This Christmas May Be Your Last Chance to Get an NES or SNES Classic
The retro Nintendo systems are about to become limited edition, yet again. Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé, speaking in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, has said that this holiday season's NES and SNES Classic sales will be the last chance to buy them off the shelves.
"Once they sell out, they’re gone," Fils-Aimé says. "And that’s it."
The interview mostly focuses on Nintendo's successful holiday season, with its popular Switch gaming device at the forefront. In its second year, the Switch has already sold over 20 million units, making it the fastest-selling gaming system in U.S. history.
With a desire to keep that momentum going, devices like the NES Classic and its SNES counterpart present a distraction. If gamers have a nostalgic fix, Fils-Aimé recommends they buy a Switch instead. "The way that consumers will be able to continue participating with our classic content is going to be through Nintendo Switch Online," noting that the console selections in the retro systems are static while the online library is ever-growing.
Launched in 2016, the NES Classic caused a frenzy when it was first released. After years of fan-made emulators trying to recapture the feel of older games, the likes of the Super Mario Bros. series, Tecmo Bowl, Castlevania, and others suddenly became available for all. While the system only holds 30 games, hackers have figured out ways to add hundreds.
While both Classic systems have sold well-a combined ten million units-they're a drop in the bucket compared to the Switch.
Nintendo appears to be getting out of the nostalgia device market just as its competitors decided to follow suit. Sony's recent Playstation Classic, which has gotten mixed reviews, has emerged as holiday competition. If Nintendo's pulling out and the Playstation Classic sales disappointing-so far, Japanese sales have fallen short of the NES but still impressive at 120,000-the nostalgic-system market might be coming to end.
Or at least until Sega brings back the Dreamcast.
Source: The Verge
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