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Nintendo the Japanese games company, on Thursday said it would cut prices on some of its top games and give away hit games with its console as it works to boost sales for the struggling GameCube.
Nintendo, which once dominated the U.S. video game market but has fallen to third place behind Sony Corp.'s dominant PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Corp.'s upstart Xbox, said it would offer one of four games for free with the $149.95 GameCube.
GameCube buyers will be able to choose from "Metroid Prime," "Star Fox Adventures," "Mario Party 4" or "Resident Evil 0" with purchase of the console.
Nintendo also slashed the price on its bundled offering of the GameCube, "Super Mario Sunshine" and an external memory card to $159.95 from $189.95. Purchased individually, the three components of the pack would cost almost $215.
A number of games from early in the GameCube's history, like "Luigi's Mansion" and "Super Smash Bros. Melee," will be cut in price to $29.95 from $49.95 as part of a "Player's Choice" program, the company said.
"This action by Nintendo does not come as a big surprise to us as holiday GameCube sales were weaker than expected in the face of stiff competition from the PlayStation 2 and Xbox," Gerard Klauer Mattison analyst Edward Williams said in a note on Thursday.
"We believe the weakness of the GameCube (relative to PS2 and Xbox) is indicative of specific problems with GameCube sell-through rather than an indication of weakness in the industry overall," Williams said.
Last month, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata told Reuters the company would miss its sales targets for the GameCube by more than 10 percent in the current fiscal year and also fall short of its software sales goals.
Nintendo's stock has been under pressure in Japan as investors express concerns about the prospects for the GameCube, even as Nintendo prepares to launch an updated version of its market-dominating Game Boy portable device.
Nintendo, which once dominated the U.S. video game market but has fallen to third place behind Sony Corp.'s dominant PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Corp.'s upstart Xbox, said it would offer one of four games for free with the $149.95 GameCube.
GameCube buyers will be able to choose from "Metroid Prime," "Star Fox Adventures," "Mario Party 4" or "Resident Evil 0" with purchase of the console.
Nintendo also slashed the price on its bundled offering of the GameCube, "Super Mario Sunshine" and an external memory card to $159.95 from $189.95. Purchased individually, the three components of the pack would cost almost $215.
A number of games from early in the GameCube's history, like "Luigi's Mansion" and "Super Smash Bros. Melee," will be cut in price to $29.95 from $49.95 as part of a "Player's Choice" program, the company said.
"This action by Nintendo does not come as a big surprise to us as holiday GameCube sales were weaker than expected in the face of stiff competition from the PlayStation 2 and Xbox," Gerard Klauer Mattison analyst Edward Williams said in a note on Thursday.
"We believe the weakness of the GameCube (relative to PS2 and Xbox) is indicative of specific problems with GameCube sell-through rather than an indication of weakness in the industry overall," Williams said.
Last month, Nintendo President Satoru Iwata told Reuters the company would miss its sales targets for the GameCube by more than 10 percent in the current fiscal year and also fall short of its software sales goals.
Nintendo's stock has been under pressure in Japan as investors express concerns about the prospects for the GameCube, even as Nintendo prepares to launch an updated version of its market-dominating Game Boy portable device.