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So how bad is the Switch stock situation?
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not yet, but thanks for the tip!
yeah, not bad but it burns to pay anything over retail. If they bundle it with Zelda it helps take the sting off a little bit, especially if you talk them down to a lower price. I was close at $60 total (over) but couldn't justify it.
Pops Maellard
Member
Nintendo has no incentive to do this. They unequivocally are not artificially limiting stock to "fabricate" demand. They are, however, being horribly conservative with their sales estimates and production because they don't want to repeat what happened with the Wii U. They had an operating loss of almost $50,000,000 in the first quarter of 2016, and their behavior going forward has reflected this.
They manufactured around 2,000,000 units, expect to sell about 2,000,000 units, and likely will because that's a pretty low number for a hardware launch. Playing it safe works out, they can ramp up or down from there, and pretty much everyone who wanted a Switch can get a Switch.
Yep, I'm not gonna bite. I'm also a little wary of the entire console now that I read about all the problems it has... But god damn do I wanna play zelda on the go.
grap3fruitman
Banned
I was checking stock on Target's site when they were up for order. Thought it was a mistake but I've got one on order now. Hooray. I'm just not that excited for it.
PlumCantaloupe
Member
Any ideas as to where I be looking to find one in Canada?
Same here, $500 for a Neon with Zelda and 1-2 Switch which would have been a little over $60 over retail. I asked the eBay seller to cancel the order.
yeah I would have done the same. Did the seller agree to cancel?
MAX PAYMENT
Member
Any idea when gamestop will get more?
Before easter?
Before easter?
This is silly. Terrified execs who don't want to have any excess stock and general stupidity about hardware manufacturing explain far better why Nintendo always screws up stock at launch.
boiled goose
good with gravy
Undershipping consoles doesn't generate demand.
It leads to pissed of consumers and lost sales
ArchedThunder
Banned
I went hunting around town here in Vegas yesterday lookng for a pro controller, every place I checked was sold out of consoles, pro controllers and the vast majority of accessories. The only thing that was consistent between each store is that they usually had a joycon bundle or two and a few copies of the launch games.
Seller said they would but that I needed to send a cancellation notice thing, but since it was already a bit after I had paid I no longer had the option to cancel from my side and I told the seller that. They still haven't, so I'll probably send a reminder tonight. Worst that'll happen is that they either A) Don't send it and I end up having to open a dispute or B) They do send it, in which case I'll just take the hit on the loss and happily play Zelda.
I had already paid for it so I knew I was at the mercy of the seller. And hey, they shouldn't make buying things so easy if they didn't want us to cancel/return them
If they trickle their current stock in little by little they're ensuring they will consistently sell out while not having to spend anything extra on production.
theaffection
Member
Try stores that no one really checks for games
Real Canadian Superstore, Shoppers Drug Mart, The Source, etc
soldierblue
Member
I had a Target order from this morning go into backorder. I canceled. Recommend checking yours.
A wild scalper appears!
ItsTheNew
I believe any game made before 1997 is "essentially cave man art."
Glass Shark
Banned
Reminder that intentional shortages are not a real thing in consumer electronics.
...which is why it's so frustrating that nintendo does it!
Glass Shark
Banned
Apple has one of the best supply chains in the world and is now run by a man who was known for his supply efficiency when he was COO. Despite this, they run into shortages all the time. It happens. Nintendo just seems more vulnerable to it than most
NEON SWITCH UP ON AMAZON PRIME NOW IN SOME CITIES!
Check yours quickly.
I think it's well documented that Nintendo utilizes artificial scarcity as a sales strategy, particularly since the amiibo craze and the NES Classic situation over the holidays. I'm not arguing that it's a particularly good sales strategy, especially for console hardware where presumably you want to make your money via software/accessory sales, but not a lot that Nintendo does makes sense for a console business in 2017 at this point. I'm also not claiming that it's the reason people are having a hard time finding a switch currently, though I would argue that scalpers are the direct result of artificial scarcity and that the supply for the Switch might have been a better match for consumers at launch if scalping was not a common occurrence for Nintendo product releases now.
