Animal Crossing - the Digital Push

Skipping my epic lack of posts, I've been considering Animal Crossing: New Leaf a good bit lately and beyond the decision of buying it in general I'm also left considering retail vs digital.  Nintendo is pushing the digital version fairly hard based on the genre angle and I have to admit that it might make more sense than other titles.  Lets run through pros of each option.




[edit] Spoilers: Ended up ordering the retail version over the weekend; should arrive on the 19th.

Digital:

Ease of access:

This appears to be their primary marketing strategy in order to easily access the game at all times.  Since you'll be "playing it so much" having it digitally means you can carry another game at the same time and pop in to AC:NL quicking during a holiday or event without swapping cards.

Honestly that isn't a bad argument at all.  While I'm not a long-term AC fan, I can see how you might want a quick AC fix and digital is very convenient.  That is after your initial blast of time with the game.

At the moment I keep all my carts in a small case which goes with me on trips.  It's not a big deal to change games, but I admit that out of laziness I'll either play what's in there instead of getting up or just pick one of my digital games.

Retail:

Resale:

While I'm not adverse to digital at all, the idea of trading or reselling is attractive.  This is especially relevant if  I end up not liking the game.  Like I mentioned I'm not a long-term fan who has enjoyed the previous games so sinking $35 into an unknown is a bit of a risk.  

Don't get me wrong, the game looks interesting and I like what I've seen so far.  Just hate to lock $35 onto a device if I'm wrong about the game.

Price:

Yep, the standard retail vs digital situation here.  It's still a lot to bite off with the pricing the same as retail.  It's also far more than I've spent on any other eShop game which has me concerned.  Honestly if they offered a retail version where you paid a bit more and got a digital copy I'd be all over that.  eg: $40 vs $35.

[[edit]]

Multi-Use:

Along the same lines of resale there is also the factor of friends or others in the house also playing the game on a different device.  My kids aren't quite there yet and while I still have my original 3DS, I haven't decided if I'm hanging onto it or not.

Conclusion:

Clearly I'm on the retail side of the fence at this time.  As much as I'd like to go digital for ease of use, I'm compelled to keep the price a bit lower [wait for a sale] and have the option to trade.  I'm not picking this up tonight (just released on the eShop!!!) and will continue to consider my options.  What about you?

What are your thoughts on going digital for AC:NL and are you planning to pick it up?