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The State Of Wii Preorders
1up has a hilarious article up looking at the state of Wii Preorders across the U.S.. Despite the fact that preorders began (and likely ended) this morning at EBs and Gamestops across the country, the employees of the megalithic game store were less than fully prepared. From the article: "WEST VIRGINIA: GameStop #1330: 'We don't know. I mean, we're gonna be doing reserves. We're just waiting for them to tell us we can.' WISCONSIN: EB Games #4626: 'It looks more like we'll just sell that one. Because there will be 2 to 4 million units available on launch day, and EB/GameStop will be getting 70% of them that first come first serve would be doable. Even a smaller store like ours could be getting upwards of 50 units day one.' WYOMING: EB Games #4294: 'Any day now, man. Any day now.'" Despite my wife's best efforts, I missed out on a preorder by three people in line. Stupid cross-country trips.
It's not a next-gen launch unless you spend two days urban camping. Harassing "normal" customers, being hasseled by employees, and forts made from shopping carts: That's a launch!!!
I have considered getting the Wii, but I have not seen anything in the initial game list that was a "must have" for me.
Can anyone name a game that will be a must have or should I just stick with my PS/2?
"Trademarks are the heraldry of the new feudalism."
This little gamer went to Gamestop.
This little gamer went to EB.
This little gamer got a preorder.
This little gamer got none.
This little gamer cried "Wii Wii Wii" all the way home.
I went into EB today (I live in Canada), and they said they're doing pre-orders for PS3 and Wiis on Monday morning. You can only get 1 system. Not one of each, they're making you chose!
:) I don't remember having to line up for a pre-order. Isn't that what a pre-order is suppose to prevent?!? The need to line up on launch day!
:) Use that money to buy a Wii! But now they're only letting me pre-order 1 of the systems! Grrr ... I might have to take a risk and get the PS3 anyways, in hopes that I'll be able to find a launch party line up the night before the Wii launch. Afterall, there's supposed to be a lot more Wiis right?!
You need $50 in trade-in credit or $200 cash down.
They're expecting a line up too.
My question: WTF?!
This is getting a little out of hand. What's next? The Wii2 launch will require you to line up to get a # so that you can line up to pre-order, and then line up again to pick up on launch day?!
Problem is, I was going to maybe pre-order a PS3 to sell on ebay
AirSpeak - http://itunes.com/apps/AirSpeak
I posted in the other preorder thread, but wanted to mention again that it really depends on where you are. I was 19th in line for 31 consoles at my local EB and was only there about 45 minutes before the store opened. Likewise, the staff knew exactly what was going on and had a list of games with release dates to make decisions easier.
Couldn't be happier about it.
-Trillian
I was there 25 minutes prior to opening, there were probably 10 people ahead of me, guy opens up, registers 7 people, as he is working on the 8th lets us know that is it, as opposed to just saying up front that there were 8. No one else was there waiting in 35* weather just for fun, jackass.
Home of the midwest loser - www.say-10.net
"Even a smaller store like ours could be getting upwards of 50 units day one."
Nuff said.
This isn't going to be like the Xbox360 debacle.
Besides, stores will have plenty a week or two later. Is it really worth lining up just to get a spot in a line-up?
Reminds me of concert tickets. Come line up for your chance to be in a lineup for your chance to buy some concert tickets. Wow, could I?
Endless arguments over trivial contradictions in books written by ignorant savages to explain thunder in the dark.
Called the two local stores and at 9AM there were long lines outside. Much longer than the supply they had. No preorder for me.
One should not theorize before one has data. -Sherlock Holmes-
So, it appears that the chances of pre-ordering are Wii-mote?
I don't understand why these game systems are shortaged at launch. 80 or a 100 XBox360s for a town of 130k people? One or two PS3s or Wiis per game store? Are they trying to funnel them through the big box stores? Are they under-estimating demand or trying to create artificial scarcity?
If a car company could only supply one new car of each type per dealer per town, they would look foolish. Why is the same kind of behavior normal when applied to game consoles?
