Nintendo Stops Manufacturing NES Classic Edition, Gamers Must Expect Higher Prices For Console

The Nintendo NES Classic Edition is often out of stock or is snapped up by gamers as soon as news spread around that some retailers have the console. Because of the high demand and low supply, no unit is available at its retail price of $59.99. The $163.70 price tag being sold by independent sellers on Amazon could further go up because Nintendo is stopping the console’s production.

The Last Shipment Is April

Time reports that Nintendo America announced on Thursday it would discontinue the manufacture of the NES Classic Edition. The last shipment for the popular game console for the North America region is this April. The retro gaming console which made a comeback in November has 30 classic NES games such as “Super Mario Bros.” and “The Legend of Zelda.”

The company explained the decision to stop the manufacture of the NES Classic Edition, even if the console was a best-seller, is that it was not intended to be an ongoing, long-term product, Fortune reports. One reason that observers cite why Nintendo decided to stop making the console is it could eat sales from the more expensive and recent game consoles such as the $300 Nintendo Switch.

Nintendo Switch Yields Higher Profit

A teardown of the Nintendo Switch by Fomalhaut Techno Solutions estimates the new console costs $257 to manufacture. With a selling price of $300, Nintendo profits $43 per switch. Since the console, like the NES Classic Edition, is in high demand, a Gamepur report says that by the end of 2018, Nintendo would have sold 30 million units of the switch and likely profit by $1.29 billion. The NES Classic Edition, with its selling price of $59, would definitely yield a lesser profit for Nintendo.

Nintendo is pinning its hopes on the Nintendo Switch because of the sale of the previous console, the Wii U, was weak. The NES Classic Edition was initially released in 1983. It was made to accommodate modern TV sets. Since its relaunched in November, Nintendo has sold almost 200,000 of the console in the U.S, according to The Verge.