liger05 Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 Does anyone remember what Wii U preorders were like? It was defiantly not sold out on Amazon. More than that there was no buzz at all. There were a more games on day 1 but nobody gave a damn.
drahkon Posted February 6, 2017 Author Posted February 6, 2017 Switch isn't sold out. I think probably Nintendo limited stock allocation initially to make it seem like something in demand. Now, almost mysteriously, Nintendo has the Neon unit in stock for dispatch at launch. Well, it seems to work...
dazzybee Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 Can't beat a good conspiracy theorist. Where's that tin foil...?
Goafer Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 To be fair, limiting stock to increase demand is a pretty well known marketing tactic. How many people do you think are keeping hold of/placing preorders because they think they probably won't be able to get one around launch unless they do? How to use scarcity and urgency to increase sales
Ike Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 Switch isn't sold out. I think probably Nintendo limited stock allocation initially to make it seem like something in demand. Now, almost mysteriously, Nintendo has the Neon unit in stock for dispatch at launch. Or maybe they were able to produce more, who knows..?
Sheikah Posted February 6, 2017 Posted February 6, 2017 Can't beat a good conspiracy theorist. Where's that tin foil...? See goafer's post. And have a think before you reply. Or maybe they were able to produce more, who knows..? In the space of a couple of weeks? Nah, they limited the stock initially to create that feeling of scarcity.
Ike Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 In the space of a couple of weeks? Nah, they limited the stock initially to create that feeling of scarcity. I never saw the grey version sell out on Nintendo's store, just the Neon which seemed a bit strange. They did claim to increase production so maybe it's possible. I had a quick skim of the article Goafer posted, but didn't see anything about increasing demand by making the product unavailable to buy. I might have missed it though.
Sheikah Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 (edited) I never saw the grey version sell out on Nintendo's store, just the Neon which seemed a bit strange. They did claim to increase production so maybe it's possible. I had a quick skim of the article Goafer posted, but didn't see anything about increasing demand by making the product unavailable to buy. I might have missed it though. Both versions sold out for launch delivery on Amazon very quickly. Nintendo must have initially given very low numbers to stores to make it seem like it was the next thing in demand. They must have known the absolute maximum they could make by launch even then, accounting for high demand. Now you can easily get both versions (the colour version only on Nintendo's store, but the grey version went from sold out in many places to readily available). Edited February 7, 2017 by Sheikah
Rummy Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 It was defiantly not sold out on Amazon. More than that there was no buzz at all. There were a more games on day 1 but nobody gave a damn. Yeah...defied all Nintendo's expectations...in a bad way!! I don't think Switch will be as bad as WiiU initially, but it needs some momentum built and kept. Whether they choose to start that later in the year when there's more content/online etc, we'll see. I'm losing more faith and interest by the day though.
dazzybee Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 See goafer's post. And have a think before you reply. In the space of a couple of weeks? Nah, they limited the stock initially to create that feeling of scarcity. Or maybe because lots of people preordered more than one to be safe and subsequently canceled them, and others preordered and canceled because the launch line up is weak and can play Zelda on the Wii u. Maybe, just maybe this meant more became available...
Sheikah Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 Or maybe because lots of people preordered more than one to be safe and subsequently canceled them, and others preordered and canceled because the launch line up is weak and can play Zelda on the Wii u. Maybe, just maybe this meant more became available... I don't see that being the reason. Amazon know how many units they have allocated, because Nintendo told them. If someone cancels their order on their website then 1 unit is freed up and Amazon would immediately know this. That 1 unit would be available to buy again on the site. Most likely it would go to the next person in the order queue who wouldn't have been getting his at launch. The scarcity of the system around the announcement was real, not just on Amazon but at lots of places. Nintendo always knew the absolute maximum number of consoles they could make by launch so I don't see this as 'they found out they could just make more by that time'. But hey, it works for them, people think it's scarce and so logged their preorders in early.