While the EBGames/Gamestop pre-order is making news, they can't be the only store doing pre-orders. At some point stores like Walmart, Target, BestBuy, FutureShop, etc. will start pre-ordering. The question is, has anyone heard news on when? Where? How many?
The 'state of Wii Pre-orders' shouldn't be limited to one chain. It should count all chains. The 1up article is a bit limited in scope (however, still an interesting/funny read).
I live in missouri, and i was able to get inline at about 9 (store opened at 10)... I was the 7th one there and managed to get a pre-order in. (Of course, i was the last one in line to get one... they only had 7 at the store i went to) I dont really think i had to go pre order though, from the way its been sounding, there will be plenty of systems at launch. Its more that I wanted to.
I opted for the mall since there was an EB and a Gamestop (and it's indoors). Despite getting there at 9:15, there were lines of over 30 people for each. While I was walking up to the first shop, the manager came out and announced that they would only have 14 units. I hopped back in car and decided to stop by a Gamestop that is on the way back to my house. There was ten people in line already. A few minutes later, the manager came out with donuts and told everyone that they would have 14 units. Very organized over all. They were pressing hard on the pre-ordering of accessories, but that was to be expected. The only confusion was from parents waiting in line. The gentleman behind me knew that his son wanted a Wii, but he had no idea on what it was or what to purchase with it.
Wii: $50
Remote: $10
Zelda TP: $5
Classic controller: $10
There is nothing revolutionary about the horsepower, graphical abilities or capabilities.
There is not even anything special about the controller. That's not the point. (Sony and MS will make competing controllers that will probaly be better. i.e more sensitive, better range, more buttons, etc)
The point is (and this is the MAJOR point of every Console in the history of consoles)...
the Wii controller comes in the box!
why is this so important?
people don't buy add-on hardware for their consoles. that's the whole point of a console. you buy the "gaming Appliance" bring it home and play games with it.
developers never know how many "Console Owners" will have "X-Add-on" so they will never design a game for that add-on.
developers will know that every Wii has at least one Wii-mote. period.
I showed up at the local ebgames at 9:50 (store opens at 10) I was extremely lucky because there is lack of interest in my neighorhood. I'm black and live in a black neighborhood on the south side of chicago guess the wii aint' gansta enough you know? Two other white guys were there we the only guys in line. So went in and all reserved one wii and zelda. I called back around 11:30 to ask the manager how the preoders were going she only had two left. (she was alloted 12 for the store) Apparently people came all over from illinois even from the far south suburbs. But yeah I got one Whooo am I glad black men love the PS3, if I had been in a white neighborhood I would have been screwed.
" We don't need to find the weapons of mass destruction we just need to want to find them, that's the way it works!
They'er going to have my favorite game: resell on eBay for double the price!
The sequel is also good: Buy another a few weeks later.
This is a GameStop in Sugarland, TX.
:)
The first guy in line was an employee of the store. Behind him was a doting mother of 3, behind her, was me. I got there two hours before the store opened. The employee had already printed out preorder game and accessory lists, and was extremely well-informed.
The guys I were in line with were the sweaty fat gamer nerd type - one wouldn't shut up about how he got 120 stars in Mario 64.. *yawn*
Anyway, I put down full price on a Wii, two classic controllers, an extra nunchuck/Wiimote, and Red Steel, Trauma Center, Zelda:TP, and Excite Truck.
Thanksgiving is going to be awesome this year, having a nice shiny Wii to tote to the in-law's house to show to the kids.
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I really don't understand why game stores want people to pre-order these consoles. For regular games it makes a lot of sense because it prevents them from buying too many copies of a promising game that turns out to be a dud at launch, or not having enough copies of a surprise smash hit. Many game stores (especially in mall locations) basically buy N+1 copies of a game when it comes out, where N is the number of preorders they have for it. If you want something, they come right out and tell you to preorder it.
