One might expect, after the Great SNES Classic Pre-Order Debacle of 2017, that launch day would be a disaster. But it actually seems to have gone pretty well. You might not be able to just stroll into a store and snag one of the slick, limited-edition retro consoles, but it seems like people who put in a bit of extra time this morning were able to get them without much problem.
In June, when Nintendo announced the Super Nintendo Classic, the company promised that it would manufacture more consoles than it did for last year’s NES Classic. Nintendo later announced that the SNES Classic—an $80 box that comes with 21 Super Nintendo games—wouldn’t just be limited to this year. Recognizing how massively popular this sleek console had become, the company said it would ship more SNES Classics through 2018.
But in July and August, a string of pre-order debacles got retro video game fans worrying that Nintendo’s promises meant nothing. It was nearly impossible to pre-order the SNES Classic unless you were extremely lucky, awake at 4am, or a robot. Even as Nintendo of America boss Reggie Fils-Aime told fans not to buy from scalpers, who were already putting up consoles for upwards of $200 on eBay, it was hard not to be skeptical that the company could deliver.
Today, however, things seem to be going well. Message boards and social media are full of people who were able to swing by their local GameStops, Targets, and Best Buys this morning and get SNES Classics without a problem. Around a couple hundred people have told me on Twitter that they had no trouble getting the system, including Kotaku’s Ethan Gach, who said there were a few left over at his local GameStop.
When I went to the Best Buy and GameStop in Manhattan’s Union Square this morning at around 11:30am, I was told that the system was out of stock, but both stores said they were getting more shipments in the near future. Amazon’s bizarre Treasure Truck, which drives around big cities selling rare items, is offering SNES Classics in New York City, Seattle, Los Angeles, and other hubs.
This is still a limited-edition system, and if you haven’t gotten your hands on one by now, you might be waiting for the next shipment. But as far as we can tell, Nintendo has kept its promises this time. Which is nice, because now we can spend our time on more important things, like arguing over which SNES Classic games to play first.