Is the Nintendo Entertainment System: NES Classic Edition available for pre-order?
By Nick Tylwalk
Considering how popular Nintendo’s little blast from the past is likely to be, this is a pretty important question.
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Not many video game hardware projects are absolute no-brainers, but the Mini NES Classic Edition — officially going by the unwieldy name Nintendo Entertainment System: NES Classic Edition — checks off all the boxes. Not only does it give you serious bang for the buck by including 30 popular Nintendo games for a suggested retail price of just $60, but it allows people to stop using emulators or figuring out ways to get their original console to work with today’s TV tech.
Even people who don’t normally consider themselves gamers are anxious for it to arrive. For a company like Nintendo that was in real need of huge hits to shake things up, the one-two punch of Pokemon GO and the NES Classic Edition this year couldn’t have arrived at a more opportune time.
But there’s a problem, or rather, there’s going to be a problem. The NES Classic Edition is likely to be a victim of its own popularity. It’s going to be difficult to keep in stock, especially when you factor in Nintendo’s rather … checkered past when it comes to its ability to ratchet up supply to meet demand.
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In other words, if you think you’ll be able to roll into a store on November 11 and just pick one up, you’re setting yourself up for disappointment.
The answer, of course, is to pre-order one, or maybe more than one considering how hot these are going to be. Unfortunately, the NES Classic Edition is not available for pre-order just yet.
Indeed, a glance at the page Amazon has set aside for the product simply gives you the depressing “currently unavailable” message. That’s a good one to bookmark, though, as the online retailer is a good bet to allow pre-orders as soon as humanly possible.
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Your other go-to places, like Gamestop, Target, and the like, are almost certainly going to follow suit. We’ll keep you posted and update as soon as we know when that might be, as this is one retro system you’re going to want to jump on fast.