With these consoles it doesn't make sense. The number they are going to sell is obviously going to be the number they have in stock on release day. You're not even saving your customers from standing in line, you're just pushing back the day when they stand in line by a few weeks. It just adds hassle to the whole process for both the customers and the game store employees for virtually no gain. The only monetary advantage (the interest on the pre-order downpayment) is easily wiped out by the extra time the employees have to work (not to mention phone calls) to deal with the pre-order paperwork. I find it unlikely that there are many people who stand in line at 7AM to pre-order a console and then back out of the deal later (losing their downpayment).
I read the internet for the articles.
At 10am I swung by my local gamestop. They said they had 6 units for preorder and they were all gone by 6:30 AM, as there were already 6 people in line. Strange, as the PS3s at the same gamestop had sold out at 7 PM the day the ps3 preorders launched, plus they were issuing 12 preorders. Why are they only issuing 6 preorders for the Wii when there are going to be 2.5x the amount of units? That didn't make sense to me.
Three reasons.
1: Interest on $50,000,000 for a month (You really think the costs of running the pre-order operation for a day are going to exceed $4 million?)
2: Gets the customer into the store two times, increasing the opportunity for additional sales
3: Requires the customer to provide personal information that they can sell
I guess some people have a fascination with serial input busses, but for the rest of us, Zelda on launch is like candy for breakfast.
You're right though: a lot of the other titles are widely ported mass market games. But many of them seem to be somewhat modified -- the Wii version of Madden allows you to use the motion sensor to control the gameplay. Ubisoft is making a racing game using the remote. They put out a plastic steering wheel and you put the remote in it, at which point it can detect you turning it one way or the other. Tom Clany's double agent is well anticipated, but many people I think would rather get it now on another platform than wait a month for the Wii version. There's also Trauma Center, a Wii exclusive and definately not a game that surrounds itself with the familiar; it's a surgery simulation game.
I Browse at +4 Flamebait
Open Source Sysadmin
Why isn't it making news that your pre-order at gamestop or EB doesn't guarantee you a console, even if you are sufficiently to the front of the line.
What are people paying $50 for? If they want money, I'd better get a guarantee, or at least more that $50 back when they're telling me they aren't actually going to sell me the machine I pre-ordered.
I got to my local GameStop (Squirrel Hill location in Pittsburgh, PA) at 8:45 AM, about an hour before they opened. There were about a dozen people in line. Then the EB employee came by, and handed tickets to the first bunch of people in line (not me).
From what I've gathered, they had a lot fewer units allocated than they did for the PS3. When I asked on Wednesday, the clerk said those had sold out in about 15 minutes. It's kinda odd, considering that the Wii's going to have about 10x the availability. My guess is that Nintendo is purposefully avoiding selling the majority of their hardware as preorders. They want to get the hardware into the hands of the general public, not the sorts of people who read gaming sites or get email notifications from EB. It makes sense, though, when you consider how vital Nintendo's market expansion plan is to the system's success.
Do you get any free extras for pre-ordering?
Are there any giveaways that stores are doing if you buy from them instead of someone else?
For the DS Lite launch, Circuit City gave away DS Lite kits and Best Buy gave away copies of Brain Age!
What are the sellers doing this year?
Other than "getting it first", what's the incentive for pre-ordering?
Vegonomics
This little gamer got none.
This little gamer cried "Wii Wii Wii" all the way home.
And this little gamer went to Costco, Toys-R-Us, Kmart, Target, Fred Meyer on release day and got a bundled Wii for less.
-- Tigger warning: This post may contain tiggers! --
Do employees at these stores' employees get first dibs on preorders for things like this or is there some store guideline stating something about customers have first refusal? Are there any rules at all? Maybe those EBs actual got promised 20 units but 6 of them were clamed by employees before the lines even formed outside. And if there are no policies that cover this sort of thing whats to stop a greedy store manager from reserving them all himself and putting them up on ebay?
