Extra points leak out of Wii Shop Channel (Wii annoyance #006)
by Kyle Orland 
{ Nov 27th 2006 at 6:45PM }
OK, we understand that using a universal Wii Points system is simpler than adjusting individual virtual console prices for different regions and currencies. What we don't understand is why we have to buy these points in increments of 1,000, even if all we want is just one game. Once we buy Bonk's Adventure for 600 points, what are we supposed to do with the 400 remaining points stuck in our account? Buy four-fifths of an NES game?The pat, fanboy response will likely be to buy more points and find more games to download, but we're not too excited about the prospect of spending more money just to get our change. Even worse, those without a credit card are thus far stuck laying out $20 for a 2000 point card at retail. That's a lot of mark up if all you want is a single $5 NES download.
We know Xbox Live has a similar system in place for their Microsoft Points, but their minimum purchase price is only $5 and there are small, 100 point items available to soak up your leftovers in a pinch. Sony has them both beat, though, letting you deposit exactly the amount you need when making an online purchase instead of grubbing for a few extra bucks with every transaction.
The whole point of digital distribution is to make buying games and content simpler. Forcing us to buy extra digital money we might not want does not serve that goal.
PS3 delights vs. PS3 annoyances
Wii delights vs. Wii annoyances
Xbox 360 delights vs. Xbox 360 annoyances
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Boomaga @ Nov 27th 2006 8:23PM
Well, force you to spend $10. You only want $6 of merchandise. Nintendo keeps your $4. Overall... Profit for Nintendo. That's why any company does these stupid points dealies instead of letting you just pay directly for what you want.
It's the same reasoning behind company gift cards, they hope you spend the money in their store without actually getting a product. It's all about the money and... not news.
KapsLocked @ Nov 27th 2006 6:53PM
I'd wait and see what happens with this. I'm pretty sure the Shop Channel will go through changes. As well, didn't XBox Live have a rocky start as well?
Raquor @ Nov 27th 2006 8:02PM
I'd say the likelihood of desiring to buy only 1 virtual console title EVER is pretty slim. If you are interested in 1 you will likely be interested in additional titles later on.
That being said I do agree that having extra points sitting around sucks. Still I'm not going to complain all that much because at some point I'm sure I'll grab a few more games and who knows...perhaps in the future there will be some smaller priced content.
Optimus Prime @ Nov 27th 2006 6:55PM
"The whole point of digital distribution is to make buying games and content simpler."
No it isnt... thats just a happy side effect.
The main purpose is to allow content providers to control their content. So, you have use their content under their terms (DRM). So, you have to buy another copy of SMB even though you have the cartridge sitting in your living room.
"Forcing us to buy extra digital money we might not want does not serve that goal."
Using a point system adds another layer of control; buy their content using their monetary system.
vidGuy @ Nov 27th 2006 7:44PM
I understand the concern, but over five or so years of the Wii's life, you expect to buy just one VC game?
Maybe Nintendo will see this problem and offer Wii Ware at the gap-prices. Example: when the Opera browser is no longer free, it could be priced at 400 points to offsite that leakage.
Greg @ Nov 27th 2006 10:46PM
Yup, I hope Nintendo changes this. They are trying to milk us who use the Wii point cards. Kinda makes me want to avoid the VC and never use it again, EVER. Time to grab some ROMs.
Reilly @ Nov 27th 2006 6:58PM
I'm not sure that the Xbox Live solution is much better. While there are things like the Oblivion horse armour available for cheap, they're generally things I would expect to be free.
jp007 @ Nov 28th 2006 12:23PM
I have a Wii annoyance that no one has seemed to mention. The fact that you can't edit Mii's created on someone else's console. A message pops up saying "Only this Mii's creator can edit this Mii" or something like that. It sucks, because I created my personal Mii at a friends house on Sunday after we both picked up a Wii. We stayed there the whole day and played as they had a big screen tv. I copied my Mii to my controller, thinking I would just transfer to my home console, no problem. And it was no problem to transfer. Then I sunk a crap load of time into Wii Sports, earning Medals, etc. Then I decided I wanted to add some sunglasses or a hat to my character, only to find I can't do it, and get that stupid message. It pisses me off, because I'M THE FREAKING CREATOR and I can't edit it. So, yeah, thats my biggest Wii annoyance at the moment...
