At the recently-concluded E3, Nintendo set up the Nindies@Home program. This program allowed fans who couldn’t physically make it to E3 to download free demos of independent games developed for the Wii U, and once the full game gets released, those who downloaded the demos are offered a 15% discount when purchasing the full version. Hey, doesn’t this sound a bit like early access?
It does, and it’s probably not by accident. Nintendo is aware of the trend of releasing unfinished games at a lower price as early access, but they haven’t said much about it. “[A]nything is possible. I guess the important part of it is we’re very conscious of it and definitely looking at it,” said Damon Baker, head of Nintendo of America’s third-party relations and indie development.
What could early access mean for platforms like the Wii U and 3DS? The most obvious benefit would be having a beta-like period where the developers can pool together feedback that will eventually result in a smoother gaming experience, come launch day. Baker is quick to note, however, that it is still a fairly sensitive topic. It’s not an alien concept for games to be abandoned halfway through development, and they wouldn’t want to charge for something that will never come to fruition. Will the potential benefits outweigh the possible cons? Nintendo will never know if they don’t try it.
