Wii Fit Frenzy: So Popular Nintendo Can't Meet Christmas Demand

Eric Krangel | November 19, 2008 10:26 AM

Nintendo (NTDOY) should have been ready for this, but it's still a high-quality problem: Company executives say there won't be enough copies of the top-selling exercise game "Wii Fit" to go around for the holiday season.

Forbes: Nintendo has been steadily ramping up production of Wii consoles--and while it can't guarantee you'll be able to find one this year, it's less concerned than in years past. For shoppers trying to get their hands on the popular "Wii Fit" game, though, that's another story.

"With Wii hardware, I think we've got a good shot at meeting demand during the holidays," [Nintendo of America president Reggie] Fils-Aime says. "With 'Wii Fit,' I know we'll fall short."

Wii Fit has a MSRP of $90, but prices at Amazon (AMZN) now hover around $140.

A little scarcity can be a healthy thing, so is this a problem for Nintendo?  Well, the Wii's Achilles heel is a relatively shallow game library, and if people absolutely cannot get their hands on the Wii FIt they may not buy a Wii this Christmas at all. Nintendo's hope is that Wii Fit is so compelling that gamers who can't get it will just buy it next year when more become available. But by then, rival exercise games like Electronic Arts' (ERTS) EA Sports Active will be coming on the market.

See Also:
October Game Sales: Nintendo Wii Kicking PS3 Butt
Recession Boosts Wii Sales? Nintendo Ups Forecast

Photo: clankennedy

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5 Comments

LTommy said:
Right tell that to a 9 year old. Wii Fit is for Mom. More of a problem is Guitar Hero World Tour drum bundle for Wii. Try finding that!
stan in brooklyn said:
The Wii Fit is boring with a capital B. For every 10 sold new, 9 will end up on eBay.
Sumedh Jigjinni said:
Most people fail to realize how difficult it is for a company not only for Nintendo to forecast demand for their games but also ramp up production of HARDWARE for a game. For other game companies, if they know they have a hit on their hands, they can just ramp up production of DVDs and overshoot their estimates.

When producing games with hardware on top of their own console hardware, it starts to get a bit messy. If they sell more consoles, the target market for Wii Fit goes up. If they decide to focus only on Wii Fit, there might not be enough of a market to support the increased supply.

Nintendo's "shallow game library" has allowed it to continue to sell the same high quality games months and months after their release. They don't even need to create sequels to continue the hype. The Wii Fit was released in May 2008 and this December demand will outstrip supply, 7 months after release.

Nintendo has little to fear with EA Sports Active.
Thambone said:
Shallow game library? Did anyone see the NPD data of top 5 console game for 08? 4/5 are from this so called shallow library (congrats to GTA IV for being the only non-wii game in there).
Thambone said:
On second thought, I guess wii play shouldn't really count since it's not so much a game as a controller bundle, but even still, that's 3/5 games. Not terrible and certainly not as shallow as another console I can think of.

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