Are Nintendo Wii's still out of stock everywhere?

[Simply Dave]

I decided to bite the bullet and get a Wii, mostly because Metroid 3 looks so great. So I loaded up my kids yesterday and headed out for a road trip.

2 Wal-Marts, 2 GameStops/EB stores, 1 Best Buy, 1 Circuit City, 1 Target.

No Wii's anywhere.

Here's a funny line from a Gamestop clerk when I asked when he might get some more in: "I don't know, they gave us four last week."

Four?

[Wester]

My local Wally-World had 2 or 3 last time I was there.FWIW.

[roushimsx]

If you go the day they throw 'em on the shelves then you can normally get one without too much trouble. Every Tuesday at lunch I see a pile of them (8-12) at AAFES, and every Wednesday by lunch they're gone.

[TheDomesticInstitution]

Yeah... I don't see them much here, and can't remember last time I saw one on a retail shelf. I did see one at a pawn shop for 229.99. Good luck though...

[heybtbm]

The only place I've ever seen them is at various rural Walmarts in the middle of nowhere. I've never seen a Wii at a retail store in the city...ever.

[FantasiaWHT]

If anybody's in the Southeastern Wisconsin area and wants one, the new Costco in Grafton has a ton of them - $329 for Wii + MP8 + wiimote (yeah, like $10 savings, not that great)

[neogamer]

If anybody's in the Southeastern Wisconsin area and wants one, the new Costco in Grafton has a ton of them - $329 for Wii + MP8 + wiimote (yeah, like $10 savings, not that great)


In my area - PA (near Reading, about an hour from Philly, they seem to be everywhere.

I think the "rush" to get one has died down, as I know too many retailers trying to sell them. My local Game Crazy has 29 units in stock, and they aren't selling at all.

I found ten sitting at Target and about five at my local Wal*Mart!

I think Nintendo has finally met demand, as most economists would say.

This is not to imply that the Wii is not selling. All I am saying is that Nintendo has finally been able to keep up with demand.

[Kroogah]

We got 'em at Game Crazy here, mainly because Game Crazy is forcing the bundle deal on people. System plus Wii Play plus bullshit Game Crazy service contract which is not free.

Wal-Mart has stacks of them at 6 am on Sundays.

[Kejoriv]

i actually saw 3 in the wild for the first time since i bought mine at launch. they were at target. if you really want one, try calling or going to target during the week where its less busy.

[norkusa]

I still haven't seen a single Wii for sale yet. I really wanted to get one but a if Nintendo is going to keep pulling this artificial shortage BS into the end of the year, I'll just get a PS3 instead. Having to camp out for a system this long after launch is ridiculous, no matter how well it's selling.

[portnoyd]

Only time I've seen them on the shelf has been a random CC or Best Buy, but maybe one or two. They are definitely out the insane area, but still not sitting on the shelf.

[RadiantSvgun]

I still haven't seen a single Wii for sale yet. I really wanted to get one but a if Nintendo is going to keep pulling this artificial shortage BS into the end of the year, I'll just get a PS3 instead. Having to camp out for a system this long after launch is ridiculous, no matter how well it's selling.

Well, this morning I watched one lady buy 4 Wiis as soon as they hit the floor. That might have something to do with it.

[otaku]

I bought mine online used from a fellow gamer via forums ebay/amazon is overpriced. In stores is practically impossible my store is best known in my area for having them and we only get about 2 of them every week or two and they're gone the day I get them.

[dave2236]

I live in Green Bay, WI and have never seen one on the shelf yet.

[roushimsx]

I still haven't seen a single Wii for sale yet. I really wanted to get one but a if Nintendo is going to keep pulling this artificial shortage BS into the end of the year, I'll just get a PS3 instead. Having to camp out for a system this long after launch is ridiculous, no matter how well it's selling.

I really wanted to buy one up until I finally had the box in my hands and started to do the math. $250 for the system, $80 for a nunchuck + another controller set, and even then we'd only be playing Wii Sports for about a week before we got bored and moved on to something else. Games are all still way too expensive, too (looking at you, Cooking Mama and Big Brain Academy). Ended up putting the box down, spending $260 on a new monitor instead, and calling it squarsies.

Once the Wii's software library bulks up and the bargain bins start to fill up with good games on the cheap, I'll make my move. As it is right now, the main reason I could think of to pick one up would be as an easy way to play my gamecube games in component. Not the best reason for me to dump at least $330 (and that's without tax).


