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[PunjabiPlaya]

So with today's SNES classic pre order events and the NES classic last year, it's obvious that there's a lot of malice and discontent with Nintendo and retailers handling of pre orders and selling of the consoles. It's obvious that bots are the ones buying up a majority of stock for scalpers, but what do you honestly do to combat that in a free market? Nintendo could ask retailers to limit to 1 per customer, but that's ultimately the retailers choice, Nintendo can't force them to make a decision like that (if Nintendo did force that stipulation, a retailer could simply refuse and not stock the item since it's more effort for possibly less profits). Should there be some vetting process that the person buying the product is someone that actually wants it, like some are suggesting (which also isn't legal in a free market). Should Nintendo invest in more factories and make these consoles for years and allocate money and resources for something that honestly won't sell for more than a year or two and won't net very much profits in the long run? Honestly, at this point it would've been better if Nintendo just never created these things since it's not possible to logically (in a business sense) or legally meet demand. But the main reason these things are so sought after is because scalpers. I mean you look already on gaf, I feel like at least half of the people who bought them are never going to open or play their consoles. Why should a company mass produce a product that is more sought after for its value rather than its intended use. Half the reason these things are so rare is because they're limited run items and scalpers know they can exploit that, this isn't a new concept. If they did just make millions and millions of units just to defeat the scalpers, what business sense does that make when consoles are eventually just sitting on shelves with no more demand (see all the similar Atari and Sega classic consoles). Retailers are gonna make their money off scalpers and they don't really care that gamers couldn't get the product since they already made their profit. It's just frustrating to see people getting ulcers from the stress of not getting a pre order (we still have no idea how available these will be at launch and subsequent shipments). I understand that people are rightfully mad and it's that period of venting for a lot of folks, but let's get real and look at this situation from a business perspective. Because that's what Nintendo and any corporation is, a business, not your friend.


I'm guessing this thread might be locked due to tensions still being high, but please read the OP before responding try and have a logical discussion, people.

Spoiler

Also please don't talk shit about OP for not responding to whatever argument you have and me not defending my case. It's past 3am where I am and I'm going to bed now, just needed to get this out there.

 

[Skeletron]

Make more

 

[Neonep]

Make more

This.

 

[OrangeGrayBlue]

Make more

About as one and done as you'll ever see. They are only able to be sold by scalpers above MSRP as a matter of scarcity.

 

[Digital-Hero]

Supply needs to meet demand and then this whole issue disintegrates. It would be great if Nintendo actually could do this soon and all the scalpers are left with extra stock.

 

[NintenDOMG]

I don't think they care, sadly.

 

[alr1ght]

This is 100000% on Nintendo.

Open pre-orders early on nintendo.com, produce that number of units, rake in money.

Scalpers will always exist to some extent, but Nintendo seems to be the only electronics manufacturer that this continuously happens to. Their supply chain management is non-existent.

 

[CertifiedFP]

Supply exceeds demand and this whole issue disintegrates.

I think that's uh... The very root of this issue.

3DS and WiiU supplies exceeded demand. Retailers were not amused.

 

[watdaeff4]

Make more

/thread

 

[get2sammyb]

I said it in another thread, but I still don't understand why they just can't, y'know, make enough of these things to satisfy demand.

Perhaps I'm naive, but I'd have thought that the NES Classic would give them a rough idea of how many of these they need to make. And while I know unsold stock can be expensive to store, it's not like the units won't move eventually if they overshoot it a tiny bit.

I just find the whole situation bizarre. Surely they want to sell as many products as they possibly can? So why have people fighting over them -- just make more in the first place?

 

[KtSlime]

Sell them at a higher price.

 

[Digital-Hero]

I think that's uh... The very root of this issue.

3DS and WiiU supplies exceeded demand. Retailers were not amused.

Fixed mistyped text. More supply will fix this obviously not overstock. A nice balance is needed.

 

[120v]

it's not their job to combat scalpers, they're not your friend.

if they sell you a box of foil for $80 then you can contact the better business bureau. until then, just the way it is

 

[Floody]

Don't really see how they can. Mmake more isn't a viable options, unless they aren't making them as fast as possible to begin with and even if they increased the speed to max, still no guarantee it meets demand.

 

[tuxfool]

I think that's uh... The very root of this issue.

3DS and WiiU supplies exceeded demand. Retailers were not amused.

Except for the fact that there is a way to estimate demand. And if they can't then they can at least head off excessive demand peaks by assuaging people by communicating their future manufacturing plans.

These aren't complicated devices, they''re just a low budget SoC on a PCB placed inside a cheap injection moulded plastic box. Their production pipelines aren't nearly as complicated as those of a 3ds or WiiU.