Melonman @ Nov 27th 2006 7:01PM
this imo is a pretty invalid point as the wii has only just been released and it took Microsoft a wee while before they got that problem sorted out. i think you are unfairly comparing a newly released product with its fair share of faults with a product thats been out for just over a year and has numerous updates to comply with the whining consumers. given time the creases will be flattened. patience is a virtue.
human-cannonball @ Nov 27th 2006 9:26PM
I actually have 300 points sitting in my account right now... I started by buying Bonk's Adventure, and thought, "OK, so now I need to buy another TG-16 game and a Genesis one to use the whole 2000". I was OK with that because I'd already decided I was getting Bomberman '93, but then I mucked the whole thing up by getting Wario Woods...
otakucode @ Nov 27th 2006 7:04PM
Optimus Prime nailed it. The reason WE like digital distribution and the reason THEY like digital distribution are entirely different things.
We like it because we can buy stuff in a flash. They like it because that stuff you buy isn't yours, it's licensed to you and they can yank your right to use it at any point for any reason whatsoever (read those terms of service and end user license agreements!). If Apple wanted you to pay $1 more per song to listen to your tracks you've bought from them tomorrow, you're either going to pay up or you're not getting the music, it's that simple. They hold the reigns absolutely.
If digital distribution was fully embraced, games would be released in digital form less than 1 hour after they "go gold". Prices would be significantly less than their retail counterparts. Participating in betas would net you a paycheck, or at least a free copy of the game on release. Gamestop and ebGames would become kiosks in your local convenience store that burn discs on demand for those who need concrete property. DRM would be abandoned. If the product is easy to get and reasonably priced, piracy helps sales rather than hurting them. There are dozens of other correllaries, but they're moot. Digital distribution has been embraced reluctantly and only because it gives them more control and us less control.
EihBeir @ Nov 29th 2006 6:35PM
Shouldn't this be from Cole?
Mr. Khan @ Nov 27th 2006 7:10PM
My guess is that they tried to make it simpler by only selling those admittedly large increments
Except for entering in Purchasing data (credit card #'s and such), purchasing the points is literally a point and click experience,
Its probably also a cunning marketing strategem in which those 200 extra points compel you to: purchase more points and buy more games (the beauty of this is its almost pure profit for Nintendo)
Teh Destroyer @ Nov 27th 2006 8:50PM
Melonman
Even though Xbox Live has been out longer that doesn't make the wii's system of things any less faulty. Nintendo should have studied Microsoft and rectified their system accordingly. It really isn't that hard they just screwed up.
And Prime, without that "Happy Side Effect" people will shun digital distrubution all together. Admitedly the points you bring up are valid and those are the reasons companies choose to do such things another reason is to make it easier for the consumer to buy games.
Adam Zey @ Nov 29th 2006 1:18AM
This news post is, to be honest, idiotic. What's wrong with 1000 point multiples? What else do you expect?
The least common multiple of 500, 600, 800, and 1000 (the various costs of VC games) is 12,000. Would you rather Nintendo sold wii points in multiples of TWELVE THOUSAND rather than 1000? Would you rather have to buy $120 USD worth of wii points just to buy anything at all?
Or would you rather that they had increased prices so that the price levels were 500, 750, and 1000? Then you'd only have to buy 3000 points, but you'd be spending more per game.
Sigh, some people just complain about the most pointless things.