Well, this morning I watched one lady buy 4 Wiis as soon as they hit the floor. That might have something to do with it.

Fucking ebay price gougers.

[Chadt74]

I've seen a few in GameCrazy and one time in Target.

Based on CL posting it looks like demand has finally leveled off as ads are posting for $230. I live in Boston so we do have a pretty tight poplulation.

Also many stores hold for ads on Sundays. This should stop pretty soon it would seem.

Good luck

[otaku]

Expect demand to pick back up at xmas unless nintendo starts shipping decent amounts.

Mine was 280 with classic controller and wario ware plus some VC games and software all thrown in

[mr_nihilism]

I've only ever seen Wii on a shelf once here in Edmonton.

[neogamer]

We got 'em at Game Crazy here, mainly because Game Crazy is forcing the bundle deal on people. System plus Wii Play plus bullshit Game Crazy service contract which is not free.

Wal-Mart has stacks of them at 6 am on Sundays.

Tell the home office!

They have to be willing to sell them without the service contract!

Store managers do that to encourage sales, not the company. You can complain and get results. I know, because I had a problem with a Game Crazy doing that to me. When I threatened to report the store to their home office, amazingly, the issue was solved!

[Volcanon]

I work at Costco and they always have quite a few Wiis. They also have PS3s that never sell, PS2s that come bundled with some garbage tennis game, and xbox360s

[snes_collector]

I saw a used Wii sitting in GameStops glass case yesterday, almost had to double take as at first I didn't realize what it was!

[DARK ANDY]

It is very rare here in Toronto.

[jonjandran]

In Columbus, Georgia and Montgomery , Alabama they are on the shelves at all the major stores.

Must be a regional thing now.

[Daniel Thomas]

Don't worry. Nintendo's going to keep this up through the end of the year, easily. They'll ship enough units so stocks sell out, and there's still a slight demand. It's a hard needle to thread, but I have to admit, they've really pulled it off.

And the crazy thing is that when you actually see a Wii box, you have this sudden urge to grab it immediately and run. That conditioning has set in, the idea that it's fleeting and about to disappear forever. For me, this goes all the way back to the Cabbage Patch Doll craze of 1984, in which parents were nearly killing one another for one of those stupid dolls.

Predictably, there were eventually more than enough to go around. This happens all the time, and the consumer continues to be suckered again and again.

Just be patient. Don't freeze yourself for 500 years or anything.

[Lothars]

I see Wii's all over the place, it's pretty interesting but basically any store I go to has a Ton of Wii's and has been like that for around 3 months now.

[Hwj_Chim]

the wii is very common around here also. So I think it is a reign thing.

[theoakwoody]

Why does everyone keep talking about how Nintendo is purposely holding back inventory and that they should be able to pump Wii's out faster. If they had no idea how successful the Wii would be how would they know they would have to manufacture 11 million Wii's in the first 9 months it was available. I really don't see how that benefits them to hold back inventory. If anything they'd want to sell as many systems as possible while the Wii is "hot and "trendy".

[cyberfluxor]

It's still pretty dry around here, although I haven't really been searching for one. I'm sure if I wondered around on Tuesday mornings to all of the Best Buys, Circuit Citys, Walmarts and Targets I'd eventually find one.

[Rob2600]

The Wii is selling at a pace of almost half a million units per month. The demand is insane!

[Icarus Moonsight]

Why does everyone keep talking about how Nintendo is purposely holding back inventory and that they should be able to pump Wii's out faster. If they had no idea how successful the Wii would be how would they know they would have to manufacture 11 million Wii's in the first 9 months it was available. I really don't see how that benefits them to hold back inventory. If anything they'd want to sell as many systems as possible while the Wii is "hot and "trendy".

QTF. A whole year of sales behind the 360 and they managed to sell more by holding stock? WTF!? I know the issue of Japan sales will come up and all I got to say about that is... :sob:

While I haven't seen Wii's on shelf anywhere I have been to stores that have them. They keep them hidden in a back or store room and the only way to know if they have any is to ask for one. The only reason I know this is I've seen people asking for one and the clerk goes to the room and grabs one. I'm guessing because they sell so damn fast why bother moving a shipment to the case every week. You can put another product on display with less demand.

