Score a Wii for the holidays
Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 at 11:50am by Jack
I’ll preface my bias with an apology before I begin. There, done. That said, I’m sorry to say that not all video game consoles are created equal. Executives can spin and spin all they want, and analysts can attempt to show they are precognitive by guessing correctly what’s going to happen month after month, but in the end the fact remains that articles such as the one I’m about to cite are being written about the Wii and only about the Wii.
In Wired’s How to Score a Wii This Christmas you’ll get a rehash of some of the strategies laid out last November and December, but regardless it’s solid info to have on hand just in case you’ve tried everything short of assaulting someone for a video game console (oops, was that too soon?).
My own experiences this week have led me to believe that midday shopping runs to GameStop work pretty well too. The Burlington Mall GameStop here in Massachusetts sold two Wii’s to the same customer (cash only if you want more than one!) and had more to spare for a second customer around 1 p.m. on Tuesday. If you are willing to take some time off work, or shop during unconventional hours (be that at 3 a.m. in a line or just after lunch on a Tuesday), I’m certain you can score one of the coveted Wii consoles this holiday. Or you can just go during normal hours and buy one of the other systems. Or a Nintendo DS. I hear that little guy’s pretty popular now too.
December 5th, 2007 at 11:56 am
I have a wii and ds. I’ve had them for a year and two years, respectively.
Are there really that many people unable to get wiis still?
December 5th, 2007 at 12:02 pm
Yup. The early adopters and core gamers all got theirs early. Now, the second phase of Nintendo’s grand strategy seems to be taking hold.
Sky’s the limit.
December 5th, 2007 at 2:17 pm
Over here in Mexico it’s easier to get a Wii… but it’s also more expensive. The Wii’s regular price is $450, which makes it a little expensive for most. The best option is buying it at a department store such as Liverpool or Sears over here since every now and then they have special “All Night Sales” where you can buy many many things and have 6, 13 or 18 months to pay for them (interest free) and, sometimes, get some money back in store credit.
I bought mine in December in the 2nd wave of Pre-orders and received it in January 10, 2007, and since then I’ve had no complains… other than the fact that there isn’t enough time to play all the games.
December 5th, 2007 at 7:43 pm
Does Nintendo’s grand strategy entail withholding Wiis to maintain the illusion that they’re hard to find?
I mean seriously, the fact that people are STILL having a hard time finding the Wii points out not so much the fact that it’s a great family system, but either a)They still can’t get their act together and manufacture as many wiis as there is demand or b)they need to keep up this false demand by withholding supply for as long as they can.
Just feels like they’re being dicks about it. Let the masses buy their Wiis already.
December 5th, 2007 at 10:30 pm
It is always smart to ask a Best Buy person on a Saturday night if they will have any Wiis on Sunday. Last Saturday, my Best Buy had 75 Wiis for sale. I showed up at 7:30 am and was 10th in line. 30 minutes before the store opened, they opened the doors to sell the Wiis, and I’m pretty sure they sold out before the store even opened. I bought my first Wii on launch by spending the night at a Best Buy, but this second one was for my brother, who has been having a very difficult time finding one.
December 5th, 2007 at 10:31 pm
Correction. My Best Buy had 75 Wiis on Sunday, not Saturday.
December 7th, 2007 at 1:05 pm
Wiis are definitely hard to find. Good luck finding GHIII for the Wii also (though that’s def. more likely to be in a store).
My coworker just scored a Wii by accident while at a Gamestop . . . in the middle of the afternoon. She was buying something else and the clerk said there were two Wiis left and if anyone would want one. She raised her hand and snagged one. Totally random.