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Mini NES back in production
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February 06, 2017, 13:02
 
02/06/17, 13:02
 
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@Koovaps The thing is this complaint apparently goes back to the Wii? They sold millions of them. MILLIONS. It's not like they got drip fed into stores. The demand was just completely unforeseeable. Even third parties are on record as being taken by surprise by that system's success. But now, with the benefit of hindsight, the cynical commentators are insisting the Nintendo should have magically known exactly what the demand was going to be and be there to match it.

It's just such an unrealistic expectation to have, that they get it dead on. Either Nintendo screws themselves by overestimating, or they're accused of conspiracy/incompetence if they sell out. It can't be a simple case of conservative safe estimates meeting the unexpected, no sir. That's far too reasonable an explanation.

Products sell out all the time. It happens. If demand could be predicted with such unerring accuracy then that's what they'd produce.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 14:15
@Shadowlink

Exactly. I think it just boils down to consumer ignorance. It is outrageously complicated getting product from factory to thousands and thousands of store shelves in just the right number. Stephen brought up Tickle me Elmo and Furby growing up as kids as examples of artificial scarcity. I was just thinking, how in the hell did they even know to make them scarce? And for those holiday toys, you only ever get a single holiday season, never more. We're hatchimals artificially scarce this year? I've heard that there will be around 2 million Switches at launch. Whatever the number is, I sure hope Nintendo gets their scarcity right to make it a hit, because they really screwed the pooch with the Wii U.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 14:29   Edited:  02/07/17, 14:30
@Koovaps

There is no way Furby and TME were artificial scarcity. You could NEVER have predicted that a small red robotic monster that you poked in the stomach and it laughed would have people breaking into others' houses and getting into fistfights over. No way no how.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 18:00
@Shadowlink

This is gonna be my last response on toxicity here.

I'm going to post how I want. If that troubles you, you are free to whine and cry about it to me all you want and I'll debate your actual arguments on the topic. What you need to get away from is this habit of yours where you judge my posts more harshly because they come from me. That is the root of the toxicity here. I make a lot of posts and a lot of threads on this website and they are not overwhelmingly negative despite what you may claim. As soon as I say anything that you disagree with though it is the same old pattern of you arguing it, me responding, you bringing up other points, me responding to those, you attacking me specifically for being too negative, me responding to that, and then you eventually running off. And it ruins a lot of threads. I'm not going to stifle my opinions though because you cannot help yourself from getting worked up. Complain and argue with me all you want but it is not going to happen and it serves to irritate others and ruin threads.

I've said it before and I will say it again, I would find it preferable if you just didn't respond to me. Your argumentative nature and junior moderating is tiresome but it is wrapped in the guise of the actual topic at hand. Look how we were suddenly talking about motion controls and previous posts I made (going back to literally 10 years ago lol) in this thread about the NES Mini being back in stock. The reason is because it was never about the merits of Nintendo actually implementing artificial scarcity it was about you thinking that I was saying something bad about Nintendo and you had to intervene.

I'm going to go back to talking about artificial scarcity now. If you don't want to talk about that then don't respond to that discussion or if you do actually talk about the matter at hand and not how you think I'm too hard on Nintendo.

@Koovaps

They do it for a lot of different things. Off the top of my head there has been:

Switch pre-orders
NES Mini
Amiibo
Zelda BotW Collector's Editions
Zelda Majora's Mask Collector's Editions
Metroid Prime Trilogy
Xenoblade
Limited Editon 3DS + DS (notably the Zelda ones)
The Pokemon Go Accessory

Like I can accept that some of these might just oversights but eventually, there is a point where there just isn't an excuse anymore. Collector's editions are just the game and some other mass manufactured good. Same thing with the systems. If you can make millions of the system you can make millions of a Zelda designed one and yet they sold out like crazy and people who wanted them couldn't get them. Some are just regular games they print no problem. The much sought after Metroid Prime Trilogy hardcopy is literally just the disc and a steelbook yet they still go for roughly $100 on ebay. Some of these things have insane margins as well. Injected plastic, discs, established mass-produced tech. Other companies offer similar ideas but they generally don't mess up supply. If you want a collector's edition generally you can get it. It's even joked that you see stacks of them months later. How is it that other companies can do what Nintendo seems to be unable to when they have been in the game longer than anyone?

I read a while back that they have done this for a long time. Here is an article about the situation with the Wii that quotes a book about their practices dating back to the NES.

David Eaves said:
One item in the book that stuck me was the example of Nintendo and the launch of it’s Nintendo Entertains System (NES) back in the mid-80s. This wasn’t because, as a kid, I was denied an NES by my parents, but because it lent credence to the accusations that Nintendo has purposefully created scarcity in the supply of its current machine – the Nintendo Wii – as well as some of its games – like the Wii Fit.