I suppose that Nintendo COULD just drop all their prices on the VC, but the games are already damned cheap compared to buying the re-releases for other systems. Let's not push too hard.
hydrogen_wv @ Nov 27th 2006 7:23PM
I love Nintendo, but this is a very good point... Maybe they could get in contact with some online games site (yahoo, realarcade, etc.) and port some of there cheap-o yet very addicting games to the VC and have them dirt cheap.... I don't think Nintendo is doing anything but games for points though, afaik.
Anyone kissing Nintendo's ass about this is not doing anyone a favor. I think Nintendo is great, BUT this is not acceptable. Nickle and diming is not right.
People need to start standing up against companies they like. It happens way too frequently, people get anally reemed by a company and they offer the company a second shot at their cornhole. Look at it this way... No matter how much you love your wife, girlfriend, boyfriend, husband, fiance, etc... you don't praise them if they cheat on you... So why should you praise a company for screwing you over.
It's like the Apple fanboys who let themselves get shat upon when their Nano screens got scratched by a microfiber cloth... Don't kiss ass, stand up and let the company know that it's unacceptable.
Everyone benefits... you don't look like a tool, the company starts treating its customers better, and the product or service becomes better.
superpac @ Nov 27th 2006 8:24PM
So why isn't this also one of the X360 Annoyances? It's the same sort of deal on the 360, especially when it comes to buying a prepaid card (Microsoft only offers a 1600-point version at retail). The only difference, at the moment, is that there are a lot of smaller things you can buy on 360 and you can't do that yet on the Wii. Otherwise, the systems are the same. At least with Wii 100 points = $1, unlike Microsoft Points which get really damn confusing after awhile.
Antaeus @ Nov 30th 2006 7:55PM
Sony Rules joo all
Leggo @ Nov 27th 2006 7:29PM
The reason for the large buy in is because it isn't cost effective to process purchases at such small amounts. That's the whole point. It's also why your local chinese food place refuses to let you buy anything with a credit card for less than 10 bucks.
Believe me, if you want to go back to the days of individual purchases, go back to Xbox 1. Due to the cost of processing, no item was less than $4.95 on Xbox Live.
As for PS3, even though they use local currency as the online currency, the system is still the same: You have an "online wallet" that you deposit money into, probably in those same $5+ amounts, and then you purchase out of that. It's still funny money, it's just labeled in such a way to make you think it isn't.
Pax @ Nov 27th 2006 7:45PM
It seems to me that there's nothing to do with your small increments of points because the system is very young, and there's not a lot to buy on the Wii Shop channel. I thought lots of smaller things will become available for purchase as time goes on- new Mii clothes or hair, extra features for other wii channels, etc.
Give me Stars or Give me Death! @ Nov 27th 2006 7:57PM
So this is all we have so far for Wii annoyances? These are your main gripes?
1. You can't find the cursor when you move it off-screen or in layman's terms, your ass with both hands and an ass-map.
2. The mp3 player isn't exceptional. If you use this function I guess you're SOL but do more than 5 people care?
3. I can't think of one game on the Wii that requires more space to play with four people than any other game on any other console. Four player DDR would certainly take up more and nobody's bitching about that.
4. Since it isn't an "annoyance" that the advent of HD-gaming doesn't come with HD cables this point is invalid at best and re-cock-ulous and extremely hypocritical at worst. Then again it's on par with Vlad's usual yellow journalism bullshit.
5. The classic controller thing is a little annoying.
6. Meh. Since there is almost no end in sight for me buying virtual console games I don't care if the Wii keeps my loose change.
If this is the best you guys can come up with then buying a Wii is the best purchase I've made in a long time.
Rzasa @ Nov 27th 2006 8:08PM
Sure this sounds like an annoyance, but who is really going to buy only one NES game in the lifespan of the Wii? I'm sure $20 can be spent over 4-5 years if you're that picky. The complaint's being made within the first week of launch, with just about a dozen titles available. Those points won't disappear if they aren't spent. Have some patience.
Christopher Stone @ Nov 27th 2006 8:09PM
I totally agree, both MS and Nintendo need to stop the fleecing that is going on with their respective marketplaces.
