DSiWare and WiiWare sucks for Aussies – lets fix it

Each week we get less and less releases. Find out why its happening and we can do to help fix it

Every week we post the latest Nintendo downloads for your convenience and every week we Australians are getting increasingly less games than our overseas counterparts. No longer can we rely on the press release from Nintendo every week being accurate- we physically have to check our Wii’s and DSi’s to confirm what’s on the store each Friday the store is updated.

It used to be that Australia would miss out on some small insignificant titles but now things are getting worse as we’re not just missing out on small titles but big and interesting releases such as Contra Rebirth, Art of Balance, Rage of the Gladiator, Pop Island, Flipper and more. Sure, you could flip over to the UK store (but lose all your points in the process) on your Wii, but DSi owners aren’t so lucky. So before we can help fix it, we have to understand just what’s happening.

The main reason we’re not getting these great games is because each game that goes on sale in Australia must be rated by the Australian Classification Board. Typically, WiiWare and DSiWare games are put together by small and independent developers- the very type of studio that struggle to afford the costs to get the game rated.

It doesn’t matter if it’s Nintendo and have the Scrooge McDuck vault full of money, or it’s one guy in a basement and makes a game for a couple of thousand dollars- they pay the same rate. The fee is closing in on anywhere from $1,150 to $2,040, and for a game only selling for between $3 to $15 it’s a great risk for publishers to bring that title here. So what about the rest of the world? Well, the ESRB rating system in American and European PEGI system allow for games with a smaller budget and have a lower price for classification.

It’s also ironic that no games on Apple’s App Store have to be classified- if they did expect to see thousands of titles all but disappear from the App Store.

So how can this be fixed? How can we get all these great titles we’re missing out on? Luckily for us the Australian Classification Board is looking for feedback on their fee structure and charges. Local Australian developer Nic Watt from Nnooo, makers of the awesome Pop+ Solo and myNotebook (who brought this to our attention this morning) has written up a letter stating his case as a developer to the government. You don’t have to make DSiWare or WiiWare games to have a say- you can submit an online submission to this email.

So don’t wait until the next eagerly awaited DSiWare or WiiWare game you want doesn’t come to Australia to take action, get involved now and get the situation sorted.

Plus it’s getting to winter and I don’t want to have to get out of bed to check my Wii on a Friday morning. It’s cold!

Figures via Nnooo