At EB Games near me. I was number 11 in line. They said yesterday they were only getting 18 units and this morning they only accepted 15 pre-orders...turning away about a dozen people.
If EB Games is seriosly planning on getting close to 1,000,000 units at launch (which I doubt) they are seriously playing games with the numbers and could easily accept a ton of pre-orders.
And, yes, I know it's no guarantee. They can't guarantee Nintendo will deliver. But the guarantee is, so long as Nintendo holds up its end of the bargain, and EB Games gets their Wii systems on time, then EB Games will guarantee I get one of them.
Wii: $50
Remote: $10
Nunchuck: $10
Zelda TP: $5
Already had $5 down on Red Steel.
$5 earlier, $75 today. Total burn: $410 (minus $80 in deposits) = $330 due on 19-Nov...plus tax...which is the most I've ever spent on a console...mostly because it's the first one I've ever decided to get at launch. Every other console I've had has been purchased used or at least after a couple rounds of price drops.
And I decided against the classic controller because it's not necessary. You can use the standard Wii remote to play VC games.
I ended up getting to the store at 8:30 when they opened at 10:00. I was fifth in line and it was all kids and your stereotypical slobs. It was also 30 degrees out and with the wind-chill about 10 degrees, but luckily I had brought a blanket along and wrapped that around my legs.
I ended up preordering the system, Zelda, and Trauma Center. Looking forward to not standing out in the freezing cold in late November.
Reviewing just the first hour of video games.
When the Nintendo Gamecube debuted, all my local video game stores were sold out, as well as some of the AAA titles.
All it took for me was to go to my local Mega Toys R Us and pick up the console and a few AAA titles, as well as an an extra controller. As for other AAA titles released, I had no trouble buying a copy at Toys R Us.
I am fortunate to live in a big city, but thanks to this Toys R US store, I don't ever have to worry about preordering.
As we all know, there are going to be plenty of systems by the end of this year. I normally preorder, and get the system on launch day, but this time I have another, more relaxed, plan:
1. Go to store at a convenient time on launch day.
2. Ask to buy Wii.
3. If no more units are available that day, order Wii.
3b. Pick up Wii after they phone me to tell me it's in, at my leisure.
It's worked well for a few DS games recently, and I won't be able to use the system right away anyway.
You aren't guaranteed a console "at launch." You'll get a call saying you can pick one up eventually, but yeah, you can "pick one up eventually" at any other retailer too.
No sig for you!!
Nice to know others are getting in on the eBay action. Unfortunately I think things are not going to turn out as how the auctioneers hope, and end up being like the PSP launch(plenty of units and no one buying them).
I have to hand it to Nintendo's PR department, they did their best work online; the GameCube 1.00000123544 thingy might even do better then Snakes On A Plane!
Did you read what you replied to? Seriously?
Stroller.
I got up bright and early this morning so I could be at my local Electronics Boutique 3 hours before opening. I was the first one there. People who later got in line said there were over 25 people already at a nearby store. I was curious as to why few other people were in line at my location but did not think too much of it. Finally with about 10 people in line, the store opens and the lone employee informs us all that they will only be accepting 3 preorders but everyone else can rush to the nearby store which will have 36 in stock. It's at that point I realize why so few people were at my location. They must have called ahead of time. Three of us did not care but several other people were understandably pissed off. As the employee explained it, not many people had been preordering Wii games at that location so they ended up with only a small allotment of the system itself. In the future, I'll call beforehand to confirm the number available for preorder.
Does God treat us as servants or friends? Check my homepage.
Telling the guy behind me that the Wii is an auto-erotic sex toy: priceless.
---k--
</stupid>
I'd just like to relate my preorder experience. I saw /.'s posting of the story at about 11:30 (Central). Wasn't really planning on preordering but figure WTH and started calling. The third closest EB/Gamestop to me (still within 5-10 minutes) had two left. Futzed around a bit and then went over there. Got there at about 12:30 and there was still one left.
So, all in all pretty easy for me.
