GameCube price drops to $149.95 on the eve of E3
by Julius Bautista

Monday, May 20, 2002

Like we didn't expect it; GCN Zelda bits in other news.

Not to be left out of the fun, Nintendo of America this morning announced the GameCube's new reduced price at $149.95, effective tomorrow May 21, 2002, the day before E3. This follows up their reduced prices of the standard GCN controllers and the earlier release date of the Wavebird wireless controller announced last week. Why they didn't wait to tell us at tomorrow's Press Conference escapes me.

In other news, in the latest The Legend of Zelda title slated for GCN, Link is on a journey to rescue his "sister." This little story piece somewhat calls back to the SNES days of "A Link to the Past," where Link's uncle spoke his dying words with "Zelda is your...." While it's never been confirmed, the Zelda series has hinted at some sort of relation between Link and Zelda. "Ocarina of Time" added to this mystery, telling of Link's mother escaping from a war with baby Link before she passed away; while throughout the game, there's no indication, of absence or presence, of Princess Zelda's mother. Maybe Mr. Miyamoto intends to reveal more truths behind "the legend," or this "sister" is someone completely new and made up. Bah, anyway, many questions should be answered this week, plus more.


---Nintendo Press Release

NINTENDO GAMECUBE MSRP Set At $149.95

REDMOND, WA -- May 20, 2002 – Less than one year after successfully launching NINTENDO GAMECUBE™ at a mass-market price, Nintendo of America Inc. is dropping the MSRP to $149.95, effective Tuesday, May 21, 2002. To date, Nintendo has shipped more than 4.5 million systems worldwide and its hit title, Super Smash Bros. ™ Melee, has topped the 2.5 million mark.

Today’s announcement comes as the $27 billion interactive entertainment industry gathers in Los Angeles for the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) to preview the latest and greatest games coming out this holiday.

“It’s simple, really: Nintendo is committed to offering our players the best games and the best price,” says Peter MacDougall, executive vice president, sales and marketing, Nintendo of America Inc. “We were the first manufacturer to reach the $199 price level and now we’re leading the industry to $149 – allowing even more players around the world to get their hands on our legendary favorites like Mario, Zelda, Star Fox and Metroid this year.”

Nintendo’s four headliners arrive in brand new adventures, exclusively on NINTENDO GAMECUBE:

- In Super Mario Sunshine™, the world’s most beloved plumber arrives for a tropical vacation…only to discover that his good name has been soiled by adversaries—and it’s his job to clean up the mess.
- The elfin hero Link sports a brand-new look that perfectly reflects his emotions throughout The Legend of Zelda™, as he embarks on an epic quest across land and sea to rescue his sister.
- With Star Fox® Adventures, Nintendo and Rare Ltd. create one of the most technologically advanced video games in history, with a compelling and whimsical story line that parallels a feature film.
- Fans around the world finally get the chance to find out what it looks like to meet Space Pirates face-to-face as Metroid® Prime gains first-person perspective.

In total, Nintendo and third party partners will expand game portfolios by year-end to more than 300 for Game Boy Advance and more than 150 for NINTENDO GAMECUBE. While retaining its unrivaled appeal to players of all ages, Nintendo is also aggressively moving forward with games designed to appeal to a broader audience with exclusives such as Metroid Prime, Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem™, and Resident Evil Zero.