The Walmarts around here have pulled some Wii peripherals from the aisle hang pegs to the case. I asked why and it seems that Wii remotes/nunchucks are very shopliftable. They were finding the outter plastic cases all over the place. Some pant saggin' brat could easily stash 4 or 5 in each pocket. No doubt to wind up on eBay. More dubious is Granny filing her purse for a Wii Sports tourney at the old folks home. LOL

[WanganRunner]

I still have yet to see one on a store shelf here in DC.

Honestly, in cities where this is still the case, the only way to get one is to go to Circuit City or Best Buy at opening on a Sunday morning and hope for the best. Do this for 2-3 weeks and you'll be sure to get one.

This will likely continue to be the case until after the 2008 holiday season, as while demand is high right now, it will skyrocket as we again get closer to Xmas.

All those people who passed on buying Wii's last year because it was impossible to get one will be out in force to purchase them this year.

If you want one, camp for it. No chance otherwise, at least not if you're in DC/LA/NYC (maybe also ATL and Chicago, dunno)

[Nintendork]

I got tired of not seeing a Wii anywhere I went (Souderton, outside of Philadelphia) so I tried one of those sites where you can get one for free after signning up for a couple offers and getting seven referrals. So far I've only mustered one referral and completed my two free offers. Seeing as nobody is helping me out and they apparently are making their ways back into stores, my wife and I are just going to pick one up after Christmas sometime.

[Sanriostar]

If you want one, camp for it. No chance otherwise, at least not if you're in DC/LA/NYC (maybe also ATL and Chicago, dunno)

I finally started a Wii hunt yesterday; I should have one by the end of the week if my inquiries come to fruition.

EDIT:
Just got a Wii this afternoon! Took 2 days of searching, and that's it!

[norkusa]

QTF. A whole year of sales behind the 360 and they managed to sell more by holding stock? WTF!? I know the issue of Japan sales will come up and all I got to say about that is... :sob:


Yeah, you're right. It's not like Nintendo has done this before or anything.

[neogamer]

If anyone here seriously believes that Nintendo held Wii systems back, you certainly have a problem understanding busines basics! It just does not work that way.

Nintendo did their very best getting Wii systems out there. Anyone who wanted one and was willing to hunt a little, did get one. I have friends, clients, and contacts, all around the country, and they all agree.

All you really had to do was go to your local Toys R Us, Best Buy, or Circuit City store on a Sunday morning, line up at the door, and hope for the best.

If that did not work, you could always try the next weekend (or even eBay). The point is, when you see both the production numbers and the sell through numbers that Nintendo reported, it is impossible to prove or even attempt to conspire that Nintendo held units back.

Second, it makes no business sense! Sony and Microsoft were each accused of the same type of business practices. In this day and age, that type of practice does not work and it ended many years ago.

The only market were this type of practice works, is when you have a monopoly. Remember the infamous "chip shortage" that caused the death of games like Kid Icarus. Nintendo claimed that they did not have enough chips to produce the amount of games needed to make demand, back when the NES was king. The company stopped production of Kid Icarus and a few other titles to increase demand. This is an example of business practices that are used when you have a monopoly. This does not work in the given market environment. Nintendo now needs to build market share fast. They have built as many units as they possibly could. I think everyone here is smart enough to understand that. And just for the record, I love all three systems equally (although Microsoft is starting to get on my nerves). Point being, I could care less who has the better market share or system. I just want cool games! In the end, does hardware even matter?

[GM80]

I finally found mine at Target last month, and have since seen them get a shipment twice.

Hadn't seen one before that, or anywhere else since then.

[Gamingking]

It was hard to find mine, but my Wal-mart get a few in every now in then.

[8bitgamer]

I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, and every time I go to Target, Gamestop, etc., there are no Wiis in stock.

http://brettweisswords.blogspot.com/

[Neil Koch]

The Walmarts around here have pulled some Wii peripherals from the aisle hang pegs to the case. I asked why and it seems that Wii remotes/nunchucks are very shopliftable. They were finding the outter plastic cases all over the place. Some pant saggin' brat could easily stash 4 or 5 in each pocket. No doubt to wind up on eBay. More dubious is Granny filing her purse for a Wii Sports tourney at the old folks home. LOL

I used to do some security and actually it was about half and half between the oldsters and kids as to who shoplifted the most. Anyway, most of the stores around here were putting the Wiimotes and Nunchucks in display cases since day 1...