Waste all the time and money you want. I'll walk into Walmart on launch day, casually stroll to the electronics section, and buy a Wii and Zelda. Why waste time fighting with the stores that get the least number of units and most number of morons (EB/GameStop/etc.)?
Call me when I can play Guitar Hero II on the Wii, with a guitar control that has a place to attach the controller, so that as I swing the guitar (and my body) around, my on-screen avatar dances along with me, and if I strum with a particularly excessive body movement, I get added points.
That's not what the terms on the EBgames website say. They say you aren't guaranteed a console. Period. That means they can just keep your $50 until you ask for it back, or until they decide they've had it long enough, even if they have other machines available to be sold to the general public.
You may want to read that again
http://www.ebgames.com/gs/wii/wiipre_ebgs.asp
"...a reservation deposit does not guarantee receipt of a system available to purchase at launch."
No sig for you!!
We've been able to pre-order pretty much since the release date was announced. But then we don't even know how many units we're getting yet. The Nintendo of Australia president said it would be at least enough to fulfil pre-orders though. But I really don't think there'll be any shortages here though. I only bothered pre-ordering because Toys R Us is giving away a free game with every pre-order. It'll probably turn out to be a crappy game, but hey, its free, and might be good.
From what I've told by managers at EBGames, it depends on the manager(s). "Officially" there are usually rules against employees from getting first dibs on major releases (consoles, big name games, etc), to keep them from selling them marked up from the backdoor when launch day arrives and causing a local shortage.
In Canada (Saint John, NB) I have had my Wii preordered since June 5th, at the local Toys 'R Us. I am 9th on the list to receive the console. For 389.99 [CAD], I get two games (of my choice), plus Wii Sports, and an extra controller.
They estimate they are getting 60ish consoles on launch day.
I'm not joking, my preorder slip says Nintendo Revolution on it!
"And for the record, I am not a christian. I find christianity materialistic and denies the laws of nature that National
Yes but keep in mind that while thinking like that you can't also desire allowing pre-orders more than a month in advance.
EBStop had to know how many units each store is getting so they don't over sell pre-orders. And manufacturers can't predict production mishaps higher up the supply chain (like a shortage of blue laser diodes) so they have to wait until they have a safe number they can assure the store it will get.
This is all based on assumptions that sound reasonable to me though. YMMV in worlds that aren't the one in my head.
I do know a number of people who work there and told me that in the case of the 360 it was a combination of where you when you got there and how much you had paid into your pre-order. everyone who had fully prepaid for their 360 got one with 5 or 6 left over going to the first to be there to pick up the system.
--- As to make my comment seem, by comparison, more intelegent... doodie doodie doodie poop poop poop!
Yes, yes. You've drunk the cool-aid. Congratulations.
keep in mind that while thinking like that you can't also desire allowing pre-orders more than a month in advance
Explain to me the difference between standing in line for a pre-order and standing in line for an actual console.... Now, tell me what the hell *we* need pre-orders for.
Pre-orders benefit only the retailer at the expense of the customer. Nobody should 'desire' pre-orders.
I do know a number of people who work there and [...]
I also know a number of people who work there and in competing game stores. Employees of EB/Gamestop will flat out lie to you in order to meet whatever quota they have for that month, because if they don't the lose their jobs. I'm not saying that your story about paying into the pre-orders isn't true, but if it is true, then the whole "first come first serve" story is a lie... Which is it? First come first serve, or people who paid in full get their console first? Either way, somebody at Gamestop is lied to you, because they can't both be true. You shouldn't trust them, or ask them for information. Do your research before you go into the store. They are not impartial or objective and have many incentives to mislead you.
Just like Funcoland before them, EB went to shit when Gamestop bought them. Crappy customer service. Artificial release day 'shortages' of popular games if you didn't pre-order (the miraculously have 50 copies in stock the next morning, even though they were 'all out' the previous evening way past the time any shipping companies deliver). Sucky return policies. Horrible trade-in values. The higest prices anyhere on used games. They no longer stock used titles for older systems... I used to spend close to $5k a year at my local EB, but now I take my gaming dollars to Target or Amazon.
