With its exciting announcement of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time remake, Nintendo also unveiled a stunning 40th Anniversary Edition of its Switch 2 console themed around the beloved series – and it sold out as quickly as it went up.
As fans, it's likely that none of us were surprised to see it sell out so quickly, right? Heck, I secured mine only after sitting through a massive online queue, undergoing various website crashes, and refreshing at the speed of light – an experience I was more than prepared for.
It seems that Nintendo itself, however, wasn't. Bill van Zyll, vice president and general manager of Nintendo in Latin America, tells Coelho no Japão as much during an interview.
"Well, if we expected it, we wouldn't be in that situation, right? At least not to this extent," he admits, referencing how the Zelda 40th Anniversary Edition Switch 2 sold out instantly.
"I will tell you that it's a global phenomenon. We have this issue absolutely everywhere. We apologize for that. That certainly is not the intent. We underestimated how well it would be received – and there's certainly some markets that stand out."
For example, the United States "did extremely well," according to the executive – but it's not alone, of course. "It's a global phenomenon where they're running out of product," he states once again. "The pre-sales are hitting their max, and certainly that's what happened to us in Brazil."
Nintendo is on it now that the company is aware. "We are working on replenishments of the special hardware and the software, but it'll take a little bit of time". Stress on that last bit, though. "Please be patient."
It's hard to be, I suppose, but it's even harder for me to imagine that Nintendo didn't expect the console's popularity. I'm reminded of the original Switch and its own Zelda-themed edition, which similarly flew off the shelf, so to speak. Same with the Animal Crossing: New Horizons one.
But still, "It caught us by surprise. We expected a positive response, but the magnitude… It's amazing."
Anything is possible, I guess. I'd suggest keeping an eye on retailers (and Nintendo's own store itself) over the lead up to the Ocarina of Time remake release on November 5 – and, of course, the special edition console's own October 29 launch.
