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Nintendo Responds To Amiibogeddon With Encouraging Statement On Re-Releases
If you were involved in (or watching) the rush for the next wave of Amiibo figures, you probably saw pieces of the Internet crumble (along with the emotional wellbeing of some collectors). Retailer websites went down and others simply broke as people attempted to add figures to their shopping carts. Nintendo watched in silence, but now the company offers hope.
We just received an updated statement on the situation.
We appreciate the enthusiasm that our fans continue to show toward amiibo. Sales for the product have exceeded our expectations. We understand how frustrating it can be at times if consumers are unable to find certain figures, and we apologize for that.
We’re trying to meet the demands of our fans and consumers by increasing the amount of amiibo we manufacture and ship to retail. We may continue to see consumer demand outpace supply levels for certain characters at times, but we will do our best to prevent that from happening.
As our library of amiibo continues to grow, some figures will be easier to find than others. We are constantly looking for the opportunity to reissue amiibo and are already making plans to bring back some currently out-of-stock amiibo figures. Stay tuned for details.
Nintendo plans to make it easier for consumers to know when new amiibo are on the way, through Nintendo press announcements, timely updates on our social media channels and working closely with retailers.
We remain committed to keeping amiibo affordable and easy to access as a platform to enhance game-play experiences. These plans include Animal Crossing amiibo cards that will become available by the end of 2015, and a free-to-download app for Wii U called amiibo tap: Nintendo’s Greatest Bits that launched on April 30, 2015, that lets consumers enjoy playable scenes from certain NES and Super NES games with amiibo.
This is the most definitive hope we’ve received for re-issuing of hard to find figures. It’s also the first time that Nintendo has addressed the scalping situation, which is driving up prices on the grey market.
Our Take
Increased supply and communication will hopefully help bridge the gap between collectors and the latest figures. Especially since some of the compatible titles rely on characters that are impossible to find anywhere, this is a necessary step.
I’m also pleased to hear that Nintendo is very focused on reissuing figures and not cards for already released characters. That plan wouldn’t have had the same hook for collectors, even if it would have solved the content problem.
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