Amid the ongoing backlash to Nintendo's shock pricing for the Switch 2 and Mario Kart World, two former Nintendo PR managers have described the situation as "a true crisis moment for Nintendo." In a video on their YouTube channel, former Nintendo of America PR managers Kit Ellis and Krysta Yang criticized Nintendo for the way it revealed the $449.99 price of the Switch 2 and the $79.99 price of Mario Kart World.
"I don’t want to blow things out of proportion, but this does feel like a true crisis moment for Nintendo," Ellis remarked. The high pricing extends beyond Mario Kart World, with other Nintendo Switch 2 Edition titles, such as The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, also priced at $79.99. Additionally, Nintendo has faced criticism for charging for the Switch 2 tutorial game, Welcome Tour, which fans believe should be a free pack-in, similar to how Astro's Playroom comes pre-installed on every PlayStation 5 console as a free tech demo for the DualSense controller.
The pricing controversy has even disrupted Nintendo's Treehouse livestreams, with viewers flooding the chat with "DROP THE PRICE" messages. Ellis and Yang were particularly critical of Nintendo's approach to revealing the prices. They noted the absence of pricing information during the Direct presentation as a "deliberate" omission, leading to widespread confusion and misinformation as fans searched for pricing details elsewhere.
Nintendo Switch 2 System and Accessories Gallery
91 Images
Yang suggested that the pricing was "intentionally omitted from the Direct for a reason," but criticized the way information was scattered, expecting fans to piece it together themselves. Ellis echoed this sentiment, stating, "It just shows some disrespect to the consumer, where, ‘oh, you just saw the Direct you’re so excited, you’re just gonna throw your money at us blindly, you’re not going to even ask the question of how much it cost because you’re so excited, aren’t you?’" Yang added that this approach felt "a little bit degrading almost to the intelligence of the consumer."
The former NOA communications staff highlighted Nintendo's failure to address the pricing concerns through a public statement or media interviews, leading to rampant speculation and misinformation. "They are enabling the story to get out of hand, out of control," Yang stated, with Ellis adding, "They have lost control of this."
Ellis and Yang suggested that Nintendo's consumer mindfulness has waned since the retirement of former NOA boss Reggie Fils-Aimé and the tragic loss of former Nintendo head Satoru Iwata. They believe Nintendo's communications team will recommend an official statement, but the approval process will be challenging and involve many people before reaching current Nintendo boss Shuntaro Furukawa. They also noted that Nintendo is out of practice in communicating with its community and press, especially since it hasn't faced this level of negativity since the Nintendo 3DS price debacle in 2011.
Concerns have arisen for staff at public-facing Switch 2 hands-on sessions, where fans may ask reasonable pricing questions. Any responses could be misconstrued as Nintendo's official stance if shared online. Neither Ellis nor Yang expect a price drop for the Switch 2 or its games before launch.
For more information, explore everything announced at the Switch 2 Nintendo Direct and what the experts have to say about the Switch 2 price and Mario Kart World's $80 price tag.
