Wii Shortage

[ljkkjlcm9]

http://www.nintendoworldreport.com/newsArt.cfm?artid=12933

Not only are consumers having a hard time finding the system, Indie developers can't get a hold of one, either.
Click Here!

Water Cooler Games has come across an interesting bit of information. It seems that publisher demand for Wii development kits is outstripping the supply available from Nintendo. Because of this, independent developers, to whom Nintendo said they would make Wii development kits available for, haven't got kits as of yet.

Back when Nintendo was ramping up toward the Wii launch, one of the things they touted for their console was that because it was so inexpensive to develop for, a development studio of any size could make games for it. While it appears that Nintendo is still planning for this, according to WGC the Wii Independent Development Program has been delayed a while until the end of the month, which is a few weeks behind schedule.

It seems that everyone on both sides of the fence wants a Wii, either to play games on or to make games for. While that's great news for Nintendo, if there aren't enough systems to go around, what good will it do?

basically, not only can consumers not get the system because it's in such high demand, but neither can developers, because their is high demand on that side as well! This is good news for the future of the Wii, meaning there should be plenty of games!

THE JACKEL

[Shoeberto]

Kind of a double-edged sword. Good for Nintendo, good for publishers, but kinda sucky for teams that want to jump on and get some games cranked out.

I'm interested in seeing how Dreddz will turn this into a "Wii sucks, PS3 r00lz" argument, though.

[Roto13]

I'm interested in seeing how Dreddz will turn this into a "Wii sucks, PS3 r00lz" argument, though.

Would you like some of my popcorn?

[Dr Aum]

Sounds like ol' Ninty needs to perform a Real Time Manufacturer Change to attack the Giant Enemy Yet-Unsaturated Market for Massive Profits.

[Yuriev's ghost]

I did not buy a Wii.

I guess it was for the greater good.

[Dreddz]

Im sorry, but Nintendo are in a mess at the moment. Theres no excuse for developers not getting a Wii. On the other hand, its not like Capcom or Konami arent getting Wii's, its Water Cooler Games. I mean, who the smurf are they ?

Maybe its because Nintendo havent had a decent console in ages that they couldnt handle the Wii's popularity.

[Craig]

Im sorry, but Nintendo are in a mess at the moment. Theres no excuse for developers not getting a Wii. On the other hand, its not like Capcom or Konami arent getting Wii's, its Water Cooler Games. I mean, who the smurf are they ?

Maybe its because Nintendo havent had a decent console in ages that they couldnt handle the Wii's popularity.

Okay now you're just doing it for your fans.

[Slothy]

Okay now you're just doing it for your fans.

I have to agree with him at least a little though. If Nintendo can't handle the demand for dev kits then that's just poor planning. They knew it would be inexpensive to develop for, which of course is going to attract smaller developers. Developers not being able to get dev kits sooner rather than later is not a good thing for anyone; developer, Nintendo, or consumer. Hopefully they get their act together and ramp up production of them or something, because it doesn't do them any good to have developers ready and willing, but not exactly able to make games.

[JKTrix]

Just tell the big companies to stop being so greedy :P EA, Ubisoft, Squenix, Namco, Konami, etc.. they dont' have just 1 kit. They probably want each individual sub-group in them to have at least one kit so they can pump out the games (especially in EA's "one in 5 Wii games will be ours" case). So they probably have these kits backordered with some kind of priority right now, which kind of pushes out the smaller folks.

The article mentions that they were planning to start this program already, but it is the big publishers who are demanding more and more dev kits since they see it's a hit. My job deals with Logistics, so I think i can see how Nintendo was thinking. Nintendo probably estimated a certain number of projected kit sales based on people who already had them at the time of launch, and what games were presented to them to be made by launch time.

Suddenly, the Wii is really popular. The biggest game publisher in the world--who predicted that Sony would remain the clear winner--realizes the Wii is where the money's at, and jumps out of the PS3 bed. (http://ps3.qj.net/EA-dev-Get-the-360-and-or-Wii/pg/49/aid/82471) So, they order more kits.

Nintendo wasn't expecting anything like this, so they had to take measures to rectify the situation. They likely had reserved stock set aside for the Indies, and allowed them to be given to the ravenous EAs and Ubisofts. So they push it back a few weeks, hopefully clear up some more of the demand that big publishers still have and to re-stock their 'reserved' stock for the Indies.