FYI for those in the Minneapolis area who are looking for a Wii - a good place to try is the Target on Nicollet Mall. It's usually pretty dead on the weekends (especially Saturday afternoons) and I picked up one a few weeks ago.

[Poofta!]

i dont think ive ever seen a wii on shelves for sale here in nyc. maybe one at a pc shop but thats about it. my friend camped for his on launch day in pittsburg while he went to school there and got me one as well.

[Icarus Moonsight]

@norkusa: Of course I'm right. :) I'll tell ya why.

With production at ~one-million units/month and sales nearly equal to production the only way they can be shorting supply is by lying about their production rate. I, myself, am very into exploring most conspiracy theories but even I can't swallow that and I WANT to belive! Really, I do. Just. Not. Plausable.

You're sarcasm tickled me and to reciprocate:
I swear, Joe needs to put DP branded tinfoil hats into production pronto. Wouldn't want Nintendo reading your brain waves would ya now? LOL


I used to do some security and actually it was about half and half between the oldsters and kids as to who shoplifted the most.

Still doesn't make shoplifting Grandmothers any less dubious. :) Most wouldn't suspect old lady Fritz as a shoplifter but, the thugish-looking teen gets caught with a CD in his hoody pocket and roughly zero people are surprised. Most applaud, while Grandma Fritz stashes even more stuff... adding to her haul of ill-gotten goodies. The Fritz grandchildren are going to have one hell of a Christmas. After Gran takes her cut, of course. LOL

[thegardentool]

I saw two eariler today at a local Wal-Mart when I went to see if they had Medal of Honor: Airborne in stock.

I called up a friend to tell him since he's been wanting one and he changed his mind to get an Xbox 360 instead due to the lack of good games. This is about the third or fourth time I've seen them stocked at this Wal-Mart on a Tuesday or Wednesday.

I assume they stock them only once a week when they are suppose to put out that week's new releases. That meant no MoH:A today. :(

[rolenta]

I was lucky that a friend was able to score one for me on the day they were first released. I personally have never seen one for sale.

[neuropolitique]

Don't worry. Nintendo's going to keep this up through the end of the year, easily. They'll ship enough units so stocks sell out, and there's still a slight demand. It's a hard needle to thread, but I have to admit, they've really pulled it off.

And the crazy thing is that when you actually see a Wii box, you have this sudden urge to grab it immediately and run. That conditioning has set in, the idea that it's fleeting and about to disappear forever. For me, this goes all the way back to the Cabbage Patch Doll craze of 1984, in which parents were nearly killing one another for one of those stupid dolls.

Predictably, there were eventually more than enough to go around. This happens all the time, and the consumer continues to be suckered again and again.

Just be patient. Don't freeze yourself for 500 years or anything.


Your cabbage patch kids analogy is more apt than you think. They were hard to come by far after their release. My parents looked for months after christmas to find one, as they had promised my sister one for her birthday the next April. A few days before her birthday they were in a store looking for some. An employee wheeled out a cart full of the dolls and the stack was immediately set upon by the shoppers. My mother tried to get in to get one but was too late/slow. Somehow my sister ended up with one, else it would have been likely long after her birthday that she got one.

No cabbage patch conspiracy. No secret formula. They were just insanely popular that year. Same thing with the Wii.

[joedick]

The wii was the number one selling console last month and people still think they're holding back supply?

[hezeuschrist]

/not helpful

I saw a whole bunch at the Nintendo World Store last weekend!

/not helpful

Hype is an amazing thing, because it really doesn't have much going for it other than wii sports, zelda, and metroid.

[FantasiaWHT]

Hype is an amazing thing, because it really doesn't have much going for it other than wii sports, zelda, and metroid.

And the VC, and the best version of Rayman Raving Rabbids, and Super Mario Galaxy & Smash Bros. Brawl, and the price tag, and the games being $10 cheaper than the other two next-gen consoles...

Yeah, not much else I guess :ass:

[RegSNES]

I have yet to see a freaking Wii for sale. Anywhere. I'm finally able to afford things again, but the Wii has been out for almost a year now and the things are still practically an indangered species.

