Video Game Depot- Famicon GBA SP

[Darth Sensei]

I got the following e-mail today regarding my purchase of a GBA SP Famicon:

A problem has occured that is preventing us from processing your order (#418342).

Please read the notes provided below for more details.

Thanks!

-- Notes ----------------------------------

Hello, this is Travis at VGD. We received some bad news from our overseas distributors today. They are telling us that Nintendo will only be selling the Famicom Mini SP to retailers on the first shipment. This means that our distributors will have to go out and buy them off the streets and sell them to us at the street price. This will mean if you want a system off of the first shipment we will have to charge $149.00 for it. You can wait for the second shipment which should be close to the Pre-order price since we will obtain these at a wholesale price. We are sorry for the trouble but we didn't see this coming. Please let us know if you want one of the first shipment systems or if you want to wait for the better priced shipment....or lastly cancel your pre-order.

Thanx

Travis

I so didn't need this. So, if I want my GBA SP I have to fork out more money.

Lucky me.

D

[Ed Oscuro]

Aw, that sucks. :(

[Jasoco]

Damn.

Well, there go my dreams too.

[ddockery]

I cancelled, I'm sock of all the changes. I have a friend in Japan, time to start begging for favors.

[SoulBlazer]

Wonder why Nintendo is doing that? Seems like kind of a strange thing to be doing.

[Jasoco]

Wonder why Nintendo is doing that? Seems like kind of a strange thing to be doing.I think they're on to us. They know people in the other countries are importing them. And they only planned on selling to Japan. So now they're selling to the entire world. But rather than make them available to the whole world, they're making us pay more. Wheee..

I had planned on buying. But I held out too long. So I may end up just skipping this. And if it's still there by the time I can afford it and I still want it, so be it. I'll import it for the extra money. I won't like it, but I will. Just for Mario. And if I have to, I'll forego the SP and just get the game. And a normal red SP for myself. Whatever.

[SoulBlazer]

Well, that confuses me even more. If Nintendo KNOWS that a lot of the orders for this are coming from outside Japan, that SHOULD cause a light bulb in someone's head to go off with something like "OH! We could make a lot of money if we do a oversees version! Let's get working on that!"

[Jasoco]

Well, that confuses me even more. If Nintendo KNOWS that a lot of the orders for this are coming from outside Japan, that SHOULD cause a light bulb in someone's head to go off with something like "OH! We could make a lot of money if we do a oversees version! Let's get working on that!"No.

Nintendo doesn't know that most of the orders are from out of Japan. Since they're being sold by Impoters who are located in Japan. And the ones located in the US and other countries are getting people inJapan to send them to them. So to Nintendo, all their orders are coming from Japan. Even if they do end up in another country.

Still, Nintendo sees that people are getting all up and buzzy about them and saying they want them. And they know that they're being sold by Importers.

Um.. whatever. They said they're supposed to be Limited. They can't be limited if they have to keep making them to fill thousands and hundreds of thousands of orders from people not even in Japan.

Supply and Demand, my good man. Supply and Demand.

[Darth Sensei]

Also, you have to remember this is the company which is notorious for artificially limiting supply to drive up demand and prices. Anybody forget the NES days when you couldn't find SMB3 anywhere when it came out?

D

[buttasuperb]

So the price went up $15, and only $7 or so from some other companys price. Kinda sucks, but it's not totally terrible. At NCSX, if you didn't get a preorder in early, you have to buy the system with all 10 NES games for $350 or something crazy like that.

I'm gonna see how long until the 2nd shipment, then make my decision. But I'm definately getting this GBA.

[Jive3D]

Is anyone selling the games only? I just wanna pick up Mario & Zelda...

[SoulBlazer]

Well, make two different versions of it then -- one 'special' one that is Limited, only made in a small ammount, and priced higher for sales to collectors and other die hards; and make a normal cheaper one and crank out the copies. I wish more companies did that with their stuff.

Still, I'm surprised Nintendo does'nt have SOME way of being able to figure out that a large number of these are going outside of Japan.

And no, I've never had a problem finding a Nintendo game. I got SMB3 on the day it came out. :hmm: Maybe I was just lucky.

[Ed Oscuro]

On second thought, this reminds me of why I'm staying away from Limited Editions in the first place... :/

[Jasoco]

Well, make two different versions of it then -- one 'special' one that is Limited, only made in a small ammount, and priced higher for sales to collectors and other die hards; and make a normal cheaper one and crank out the copies. I wish more companies did that with their stuff.
LOL

They DID that! The first ones were last years REAL Limeted 1000 made prize versions based on the Famicom 1. These are the consumer ones they're selling now.

Anyway, I might just forego getting the system. I might just get myself a Flame red GBA and import Mario and Zelda only. Maybe some other games if I have the money and they're still around when I get to it. (Donkey Kong anyone? Pac-Man? My other two choices.)

I dunno yet. I was hoping for the VGD deal because it was the cheapest, and shipping was free when I got the system and one game. But now I'll just skip that and think later.

[buttasuperb]

They couldn't give me a release date for the 2nd shipment, so I went ahead and paid the extra $15 bucks. No big deal.

I'm not one for limited editions for the most part, but this GBA just looks too sweet, and the box for it does too.

[Lady Jaye]

Doesn't sound to me like a limited ed. situation, but more like a first-to-market (in this case retailers vs. wholesalers) and allocation situation.

So, if you were to get the Famicom Mini SP, you could either pay more right now, or wait for the second shipment and the price originally stated on the website. To play it safe, you may want to ask other importers what's their take on the situation.

Since there already was a limited ed. out there, I don't see why Nintendo would release a "limited-but-not-as-limited" edition.