[The Fat Bioware Nerd]

I think Sony is in a mess at the moment too although they have more PS3 units in stores it's only because nobody is buying them. I went to Gamestop the other day and I saw a large sign that said "WE HAVE PS3 UNITS!"

Six hundred bucks is a lot of money and the average consumer doesn't want to spend that much on console. Maybe someday when Sony decides to cut the price of the Playstation 3 down to three hundred dollars, sales might sky rocket...but not now.

[Yamaneko]

Nintendo is notoriously difficult to deal with and it's no surprise that some smaller developers haven't gotten their dev kits yet.

[Dreddz]

I think Sony is in a mess at the moment too

Please explain.

[ljkkjlcm9]

I think Sony is in a mess at the moment too although they have more PS3 units in stores it's only because nobody is buying them. I went to Gamestop the other day and I saw a large sign that said "WE HAVE PS3 UNITS!"

Six hundred bucks is a lot of money and the average consumer doesn't want to spend that much on console. Maybe someday when Sony decides to cut the price of the Playstation 3 down to three hundred dollars, sales might sky rocket...but not now.
actually they dropped the price to $500 now! lol

and honestly, you can't say Nintendo is doing anything wrong, who knew that it would actually be this big I mean...


A report from Reuters today states that Japanese toy maker Tomy has cut its annual profit forecast from 5 billion yen to 1.7 billion yen, blaming high sales of Nintendo's Wii and DS game systems for diminishing toy sales.

Tomy says that Nintendo's video game systems have replaced demand for these toys among young boys. Tomy manufactures cards, action figures, and other traditional toys based on licensed media such as movies and television.

THE JACKEL

[The Fat Bioware Nerd]

*Rolls eyes.* I already explained why didn't you read my post. I said nobody is buying the PS3 right now, when cashiers have to remind their costumers that they have PS3 units something is very wrong here. I'm not saying that the Playstation 3 is doomed to failure I'm just saying they need to get it to together.

[Dreddz]

*Rolls eyes.* I already explained why didn't you read my post. I said nobody is buying the PS3 right now, when cashiers have to remind their costumers that they have PS3 units something is very wrong here. I'm not saying that the Playstation 3 is doomed to failure I'm just saying they need to get it to together.

What you said doesnt mean Sony are in a mess. Sony's only problem is that not alot of people are buying their console, but its not like Sony are having any problems getting the PS3's on the shelves. They know where there going and what there going to do. Nintendo on the other hand dont seem to be able to get any Wii's on the shelves at all.

Sony's problems are over now, while Nintendo's have just started.

[Roto13]

*Rolls eyes.* I already explained why didn't you read my post. I said nobody is buying the PS3 right now, when cashiers have to remind their costumers that they have PS3 units something is very wrong here. I'm not saying that the Playstation 3 is doomed to failure I'm just saying they need to get it to together.

What you said doesnt mean Sony are in a mess. Sony's only problem is that not alot of people are buying their console, but its not like Sony are having any problems getting the PS3's on the shelves. They know where there going and what there going to do. Nintendo on the other hand dont seem to be able to get any Wii's on the shelves at all.

Sony's problems are over now, while Nintendo's have just started.
Uhm, I think you might be just a bit confused here. Remember right before Christmas when Sony didn't have nearly as many units available as they'd promised? Nintendo is managing to produce a lot of Wiis, but when the demand is just SO huge, it's difficult for anyone to keep the supply high enough. They get Wiis on store shelves. I know because that's where I got mine a month ago. They just... don't stay there. :P Something similar happened with the DS Lite.

[Goldenboko]

*Rolls eyes.* I already explained why didn't you read my post. I said nobody is buying the PS3 right now, when cashiers have to remind their costumers that they have PS3 units something is very wrong here. I'm not saying that the Playstation 3 is doomed to failure I'm just saying they need to get it to together.

What you said doesnt mean Sony are in a mess. Sony's only problem is that not alot of people are buying their console, but its not like Sony are having any problems getting the PS3's on the shelves. They know where there going and what there going to do. Nintendo on the other hand dont seem to be able to get any Wii's on the shelves at all.

Sony's problems are over now, while Nintendo's have just started.
Really? So you mean the fact that Wii is crushing PS3 in the sales is not a problem for Sony?

[NeoCracker]

*Rolls eyes.* I already explained why didn't you read my post. I said nobody is buying the PS3 right now, when cashiers have to remind their costumers that they have PS3 units something is very wrong here. I'm not saying that the Playstation 3 is doomed to failure I'm just saying they need to get it to together.