dazzybee Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 I don't see that being the reason. Amazon know how many units they have allocated, because Nintendo told them. If someone cancels their order on their website then 1 unit is freed up and Amazon would immediately know this. That 1 unit would be available to buy again on the site. Most likely it would go to the next person in the order queue who wouldn't have been getting his at launch. The scarcity of the system around the announcement was real, not just on Amazon but at lots of places. Nintendo always knew the absolute maximum number of consoles they could make by launch so I don't see this as 'they found out they could just make more by that time'. But hey, it works for them, people think it's scarce and so logged their preorders in early. I guess I just don't believe Nintendo wouldn't want to sell as many as possible. And if that was their plan, why haven't they gone through with it and made sure it's scarce at launch? Why bottle it after a couple of weeks and release more?
Goafer Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 (edited) Because it's all about the illusion of scarcity. People now think it will be hard to get hold of at launch (people holding multiple preorders for example), so it doesn't actually matter if it is scarce. The public opinion is that it is, creating a sense of urgency to snap up any stock that does become available. It's simple: Release limited numbers to preorders to make it scarce. Wait a few weeks to build a reputation as hard to get hold of. Release loads more and watch people clamber to get hold of one, thinking they might not get another chance It's cynical, but it works. Edited February 7, 2017 by Goafer
Happenstance Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 Intentional or not we also saw this with the Wii
Sheikah Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 I guess I just don't believe Nintendo wouldn't want to sell as many as possible. And if that was their plan, why haven't they gone through with it and made sure it's scarce at launch? Why bottle it after a couple of weeks and release more? Because they only want to make it appear scarce and not actually scarce (since actual scarcity means lost sales). By making it seem scarce at the peak of its hype when it was revealed, people who might not otherwise have got on board at launch have put their preorders down. Once they've got their preorder down, they're reasonably likely to keep it. It's why there's always such an emphasis for game stores to get preorders in.
Happenstance Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 The only thing that tends to make you wonder if its smart from Nintendo or not is the fact that the same thing happened with the NES Classic and then the stock people predicted would magically appear before Christmas never did and Nintendo lost out on the buzz they'd created.
Sméagol Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 The consoles are still sold out in The Netherlands (at least, they're not available at the big online shops here), so maybe the UK got some extra consoles allocated.
lostmario Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 (edited) I have zero interest in the Switch, am I alone in just not caring for it? Nothing they have shown so far has got me excited. Zelda looks good but its a Wii U port and I can buy it for the Wii U. Splatoon 2 doesn't look any different than Splatoon which I had no interest in. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has battle mode and nothing else new.... No thanks. Starting to wonder If I'll even bother buying one at all. Nintendo just don't do it for me anymore. The Wii U and its lack of games that interested me forced me to buy a PS4 and I'm glad that it did. One console is played daily while the other gathers dust and hasn't had a game bought for it in over 2 years. So it'll be no Switch purchase for me but a PS4 Pro instead once I stop messing about and get a 4K TV bought. Edited February 7, 2017 by lostmario
nekunando Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 I have zero interest in the Switch, am I alone in just not caring for it? Nothing they have shown so far has got me excited. Zelda looks good but its a Wii U port and I can buy it for the Wii U. Splatoon 2 doesn't look any different than Splatoon which I had no interest in. Mario Kart 8 Direct has battle mode and nothing else new.... No thanks. Starting to wonder If I'll even bother buying one at all. Nintendo just don't do it for me anymore. The Wii U and its lack of games that interested me forced me to buy a PS4 and I'm glad that it did. One console is played daily while the other gathers dust and hasn't had a game bought for it in over 2 years. So it'll be no Switch purchase for me but a PS4 Pro instead once I stop messing about and get a 4K TV bought. I'll be getting a Switch even though I don't feel like I need it right now! In really glad I got a PS4 in December too, though, and it has basically been on all day every day since opening it up on Christmas Eve I play it when I can but my wife uses it for YouTube and Netflix so there's barely a moment when it's turned off! I almost feel like it's madness throwing yet another console into the mix but Nintendo has always had my heart
Fierce_LiNk Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 I have zero interest in the Switch, am I alone in just not caring for it? Nothing they have shown so far has got me excited. Zelda looks good but its a Wii U port and I can buy it for the Wii U. Splatoon 2 doesn't look any different than Splatoon which I had no interest in. Mario Kart 8 Direct has battle mode and nothing else new.... No thanks. Starting to wonder If I'll even bother buying one at all. Nintendo just don't do it for me anymore. The Wii U and its lack of games that interested me forced me to buy a PS4 and I'm glad that it did. One console is played daily while the other gathers dust and hasn't had a game bought for it in over 2 years. So it'll be no Switch purchase for me but a PS4 Pro instead once I stop messing about and get a 4K TV bought. That's my situation, word for word. I'm more tempted to get a third PS4 (PS4 Pro) than a Nintendo Switch. Nintendo haven't shown me anything at all that makes me feel that they have learned how to overcome their faults. I want the Switch to be worth it.
