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Hardware shortages blamed for Wii's underwhelming December

by Chris Greenhough { Jan 18th 2009 at 1:00PM }

Let's make this clear: Wii sold a helluva lot of units in North America during December. 2.15 million consoles in a single month is a number Sony and Microsoft can only dream about right now, but there's no doubt that the figures weren't as grand as expected. He who is Pachter predicted the console would clear the 3 million mark, only for the platform to fall short by 850,000 units.

Why the lower-than-expected sales? As usual, analysts reckon they have the answer: more of those accursed hardware shortages. EEDAR's Jesse Divnich and Deutsche Bank analyst Jeetil Patel both believe demand outweighed supply for the third December running, with Divnich stating the Wii would have sold "north of 4 million units" if more consoles had been produced in time.

Phew, panic over! Wii's not the next N-Gage or anything!

[Via Joystiq]

Rumor: Best Buy holding back Wiis

by Chris Greenhough { Dec 10th 2008 at 10:55AM }

Still stuck for a Wii this holiday season? Worried that little Jonny and Jenny will regard you as the WORST PARENT OF ALL TIME come Xmas morning?

Then know that there is still hope. A Go Nintendo tipster claims that his local Best Buy is clinging onto its Wiis until December 14. Come Sunday, the store will allegedly offer them out to customers with games bundled on top -- including Mario Kart Wii, which you should buy anyway, because it's a riot.

Sure, it's only a rumor, but a perfectly plausible one: Best Buy did something similarly sneaky last year. If you're still in the hunt for a Wii, we'd recommend a Best Buy visit this weekend.

Looking for a Wii? Try Walmart.com

by David Hinkle { Dec 8th 2008 at 3:42PM }

If you're on the hunt for a Wii this holiday season, then Walmart.com just might have you covered. The retail giant will supposedly be selling "tens of thousands" of Wiis starting now. If you're looking for just the console, or a bundle package, Walmart will have several different options available to consumers, starting with the console alone ($250) on up to a bundle package featuring Wii Fit ($460). Of course, now that the word is out, there might not be much time for you to nab one of your own. So we suggest you get to it.

[Via Joystiq]

GameStop repeats itself: Wii shortages likely

by Chris Greenhough { Nov 21st 2008 at 1:39PM }

Yes, we posted about this before, but as the giant boulder that is the holiday season ominously thunders towards us, we may as well say it again: GameStop will probably have some major Wii shortages in the near future.

Chief financial officer David Carlson admitted in a conference call that the hardware "may be well out of stock by the holiday season," echoing another executive's recent claim that the 'Stop's inventory would be empty by the first week of December. He added that both Wii Fit and Guitar Hero: World Tour were "in very, very short supply" and "out of stock in many cases" respectively.

Obviously, plenty of other places sell Wiis, but if a major name like GameStop is running out of the things, you can bet they won't be alone. Unless you want to end up like Johnny and Orlando up there, get your skates on.

Gallery: Can't find Wii Fit? Try these alternatives!

Gamestop: Good luck getting a Wii this Christmas

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Nov 21st 2008 at 10:15AM }

With Nintendo's supply of Wiis having remaining spectacularly insufficient for over two years now, we've considerably streamlined our process of blogging about the supremely successful system's shortages. Oh yes, it's all done by the computer now. We just plug in the names, the quote and some other snippets of relevant information.

[NAME: Carlson, David], who is the [Position: CFO] of [Company: Gamestop] has predicted another Christmas marked by shelf scouring and anguished cries, noting that Nintendo's sought-after sellout and [ADDITION: its Balance Board peripheral] would likely be out of stock by then. [QUOTE:"Wii Fit is in very, very short supply. It sells through as quickly as it hits the stores,"] he said. [And although the Wii hardware is in very good supply right now we believe it may as well be out of stock by the holiday season."]

Don't worry, all good things come to those who wait. And if you wait long enough, there might be something other than [EASY TARGET: Wii Music] to entertain you on your new toy.

Gamestop VP says Wii supply will be 'much, much better' this holiday

by David Hinkle { Sep 19th 2008 at 1:35PM }

We're getting some conflicting viewpoints on the Wii supply this holiday season from Gamestop's upper management. While CEO Dan DeMatteo is of the mind that there is no end in sight for Wii shortages, one of the company's vice presidents is telling us a different story. It's VP of Merchandising Bob McKenzie, to be exact, and he thinks that things this holiday will be ""much, much better than it has been the last two years."

McKenzie elaborated further, saying that he can't guarantee they "will be in stock every day throughout the holiday season," but feels confident that the "current flow we've seen coming from Nintendo on Wii hardware" will help them meet their business model. Some of our readers point out that they see Wii consoles sitting on shelves collecting dust all of the time, but what about areas with dense population such as major cities? Will they be seeing some relief finally? We guess we'll just have to wait and see how things go in the next couple of months.

[Via Joystiq]

Gamestop CEO: Wii shortages have no 'end in sight'

by David Hinkle { Sep 9th 2008 at 9:56AM }

GameDaily recently sat down with GameStop CEO Dan DeMatteo to discuss, well, things that a CEO of a huge company would discuss. What is of note to us Wii enthusiasts, however, is his grim outlook for the future. He doesn't see store shelves stocked full of Wii consoles anytime soon, unfortunately. "I don't see a near-term end in sight for Wii shortages, not unless they really ramp up supply," DeMatteo said. "I think they've ramped it up 20 percent or so, but Nintendo is fairly cautious by nature. They ramped it up 20 and it's still evaporating."

This is only one man's opinion, but based on how much money he probably makes each year, we're sure his estimate is better than ours. So, for you holiday shoppers that have someone on your list asking for Wii, better get to hunting one down now. In little over a month, we're sure they're going to be a lot harder to track down.