Edit: I also think that the amount of scalping occurring for the Switch is going to have a significant negative impact on the Switch profits (including accessory/software) over the next six months. This is a product that you really want people to go impulse buy when they're in the heat of the consumer frenzy. In my opinion, every day that passes where people can't buy one is another day to read and think about the software release schedule and the mounting negative reports of hardware/software issues, regardless of whether those issues are not beyond the scope of a normal launch product. In this case there's another major consideration with the fact that the biggest draw to the Switch is a game that people could be buying and logging time into on Wii U, making them think twice about restarting from scratch on a new console.
LordRaptor
Member
Its "well documented" in the same sense that chemtrails and being a sovereign citizen is "well documented", in that a lot of people say its true on the internet, but it completely fucking folds under any sort of critical scrutiny.
by well documented, do you mean speculated baselessly? it seemed to be one of those things that cropped up because a successful nintendo thing just can't happen. there has to be some sort of catch.
Glass Shark
Banned
Thanks to the two above posters for saying exactly what I was going to lol
The only thing close to it that I can think of is their lack of transparency with stock and sales numbers, but it's not really the same thing
The only thing close to it that I can think of is their lack of transparency with stock and sales numbers, but it's not really the same thing
I suspect nothing would hold up to your critical scrutiny based on the tone of your response, but I don't think everyone agrees with you.
At least he didn't use Wii as a (faulty) example.
It's a start.
Iacobellis
Junior Member
Does that go for Nintendo New York as well?
you claimed it was well documented. so that means there's some sort of documentation, likely from an insider at nintendo or even some sort of interview about how they handle supply and demand? i'm interested in seeing it.
Hoho for breakfast
Member
How do you know this? I'm not saying it happens, but I'm not saying it doesn't either. Personally I do think that it has happened in the past, but I'm not going to give people a reminder that it happens because I have no proof. Likewise you shouldn't remind people that it doesn't happen unless you actually know that to be the case.
We'd have to know the production capacities of the factories and such and then make a determination based on that.
It seems like there's a lot of residual resentment here about any suggestion that Nintendo benefits from scarcity and might consider it a valid profit strategy. Note that I didn't make any sort of moral/critical judgement about Nintendo or complain about scarcity. I also didn't say it was any grand conspiracy or attempt by Nintendo to negatively manipulate their fans, so I'm not sure why the responses seem so angry and resentful. I certainly did not intend to offend anyone, and I'll add it on my list of controversial topics to avoid in the future.
Edit: I picked the wrong place and time to throw out some thoughts I've had about the Switch release over the past couple days, I guess my statements are probably very negatively loaded for people with more history in Nintendo discussions on the internet. I honestly just think that the scarcity-as-a-strategy discussion is interesting, but this is not a good context to present that in so apologies if my thoughts came across as negative or aggressive (or argumentative, I should add).
Edit: I picked the wrong place and time to throw out some thoughts I've had about the Switch release over the past couple days, I guess my statements are probably very negatively loaded for people with more history in Nintendo discussions on the internet. I honestly just think that the scarcity-as-a-strategy discussion is interesting, but this is not a good context to present that in so apologies if my thoughts came across as negative or aggressive (or argumentative, I should add).
spazchicken
Member
I saw a Zelda edition sitting by itself at Wal-Mart today and two Joycon. The Joycon were going for $80! That's insane.
LordRaptor
Member
What benefits? How does this 'strategy' pay off?
Why does this 'strategy' only get deployed for products that are already in demand and selling well, but not for products that aren't desired and are not selling?
J
Jpop
Unconfirmed Member
Anyone know of any stores in the Bay Area that have the Switch in stock???
okay so
"I think it's well documented that Nintendo utilizes artificial scarcity as a sales strategy"
isn't the same as a "suggestion that Nintendo benefits from scarcity and might consider it a valid profit strategy."
i challenged you directly on your first point and now it seems that the argument is shifting towards something a lot more speculative... which is why i challenged you on the first point in the first place, as it seemed that speculation was being passed off as a fact.
backflip10019
Member
NYC is a god damned ghost town.
Glass Shark
Banned
Can you get to Jersey? Seems to be plenty there.
VanMardigan
has calmed down a bit.
Considering that they sold out of 3ds and haven't had enough stock since early November, I'm doubting my ability to get a switch. Their loss.
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