a price drop, $40-50 range perhaps, but the DS Lite, :drool:

[amusedtoe]

Nintendo should partner up with Konami and release a special edition Castlevania Micro. It would retail for $129.99 and come with the Castlevania: Double Pack, as well as two faceplates of Aria of Sorrow and Harmony of Dissonance.

I bet that would help move some Micros.

Or they could do that and you know, put it at a reasonable price like $90.

[vietgurl]

Hrm.. I can understand the DS (though every girl ought to carry one in her purse, along with a switchblade), but the SP is pretty dang small.

It's hard to carry one when you don't carry a purse; my jean pockets can barely fit the micro.

And yes, in this place, I carry a blade when I'm walking alone at night. Pepper spray = weak

[Ikohn4ever]

i'd get the Retro Fami one if it got cheaper, but no it shouldnt be cheaper, they were tryin a niche market.

[Vinny]

Get the famicom version, it kicks major ass.

See.. that's what attracts me to it. The Famicom edition (or Anniversary edition here) is quite possibly the sexiest looking handheld device I've ever seen. It's absolutely beautiful. I called the Micro a waste at $50 but the Anniversary Edition will be mine!:D

[yukine]

Or they could do that and you know, put it at a reasonable price like $90.

That would be less than MSRP for the Micro, and Castlevania: Double Pack costs $29.99 new. How about $115.99? :lol:

[RAMSTORIA]

id love to have a micro, i think they are slick, but its too expensive. maybe one day.

[zyblorg]

I feel obliged to chip in as someone who bought a Micro because of its look -- I hadn't owned a handheld before, because I thought I'd look silly playing it on my long commute into work. I liked the idea of the DS, and some of the games seemed appealing, but the thing was just too huge, and frankly, pretty ugly.

When the Micro came out, it caught my eye. And when I looked at the decent range of games for the GBA (particularly all the RPGs and retro titles), I was sold. I still feel a bit sheepish playing it on the subway, but I think it's great... and it'll do me until the DS Lite comes to North America and retails for a decent price.

[CAG 79]

For me its all about the D-Pad and the control buttons. I hate the clicky controls on the SP. Playing games like Street Fighter Alpha 3 makes a big difference on a Micro.

[amusedtoe]

That would be less than MSRP for the Micro, and Castlevania: Double Pack costs $29.99 new. How about $115.99? :lol:

That was the point... <directs you to where I said I think the Micro is overpriced to begin with>

[synthbock]

I had the Micro for a couple of days, but it was a little too small for me. Not the screen, which I thought was very sharp, but I kept feeling like I was going to drop it. Also, the SP2 is on sale at CC this week and ends up being about $30 cheaper than the current price for the Micro.

[yukine]

That was the point... <directs you to where I said I think the Micro is overpriced to begin with>

Damnit, you got me there. :)

[ZeroEclipse]

i traded in my front lit sp and bought the micro for $50 so it was worth it. because of its size i never have a fear of getting it stolen. it always stay in my front pocket. (so if u wanna reach into my pants to grab it...). unlike my ds, it cant stay in my pocket and it has to stay in my backpack which is unsafe.

Also one time during school theres a guy sitting a couple feet away from me who was playing his sp. i took out my micro and started playing. i guess i made him feel bad cuz he put away the sp. ;)

[Scobie]

It's hard to carry one when you don't carry a purse; my jean pockets can barely fit the micro.

And yes, in this place, I carry a blade when I'm walking alone at night. Pepper spray = weak

Haha.. awesome! Tough chicks rule. Even moreso when they play Nintendo.