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It's something they do on the side. It's like any hobby project. Most likely the download titles net them way more money anyway.
 
I'm sure though that they know their demand more than we all do.
I highly doubt they know the actual demand, and Demand can change dramatically given marketing, pricing, etc. Heck even multinational corporations selling millions of dollars of product struggle with accurately calculating demand.

I also think the "open pre-orders every 3-5 years" is a kind of dumb. Anyone who is making good sales will tell you that it's important to reduce as many barriers to making the sale as possible. It's why Amazon patented 1-click ordering (literally) because once someone decides to buy you don't want to give them any opportunity to change their mind. Making people wait YEARS to execute that purchase is a long time for someone's decision to change.

There is some marketing gimmicks to false scarcity in order to artificially inflate demand and product pricing, but if you look at companies accurately playing that game (such as Disney or Limited Run Games, etc) then the NGDev model doesn't make any sense. It's as if they're failing miserably to capitalize that gimmick properly, or that's not actually what they're doing.
 
So you can't even buy their Dreamcast versions?
Oh wow, that's new. For YEARS you could buy all of their DC games. They even had a pack you could buy that netted you some savings for getting all of them. The limited editions went in and out of stock, but the regular releases were always available.I know when KB was being made they were talking about how DC piracy made them decide not to port KB to DC. It'll be interesting to see how Gunlord does on Switch and if they find rampant Switch piracy affects them or not. Maybe KB'll go to Switch one day.

And I don't necessarily advocate pirating from NG:Dev or anything, just that if I'm debating a $700 purchase, I take whatever opportunity I can to try the game first. Even if that comes down to burning a CD.
Yeah, I can't deny that makes sense, but...
This will sound weird. As I've gotten older, I've wanted to capture a feeling I had as a kid where i would save up my money for something and with little information (other than word of mouth or magazines) I'd make the dive! Sometimes it would be awesome! Sometimes, it would be an LJN game...

I know it sounds crazy, but that's why I don't load up MAME anymore. If I want it, I just get it. If it sucks, I still play it to try and get my money out of it and I guess I can always sell it.

The demand is clearly there!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Paradox_of_Choice

In a lot of cases, less is more with regard to personal enjoyment.
I definitely get where you're coming from,and it's why I tend to seek the middle ground with multi-capable hardware.
 
NG Dev has always kept supply low - if you don't pick up their games when they first come out then you have to cross your fingers and hope for a reprint a few years down the road. Some of their titles like Neo XYX MVS have never been reprinted, and they've said that one never will be reprinted (it sold poorly since it's the only tate vertical game on the system).

Also, as mentioned, their games use FPGAs because the ROM data is encrypted. It's likely that the FPGA is also acting as a secondary processor as well. That means that none of their games except for Last Hope are available as ROM files that can run on a flash cart or MiSTer. If the encryption is eventually cracked, there's still no guarantee that they'll run on a flash cart anyway if the FPGA performs processing duties.

TL;DR - hunt them down used. That's what I did, although it took me a few years to assemble the complete set. Some people don't like their games, but I enjoy pretty much their entire catalog except for Last Hope. Happy hunting!
 
I'm sure though that they know their demand more than we all do.
I highly doubt they know the actual demand, and Demand can change dramatically given marketing, pricing, etc. Heck even multinational corporations selling millions of dollars of product struggle with accurately calculating demand.
I also think the "open pre-orders every 3-5 years" is a kind of dumb. Anyone who is making good sales will tell you that it's important to reduce as many barriers to making the sale as possible. It's why Amazon patented 1-click ordering (literally) because once someone decides to buy you don't want to give them any opportunity to change their mind. Making people wait YEARS to execute that purchase is a long time for someone's decision to change.

There is some marketing gimmicks to false scarcity in order to artificially inflate demand and product pricing, but if you look at companies accurately playing that game (such as Disney or Limited Run Games, etc) then the NGDev model doesn't make any sense. It's as if they're failing miserably to capitalize that gimmick properly, or that's not actually what they're doing.
1000% Agree with these points.

@nem mentioned that it's kind of a side hobby for them, which makes sense.
But at that point, why bother having so much material online just to be like "haha we're not selling these now get fucked"
 
As for easily available titles from NGDev, I would highly recommend Gunlord on Switch.

That game is definitely their most favorably reviewed game and is a lot of fun, plus not much barrier/cost to play.

