Remember this post about SSBB shortages in Japan I wrote not too long ago? Well, my prediction came true. NCSX posted this today in their stock update regarding the Japanese release of Super Smash Bros. Brawl:
Our initial shipments of Smash Bros X are scheduled to arrive on Thursday of this week. We were able to obtain more copies than we originally expected after receiving the bad news from suppliers on Sunday night. We'll notify customers by email today if your order is shipping on Thursday. The remainder of our Smash Bros X shipments are scheduled to arrive no later than Wednesday or Thursday of next week and we'll be able to fill all remaining preorders and any new orders at that time.
So, was there really a "shortage"? Some of our suppliers in Hong Kong won't be getting any copies until this weekend which makes it more of a delay than an actual shortage. We also note that most of our Japanese vendors will receive the bulk of their supplies on February 2 and February 4 which is a few days later than the official street date. We'll update further if anything changes but everything looks good for next week.
They also post a funny anecdote about price-gouging from JP suppliers. Go read it!
Thankfully, it seems the shortage probably won't last long, as it looks like extra stock will be flowing into the market the following week. Still, considering how crazy Smash fans get with every delay of the game, even a few days' extra wait might be enough to send some folks into a frothing rage. Example:
(Yes, I know this is a joke video, but it's startlingly accurate to some real-life SSBB flip-outs I've witnessed. I love you, Fragmaster.)
Being involved in the games biz, I have a theory as to what's going on with the launch day shortage. All speculation, of course, but hear me out...
Before games are shipped, they are rigorously checked for bugs, flaws, and other unsightly imperfections. When a game has been certified as passing quality control, it's "gone gold." The game is then shipped to manufacture. This usually happens a good length of time before the game's actual release date to ensure that there's enough time to print sufficient stock, to weed out defective products, and to get a cheaper rate on printing/manufacturing costs. But in the case of the most hotly anticipated titles, the final bugfixing and fine-tuning can take a very long time, and things are often tested, fixed, and re-tested up until the very last minute before the game code has to be sent to disc replication and packaging companies.
You may remember hearing how Rare had to send Perfect Dark Zero to manufacture just days before the X360 launch - taking a huge gamble in that the game hadn't passed all of its quality control checks yet. But they needed 700,000 copies on launch date, and to make sure they had that stock on hand, they had to send the game to manufacture at a specific time. Fortunately, the game passed QC days after it went to the replicators, but if it hadn't, Rare would have needed to re-program and re-manufacture the game - an expensive process that would have delayed the game's release past the X360's launch date.
Could something similar have happened to Nintendo with SSBB in Japan? Maybe they found a nasty bug in the game and had to re-do a manufacturing run with fixed code on short notice. Or perhaps they were fine-tuning things up until the very last minute, so much so that they knew they'd have to push the game's release back a week to have any copies out on the market at all? This could explain the US SSBB's delay, as well - better to have time to make sure there's plenty of stock on hand than to have the game released earlier, but risk leaving fans embittered from a shortage...
Ok I'm one of the few that are not hyped about SSBB (mostly why I did read your first). But if you really want a game check out the best places (their a 's' their people that means more then one)to get their early. Most of all keep updated, your self.
I've been following the immense Brawl leaks throughout today. I won't spoil anything... but oh my god, the roster (if it is indeed final) is SO disappointing. Sakurai totally mislead people....
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Teh internetz are on fire with screenshots of the whole roster...