What you said doesnt mean Sony are in a mess. Sony's only problem is that not alot of people are buying their console, but its not like Sony are having any problems getting the PS3's on the shelves. They know where there going and what there going to do. Nintendo on the other hand dont seem to be able to get any Wii's on the shelves at all.

Sony's problems are over now, while Nintendo's have just started.

I give you props for coming out with the most amusing Fanboy post I've read for a while. PEople at EA are recomending not getting a Wii, PS3's everywhere aren't selling. Prices have already been cut on the PS3, which is an extremely early time to be cutting any kind of prices. I highly dought soney had all this planned out.

[Shoeberto]

Sony's problems are over now, while Nintendo's have just started.
No, they aren't. Sony still believes that they did everything 100% right, which they didn't. Having an exec issue a comment in an interview that they'd pay, what, $1500 per unsold PS3 found on store shelves, is not a wise move when the units are moving relatively slow.

They have to realize that, for the first time in a while, they aren't leading the pack. They're playing catch-up.

[XxSephirothxX]

I'd like to see some sort of comparison charts as to how many consoles Nintendo and Sony are producing and shipping to the US. The Wii has sold more than the PS3, and continues to be hard to find--that much is obvious. But how many units is Nintendo pumping out?

I've been trying to get my hands on one for about a month now, but I'm not willing to get up at 9 am to go to a store and wait in line on a Sunday morning. So I've called several stores on more than one occasion, and everyone's still sold out. Gamestop had sold out by 9:05 am or something like that last Sunday. :p

So the question is, how much demand is there really for the PS3--is Sony simply shipping out tons of consoles, causing there to be a supply at most stores, or is the thing simply not selling? Everyone on the net seems to assume it's the latter, and I'm sure that's at least partially true, but I have to wonder if maybe Sony is just doing a better job at manufacturing their console and getting it to store shelves. If that's just not the case, then the Wii shortages are pretty damn impressive.

[Renmiri]

I think the Wii shortage can hurt Nintendo but can be just a little hickup.

But it is too early to call victors. Things are still fluid enough in this new generation of gaming consoles that Wii's early start advantage can be overtaken by Xbox or PS3.

[NeoCracker]

I believe its fairly safe to say Sony has lost. They may pick up later, but there is no way they're beating Nintendo at thsi point.

[Roto13]

I think the Wii shortage can hurt Nintendo but can be just a little hickup.

But it is too early to call victors. Things are still fluid enough in this new generation of gaming consoles that Wii's early start advantage can be overtaken by Xbox or PS3.
The Wii had an early start? What?

[ljkkjlcm9]

here:
http://nexgenwars.com/images/all_forum2.jpg (http://nexgenwars.com/)

note, the 360 has been out a year longer as well

Sony just isn't selling nearly as many systems as Nintendo is. If Nintendo was selling the same amount of systems, you would see 3 million systems on shelves, but you see none.

THE JACKEL

[Dreddz]

Uhm, I think you might be just a bit confused here. Remember right before Christmas when Sony didn't have nearly as many units available as they'd promised? Nintendo is managing to produce a lot of Wiis, but when the demand is just SO huge, it's difficult for anyone to keep the supply high enough. They get Wiis on store shelves. I know because that's where I got mine a month ago. They just... don't stay there. :P Something similar happened with the DS Lite.

I never said Sony never had problems, Im saying there main issues are over, and the only hurdle to jump now is advertising the thing and to start releasing worthwhile games for the system.



Really? So you mean the fact that Wii is crushing PS3 in the sales is not a problem for Sony?

When I meant problems, I was refering to other things such as shipping problems. You are right though, Sony does have a problem with the competition being so popular.


Prices have already been cut on the PS3, which is an extremely early time to be cutting any kind of prices. I highly dought soney had all this planned out.

Sony said that price cuts would occur early the next year, so cutting them about now doesnt seem unusual. Sony never expected the PS3 to hit it off well to begin with anyway. Before you call me a fanboy, look it up....for once.

Look at it this way, Nintendo are raking in massive profits from the Wii, you'd think if they dipped deeper into their pockets they could supply enough consoles. The Wii's popular, but its pretty far-fetched to say that now, 3 months after the release that they'd still be having problems just because alot of people want it. Nintendo arent shipping the amount they should be able to. End of.

[Roto13]

Well, they've obviously shipped more than four and a half million so far. That's a lot.

