I thought this article was an interesting find. It talks about the 1986 official nationwide launch of the NES. The article mentions that the base console which included 2 controllers and a game had an MSRP of $99 (only $290 if you were to adjust for inflation!)
It also touches on the NES Deluxe Set which launched in just a couple of cities toward the end of 1985 to test the public's reaction to a new game console (the NES launched not long after the infamous (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video\_game\_crash\_of\_1983) so Nintendo was nervous about committing too much to a brand new console). The Deluxe Set came with 2 controllers, 2 games, R.O.B, and a light gun, and could be had for "less than $150" ($441).
Some other curious details:
* Mario and Luigi are referred to as "the old heroes from Donkey Kong".
* [NES Tennis](https://i.imgur.com/t9naXmQ.gif) was described as "an uncannily accurate re-creation of a doubles or singles match".
* Games were $20-$30 each ($59-$88). So they were on the pricier end compared to today, but it's offset a bit by the generally lower sales taxes back then, and the console being much cheaper.
by Aquatic-Vocation
1 Comment
I agree with the sentiment here. I absolutely love doing direct comparisons adjusting for dollar value across the decades.
Fun fact also, if you do this to Apple, their laptops have not only become more powerful, but have actually gone down in price significantly, relative to the value of the USD.