Counterpoint: Why amiibo Could Have an Overwhelmingly Negative Impact on Zelda U, Future Titles

Fellow Zelda Informer writer Paul Grzelak recently talked about why we shouldn’t fear amiibo in Zelda U. He brings up many points, but his main argument is based around the fact that prior games have sold with required and/or optional hardware in the past and those ended up not hurting the Zelda experience. He’s spot on.

However, there are plenty of reasons why we should be wary of amiibo support in the title. In fact, it can be argued that amiibo is Nintendo’s way of doing something the rest of the industry is doing but attempting to mask it behind a physical product. Will amiibo define Zelda U? Of course not. It likely won’t define anything in any future title, but it can still have a negative impact. To understand how, we have to look back at how amiibo is currently used in ways that aren’t necessarily all that great as a consumer.

How amiibo is Used Today

Amiibo have been around since the release of Super Smash Bros. for Wii U, but they have had a function in most of the titles released by Nintendo since. Some of those functions are minor in impact – giving you random item stuff in Hyrule Warriors you can otherwise earn without owning amiibo. Other times, a large chunk of a game gets locked behind them, such as 1 of the grand total of 3 modes in Mario Party 10. Let’s look at exactly what amiibo has been doing to Nintendo games thus far.

Super Smash Bros for Wii U

This is probably the best use so far, but even then it is marred behind a feature of Smash Bros. being locked away. You are able to train your amiibo characters in game to fight like you, level up, etc. amiibo in that case serve no purpose other than allowing you to do something that is already in the game on day one, but locked behind a physical product. The next use of them in the game makes more sense however, as Nintendo has no other current way to do this. You can take these trained characters, save them directly to your amiibo, and take them to a friends house to use.

That use is acceptable and understandable. It adds something that wasn’t otherwise possible. Training up NPC characters on the other hand? Amiibo don’t do anything for that, they just allow you to do something that’s already there because you bought something else. Worst part is, if you want to train several, you have to buy even more amiibo. This means you could spend hundreds of dollars just to train 10 characters. That’s insane.

Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker

Captain Toad is a neat puzzle game, but the challenge is built around collecting. At launch, this meant collecting stars and stamps. With the Toad amiibo, it adds mini toads to collect, which adds a whole new element of challenge to every level of the game. This is essentially paid DLC and was added after the fact, and there is nothing wrong with paid DLC as an idea. But, in order to enjoy this, you HAVE to buy an amiibo. An amiibo that may be hard to find. That means you could possibly not enjoy this DLC not through any fault of your own. You can’t go on the eShop and pay for it. You have to buy a product that has no guarantee of availability. What happens if Toad is out of production next year? It becomes even harder to get this content.

Hyrule Warriors

Amiibo do really 3 things in this game. The Link amiibo (toon or normal) give you an exclusive item for Link in the game. (this is essentially a microtransaction). Other Zelda related amiibo give you a decent weapon with a mid level rank, which is achievable in game (microtransactions in the way of skipping in game content), and the rest give you random awards, like 50 extra rupees.

Mario Party 10

There are 3 game modes in this title. One of them is completely locked out if you don’t own amiibo, and you have to own multiple amiibo to enjoy it. So in addition to paying 50 to $60 out the gate, you have to spend another $50 or so to get enough amiibo to enjoy this mode. The amiibo perform zero functions in the game. You tap and the characters can be used in the game mode, but after tapping the product is useless. This is one of the things most of us dislike in gaming – chopping up content at launch and charging more for it.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3D

You tap amiibo in the game to earn coins that can be spent on raffles in the game, new gear, etc. It gives you a direct advantage in the natural game flow. This is probably the weakest use of amiibo so far and the least intrusive.

What Does this All Mean?

At the center, amiibo are either locking away content on day one, or being used as a form of a DLC pass that can’t be guaranteed as readily attainable. Keep in mind that there is some irony here – I own several amiibo and use them frequently, while Paul doesn’t and really isn’t into Toys to Life, yet I really dislike how amiibo are used while he think it’s not really that bad.

Amiibo is not equal to Optional Hardware

If there is one counter point I have directly related to Paul’s article, it’s the idea of amiibo being considered hardware. Outside of Smash Bros, amiibo serve no other purpose than a “internal unlock” of content already downloaded to your game or already there in your game. A type of paywall. Even in Mario Kart 8 with costumes – those constumes aren’t stored on the amiibo, they are already in the game and the tapping of the amiibo just allows you to use them, exactly like what a paywall does.

Meanwhile, the examples he uses tend to add something that isn’t there already. Rumble Pak? It added force feedback, a new gameplay element not otherwise present on current hardware. The link cable for Oracle of Seasons/Ages? It allowed you to connect two devices together with both games to get the joint ending – something not possible without it at that time. The Tingle Tuner in The Wind Waker? Allowed true second screen gameplay for an in game item that wasn’t really possible with just a second controller.

To me, hardware is something that adds something to the experience that isn’t possible without it. Amiibo don’t add anything, they just serve as a pay wall style unlock for something already there. You tap and forget. You don’t just plug the rumble pak in, take it out, and forget. You have to continue to use it the entire time to get the benefit.

How Could This be Bad for Zelda?

Imagine there are mini games locked behind amiibo. You must buy x Zelda amiibo to gain access to a game already present. Imagine an entire island with a bonus dungeon is locked behind a Link amiibo. These sort of practices are happening with each game release involving amiibo and could easily be something that happens in Zelda U, or any other future title.

That doesn’t mean it has to be that way. It could be like Xenoblade, you tap and get some extra rupees or even some crafting material for gear, and that’s not necessarily a bad ideal. But there is no guarantee right now that it can’t possibly be much worse, so there is definitely reason to fear how much worse

it could get.

Why is this bad?

The idea of day one pay walls, microtransactions, and DLC is certainly not new in the industry, but I have yet to meet a consumer who actually applauds these practices. That’s much of what amiibo has been performing ever since they were released. I own amiibo because I like having collectible Zelda figures, but there in game uses don’t even feel like a bonus to me, but an excuse to lock away content with no other alternative method to get it without amiibo. Let’s say you really want that Link costume in Mario Kart 8, but have zero interest in the figure. Is $13 really justifiable for something that is worth, at most $1?

The other side is that hey, these amiibo can be used for multiple games, so it’s not $13 for each game, but say, $13 once, used over many games. I think this is a viable argument, but again, we’re still paying money to access content with a physical item that really offers no in game benefit. I just don’t even like thinking that I have to buy something extra for Zelda U that literally adds nothing to the game just to add content to the game. If this was a DLC package released down the line? Great! But something that I have to by a physical item that provides no in game benefit to access? I just can’t see the logic that this is a good thing.

As I stated before, this doesn’t mean amiibo will ruin Zelda. That’s a pretty bold statement and I doubt Nintendo would ruin a game because of them, but I am uncomfortable with the idea that when the game comes out, I have to go buy something else to experience everything already there on the disc. I’d be just as uncomfortable if it wasn’t tied to an item, but it even makes future DLC have potential amiibo ties, and that doesn’t sit well with me.