GameStop CEO: No 'end in sight' for Wii shortages

by Ross Miller { Sep 8th 2008 at 8:00PM }

Speaking with GameDaily, newly-appointed GameStop CEO Dan DeMatteo (who was previously COO for 12 years) gave a rather disheartening prediction about the never-ending shortage of Nintendo Wii's. Said DeMatteo, "I don't see a near-term end in sight for Wii shortages, not unless they really ramp up supply. I think they've ramped it up 20 percent or so, but Nintendo is fairly cautious by nature. They ramped it up 20 and it's still evaporating."

Much of the interview is refurbished from late August when he (then as COO) spoke with Gamastura about digital distrubition. Speaking of the used games business, DeMatteo offered a rather interesting argument by noting that gamers have been "conditioned that their video games have residual value, just like a car," later adding, "I think the argument that it competes with the new games is false. Imagine what new car sales would be like if you couldn't trade in your old car."

Wii Warm Up: Are you still looking?

by David Hinkle { Jun 18th 2008 at 8:00AM }

We're coming up on the second anniversary of our favorite console this November, and with the supply of Wii consoles still not catching up with the demand, we were wondering how many of you out there are still hunting for a system still? Are you hunting one down for yourself or for somebody else? Already have one, had your folks try it, now they want you to find them one?

Reggie: Wii stock balance soon, Nintendo manufacturing more consoles each month

by David Hinkle { Jun 13th 2008 at 12:30PM }

Nintendo is apparently not blind to the pain Wii console shortages cause, now made that much more worse by the shortages of Wii Fit, the hot new exergaming bundle. Reggie wants us to know that they're working on fixing the situation, although they pretty much have no idea as to when things will be better. With their monthly output upped from 1.8 million units a month to 2.4, Nintendo is indeed trying.

"Currently, demand is higher than supply, but we believe we'll soon get back to a more balanced situation," says Nintendo's resident name-taker, ass-kicker Reggie Fils-Aime. Unfortunately, that's all he had to say on the situation, leaving us all in the dark as to when the supply will start meeting the demand. Until then, we're forced to keep checking in with retailers and trying to find one online.

[Via Go Nintendo]

Can't find the End of the World

by Phil Larsen { Jun 3rd 2008 at 11:45AM }

Searching, searching ... dang it all! Where's the Japanese cyberpunk Shibuya-themed trendy pop culture action-RPG when you need it? Gamers have been trying to find The World Ends With You on store shelves, but a meager shipment + critical acclaim = no game for you.

Square Enix has admitted this oversight, and released a statement to Joystiq explaining the lack of units. They felt the unique style of TWEWY was released in just the right place at just the right time. They were right -- but that still doesn't result in John Q DS getting the game! Square has confirmed that the next round of units will be arriving mid-June, so you'll have to twiddle your thumbs for a little longer. Relax - it's not the end of the world.

Gallery: The World Ends With You

Wii Fit distributors getting weekly exercise

by JC Fletcher { Apr 30th 2008 at 8:00PM }

Wii Fit must be easier to produce than Wii consoles. Nintendo hasn't been able to rectify the console shortage that has stretched since the Wii launch, but they have gotten their act together in terms of Wii Fit production.

Nintendo U.K. told GamesIndustry.biz that "stock is coming in all the time on a weekly basis." We're surprised that Nintendo is even pretending to be able to keep up with demand, with Wii Fit as enormously popular as it is there. The true test of their production capacity will be the U.S. launch oh May 19th.

Iwata: No DS price cut this year

by David Hinkle { Apr 25th 2008 at 6:00PM }

Well, we would think so, since the current price point of $129.99 seems to be far too small a hurdle to leap for those thinking of purchasing the handheld system. Nintendo is rolling in the dough, so if it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?

"Our earnings projection for the year is not based on hardware price cuts, and I don't think we are going to need them," said Iwata. And we can't blame them, as demand for the Wii and DS looks like it could only be curbed by the announcement of a new handheld and console. Until that happens, it looks like consumers will need to get used to the price tag on each system, as well as not seeing them on shelves while shopping.

[Via Joystiq]

Toys R Us to have Wii this Sunday

by David Hinkle { Apr 24th 2008 at 2:15PM }

Well now, it looks like almost all retailers will have the Wii in stock this weekend, as following up on Circuit City's "deal" is Toys R Us with an ad of their own. You see, Toys R Us is advertising (see image above) that they'll also have the console in stock, alongside Mario Kart Wii, which releases this Sunday. There is a catch with the Toys R Us deal, however.

You'll have to put some legwork in, as securing yourself a console means you have to go down to your local Toys R Us and plunk down a $200 deposit. Once done, show up on Sunday with your receipt and you'll be one happy camper. But, hey, as annoying as it is to make two trips, it's far less annoying than having to buy a ridiculously overpriced bundle from Circuit City.

[Via Joystiq]

Pachter: Wii Fit to raise Wii demand, keep shortages going

by David Hinkle { Apr 16th 2008 at 1:30PM }

Aside from his prediction that he thinks Wii Fit will sell 3-4 million this year, Michael Pachter has grabbed another estimation out from within his bag of tricks: Wii Fit will keep Wii shortages going as it will increase demand for the console. Pachter cited Nintendo's plan to market the crap out of Wii Fit, stating "the increased buzz will drive increased demand for the already difficult to find Wii hardware." Well, we know the UK is crazy over Wii Fit, but Nintendo shouldn't have as hard a time filling demand over there as they have had here in the states.

On Pachter's part, this is a pretty safe play to make. The preorders at Amazon are going through the roof and with Wii Fit being on Good Morning, America recently, we're sure the public is very receptive to the product. We're still not sure about that price tag, though.