Super Smash Bros. for Wii U arrived in the UK one week after it touched down in the US. Perhaps as a way of apologizing to fans for the delay, Nintendo UK has just released a new bundle that includes a Mario amiibo for £59.99 (about $94 — wow, games over there are expensive).
But there's likely a less generous reason for this new bundle. Apparently, the UK is experiencing a shortage of GameCube adapters, causing many would-be purchasers no small amount of grief. Pre-orders on Amazon are being canceled and orders for other accessories and the game itself have been delayed as a result. I understand that UK is not Nintendo's strongest territory these days, but surely it should have known that the demand for Smash was real.
UK may have been hit the hardest, but here in the US, we've got our own adapter shortage as well — just trying to score the peripheral on launch day was a chore. And at least according to EB Games Canada, Nintendo won't be manufacturing any more for a while. This is not some rinky-dink keychain or lump of badly painted resin in a special edition box set; it's a device that can literally change the way the game is played, and it's the prefered option for a huge percentage players, some who quite clearly haven't purchased the game yet. Why are they being punished for not being super hardcore consumers?
So, European friends, enjoy your amiibo bundle if you can and do try to hold out a bit longer.
