Faster than we could say "Nintendo," the Wii has once again slipped back into questionable supply for this holiday season. Where previously Reggie Fils-Aimé appeared confident in the "unprecedented" number of Wiis in stock this Winter, now the Nintendo of America President seems convinced that demand will still far exceed supply, with shortages through the end of 2007 meaning crummy Christmases and half-baked Hannukahs two years in a row for some gamers.
In an interview with Mercury News, Fils-Aimé goes "on the record" to state that the Wii can't possibly meet demand by the end of the year. He strongly emphasizes that this is not a production issue, and has to do merely with the incredible demand for the product, which production has been unable to keep up with (though that does sound like a production issue to us).
Still, Reggie promises that the Wii will be appearing in retail locations at an almost constant flow, and urges potential buyers to call stores persistently to ask when future shipments are arriving, and to get to stores early.
[Via GamesIndustry]














(Page 1) Reader Comments
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Except the PSP. Go figure.
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In fact, it'll probably be the same MO as the Gamecube: Push as much hardware as you possibly can, crank up the profit machine with tons of moderately useful peripherals (bongos, GBA cables, GBA adapters,) and milk the ever-loving-hell out of your cash-cow franchises. The difference this time is that the Wii is selling a hell of a lot better than the Gamcube ever did.
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Zing!
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This is what's amazing - they've sold units faster than any other system in history...ever. At that volume, can you seriously say there's a fake shortage?
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I've had the exact same experience. The past few times I've been through our local Best Buy they've had plenty of them. They actually had a pyramid of 20+ systems on the floor next to a pyramid of Halo 3 360s. Last week when i was there there was only about 10 or so in the same location, but they still had them.
I just hope I can get ROCK BAND in time in November.
If I did, I would buy them and make the eBay profit. Even now, you could make at least $20 a console, and come holiday season, who knows? $20 for less than an hour of work is fine in my opinion.
Depends on your definition of "well populated", but we're defintitely not a huge are by any means. There are maybe 70K or so people in the town with the BB I'm referring to. The area is actually several towns that have pretty much grown together and there are maybe 170K people here.
I'm actually going to BB today over my lunch break to pick up a watch battery I need, I'll see how many (if any) they still have.
Let's be honest folks, scarcity and perceived value drive more Wii sales than Cooking Mama and Mario Party. I got hooked into it, and I'm sure a few of you did, too.
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The Wii is the least rewarding of all three next-gen consoles. It is an expensive Gamecube with the least must-have games.
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The top games in Japan are WiiSports, WiiPlay, and MarioParty8.. by a HUGE margin.. i guess like most gimmicks, mom and dad lost interest in those. If the trend continues then its not a good sign... and there are ample supplies in Japan.
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we all lose. apologies.
No, it does not work like that. You wanna talk so much shit, expect some to be slung back at you. Typical response really, I expected nothing less from you.
Shoes on the other foot and it does'nt seem to fit to well huh?
Your dad's bugfood, get over it. My grandparents are bug food, my cat recently became bug food.
Death is just the completion of the circle of life.
And someday, YOU will be bug food. Not me, as I will be cremated.
YOU NEVER NEVER NEVER DISRESPECT REGGIE!!! FOR HE SHALL EAT YOUR SOUL AND RIP YOUR MOTHER 3 IN HALF.
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In my area 10 PS3s is only the equivalent of 1.25$!!
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People who said that have seen Wiis on stores should check later, and they will not find them.
Who really cares?