Nintendo's upcoming Super NES Classic Edition - an $80 re-release of the original Super Nintendo, but with 21 built-in games - is going to be impossible to find when it launches on September 29. It's an inexpensive, nostalgia-laced product that's being made in limited quantities, and it's available for a limited time only.
Of course it's going to be impossible to find. Just look at this thing:
Invision
We can't be sure, but that's a logical guess based on Nintendo's history with this kinda thing - particularly in the case of the Super NES Classic Edition.
When pre-orders went live for the console in late August, it was a complete mess. Nintendo's total lack of communication about when pre-orders would go live, and where, resulted in a lot of frustrated consumers.
But Nintendo America president Reggie Fils-Aimé says it's not Nintendo's fault that it was such a mess. Instead, he said it was "outside our control" in an interview with the Financial Times.
Additionally, Fils-Aimé said it wasn't a question of lacking supply, and he urged potential customers not to turn to third-party re-sellers to buy one.
"I would strongly urge you not to over-bid on an SNES Classic on any of the auction sites," he said. "You shouldn't pay more than $79.99."
Nintendo
Left: The NES Classic Edition Right: The Super NES Classic Edition.
And he's not wrong - you shouldn't have to pay more than the standard retail price for Nintendo's re-released Super NES Classic Edition: $80.
Unfortunately, as we learned in 2016 with the NES Classic Edition re-release - and again last month, when the SNES Classic Edition pre-order fiasco happened - that's unlikely to happen. What's far more likely is there will be limited quantities of the hardware in stores, people will line up very early, and launch units will sell out immediately. Following that, a trickle of units is likely to continue throughout the year, with the occasional retailer offering overpriced bundles featuring the console with a bunch of junk you otherwise wouldn't buy.
For what it's worth, Nintendo promises it will produce far more Super NES Classic Edition consoles that it did with last year's NES Classic Edition. A Nintendo representative provided the following statement back in June:
"We aren't providing specific numbers, but we will produce significantly more units of Super NES Classic Edition than we did of NES Classic Edition."
How it actually plays out remains to be seen; the Super NES Classic Edition goes on sale on September 29 for $80. Check out a video of it in action right here: