Amid Switch 2 price backlash, Nintendo exec says Mario Kart World justifies its shock $80 price because it's "probably the richest Mario Kart experience" fans will have ever had

Nintendo's big Switch 2 reveal hasn't been without its controversy, with fans everywhere begging for the company to "drop the price" of its new console and games following last week's Nintendo Switch 2 news. Nintendo execs have now acknowledged the cost of its upcoming Switch 2 games, and fans have also been reassured that Mario Kart World will be worth its $80 price tag.

In the United States, a Switch 2 on its own will cost you $450, and its games won't come cheap, either. As previously mentioned, Mario Kart World will cost $80 in the US, while the new 3D Donkey Kong game, Donkey Kong Bananza, is set to cost $70. Speaking to IGN, Bill Trinen, Nintendo of America's vice president of product and player experience, explains that "whenever we look at a given game, we just look at what is the experience, and what's the content, and what's the value?"

Going on to mention Mario Kart World specifically, he says: "Honestly, this is a game that is so big and so vast and you will find so many little things in it to discover. And there's still some other secrets remaining that I think as people end up buying and playing the game, they're going to find this to be probably the richest Mario Kart experience they've ever had."

Trinen brings up this same approach of assessing the value of games in order to determine what the "right price" is for them when talking about the Switch 2 Edition upgrades of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Tears of the Kingdom. These, he's now confirmed, will have $10 upgrade fees for anyone who already owns the original versions (unless you're subscribed to Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack, in which case they'll be available at no extra cost). "I think overall, our general approach is really just focus on what's the content, what's the value, and what's an appropriate price based on that," he reiterates.

In a separate interview with The Washington Post, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser mentions Donkey Kong Bananza and its $70 price tag when discussing Nintendo's "variable pricing," before giving a bit more insight into what the company's thought process behind determining these costs is.

"We'll look at each game, really look at the development that's gone into the game, the breadth and depth of the gameplay, if you will, the durability over time and the repeatability of gameplay experiences," he explains. "Those are all factors, and there's many more that go into consideration of what is the right price point for the game. So I think you can anticipate that there will be variable pricing, and we haven't set a benchmark."

So, in case it wasn't already clear, you definitely shouldn't expect every Switch 2 game to cost $80. What's more, amid gamers' fears of GTA 6 costing $100 when it launches later this year, Bowser thinks Nintendo's move towards higher game prices is "less about representing the industry," but rather "about Nintendo deciding the right thing to do for its products or what the pricing should be for its products overall." He points out that even previously, there's been variation in the prices of Switch games – the majority of first-party Nintendo games have retailed at about $60, but Tears of the Kingdom was $70, so this strategy isn't anything new.

We'll just have to wait and see how the response to the pricing decisions affects Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders, which are set to go live this week, although they've been delayed in the United States as a result of the new tariffs.

Nintendo teases that "there is more" to Mario Kart World's new free roam mode than we're aware of, and I'm hoping for the return of my favorite DS feature.