wilbz wrote:
"From the retailers end, it's not a big issue to them WHEN they sell them, they're more concerned about selling them all (which it appears they still managed to do)."

You make a very good point I suppose. Stores holding onto them afford them the oppurtunity to issue an advertisement in the hopes of drawing large crowds of people to their store even though they will own have enough for the fanatical that are willing to stand out in the cold. I, however, am still opposed to this sort of methodology but maybe that's because there will never be a product that would cause me to get up early and wait in line out in the cold due to limited availability and hype (excluding radiation suits during a nuclear war). I suppose I just don't put videogames as high on my list of priorities as others do.

I don't understand why stores had to hold on to them when they clearly (as Bill pointed out) had them by Saturday? A second launch type event? No one besides me thought that this is a piss poor way to sell something? So are they just making a bunch and not shipping them out till they fill the warehouse? Why not ship them as you make them? I guess they are trying to appease the overly fanatical consumers first. To me though, it sounds sort of bogus.

I've only played the crane game a handful of times, but I use to work for a company that distributed the toys to the people who own the crane games and I can assure you that regardless of how many times it takes to pull that thing out, you are not getting your money's worth. Unless you need a cheap stuffed animal to save someone's life, move on.