Helmsly Posted February 7, 2017 Posted February 7, 2017 I have zero interest in the Switch, am I alone in just not caring for it? Nothing they have shown so far has got me excited. Zelda looks good but its a Wii U port and I can buy it for the Wii U. Splatoon 2 doesn't look any different than Splatoon which I had no interest in. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has battle mode and nothing else new.... No thanks. Starting to wonder If I'll even bother buying one at all. Nintendo just don't do it for me anymore. The Wii U and its lack of games that interested me forced me to buy a PS4 and I'm glad that it did. One console is played daily while the other gathers dust and hasn't had a game bought for it in over 2 years. So it'll be no Switch purchase for me but a PS4 Pro instead once I stop messing about and get a 4K TV bought. Yeah I'm pretty much holding the same opinion as you are here, with the exception of Splatoon because I really enjoyed the first game. Very little about the switch itself appeals to me as I have zero interest in using it as a portable and its not going to have a lot of the features the Wii U had that I used all the time. Right now I'm leaning on getting a PS4 over the summer and then maybe buy the Switch with Mario is released.
somme Posted February 8, 2017 Posted February 8, 2017 I have zero interest in the Switch, am I alone in just not caring for it? Nothing they have shown so far has got me excited. Zelda looks good but its a Wii U port and I can buy it for the Wii U. Splatoon 2 doesn't look any different than Splatoon which I had no interest in. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe has battle mode and nothing else new.... No thanks. Starting to wonder If I'll even bother buying one at all. Nintendo just don't do it for me anymore. The Wii U and its lack of games that interested me forced me to buy a PS4 and I'm glad that it did. One console is played daily while the other gathers dust and hasn't had a game bought for it in over 2 years. So it'll be no Switch purchase for me but a PS4 Pro instead once I stop messing about and get a 4K TV bought. I got a PS4 Pro the other day and couldn't be happier and I don't even have a 4K TV yet! Reading another thread on here I noticed the Switch was still in stock. I went looking and them quickly remembered it wasn't 200 quid but 280 and swiftly changed my mind about buying one. Like you, I'm just not interested in any of the games. I have either got, or can get, any of them on the WiiU. (Except Splatoon2, but I'm really not that bothered.)
drahkon Posted February 23, 2017 Author Posted February 23, 2017 [tweet]834779198719926272[/tweet] Anybody else think this is bloody ridiculous? And really sad that it's Nintendo doing this? Well, glad I'm waiting with a purchase. Definitely second hand next year. Hopefully the Switch will be complete by then.
Shorty Posted February 23, 2017 Posted February 23, 2017 Nope. Don't give a shit about any of those things. Gimme Zelda.
Happenstance Posted February 23, 2017 Posted February 23, 2017 The entire console feels rushed to market.
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