 

[oo7]

1 per ship to address. Pay in full in advance. Plenty of order time. Done.

 

[Maintenance]

 

 

[uncredited male]

Cripple them financially like they did Rettbone.

 

[Venfayth]

How is there even another answer.

There has to be one for people who refuse to believe Nintendo is at fault.

Don't really see how they can, make more isn't a viable options, unless they aren't making them as fast as possible and even if they increased the speed to max, still no guarantee it meets demand.

You think it is physically impossible to meet demand?

 

[darkside31337]

Open preorders for 72 hours online through their own website. Anyone who orders one gets one. Make enough to fit the demand.

Anyway I wish they made the same batch of games that are on the system as a package for the same price on the Switch. I'd like to play some of these games again and they'd be amazing on the Switch. I'd rather pay $80 for the entire collection on a retail cart and have them on the go.

 

[Boke1879]

For real. Just make more.

 

[DrForester]

I actually would have thought this sudden and random pre-order thing would have combated bots as they had no idea when they would go live.

 

[.J.]

Disregard.

 

[Kyzer]

Take a risk and manufacture more, but honestly after the Wii U tanked I can see why theyd be conservative all the time

 

[Cuburt]

Sellers using captcha and limits on how many you can buy in one transaction.

 

[theWB27]

it's not their job to combat scalpers, they're not your friend.

if they sell you a box of foil for $80 then you can contact the better business bureau. until then, just the way it is

It's their job to meet their customer demand. If they do their job scalpers fall off.

 

[Floody]

There has to be one for people who refuse to believe Nintendo is at fault.



You think it is physically impossible to meet demand?

I don't think Nintendo are purposely shipping less than they can at the moment (maybe a month or two after release they were, but by now they'd know there's a real demand for it), so currently yes, won't always be though, but they have other more important prioritizes at the moment.


Edit: I guess a better way to put it is it's all they can justify at the moment. They could probably give the S/NES Classic more of a priority, but they'd gain less.

 

[KtSlime]

It's their job to meet their customer demand. If they do their job scalpers fall off.

This is not true. It's in their best interest maybe, but meeting demand is not a requirement for a business.

 

[gafneo]

Easy, make first run exclusive to Nintendo Club members who earn points by playing games.

 

[Gentleman Jack]

Maybe they can Kickstart the next one

 

[Skyo]

I think we all know the answer to this

 

[theWB27]

This is not true. It's in their best interest maybe, but meeting demand is not a requirement for a business.

Didnt state it was a requirement.... but businesses who want to make money usually try and meet their customer demand. Leaving money on the table is not very business savvy.

 

[Allan Holdsworth]

Take pre-orders on Nintendo's website (for limited products) 6+ months before release, limited to one or two per household. If you cancel the pre-order you're banned from pre-ordering future items for a year.

Some Japanese stores do the "you cant cancel pre-orders" thing already. Amiami comes to mind

 

[RandomHopeInc]

Make more

Nintendo is not in the business of making retro products, and they want to focus on the Nintendo Switch and 3DS.

They can't just simply "make more". Its not a viable option manufacturing wise.

 

[Ludist210]

About as one and done as you'll ever see. They are only able to be sold by scalpers above MSRP as a matter of scarcity.

GameStop literally did just this with ThinkGeek. Load it up with cheap merchandise that nobody wants, add in an SNES Classic, inflate the price to $160 or more, and boom. GameStop themselves are scalping SNES Classics.

 

[CertifiedFP]

Fixed mistyped text. More supply will fix this obviously not overstock. A nice balance is needed.

Except for the fact that there is a way to estimate demand. And if they can't then they can at least head off excessive demand peaks by assuaging people by communicating their future manufacturing plans.

These aren't complicated devices, they''re just a low budget SoC on a PCB placed inside a cheap injection moulded plastic box. Their production pipelines aren't nearly as complicated as those of a 3ds or WiiU.

It's not production issues I'm thinking of. It's inventory-keeping issues. The way I heard it, the pre-XL 3DS and WiiU's poor sales did quite a number on Nintendo's retailer relations (To the point that Amazon stopped selling Nintendo hardware for the rest of the 3DS and WiiU's lifespans). Wasn't there some big story out there on warehouses full of 3DSes that were just sitting around instead of being shipped to stores? That and of course Nintendo trying to persist with the WiiU instead of doing like Sony would and just quietly killing it - Thus keeping it an active product on shelves probably didn't help in this regard.

I'd imagine they're being conservative with Classic Console and Amiibo shipments to steer as far clear as they can from getting on Retail's bad side again.

 

[KtSlime]

Didnt state it was a requirement.... but businesses who want to make money usually try and meet their customer demand. Leaving money on the table is not very business savvy.

