by Doc – Owner, Founder, Like Hell I’m Spending $25 On an MSRP Amiibo
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Nintendo has historically had a predictable philosophy with amiibo pricing: $13 for Wii U and 3DS-era amiibo, $16 for Switch-era amiibo. Occasionally they’ll spice it up with 2-packs and 3-packs, which are typically just multiples of the original price: a 3-pack of Wii U-era amiibo will sell for $39, for example. It’s one of the few things about Nintendo’s business model that has been consistent.
It ain’t consistent anymore.
The Zelda and Loftwing Amiibo
Nintendo has announced Skyward Sword HD, a game we all would’ve preferred over, say, anything else. Alongside Skyward Sword HD, they’re introducing the Zelda and Loftwing amiibo, which we’ll just call Loftwing. Unlike previous amiibo, Loftwing is MSRPing for $25, not the typical $16. As far as we can tell, it’s no more complex or different than the other Nintendo Switch-era amiibo. It’s just a regular ol’ amiibo.
So what the hey?
Why It Could Become Very Rare
When amiibo are on shelves and don’t sell, they either get recalled by Nintendo or remain on store shelves indefinitely. Typically, they remain on store shelves indefinitely until the supply is sold. If that is the case, Nintendo never, ever reprints them again – why would they, since they barely sold the first time?
What we’re seeing is a significantly more expensive amiibo, which will already drive down the consumer demand for Loftwing. In addition, Skyward Sword HD isn’t expected to sell very well – the better the game sells, the better the amiibo sells. Tertially, even if someone is interested in Loftwing, why would they try to hunt it down in a store when amiibo cards exist and don’t cost $25?
Even the in-game functionality isn’t that impressive, only allowing you to skip a minor portion of the game. Sure, speedrunners will buy it (or just use amiibo cards, as they’ve been doing for BOTW speedruns) but that’s a very limited group considering it’s an established game that doesn’t have much of a speedrunning community.
Basically, expect this amiibo to either be oversupplied to the point of being on shelves forever, or for Nintendo to underestimate the already-small demand and undersupply it, causing it to be rare.