Turken @ Nov 28th 2006 10:46AM
The thing that still kills me is that at the K-mart where I managed to get a launch day Wii, they wanted $28 for a 2000 point card!!!
And they were enforcing a "two games or one game and one accessory" bundle, but they ran out of good games and all the accessories except for the big stack of overpriced point cards halfway through the line.
Ragnarokender @ Nov 27th 2006 11:54PM
A problem is a problem, stop saying "so what, you'll eventually buy more than 1 game over a span of 2-4 years". For one thing, what if I dont plan to keep the Wii for 2 years?
DCFC Fan @ Nov 27th 2006 8:22PM
You all complain about having $4 worth of points leftover that you might not use for a month, but most of you have NO problem whatsoever preordering crap a month ahead of time at EB/Gamestop. Then you're out $50-$60 for much longer.
I think you people should reevaluate and quit being such tightwad crybabies.
Michael @ Nov 27th 2006 8:20PM
Since no one else will say it; Thanks, Sony!
nimrod @ Nov 28th 2006 1:02AM
sounds to me like it's roughly the same system used in the digital touchscreen videogames at clubs & bars. the pricing scheme gives you 4 credits for a $1, but wtf is up with these 3 credit games. what do ppl do with the extra credit? they generally just walk away, as opposed to forking over more cash to make up the difference. instant loss. at least in the Wii's favor, you get something substantial for your pains.
Final-Fan @ Nov 27th 2006 9:49PM
So now those hated microtransactions are a GOOD thing, because they let you spend exactly all of your money? Well, if you love them so much, be reassured that they are certainly coming to the Wii Shop channel as well.
I would say that, to maintain logical consistency, you must do one of the following:
1. Take this off of "Wii annoyances";
2. Add its equivalent to "Xbox 360 annoyances";
3. GTFO of the Internet.
Crushed @ Nov 28th 2006 4:02PM
Well, the prices aren't set in stone in Japan at least; some VC titles there are worth more Points or less Points than the standard for that system.
Maybe we'll see the same thing here.
Richard @ Nov 27th 2006 9:41PM
In Japan, there are many more increments of points cards available, i think its like 500/1000/2000/4000 or something along those lines.. I'm sure we will see other amounts as well, remember.. it did just come out a week ago!
Emmanuel Miranda @ Dec 25th 2006 11:20PM
You don't like the Wii Points System?
"we understand that using a universal Wii Points system is simpler than adjusting individual virtual console prices for different regions and currencies"
Nope, we here in Mexico won't have Wii Points at retails stores, we'll have to use Credit Card, so the Point System will only work in the US
rv65 @ Nov 28th 2006 2:42AM
I hear you can buy points on the shop channel. If Mortal Kombat is on the virtual console then I will buy it for sure.
EnderMB @ Nov 28th 2006 8:24AM
Let's change ATM's while we're at it...
Trojan @ Nov 28th 2006 10:19AM
You've misunderstood Emmanuel. You're buying Wii Points with your credit card, you just happen to be paying in your local currency for those points.
The Points system lets them set the same Point cost for a game in all regions (600 points), yet the cost to buy those points is different. Eg. It might cost 1000Yen for 1000 points, but $10 US for 1000 points, and 100 Pesos for 1000 points.
If they didn't have the points system, they'd have to deal with currency conversions at the point of sale, and when displaying the cost of the downloads in each region. (600 Yen, $6 USD, 60 Pesos, $6.64 Cdn in their respective regions).
rainking187 @ Dec 5th 2006 6:06AM
"You all complain about having $4 worth of points leftover that you might not use for a month, but most of you have NO problem whatsoever preordering crap a month ahead of time at EB/Gamestop. Then you're out $50-$60 for much longer.
I think you people should reevaluate and quit being such tightwad crybabies."
...I've never put down more then $5 to preorder a game at Gamestop. If I decide I don't want to buy it when it comes out I just don't pick it up. If you put down the full amount upfront that's your choice.