Stock is sold out, complaints are constant, phone calls, official announcements, online resales... everything we imagined has happened: The NES Classic Edition (or Classic Mini in Europe) is an absolute success, Nintendo is having problems responding to demand, and potential buyers quickly turned to social media and forums where they expressed their frustration. As always happens in these cases, some rascals appeared on eBay with the goal of selling their units at much higher prices, and the average value already sits above $180...
A Familiar Story
October 2015. What should have been a celebration for Pepsi turned into a nightmare when the famous Pepsi Perfect drink, which we remember from its appearance in Back to the Future II, sold out immediately. The company announced that the first series consisted of just 6,500 bottles, a truly insignificant number when compared with the millions of fans that saga has just in the United States. Pepsi was forced to conduct rapid damage control and announced that more bottles would be available in the future, but the bitter taste didn't go away quickly. Well, now it seems that Nintendo is going through a similar situation with its NES Classic Edition. From the moment it was announced, we all knew the console would be a highly sought-after item in the weeks leading up to Black Friday and the Christmas season. Technically, its market debut (in the US and Europe) was yesterday... but the consoles are not there.
The Launch Day Chaos
This is how it went: "Sold out", "limited stock", "one console per person". What happened? First, the major distribution chains refused to conduct an online preorder process, which forced many players to line up, and that leads to the second point: the vast majority of them returned home furious and disappointed, as reports indicate that many stores barely had half a dozen consoles for sale. Amazon also joined the "zero preorder" policy and added that its quantities would be "very limited". As if that weren't enough, the official Nintendo store at Rockefeller Center in New York confirmed via Twitter (with a bit of publicity makeup) that the NES Classic Edition units available would be 250.
The Price Explosion
Needless to say, the shortage sent eBay auctions into overdrive. The average price already exceeds $180, three times more than Nintendo actually charges for it. Through a brief statement, the Japanese giant said it is working to meet demand, and that there will be a "steady flow" of consoles during the holiday season and early next year. That could put a little extra pressure on those who want one during or immediately after Black Friday. Now, how is it that Nintendo didn't anticipate this...?