Legalese is as much about what it doesn't say as it is about what it does say. They are not bound to do anything by your pre-order other than mail you a check (I haven't gone to the store, but I'll be money that the reciept you sign at the store says 'within 7-10 weeks') when you ask for your money back.
Wait a few weeks and get one from batch 2 with none of the hassle.
-Rick
"Most people in the U.S. wouldn't know they live in a tyrannical state if it walked up and grabbed their junk." - MyFirs
So, the thing I find interesting is the apparent misrepresentation by Gamestop/EB games. The PS3 launch is being limited to half a million units. The Wii launch is going to be 4 million plus units. The local gamestop store was allocated eight PS3s. They sold out in a day of pre-orders. The same gamestop was allocated twelve Wiis, and sold out by 11 o'clock friday morning in pre-orders. My problem is, since nintendo is putting eight times as many units on the market, why is gamestop only taking 12 pre-orders? On looking into this, I'm seeing the same thing in all the Kansas City area Gamestops and EB Games stores. They all got 6-12 PS3's. They're all taking only 8-16 Wii preorders. So, basicly, they seem to be denying roughly 80% of the Wii units exist... I just wonder why.
I'm not sure whether that is supposed to be some sort of insult but if it is, I think it's spelled Kool-aid. Thank's for drinking that cool-aid ;)
I don't desire a pre-order, i desire a Wii. If I didn't have family at that store I wouldn't have bothered with it, standing in line for stuff is dumb.
well, since I did say.
they treat the ones who paid in full as a completed transaction and any in excess of that were first-come-first-served.
Just like with any purchase, you should have you information before you get to the store. And since their job is to make a sale, their entire purpose for being in the store, of course they aren't going to be impartial or objective. And you would never go into a store with absolutely no intention of buying anything, since that would be loitering, so they have to assume you're either wanting to buy something, or looking for something to buy, in which case they offer suggestions. Go to a car lot and find a salesman that is impartial or objective. I doubt you could go anywhere and find someone who will tell you "You don't want to buy (insert the only class of item sold at store) here, you should buy it at (insert name of competition)."
Since my brother-in-law is the one doing the firing, and has never had to fire someone for missing a quota, I have to think that it may be different in different regions, or that the quotas here are rediculously low, because he has had some very poor sales people on his staff. Then again I'm sure that any sales job that gives you a quota and they say they will fire you if you don't meet would fire you if you don't meet it.
They do get deliveries in the mornings before the store opens as well. I know people who work for/have worked for a delivery company and I'm sure you might also know people who work for delivery companies and competing delivery companies that will tell you this, but they do make morning deliveries. They might also tell you that it costs more to over night something than to second day it. The margin on new games isn't too extreemely huge (else walmart would be selling with lower prices everyday, heh) so the difference between overnighting 1 case and overnighting 5 could be the reason.
That is really just business. Is there really enough traffic in used PSX and N64 games at your local EB to devote shelf space to them? What price point are you looking for the games at? Because they would still need to make enough profit from those used games (even with their
--- As to make my comment seem, by comparison, more intelegent... doodie doodie doodie poop poop poop!
I think you need the clean the sand out of your vagina.
I was able to place my preorder back just after E3, though apparently they were offering preorders before then - apparently Australia is different.
However, I pretty much went against the crowd this weekend: I went and canceled my order. I refuse to play silly-buggers with Nintendo's retarded regioning policy for yet another console generation, and I certainly don't want my Virtual Console game selection to be limited to what was available in PAL back in the 8/16-bit era (which is what they're apparently doing). Not to mention the whole waiting-for-months-for-an-inferior-product (at a greater price) shenanigans. PAL Hell indeed. I'll be importing one once US stock availability stabilizes next year.
It's actually kind of ironic that Nintendo have the least progressive stance on this issue, and that Sony appear to be the only ones actually looking out for international customers.