Ever notice that Nintendo games rarely go on sale?

You can pick up a five-year-old Zelda game and still pay close to what people paid on launch day. Meanwhile, every other publisher seems to drop prices by half a few months after release.

That's not an accident. Nintendo does it on purpose, and its former U.S. president recently explained why. Back in May, Reggie Fils-Aimé, the former head of Nintendo of America, gave a talk at NYU's Game Center. And he was pretty candid about it.

He said Nintendo's goal is to ship a game that's finished. You buy it, you put it in, you play. No three-hour update on day one. He compared it to the craftsmanship Kyoto is known for, like fine linens, china, and pottery. 

Things made right don't need a markdown to prove they're worth it.

Then he got to price.

"We don't discount our games," he said. 

He pointed out that Breath of the Wild never got a price cut from Nintendo, not once since launch. A store might mark it down, but Nintendo didn't. In his words: "We're gonna charge a fair price, and that price is never gonna change."

Years later, the list price was still $59.99. Sure, you'll see a short eShop sale now and then. But that's a sale with an end date, not a permanent new price.

Did customers complain? Of course. 

Reggie admitted that too. But complaints don't mean the price is wrong. A lot of the time they just mean other companies have trained people to wait for a deal.

So what does a video game have to do with your sales team?

In Priced to Win with (Wiley)I put it this way:

"Price is a number. Certainty is a feeling."

• When your price holds steady, buyers feel sure about what they're paying. 
• When it drops every few months, they feel nervous. 
• They wonder if they're overpaying. They wait.

Price is a signal and sends a message. Every time you cut it for good, you're telling the buyer the product was never worth what you first asked. Nintendo protects that message. It ships finished games so the price makes sense, and it doesn't undercut itself.

Monday Move >>>

1. Look for any product, package, or plan where your "limited-time" discount has run so long that customers now think it's the real price. Pick one and bring it back to full price. Give a clear reason, like a new feature or better results.
2. If you still want to run a sale, put an end date on it in writing, plus the date the price goes back up. That way the discount doesn't quietly become your new normal.
3. And add one simple rule for your team: we don't drop our price for good just because someone pushed back.

Victor Antonio, Priced to Win

Pre-order: https://www.amazon.com/Priced-Win-Leaders-Framework-Closing/dp/1394454287

Landing page: https://www.victorantonio.com/priced-to-win

#SalesTraining #SalesTrainer #PricingStrategy #NegotiationSkills #PricedToWin #ValuePricing #PricingCertainty #SKOSpeaker #DynamicSalesSpeaker

Article Sources:

- [Nintendo Wire on Reggie's NYU remarks (May 4, 2026)](https://nintendowire.com/news/2026/05/04/reggie-fils-aime-provides-insight-into-why-nintendo-rarely-discounts-its-games/)

- [IGN coverage (May 5, 2026)](https://www.ign.com/articles/nintendo-games-dont-get-discounted-as-they-launch-at-a-fair-price-and-are-the-best-reggie-fils-aim-says)

- [GamesRadar+ coverage](https://www.gamesradar.com/games/nintendo-doesnt-discount-games-because-its-mentality-is-always-shipping-the-best-says-former-noa-president-reggie-fils-aime/)