TBT: Parents upset over high cost of SNES

You never realized how crazy expensive the SNES was when it came out in 1991. So crazy that parents needed to attend group therapy just go get over the shock.

It seems pretty laughable now, but this was a serious news story that aired shortly before the legendary console launched in North America.

Nintendo had priced the SNES at $200, which is about $346 today. That was more expensive than its predecessor at the time. Apparently a lot of people didn’t understand the concept of a price cut. Nor did they realize the NES was actually more expensive at launch when adjusted for inflation.

A few ornery parents was all it took to ignite the infamous Console War.

Sega had been watching this sideshow and decided to aggressively price the Genesis ahead of the Super Nintendo’s launch. With Sonic the Hedgehog waiting in the wings, the company was set to take on the titan. Nintendo got hit hard, and lost a big chunk of their market share. Something they never did fully recover from.

Photo via speckyboy.com