Wii games pricing

Strangely Nintendo Wii games are sold more cheaply in more affluent countries.

For example, in the USA, a NTSC Wii games such as Super Smash Brother Brawl (SSBB) are sold at USD 49.90. However in Asian countries like Singapore which also uses NTSC Wii, the same SSBB game is sold for S$79.90 (about USD 57.50).

Is this 'observation' unique to SSBB? I'm afraid not. The highly rated game from Capcom, Zack and Wiki, is selling at USD 29.90 in the United States. However in Singapore, the same game retails at S$ 65.00 (about USD 46.80). Why is there such a great price disparity?

Singapore has a lower GDP per capita and standard of living than USA. The cost of living is also much lower. A Big Mac cost S$3.30 (about USD 2.35) in Singapore. On the other hand, the same burger probably cost USD 3.20 in the States. If so, one would expect the price of Wii games to be corresponding cheaper in Singapore.

Unlike PS3 and XBox 360, Wii games rarely produce high quality graphics. They are much cheaper to produce than their next gen counterparts. This lower barrier to entry has caused Wii to be flooded with tons of shovelware.

In Singapore, all Nintendo products (including Wii and NDS hardware and games) are solely distributed by Maxsoft. If Wii does not sell as well as PSP, PS3, Xbox 360 in Singapore, maybe one should consider whether it is due to the amount of money that one has to pay for these last generation standard games.