The Gamer's Quarter

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

I know that a couple people from here stood in line this morning. My wife was #4 out of 10 people in line, but they only had 8 for pre-order available. We got pretty lucky! She forgot her Jacket, but she had a blanket. She was playing Super Princess Peach the whole time in line, how fitting!

Anyone else have luck?
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friedchicken · . Joined: 16 Mar 2005 Posts: 496 Location: Port Land, OR

I decided not to try. Which is kindof depressing.

Ugh, I'm really surprised with this 'short supply' business. Is the idea that there will be more supply very soon, and that the standing in line just serves to give you the bonus of having it a little earlier than everyone else? Because it sounds as if EB etc. aren't taking ANY more preorders for quite some time. At least according to the manager at my local Gamestop.

Most everyone here is more connected to the way the gaming industry does things than I am, so can anybody tell me why Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft are all doing things this way?

It just seems to me that instead of releasing consoles at-- what, $250?-- to fill maybe 5% of demand, only to have them selling within hours for three times the cost on eBay, they would just crank the price up to let's say $600 and make the extra money themselves. That's assuming that there are problems filling the demand for the console, and that it's not all just a stunt to get everybody foaming at the mouth about the new hard to get console.

I'm really not trying to criticize the way they're doing things-- I just want to try and understand it.

Lackey · . Joined: 11 Jul 2005 Posts: 1107 Location: Canada

So do you actually get a console for this or you just stand in line to book a pre-order?

It doesn't seem like there's much of an advantage to being an early adopter on anything, even a console, unless you consider getting it early and advantage in itself. You usually pay more and get less.
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Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

friedchicken · . Joined: 16 Mar 2005 Posts: 496 Location: Port Land, OR

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

GSL · Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2006 1:16 pm Post subject:

I woke up this morning at 8:40 in order to be at the mall by 10 when the local EB Games opened. After hitting snooze twice, I rolled out of bed to go take a shower, when the power promptly went out. I showered by candlelight and, still groggy, took my time eating breakfast. I got out the door and was on the road at 9:35.
It takes a good 30-35 minutes to get to the next town up I-5 where the mall is located, but traffic was light and I made good time, pulling into the mall parking lot at about 10:30. At this point, I was balancing the 'Holy crap you're late and they're sold out!' voice in my head with the 'This town is filled with redneck neanderthals. They only get excited for things like the XBox 360 that promise better graphics. They couldn't appreciate the Wii and wouldn't be interested' one.
There was a small line snaking out of the EB and only one person manning the store, but the line was much tinier than I expected; I counted about 12 people in front of me. "Perfect!" I thought, joining the line behind a little old lady. "If they have 15 preorders, I'll be sure to get one!" A few minutes later, after explaining to a couple of passing honkies sporting football jersies what the line was for ("So it's going to be like the Gamecube, is what you're saying." I knew I'd never successfully explain the controller to those neanderthals.), disaster struck. The little old lady in front of me turned around and said that they only had 14 preorders open. I'm the 14th," she said in that haughty, defensive tone the elderly can take when they assume you're some sort of fucking idiot or hooligan.

That broke my morning. I wasn't getting a Wii. Worse, I was beat out by the grandmother of some preteen kid who couldn't get out of school for the day, so he sent her instead. I must have heard "They only have 14 preorders! I'm number 14!" at least ten times more by the time I hit the counter. I BS'ed with the clerk, put down a preorder for Contact, cancelled FFXII and moved my balance on to Red Steel, and left the store, dejected.

I stopped by GameCrazy on the way home and was hopeful at seeing the empty parking lot; I was further disappointed when the girl at the counter told me they were no longer taking system preorders because of the Xbox 360 launch bullshit.

So, I have no Wii. I have a reserved game half paid for, and that's it. I'll probably go camp in front of Wal-Mart in the early morning hours and try to score one on launch day. It's just... I'm just so frustrated with what the retail chains are doing with this. You used to preorder a game or system to guarantee that you didn't have to wait in line or get up early on release day; you'd pay your deposit to have a system waiting. That was the advantage of preordering. Now, with preorders in ridiculously limited numbers, you not only have a slim chance of getting the product at the launch, but your ability to preorder it is also severly limited by--again--your willingness or ability to stand in line. The retailers have taken something that was a good idea, initially, and absolutely stripped it of its useless and effectiveness. And to think I believed Nintendo when they said they'd have one to two million shipped by year's end. At 14 units per store? Bullshit.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

This is why I'm not jumping to get a preorder, I have no doubt that I will get a Wii eventually.

