Nostalgia is a valuable thing in today’s world, but so too is scarcity. Nintendo is great at both these things, but sometimes the latter outweighs the former when those dreaded production issues get in the way.
That seems to be why the NES and SNES Classic, the mini retro consoles pre-loaded with some of the best games in the console’s history, will soon be unavailable for those who couldn’t manage to track them down. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said in an interview that the company has seen huge sales for the Switch, largely related to the release of “Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.”
When broaching the topic of other products Nintendo sells, things were generally positive. The Switch is here to stay, and Nintendo has a new mobile gaming product as well. But when it comes to its two classic consoles — mini versions of the NES and SNES — those may be seeing the end of their time on store shelves.
Fils-Aime was asked about more classic consoles on the horizon for the company, and he had bad news for anyone who may not have found one of the tiny retro machines just yet.
“We’ve said that the current systems are the extent of our classic program. We’ve also been clear that, at least from an Americas perspective, these products are going to be available through the holiday season and once they sell out, they’re gone. And that’s it. The way that consumers will be able to continue participating with our classic content is going to be through Nintendo Switch Online…”
Fils-Aime pointed out that the NES and SNES Classic are pre-loaded consoles with “no ability for add-on content,” which has its drawbacks. He implied heavily later that Nintendo is far from done with releasing classic titles, but that those will come from Nintendo’s online store.
Whether part scarcity has anything to do with this decision or Nintendo just wants to make these products rarer than a run-of-the-mill Switch or DS really isn’t clear, but that time is running out to find one certainly is. If you’re into that kind of thing, I guess.