[Dreddz]

Well, they've obviously shipped more than four and a half million so far. That's a lot.

And all of those sold, right ? With the amount of profit they gained from that amount, they should be able to increase the amount of units heading onto the shelves.

[Roto13]

Well, they've obviously shipped more than four and a half million so far. That's a lot.

And all of those sold, right ? With the amount of profit they gained from that amount, they should be able to increase the amount of units heading onto the shelves.

I don't think they've made enough money to stop time.

[NeoCracker]

Uhm, I think you might be just a bit confused here. Remember right before Christmas when Sony didn't have nearly as many units available as they'd promised? Nintendo is managing to produce a lot of Wiis, but when the demand is just SO huge, it's difficult for anyone to keep the supply high enough. They get Wiis on store shelves. I know because that's where I got mine a month ago. They just... don't stay there. :P Something similar happened with the DS Lite.

I never said Sony never had problems, Im saying there main issues are over, and the only hurdle to jump now is advertising the thing and to start releasing worthwhile games for the system.



Really? So you mean the fact that Wii is crushing PS3 in the sales is not a problem for Sony?

When I meant problems, I was refering to other things such as shipping problems. You are right though, Sony does have a problem with the competition being so popular.


Prices have already been cut on the PS3, which is an extremely early time to be cutting any kind of prices. I highly dought soney had all this planned out.

Sony said that price cuts would occur early the next year, so cutting them about now doesnt seem unusual. Sony never expected the PS3 to hit it off well to begin with anyway. Before you call me a fanboy, look it up....for once.

Look at it this way, Nintendo are raking in massive profits from the Wii, you'd think if they dipped deeper into their pockets they could supply enough consoles. The Wii's popular, but its pretty far-fetched to say that now, 3 months after the release that they'd still be having problems just because alot of people want it. Nintendo arent shipping the amount they should be able to. End of.

I appologize for not blindly following the words of Sony, our lord and Savior. I shall be sure to mend my ways in the near future.

[Dreddz]

Well, they've obviously shipped more than four and a half million so far. That's a lot.

And all of those sold, right ? With the amount of profit they gained from that amount, they should be able to increase the amount of units heading onto the shelves.

I don't think they've made enough money to stop time.

3 months on, they should be bloody close.

[Slothy]

So the question is, how much demand is there really for the PS3--is Sony simply shipping out tons of consoles, causing there to be a supply at most stores, or is the thing simply not selling? Everyone on the net seems to assume it's the latter, and I'm sure that's at least partially true, but I have to wonder if maybe Sony is just doing a better job at manufacturing their console and getting it to store shelves. If that's just not the case, then the Wii shortages are pretty damn impressive.

For starters, I mean obviously the demand for something like the Wii is going to be higher than the PS3 right now just because it's rediculously cheap in comparison, but about whether there really is no demand for the PS3 or if they're just doing a good job making them, I wouldn't be surprised if it's a little of both. When I bought my PS3, it was the last one at the local EB. The next day, they had another shipment in. To anyone who didn't know better (say only goes in once every few weeks) it probably would have looked like they didn't sell any.

As for that info on units sold, it's most likely a month old at least (slightly more official sources haven't even gotten the January sales numbers out as far as I know), so considering that's about two months of PS3 sales, that's actually not that bad, and on pace to just about hit where the 360 was after a years time. With a price drop, you'll more than likely see sales pick up even more. Yeah the Wii numbers are pretty impressive right now in comparison, but anyone who didn't expect the Wii to outsell two consoles that are substantially more expensive has been living under a rock since the dawn of commerce. None of this means Sony's actually in trouble. In fact, if anyone bothered to pay attention to the games coming to the console rather than just the price tag (which will go down over time), they'd probably start to realize the PS3 is going to be a great system to own, just like all the others.

[Renmiri]

As a PS3 owner I tend to be a bit more favorable to Sony but as a former product manager I can tell you that 3 months might not be enough time to ramp up production if demand gets up a lot higher than expected ;)

Still, the battle for the next generation wasn't solved this last Christmas, it is 2007's Christmas that might settle it. Until then, a lot of exciting things can happen. Grab a popcorn and watch the show.

[Dreddz]

As a PS3 owner I tend to be a bit more favorable to Sony but as a former product manager I can tell you that 3 months might not be enough time to ramp up production if demand gets up a lot higher than expected ;)

Thats plenty of time.