Fast Striker is still available on PSN for PS Vita too I believe.

Personally I quite like KB, but the only option there is the used market if you want an actual MVS cart.
 
As for easily available titles from NGDev, I would highly recommend Gunlord on Switch.

That game is definitely their most favorably reviewed game and is a lot of fun, plus not much barrier/cost to play.

Fast Striker is still available on PSN for PS Vita too I believe.

Personally I quite like KB, but the only option there is the used market if you want an actual MVS cart.
But I want them all on MVS! And I don't want to pay like 1000-2000 per cart! And I want a pony and a Lamborghini. :P
 
This is not something I'd prefer to do, however I also haven't had any luck with finding MVS dumps.
Thats an awful lot of cash to spend on disappointment, but to each their own.
I understand people who think that them stealing a 25 year old game won't have any impact on the old devs or the company (I do not agree but I do understand), but advocating someone do that to a current small company who not only exists but is providing these games on original tech to the community? I think that is a shit thing to do, but to each their own.
 
But at that point, why bother having so much material online just to be like "haha we're not selling these now get fucked"
From my own experience selling hobby products through an online store stuff falls into 1 of 3 categories:
1. I have it in stock.
2. I don't have it in stock and I'm actively working to get it in stock.
3. I don't have it in stock and working it get more in stock is more of a pain in the ass than it's worth.

I have a few products in category 3... they're usually not super profitable or they don't sell very frequently and there is usually something about them that makes producing them super time consuming or frustrating.

earlier this year I actually removed a handful of products that I really just didn't want to go through the trouble to make any more, there are a number of other ones that are still in this category but I've left up because maybe if people nag me enough about it and I have the time/resources available I'll make a few more

I'd suspect that if NGDev is making more money on Switch and Digital sales that their physical carts fall squarely into the 3rd category.

If I were them I'd probably go one of 2 ways with the cart releases.

1. Develop a generic cart that they can be flashed with any one of their games. Keep the carts in stock along with the paper media for each game, then flash&sticker to order

or

2. Play the limited release gimmick game. Estimate release demand as best you can, bump that number slightly then market the hell out of the limited nature of the release. Give it a name like "Launch Edition" or something with some extra goodies and then once you've sold out, you've sold out. People will be glad to order because they know they wont have another opportunity; period.

Watch the used market and if the price starts going way up after a few years. then you can make an "Arrange" release of the game, or repack it with a different bundle of stuff as an "anniversary edition" and again play the number games and promote the limited nature, etc. Launch edition buyers will be happy because their game is still "different" and many of them might even buy the re-release to have them all.

This is a bit more work but if done right could be more profitable than option 1. They could also do BOTH of these carrying standard editions all the time, with the occasional Limited edition release.
 
I reached out to NGDEV about trying to buy their entire MVS catalog...

Does anyone understand what their business strategy is?
Are they doing this as a hobby or something? If that's the case, why go through the trouble of having a distribution network?
They're not even trying to meet demand.
I'd really really like to purchase legitimate copies to play these, however they're making it very difficult.

The email thread I had with them is as follows.
Hey, i got a copy of Kraut Buster that i have for sale at 641.33 Euros excluding shipping ( 6600 Sek ) on a Swedish selling site, i can link it here so you can see the pictures and see my posetive score with other sellers and buyers to judge on your own if you wanna do business with me.
I will need to know where to ship to so i can calculate estimate shipping cost if you are interested.

Game runs fine & its updated to latest version.

i can provide additional pictures or a short video of the game running if you are interested, but today i am lazy so check the link for now and get back to me if you want to see more.

https://www.tradera.com/item/301702/408812851/kraut-buster-neo-geo-mvs-1st-print

Cheers
DrunkAkuma
 
but if you look at companies accurately playing that game (such as Disney or Limited Run Games, etc) then the NGDev model doesn't make any sense.
But LRG's current model IS NGDev's model, except they don't ever reprint... 90% of games now go up for month-long open pre-order.
 
But LRG's current model IS NGDev's model, except they don't ever reprint...
Then it's not the same model, that's an ENORMOUS difference that significantly impacts the buying habbits and market.
 
But LRG's current model IS NGDev's model, except they don't ever reprint...
Then it's not the same model, that's an ENORMOUS difference that significantly impacts the buying habbits and market.
If you're trying to deal with games like they're the stock market, then yes, it's a big difference.