I felt the VG cats comic about this was pretty fitting.

Also, price gouging on amazon begins.

Gunshinji · . Joined: 15 Aug 2006 Posts: 16

I got one. I showed up at around six o'clock to find three people standing outside of Gamestop. Nobody else showed up until eight. Our store only did 12 pre-orders and was pretty much sold out within fifteen minutes, leaving at the time three people who had just drove up, disappointed.

With Nintendo shipping a guarenteed 1 million units to North America and Wal-Mart holding 52% of the gaming market, GS/EB had about 3,600 stores to split whatever number of consoles avoided the Mexican and Canadian markets. At least, that's the explaination I was told for the lack of pre-order situation.

friedchicken · . Joined: 16 Mar 2005 Posts: 496 Location: Port Land, OR

It almost seems as if the new console release business is getting worse. You'd think that the big 3 would be getting better about console launches. Instead it seems like we get a clusterfuck every single time.

EDIT: I'm sounding like too much of a jerk. Shaper, it's awesome you scored one, I look forward to hearing your impressions once it arrives! I assume that even though we didn't hear from him, Wes got one too. I might try and get in on GS/EB alleged online preorders, or maybe just wait until after Xmas, but I do want one badly. I was pretty loaded when I got home, otherwise I might have tried to swing by Gamestop.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Pijaibros · Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2006 5:10 pm Post subject:

Don't worry guys. I'm sure pre-orders will open up again.

GS/EB are just preparing "value" bundles for your convenience.

GSL · Posted: Fri Oct 13, 2006 5:20 pm Post subject:

Cycle · Mac daddy Joined: 08 Sep 2006 Posts: 2767

I pre-ordered a wii at toys'r'us about three months ago. I'm glad EB/GameStop (who doesn't seem to exist here) don't have a MONOPALLY or whatever over here.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

simplicio · . Joined: 03 May 2005 Posts: 1091

I'd meant to sit in line for a PS3 to sell on ebay, but couldn't motivate myself to do so. As for a system for myself, I'll pick up a Wii just as soon as I see one at retail, without any additional third party "value" bundlings.

It's hard for me to get all agitated about what games I'll be missing out on in the meantime. I've got scores and scores of games I have yet to devote proper time to.\

I'm a little bit surprised at myself, really. I honestly thought I'd be able to muster more enthusiasm, but I find myself just not caring so much about not playing things right away. Twilight Princess doesn't grab my attention the way Majora's Mask does, and I haven't played that yet either. I haven't yet played Deus Ex, Planescape, System Shock 2, Psychonauts, MGS 2 or 3, or any of the Silent Hills to completion. Excite Truck looks like it'd be fun to play, but would it be any less fun in 3 months, rather than 1?

Lackey · . Joined: 11 Jul 2005 Posts: 1107 Location: Canada

welcome to disillusion
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Dracko · . Joined: 10 Oct 2005 Posts: 2613

Disllusionment is pretty cool and useful once you get the hang of it.
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Lackey · . Joined: 11 Jul 2005 Posts: 1107 Location: Canada

I find it quieter and more contempative.
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simplicio · . Joined: 03 May 2005 Posts: 1091

Yeah, I'm totally fine with it. It's nice to feel at peace with what I've got, especially as I've really entered this SuperWes-lite collectionist phase over the last couple years that disturbs and depresses me at times.

helicopterp · . Joined: 13 May 2006 Posts: 1435 Location: Philadelphia

Tablesaw · . Joined: 29 Jun 2005 Posts: 303 Location: LACAUSA

There are six GS/EBs within six miles of my house, and I cased all of them by phone. The phone responses the day before ranged from confirmed numbers to honest ignorance, to insulting refusal to say anything about anything. Most of the stores that confirmed said that they were getting 12 or 16, and said that the "mall stores" would be getting more. One mall store confirmed 32; the other was the store that hung up on me while I was trying to see how many PS3s they'd had. The store that didn't know was apparently the runt of the area, having only gotten 3 PS3s and having no idea how many Wiis they'd have.

I plotted my route home (I work nights, so I was driving back to my area at 7:30 a.m.) according to traffic flow and maximizing the number of stores I would pass. A little after eight, I hit two nearby stores, each of which had a line about equal to the number of units they'd estimated or confirmed, so I moved on. I skipped the rude mall store, and went on to the mall store that had confirmed 30. I arrived at 8:30, and was ultimately twenty-first in line. At nine thirty, the manager came to hand out tickets and had a total of 31 for 31 people in line.