[Woodinator]

Just remember that there is a limit to how many consoles Nintendo can produce :P they probably just don't have the man/machine power to meet demand right now.

I managed to nab a wii of e-bay and i must say its pretty nice :P As for ps3...im waiting a while cause i dont have the money and the launch titles don't really impress me

[Roto13]

As a PS3 owner I tend to be a bit more favorable to Sony but as a former product manager I can tell you that 3 months might not be enough time to ramp up production if demand gets up a lot higher than expected ;)

Thats plenty of time.

How exactly do you know this?

[Renmiri]

Thats plenty of time.

tsk, tsk... You obviously never heard of supply chain... Even if Nintendo can ramp up production, what makes you think all their suppliers can do the same, at the drop of a hat ?

One little widget producer can't and the entire Wii shipment is delayed.

Fortunes are made or lost in accurate demand prediction nowadays where keeping extras in a warehouse is considered a sin by Wall Street.

[ljkkjlcm9]

I find it funny how the whole time people are saying Nintendo should be able to supply more systems. Guess what, Nintendo hasn't really even been shipping extra controllers to stores. They put almost all the controllers they make into a Wii system box(and now Wii Play). They're trying to meet demand, but it's pretty amazing when it's still selling out immediately when a store gets it, and on top of that, people are still sitting at home that want one, but aren't going to wait at the store for one, and that's the only way they can get it. The demand is basically absurd.

Oh btw, if you actually go to http://nexgenwars.com/, there are percents for the consoles. This is the percentage of people that prefer that system. I'll post it for you:
360: 29.3%
PS3: 17.9%
Wii: 52.8%

that means the Wii is favored by.... 23.5%... over the nearest competitor 360, and favored by 5.6% over the competitors combined....

this is only currently, it could change

THE JACKEL

[JKTrix]

Folks like Sony and Microsoft have been around the block. As a business, they are likely much more organized and have more resources than what Nintendo would have access to. So while MS or Sony could open up a whole new factory to mass produce more systems to fulfill demand, Nintendo may not have that luxury--regardless of the current success of the system. Both Microsoft and Sony can pull resources from other parts of the company (though I'm sure the games division has their own budget) when they need to take care of something like this, Nintendo is currently a pure 'just games' company.

Besides, I've had situations in my job where all of a sudden, one item starts selling like mad. So I order 3 times what I would normally order for stock, and then the items do not sell. I'm stuck with a lot of dead stock.

I'm not saying Nintendo will end up with dead stock of Wiis, but if they spend the money to make more 'Wii-making machines', what happens after demand drops off? They have more 'Wii makers' than they need, and they can't really use them for anything else (whereas Sony could hypothetically rewire them to make some TVs or something). It's impossible to predict what resources they would need to keep up with future demand, and whether or not that demand will sustain for a while.

Unless they do in fact make enough money to stop time.

Edit: As for Console Sales Charts, I trust www.vgcharts.org a lot more than 'nexgenwars.com'. They've been around longer and have a pretty good legacy behind them. Use both of them and compare accordingly.

[ljkkjlcm9]

Edit: As for Console Sales Charts, I trust www.vgcharts.org a lot more than 'nexgenwars.com'. They've been around longer and have a pretty good legacy behind them. Use both of them and compare accordingly.
They're very similar, your source actually says more Wii and PS3 than my source, but less 360... eh

THE JACKEL

[NINJA_Ryu]

Heh, when i declared my usual "O Ill pick it up in feburary.. By then itll calmed down a bit." I never expected to have my foot so crammed in my mouth.

[Shoeberto]

Heh, when i declared my usual "O Ill pick it up in feburary.. By then itll calmed down a bit." I never expected to have my foot so crammed in my mouth.
Same. Though apparently a friend of mine just managed to snag one.

[escobert]

Heh, when i declared my usual "O Ill pick it up in feburary.. By then itll calmed down a bit." I never expected to have my foot so crammed in my mouth.

Yeah, guess I'm going to be waiting a few more months.

[Roto13]

I was planning the same thing. It's only by luck and persistence that I managed to find one a month ago.

[Renmiri]

When I bought my PS3 they had both in stock at EBgames, now they still have PS3s but are completely out of Wii

[ljkkjlcm9]

just thought this belonged in this thread if any...


453,503 of the hard-to-find Wii consoles were purchased last month, which is 33% more than the widely available Xbox 360, which sold through more than 294k systems. The PS3 brought up the rear with 244k sold in January.

THE JACKEL