Certainly the following paragraphs out of Brandenburger and Nalebuff suggest there is a strong precedent in Nintendo’s actions. My friend Andrew M. has long argued that Nintendo has being artificially creating scarcity, but I’ve also thought it was just that the company hadn’t anticipated its success and so production had lagged demand. Now I’m inclined to think Andrew has been correct. If Brandenburger and Nalebuff are correct, then it looks like scarcity has been a Nintendo strategy for over 30 years.

Somewhat paradoxically, the shortages may have helped create even more consumer demand. There were at least three different effects going on. First, shortages made the game cartridges even more desirable in the eyes of consumers, actually boosting demand. Trendy restaurants play the same game. For example, the long lines outside K-Paul’s in New Orleans made it even more fashionable, further increasing the lines…

…Second, shortages made headlines; filling demand would not have. “Tonight’s top story: Nintendo sold game cartridges to all those who wanted them. Details at Eleven” We don’t think so. The shortages generated tremendous free publicity for Nintendo, a company known to be rather stingy on advertising (spending only 2 percent of sales).

Third, shortages helped retailers move slower-selling Nintendo games, because parents would buy a lower-selling title if the the kid wanted was sold out. Of course, this was only a temporary solution, what we call the “Band-Aid” effect. The substitution might tie the kid over from Christmas to New Year’s, but kids tend to remember these sorts of things. So parents would have to return for the sold out title once fresh supplies come in. Nintendo made two sales instead of one.


This time around, rather than making the game cartridges scarce – something hard to do since Wii games or printed on CDs, which are abundant – Nintendo made the games console itself scarce. I’m not sure about the last effect, but there is ample evidence of the first and second effect. Nintendo has earned endless free media as a result of the Wii’s scarcity. Plus the scarcity has peaked interest – especially among non-traditional gamers.

EDIT: As to why they don't do it for everything image will only get you so far. Ultimately Nintendo wants the money in their hands and not the scalpers but it is a balancing act of getting people excited, satisfying customers, and selling content. Free advertising as the hottest thing right now is all well and good but you have to be careful that consumers don't get fed up and sour on your company as a whole. And ultimately you want to take advantage of that buzz.

@Koovaps
@J.K. Riki

In those cases toy manufacturers are hesitant to create a large surplus due to the fact that they don't know what will be successful. Once they do know though they control the game and can make as many as they want and be comfortable that every single one is going to sell and they enjoy the huge boost of free advertising for a product. You guys cannot seriously believe that a stuffed doll is hard to manufacture? And sure, there are lag times, but at a certain point they have the narrative of 'hottest toy for christmas' and they can control their supply to perpetuate that for the entire season.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 21:05   Edited:  02/07/17, 21:10
I have a PHD in armchair executive production management.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 21:17
@Stephen

People with shitty track records get judged more harshly. You can cry victimhood all you like, but that's the truth.

The *real* root of the toxicity here is *your* posting habits:
Stephen said:

On a board dedicated to Nintendo fans people are going to side with Nintendo the majority of the time so when something happens that I agree with Nintendo or the board in general on I won't post about it because that side of the argument is already being made/talked about and I have nothing to add. It's posts where people say stuff like 'Nintendo actually has the best online infrastructure.' that make me post because I don't see anyone else call shit like that out.

- You literally admit that you feel you have nothing positive to add. But if you have a negative opinion, it's all systems go. No matter how many times you've expressed it before.
- That negativity is a matter of record no matter how much you try to downplay it.
- Again I ask: How many people have to call you out before you admit you have an issue? Ten? Fifty?
- If you don't want people to respond to your shitty posts, don't post them. Like you taking it upon yourself to call out posts you find problematic, I will call out yours.
- Don't accuse others of being argumentative, when you've just stated you have no problems with continuing arguments no matter how toxic, and when you deliberately bait people into continuing arguments to the point of mocking them when they dare leave. You are the single most argumentative person on the board. And in a board that contains me or Zero or Mustache, that's quite an achievement.

Now I'm going to hold you to your promise and tell you not to respond to this. I'm not interested in your personal PR denials.

As to the topic:
Stephen said:

In those cases toy manufacturers are hesitant to create a large surplus due to the fact that they don't know what will be successful.

Now apply that to Nintendo and you have a reasonable explanation for your conspiracy theory. If you don't want to accept thatand instad will keep assuming the worst despite no evidence, then think about what that says.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 21:41   Edited:  02/07/17, 21:43
If only there were a way to just ignore posts by people you don't like or to agree to disagree and not start multi page flame wars. Oh wait, this is the internet.

Posted by 
 on: 02/07/17, 22:53
You can order one on Amazon for a reasonable $140

Posted by 
 on: 02/10/17, 15:18
@Shadowlink

I'm with Stephen. Chill the fuck out.

Posted by 
 on: 02/10/17, 16:42
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