Its a mobile game making development MUCH easier than for a console. Also, the mobile game contains microtransations. Every update is an attempt to get more of the customers cash. With new horizons, it's a one and done payment. They aren't going to get any more money from us.
The two are completely incomparable
That's not necessarily true. Yes, for an indie developer, it is much easier to write a mobile game than a console one. I'm a game developer myself and working on a farming/life sim like this, so I can share a little bit of my experience if that's okay
But Nintendo is developing games for their own hardware using their own game engine. They basically have full control over their platform and access to in-house resources. More importantly, the core-game is already done. There are already certain workflows in place to add new events, visitors and shops. Adding more content on that front is (comparatively) quick to do. In my game, I also have a workflow in place to add new decorations. It takes me around 15 minutes to add a ~50 new decorations. Of course, this is probably more complex in NH, but considering how long it takes to design and program the underlying system, it's really not much. For events, it's more complex and depends much more on the festival. But the general idea of adding a character, which visits at a certain time, requests something in particular and gives you items as rewards, it always the same or at least similar. Basic features that are requested by us like UI-improvements, unbreakable tools and so forth wouldn't require as much work either - certainly not a year.
You're absolutely right that new updates for Pocket Camp bring players back to spend more money. But Nintendo decided to use the same games-as-a-service approach for NH, basically deciding to take the same route for NH (minus the in-App purchases). Bringing players back to NH is important for the game as well. NH is a game that's very well suited for talking about it on social media. If players come back and enjoy the game, they will also post about it on social media, which is basically free advertisement.
The odds of any console game receiving the same treatment as a mobile game, without having micro transactions, is incredibly thin.
Yes, absolutely. I'm not asking for Nintendo to treat the game like a mobile game and release tons of new features every couple of weeks. I was trying to say that Nintendo could absolutely deliver all the features that the game lacks but doesn't make the effort. The underlying issue is that after one year, the game isn't even close to what New Leaf provided in terms of content. I'm a huge fan of that game and have been waiting years for a new entry in the series (since the Wii U). Sure, the game is its own thing. But it lacks so many features and includes some really questionable design choices, which just makes it really disappointing, especially as many could be fixed relatively easily and quickly.
Also, we should keep in mind that Nintendo deliberately held back content to later release them as updates. They planned this before/while developing the game. The entire idea of games-as-a-service is centered around the fact that you can release a game with a lack of major features and later release them as updates. It's not as if Nintendo is spending extra time on the game. They gave us an unfinished product and are now finishing it. For us players, this can have the benefit of the developer integrating community feedback and extending the replay value by constantly adding new interesting ideas that want you to keep coming back.