The better approach would be to raise the price, which they did compared to the Famicom Mini, but apparently it wasn't enough.

Still have 3 more weeks before preorders open up here though, would be nice to get one.

 

[Skeletron]

It's just a tough spot. Clearly Nintendo isn't making much profit on these things otherwise they would continue making them. They must be banking on the publicity they get from all this chaos otherwise why make them at all?

 

[alr1ght]

Nintendo is not in the business of making retro products, and they want to focus on the Nintendo Switch and 3DS.

They can't just simply "make more". Its not a viable option manufacturing wise.

These things cost dick-all to make. It's probably an under $10 manufacturing cost.

 

[Dabanton]

Limit it to two per address and credit card only. Would at least slow down some of these scalpers. The pre ordering idea is good too. Would give Nintendo a firmer number before manufacture.

But by now we know Nintendo loves doing this as it keeps anticipation high for restocks

 

[PowerThroughLov]

Make sure companies do not allow public API's to directly integrate with their buy systems (some do).

Make sure there is something trivial yet user facing to do before buying anything (captcha is one such example, though everyone hates those).

 

[theWB27]

The better approach would be to raise the price, which they did compared to the Famicom Mini, but apparently it wasn't enough.

Still have 3 more weeks before preorders open up here though, would be nice to get one.

Scalpers will only raise the price to compensate.

 

[ArtHands]

The points presented ain't sound. You dont even see people saying limited/collector/anniversary editions for other stuffs like games, figurines, blu-ray etc shouldnt exist.

I said it in another thread, but I still don't understand why they just can't, y'know, make enough of these things to satisfy demand.

Perhaps I'm naive, but I'd have thought that the NES Classic would give them a rough idea of how many of these they need to make. And while I know unsold stock can be expensive to store, it's not like the units won't move eventually if they overshoot it a tiny bit.

I just find the whole situation bizarre. Surely they want to sell as many products as they possibly can? So why have people fighting over them -- just make more in the first place?

Because all of their factories are busy with pumping out Nintendo Switch? You are saying as if they can acquire few hundred more factories for free with a snap of finger

 

[valinthyne]

Captcha, Make more, Sell themselves for preorder, Strict restrictions on retailers to sell one per customer

 

[friskykillface]

Bots exist for sneakers, way worse tbh

Nintendo of America has their own online store, should have opened pre orders back in July with an all sales final to ensure no one returns it if they can't sell it x how many you need to make.
Not that fucking hard but Nintendo loves limited items x false shortages

I like that alternate link Amazon did this morning
Maybe do more like that to help against bots

 

[PandaShake]

Allow me to preorder with a regional first come first serve system and keep making them to at least fill all preorders. Even though mine might come months later, as long as I'll get one, I'm fine. Less people may be inclined to buy from scalpers if they're gauranteed one by waiting in queue instead of another possibly ambiguous supply and production stop like nes mini.

 

[qko]

I guess I manage to se te an order on Amazon, but I fully expect it to be cancelled after seeing how people ordered 50-100 at a time. Maybe Amazon locks it down to 1 per order? Hopefully, but watch the outrage if Amazon does that.

I think the best solution is to not make these limited editions. Look at how the amiibo craze died after scalpers realized stock was going to be constant.

 

[Brannon]

Premier Pre-order.

You must have a Nintendo account AND you can only order from your Nintendo Switch. Those with a Switch get to order first. Then a week later open it to everybody else.

This is best.

 

[get2sammyb]

Because all of their factories are busy with pumping out Nintendo Switch? You are saying as if they can acquire few hundred more factories for free with a snap of finger

If that were the case, why bother making it at all? Switch is in demand too, they may as well put their limited bandwidth to full use and produce a product that stands to earn them more money long term through software purchases.

I'd also argue they've had a year from the NES Classic to know roughly how much product they need to manufacture to meet demand. They're not being taken by surprise this time, they could have found solutions if they wanted to. Surely?

 

[Other]

'Make more' isn't going to work, there's a limit to how many they can make and supply at a time especially if they also need to make other things using the same production lines, as long as there is limited amount there is the possibility of scarcity. Even if they did make more it might not help, they could(and for all we know might have) made the first shipment of Snes Mini double the size of the NM and it could still be brought up by speculators and scalpers.
Selling it themselves isn't going to work, they'd need to massively build up their direct to customer sales infrastructure, which for one product would be much too costly and would draw the ire of retailers.
If the issue is people buying large amounts then the onus is on Amazon et all to fix their shit to prevent such a thing from happening and the blame for their faults shoudn't be laid at Nintendo's feet. Such stores should long ago have implemented features to restrict the purchase of products beyond a certain amount and if they didn't or if they did but didn't make use of them then that's messed up