If you buy games because you play them, it's the same thing with the bonus of maybe you get a chance at getting it cheap again down the road.
 
If you're trying to deal with games like they're the stock market, then yes, it's a big difference.

If you buy games because you play them, it's the same thing with the bonus of maybe you get a chance at getting it cheap again down the road.
That's just it. you're not buying LRG releases JUST because you play them, if that's all you cared about then you'd download them instead since you can usually get them sooner and cheaper with less clutter and better accessibility. You're only buying the LRG release instead for the collectability/value of a physical physical item over digital, something that is only ever enhanced if there are no re-prints.
 
That's just it. you're not buying LRG releases JUST because you play them, if that's all you cared about then you'd download them instead since you can usually get them sooner and cheaper with less clutter and better accessibility. You're only buying the LRG release instead for the collectability/value of a physical physical item over digital.
You're confusing me for someone else it seems.

I honestly don't care what the release numbers are, or that it's limited, or who's selling it. I care that it's a physical cart I can hold in my hand and put in my Switch of a game I wanted to play.

Digital stuff disappears. The Wii shop is goooooonee, along with anything anyone ever paid for on it.
 
You're confusing me for someone else it seems.

I honestly don't care what the release numbers are, or that it's limited, or who's selling it. I care that it's a physical cart I can hold in my hand and put in my Switch of a game I wanted to play.

Digital stuff disappears. The Wii shop is goooooonee, along with anything anyone ever paid for on it.
That's a fair reason to buy physical, but that's also not LRG's primary target market given that their products are in-fact limited production.

My whole point is that is NOT NGDev's model, NGDev's model DOES target people like you, who value a physical item and things like original hardware. LRG business model only works if you have a steady stream of new products to release because the whole gimmick is that it's a limited production run, It's right in the fucking name lol.

As soon as you do a reprint it shatters the scarcity proposition for collectors (who aren't you) and that's a completely different business model centered around a different type of buyer.
 
As for easily available titles from NGDev, I would highly recommend Gunlord on Switch.

That game is definitely their most favorably reviewed game and is a lot of fun, plus not much barrier/cost to play.

Fast Striker is still available on PSN for PS Vita too I believe.

Personally I quite like KB, but the only option there is the used market if you want an actual MVS cart.
I just got fast striker on PS4 for a few dollars, but there's no button to map for autofire like the dreamcast, and it's letterboxed in a bit. I really like playing it on the dreamcast, having separate buttons for autofire/hold (focus shot) is a helpful feature.
 
I understand people who think that them stealing a 25 year old game won't have any impact on the old devs or the company (I do not agree but I do understand), but advocating someone do that to a current small company who not only exists but is providing these games on original tech to the community? I think that is a shit thing to do, but to each their own.
Where did I say I havent bought an NGDev game?
Maybe I did? Maybe I bought a few?
Maybe I wasnt happy with my purchase(s), and decided to "look before I leapt" the next time.
How would you know?
Did I ever say to him the "just play the romz"? No.

I was offering an OPINION and a SUGGESTION to someone looking to throw thousands on high-dollar games. YOUR response is FAR from anything that would come out of any "community", so you can stow that shit. If you knew ANYTHING about NGDev, then you'd know that the hype they generate years and months before the actually release barely comes across in the finished product.

You "dont advocate" trying a game before you buy it? Bless your heart. You prolly havent taken a close look at this site, then, as a large majority (if not all of it) is centered around some form of piracy.
 
I can probably answer a tad bit of this, I built up a bit of a friendship with Rene over the years who is part of the two brothers who run NGDev (Rene also runs Hucast). It’s literally the two of them with another guy helping here and there. The costs to produce the items/components is extremely high and they do it in their spare time. It’s not a big company with people sitting on stockpiles of carts. While I get the gripe, the truth of the matter is that they are basically doing everything on a shoestring when they can.

In regards to the “their games are mediocre at best”, I think Gunlord is pretty great, with Fast Striker being a decent score based shmup. Everything else is just middle of the road.

Def platform “collectible”/curious rarities if you go the MVS route but as most said before, they can be played cheaper and the hassle you might go through to own the real carts might not be worth the long wait. I don’t get the impression that they are purposely being difficult, it’s more of a language barrier coupled with them not really being anything more than two dudes who work other jobs and aren’t sitting in a giant office with resources flowing 24/7.
 
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