In less than stellar Nintendo news, the company has announced that they are officially discontinuing the NES Classic Edition.
The retro console launched last November. Since then it has been notoriously sold out and extremely difficult to find due to high demand. Additional units have been supplied sporadically in the following months, but no where near enough to meet demand, leading the console’s price to skyrocket from resellers.. But this week’s news of cancellation is a jarring shock to many who were still holding out hope.
Here is Nintendo of America’s official statement:
Throughout April, NOA territories will receive the last shipments of Nintendo Entertainment System: NES Classic Edition systems for this year. We encourage anyone interested in obtaining this system to check with retail outlets regarding availability. We understand that it has been difficult for many consumers to find a system, and for that we apologize. We have paid close attention to consumer feedback, and we greatly appreciate the incredible level of consumer interest and support for this product.
A Nintendo representative told IGN that the “NES Classic Edition wasn’t intended to be an ongoing, long-term product.” This is absolutely baffling given the obvious popularity of a nostalgic console at a prime price point ($60) packed with 30 games.
The NES Classic Edition was a tiny re-production of the original Nintendo Entertainment System that helped save gaming in the mid-80s. The NES is one of the most important consoles ever made, with an impressive library of classic games. The NES Classic Edition included all the best games, from Mario to Zelda and Metroid. Nintendo grossly miscalculated the number of nostalgic fans who wanted to relive the classics in a neat little package.
Nintendo claims they have listened to consumer feedback. An optimist may hope that this means we’ll see a new version of the retro console soon, as there’s clearly still a high demand for it. We can only hope that Nintendo, a company that’s well over a century old, learns a lot of lessons about market prediction and supply and demand.
