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Mario Kart Tour Subscription Costs the Same as Apple Arcade

For $4.99, Apple offers access to over 100 games, where as Nintendo wants the same amount every month just to unlock extra items and 200cc races.

September 25, 2019
Nintendo Mario Kart Tour iOS Android

On consoles, Nintendo likes to keep the prices of its first-party games high, and it seems that is also the case for the company's mobile games. Mario Kart Tour just launched on iOS and Android and it includes the option of a $4.99 subscription.

Just like Nintendo's other mobile games, Mario Kart Tour is classed as "free-to-start." It means the game can be played for free, but there's a range of in-game purchases available and you'll require both a Nintendo account and a persistent internet connection to play the game.

As Eurogamer reports, one of the in-game purchase options is a monthly subscription costing $4.99. In return, you'll gain access to extra items and the ability to race the different courses at 200cc. That's about it, though, which seems very little extra content in return for $5 every month. What makes it seem like even poorer value for money is the fact it costs the same as Apple Arcade, which offers access to over 100 games.

Mario Kart Tour is guaranteed to be popular and earn millions of dollars, but Nintendo, just like many other publishers in the mobile space, may have to rethink its subscription pricing now that Apple Arcade exists. Why would anyone pay $4.99 for a few extra features in one game when they could unlock 100 games to play?

The story is no different on Android where Google has responded to Apple Arcade by launching Play Pass, which also costs $4.99, but offers access to more than 350 apps and games.

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About Matthew Humphries

Senior Editor

I started working at PCMag in November 2016, covering all areas of technology and video game news. Before that I spent nearly 15 years working at Geek.com as a writer and editor. I also spent the first six years after leaving university as a professional game designer working with Disney, Games Workshop, 20th Century Fox, and Vivendi.

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