Toys, pack-ins, gimmicks, add-ons and peripherals are all words that are not unknown or unheard of to Nintendo Wii owners’ ears.  Since the console’s launch in 2006, a great many guns zappers, dance pads, microphones, etc., have been bundled with Wii games filling living rooms to capacity -- especially with the onset of rhythm games.  Even Nintendo’s best-selling game, WiiPlay is merely a controller with a $10 tech demo, and there has always been a premium attached to the bundles that have exceeded the normal price point for a Wii game at $49.99.  With the highly anticipated fall lineup almost upon us, the rules of the game may be changing: a couple of the earlier big releases, Guitar Hero 5 and Beatles: Rock Band, each sports a sticker price of $59.99 on Wii, the same price as their high definition counterparts.

Besides first party offerings, the Rock Band and Guitar Hero franchises are the only real commercial success stories on the Wii.  Who can blame them?  They are perfect for the Wii’s key demographic -- casual gamers and families -- and these two franchises are the epitome of casual, family-oriented entertainment.  With the advent of Band Hero and Lego Rock Band focused on the “E for Everyone” crowd, it is evident that Activision and (ultimately) Electronic Arts know where their proverbial bread is buttered.

Supply and demand economics are a part of every Principles of Microeconomics course in any college or university in this country.  With a limited supply and high demand for your product, you can charge a premium for those without to pay to have.  So, it is not surprising that Guitar Hero 5 and Beatles: Rock Band are similarly priced to the same product on Xbox 360 and Playstation 3.  That’s the rub, though; they aren’t exactly the same product.  Let’s face it, there is definitely a decrease in graphical fidelity, and before Rock Band 2 was released for the little white box, that franchise was a joke in comparison to its HD rivals.  Now, with the hard work of Vicarious Visions on Guitar Hero: World Tour forcing Harmonix to step it up, the latest versions have most, if not all, the same features as the other current generation consoles.  There have even been concessions and improvements made to work around and with the console’s limitations.  In essence, these two franchises have strived to give Wii owners a product that is deserving of current generation systems and stopped creating Playstation 2 ports.  You could easily make the argument that the games are close enough to their 360/PS3 peers, save the graphics, to warrant the increased price tag.  I do give Gamestop some credit for giving three songs for Beatles: Rock Band to be purchased online.  Being a six-dollar value, that does alleviate some of the cost, but they certainly will not do this for every release going forward.

The price increase sets a bad precedent going forward with the Wii market.  First, we will start out with “Premium rhythm games for $60 are okay” as Band Hero and Lego Rock Band are still being released at the $50 price point.  Then, first party games will jump to the increased price, as Nintendo has no qualms about extorting their customers for cold hard cash.  Soon all triple-A titles will be released at $59.99 because, honestly, they can.  While this sounds a lot like Chicken Little or a Fox News pundit, this is something that anyone who desires or delivers hardcore games on this medium should be against.  The lower price is why some owners still continue to purchase games for this system. A small core of defenders of the console still exists based on the Wii being a secondary console in the home and the games being priced accordingly.  Without it, even the defenders of the Wii and its games will find cause for silence.

This is not a call for a boycott, online petition or other such silliness, but a plea to the publishers and decision makers to resist the urge to cash in on the popularity of certain games and the Nintendo Wii.  Yes, there are people who will pay for the games regardless and there will be an increase in cash flow in your shareholders’ profits, but the goodwill generated and the new influx of players could possibly be lost in the process.  While the new people could only be a possibility of being lost, the current market of players, minus the fanboys and girls, will definitely vanish for good.  This console defender will be one of the first to retire his wiimote and nunchuk.