Nintendo says it will try to stop screwing up amiibo retail
Nintendo has apologized for amiibo's constant supply issues and pledged to do better in the future. The company explained how it will rectify issues like uncertain release schedules and figures selling out nigh-instantaneously in an update to its official Facebook page.
First off, fans and collectors will be glad to hear that Nintendo will start manufacturing more of the NFC-enabled figurines:
"We may continue to see consumer demand outpace supply levels for certain characters at times, but we will do our best to prevent that from happening," the company wrote. "As our library of amiibo continues to grow, some figures will be easier to find than others. We are constantly looking for the opportunity to reissue amiibo and are already making plans to bring back some currently out-of-stock amiibo figures."
Nintendo also plans to use press releases, social media updates, and retail partnerships to better communicate when and where amiibo will be available. Sounds good to a layman like me, but Nintendo may still have a difficult time convincing fans who have dealt with nearly six months of problems that it really can fix them all.
That's why I asked Dave Roberts, once GR+'s foremost amiibologist, whether Nintendo's mea culpa and pledge to improve will be enough to win him back.
"I appreciate that they've admitted that there's an issue, but until we actually hear more details and see the effects of what Nintendo is planning on doing to remedy the situation, I'm still skeptical," he said.
"If I can be assured that I won't have to wait two hours just to miss out on pre-ordering the figures I want, then yeah. I want to be able to walk into the store to get the thing, without having to jump through hoops. If Nintendo can make that happen in a reasonable fashion, then hell yeah I'm back on board."
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I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and now I'm a staff writer here at GamesRadar.