Later that weekend, I traded in games to cash in on the $10-extra deal, so I now have about $100 already paid to GS for my Wii.

I expect that the Wii will be difficult to obtain this year simply because of its "hot toy" status. However, unlike the 360 and the PS3, it shouldn't be impossible. Limiting the preorders will mean that later shipments in December will be available to shoppers, instead of to a legion of still-waiting preorderers.
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OtakupunkX · . Joined: 23 Mar 2006 Posts: 730

I'm just going to ask my mommy and daddy to get me one for Christmas. Seeing as how this will be the last Christmas of my public school career and possibly the last Christmas where I'm living at home I'm sure they'll probably pull through.

Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

This may well also be my tactic and I'm 23.

I preordered my Wii today! I am the 73rd person to pre-order a Wii from my local Gamestation, apparently, and there is still over a month to go before it comes out. By way of contrast, at the same shop the Xbox 360 got about 50 preorders, total. For the PS3 they have had next to nothing.

If my ass-backwards home town can take the Wii to its bosom, this gives me high hopes for the rest of the world!

GSL · Posted: Tue Oct 24, 2006 6:19 pm Post subject:

antitype · . Joined: 11 Jan 2006 Posts: 292

I suppose it's a good thing that I'm buying a car next month. This way I've no choice but to be happy with what I have, and very happy I am: the PS2 and DS continue to provide me with far more than I can even keep up with. I'll buy FFXII in several days and I might pick up Magical Starsign or Scurge: Hive tomorrow if the whimsical urge overtakes me, but after that I won't have money for any more videogames/entertainment until some time in December. By then I'll have to make a decision: Wii, Xbox 360, or new (HD)TV?
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GSL · Posted: Sat Oct 28, 2006 12:29 am Post subject:

Sorry to bring this thread back from the dead!

What's the deal with the Wii colors, does anyone know? I could swear I had seen images a few months ago of the console in five or six different colors, including bright red and a funky shade of lime. Now all I see is the standard white. Are we going to get the color options at launch, or is this going to be another one of those things where I decide to be an early adopter and regret it a few months down the line because Nintendo gives me new colors which are somehow more important than the console itself?

Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

Those pictures were when they first announced the Wii years ago (then codenamed Revolution). I think the direction they're taking for the marketing and image and brand identity etc. has solidified since then. I'm sure they will introduce more colors when the Wii becomes more established but right now it's just the standard white. You could always get one of those snazzy vinyl skin covers with a picture of a Ferrari/flames on it.

EDIT:

"Nintendo’s Planning General Manager Mitsuaki Hagishima had an interview with Famitsu in which he discussed the plans for Wii colors…or should I say the lack thereof.

"As of right now there aren’t any plans to produce multiple colors of Wii consoles, but they are indeed planning different colored Wiimotes. I am sure this will all change as we get further into the life of the Wii. I think it is a good idea to stay with just the white version for now while they worry about shipments."

Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

GoNintendo.com makes me feel like I'm part of something, somehow.

'Alright guys, I am off to bed. Hopefully everyone that is out there waiting for a Wii ends up getting a reserve! I know there are some very dedicated Nintendo fans with chattering teeth and shivering legs right now. Hurry up and get home to snuggle up in your bed…hopefully with a Wii reserve slip to tuck under your pillow! I’ll catch you guys in a few hours with more updates.'

How cute!

The TV keeps running adverts for GTA: Liberty City Stories and Scarface: The World is Yours and I am thinking Man, The Wii cannot come fast enough.

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293

Here's a writer at Shiny Shiny who talks about not ever playing games and then getting suckered in to Nintendo's claptrap:
http://www.shinyshiny.tv/2006/10/whats_wii_way_f.html

Shapermc · Hot Sake! Joined: 14 Oct 2004 Posts: 6279

Harveyjames · the meteor kid Joined: 06 Jul 2006 Posts: 3636

On the other hand it means Nintendo's strategy to attract non-gamers is really working. Even her mother was telling her grandmother about it. Wow.

My family went crazy when I brought them back Donkey Konga for them to play on at Christmas. I have a pretty large extended family, but out of the women my sister Rebecca is the only one who plays games at all. However, all the women in the family had at least five goes on Donkey Konga, and get this:Donkey Konga isn't very good. God knows what it's going to be like when I bust the Wii out this Christmas. They will be running up walls, I expect.

Nana Komatsu · weak sauce Joined: 17 Jul 2006 Posts: 1293