Though it’s not an essential item like toilet paper, canned foods, and other household necessities, the Nintendo Switch game console has been at a shortage for weeks now. There are two forms of the console, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch Lite.
The $200 to $300 consoles are at higher demand in any store that has sold them as people are starting to see that this pandemic quarantine is longer than expected.
The Nintendo Switch Lite comes in three colors and is about $100 cheaper than the bigger Switch console. The Lite came out in Sept. 2019, is handheld, and cannot be played on the television. It’s a little similar to a Nintendo DS. While the bigger Switch, released in March 2017, racks up to $300 plus about $50 per game. There are a lot more add-ons and is portable as well as TV compatible.
While the public demand rises, the COVID-19 pandemic puts a halt on sales. About two months ago in Feb. Nintendo stated that the pandemic would impact Switch shipments in Japan. Nintendo did not give a schedule or assumed date for when the Switch shipments would resume regularly.
Getting your hands on a switch can be extremely hard in-store, but there is always online. Maybe if there wasn’t a huge uptake in prices. On Amazon, sellers are pricing the Switch console anywhere between $400 to $700.
There are lots of opportunities for scammers to take advantage of the situation. The situation of demand and pandemic mixed have people resorting to just buying and hoping. The Switch is harder to find than the Lite. The Lite is starting to appear in Target but the quantity is gone within the day it’s stocked. The best bet when looking is to constantly call a local store and pick up.
The demand could be spiked because of a number of new factors. One being the pandemic. People are stuck inside for a longer amount of time without knowing what to do. Video game sales alone have raised approximately 44% since March.
It has people scavenging for things to do from puzzles to video games and video games are the more popular opinion with the younger generations.
Another is the release of the anticipated Animal Crossing New Horizons that is only available on any Switch console. Fortnite is now available on it too. The game is cross-platform and for the Switch, it applies to the gamers who like to take the game closer up in their own hands.
Nintendo isn’t the only gaming console out there. If searching is too much effort and you don’t mind missing out on Animal Crossing New Horizons, there are many other consoles. The PlayStation 4 has been out for a while and has a special on the PlayStation store for cheap games and now even free games as people are playing more.
Next time you’re out for an essential grocery run to Target or even Walmart, swing by the electronics and maybe you’ll luck out on the stock.
Featured image courtesy of Dreamstime/TNS.