[hezeuschrist]

And the VC, and the best version of Rayman Raving Rabbids, and Super Mario Galaxy & Smash Bros. Brawl, and the price tag, and the games being $10 cheaper than the other two next-gen consoles...

Yeah, not much else I guess :ass:

Meh. One of a thousand mini-game compilations and a couple games that aren't out yet.

The PS2 never sold like this and it has arguably the greatest software lineup of any system ever. Something for everyone and at a high quality. Hype is powerful.

[Lothars]

Meh. One of a thousand mini-game compilations and a couple games that aren't out yet.

The PS2 never sold like this and it has arguably the greatest software lineup of any system ever. Something for everyone and at a high quality. Hype is powerful.

I agree it's really all hype that's leading the Wii's Sales

[Rob2600]

I agree it's really all hype that's leading the Wii's Sales

10.7 million units sold divided by 8 months worth of sales data equals 1.38 million units sold per month.

I could understand hype generating a few months of sales, but it's been over eight months now and I doubt Wii sales will slow down before Christmas.

[skylark]

Never seen one around Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill. Haven't been looking religiously, but I've been to enough stores to have been able to spot one of they were available. I think place are getting in a few a week and selling out within hours.

[The EdgeCrusher]

got my wii last month

8 walmarts, 3 targets, 6 gamestops 2 circuit citys later.

i found mine in a country walmart.

[neogamer]

Nintendo never did ship these systems out via demographics. Apparently neither did the stores themselves as well. It amazes me where people are finding these. It still is interesting to point out that I live in (or near) a major metropolitan area and these systems are everywhere....

And yes, I have even already seen the new PSP Daxter pack system as well!

[RegSNES]

I went into Wal-Mart on Friday to pick up a DVD player and saw they actually had some Wiis!! For real! Real, live, freaking Wiis! They had to have four of them at least! I was shocked! SHOCKED!! I wanted to get one but I didn't feel like putting $250 on my credit card, despite having tons of credit left on it. I don't like putting that much on a card. Sigh. Someday, Wii, someday.

[YoshiM]

Spotted a few at a Costco in Grafton, WI. They do bundle packaged so it was the Wii, Mario Party 8 and an extra Wii-mote (though I couldn't see if there was an extra nunchuk).

[GrandAmChandler]

Back on Topic.

Anyone else seen a Wii?

[Rob2600]

Where did many of our posts go? Were they deleted?

[Darth Sensei]

Where did many of our posts go? Were they deleted?

Umm.. prolly one of the mods moved or deleted them.

Incidentally, I saw some Wii's at a Grand Rapids Meijers store this morning. They have a big newspaper ad for them and Wiis were in stock.

[Rob2600]

Umm.. prolly one of the mods moved or deleted them.

Thanks. I just saw that our posts about bundles were moved to a new, closed topic called "Captialism Crap that Doesn't belong here."

[FantasiaWHT]

Sweet! Never been locked before.

I mean, uh, sorry, it won't happen again ;) I'll try to stay on topic.

The only Wii's I've seen are at Costco (brand new store) and in people's houses.

[neogamer]

Sweet! Never been locked before.

I mean, uh, sorry, it won't happen again ;) I'll try to stay on topic.

The only Wii's I've seen are at Costco (brand new store) and in people's houses.


Agreed! I do apologize to any parties I have offended!

Sorry guys!

[neogamer]

Agreed! I do apologize to any parties I have offended!

Sorry guys!

I didn't realize we strayed that far from the topic, but after reading those posts, I guess we did.....

it is my fault and I do take responsibility for that, if someone needs to take the fall!

[Bassgrabber]

I returned a cruddy HD antenna to a local Walmart today, and stopped by the "electronics" department out of habit.

After talking with an employee and another customer about Halo3 I asked if there were any Wii's in stock. I got in the habit of asking wherever I went, whenever I went anywhere near games about six months ago. I would ask periodically before that, and had never been told "yes".

Today I got a "well, maybe".

The guy explained that they had just gotten a truck in with ONE Wii on it. He wasn't sure if it had been checked in yet, but said he'd go find out for me.

Five minutes later he's walking towards me, a Wii in hand.

Yes, this IS an E-rated post ;-)

Six months, an estimated 500-1,000 inquiries, and just one Wii.

Either they're still scarce here, or maybe some people are just hoarding them. I'd say still scarce... just one in a shipment? LOL Maybe if supply was higher demand would be lower? <shrug>