Ordering Wii U Console Ahead of Launch Already Difficult in U.S.
U.S. consumers looking to order a Wii U console ahead of its Nov. 18 launch in the market (CED Sept 14 p6) will already have a hard time tracking one down, especially if they want to buy the $349.99 “Deluxe Set” that Nintendo of America (NOA) will be fielding, our check of several major retailers’ websites Thursday showed.
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The Deluxe SKU was listed as sold out at Gamestop.com and Bestbuy.com. Both sites were still taking orders for the $299.99 “Basic Set.” Gamestop.com said that model was “not available for in-store pick-up.” Bestbuy.com, however, was taking orders for the entry-level SKU. It wasn’t clear if the Deluxe SKU was sold out because demand was stronger than for the Basic one or merely because the retailers expected to receive fewer units of the higher-priced SKU. The two retailers didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Sears.com said the Deluxe version was “temporarily unavailable for delivery.” Sears spokesman Tom Aiello told us that “due to high demand, we have already sold out of our allocated units.” Sears.com had no listing for the Basic SKU.
Amazon wasn’t taking orders for either SKU on its own Thursday. But several third-party sellers at Amazon.com were taking orders for the Basic SKU -- albeit only starting at $575 and ranging all the way to $999.99, each plus $3.99 for shipping.
Walmart.com listed a Wii U Solution Bundle, giving customers the choice of what version of the console and which Pro controller they wanted, as well as what game they wanted from a choice of nine titles. The bundle started at $409. When we attempted to select the console we wanted, only the “Basic” model was available. Walmart.com said the bundle “should ship” Nov. 18. Walmart didn’t immediately respond to our request for comment on whether initial supplies of the Deluxe version were sold out.
Target listed both Wii SKUs at its website Thursday, but offered no option to pre-order them. It didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on its plans for the console.
Toysrus.com still said Thursday that visitors should “check back soon to pre-order” each SKU, despite published reports that claimed Toys R Us was already sold out of the Deluxe version. Toys R Us didn’t immediately comment.
The Basic SKU will include a white Wii U console with 8 GB of internal storage, a white GamePad controller, AC adapters for the console and controller, a sensor bar and an HDMI cable. The Deluxe version’s components are black and it includes all products from the Basic Set, but adds the game Nintendo Land and a console stand that allows users to place the GamePad vertically on a table. It also features 32 GB of storage instead of 8 GB.
NOA President Reggie Fils-Aime declined to say last week how many Wii U systems will ship at launch in any market, telling analysts only that he would sell “as much as I can get” from NOA’s parent company in Japan. “The market will eventually tell us” which SKU is more popular and the company can “adjust” allotments “accordingly” at that time, said NOA spokesman Charlie Scibetta.
Unity Technologies said it signed a global license deal with Nintendo under which it will provide a version of the Unity multiplatform engine and development tools that support deployment for the Wii U to Nintendo and third-party developers, as well as Unity’s 1.2 million registered developers. The deal will provide Nintendo the right to distribute the Unity development platform to in-house, external and third-party licensee developers. Unity said it and Nintendo will collaborate to create a Wii U deployment add-on that will provide registered developers using Unity an opportunity to bring existing titles from the Unity catalog and “create a slew of new games” for the coming console. Unity’s Wii U deployment option will become “widely available in 2013,” it said.