Japanese video game giant Nintendo brought back its retro NES Classic Edition console on June 29 and after much hype and success, it has announced that it will continue producing the console throughout 2018.
Nintendo of America tweeted the news on July 11:
The NES Classic Edition, a miniaturized version of the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), sold out quickly after its first release in November 2016, moving 2.3 million consoles, before oddly announcing in April 2017 that it was discontinuing the product.
Nintendo re-introduced the NES Classic Edition last month following high demand and the success of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) Classic Edition console, a successor to the NES Classic Edition, which the company re-released last year.
By its fiscal year 2017 report, ending March 31, 2018, the SNES Classic Edition had sold more than 5 million units.
The NES Classic Edition console comes with 30 built-in games, including classic like Super Mario Bros., the Legend of Zelda, Mega Man 2, Donkey Kong, and PAC-MAN.
The console connects to modern TVs through HDMI and allows multiplayer functionality on certain games with a second controller. One controller is included in the packaging. The NES Classic Edition costs US$59.99.
During the original release of the NES Classic Edition in 2016, the very limited stock was one of its main criticisms, with some stores receiving fewer than ten units at a time.
This, coupled with the extremely high demand, prompted Internet scalpers to buy as many as they could so they could resell them with extreme price markups, frustrating fans. In the US, prices were commonly set between US$200 and US$500 but went as high as US$1,000.
Following the April 2017 discontinuation, several bootleg versions of the NES Classic Edition appeared on third party auction sites, typically produced by Chinese companies. These have been found to be near-identical in hardware and software.
Nintendo, a Japanese multinational consumer electronics and video game company headquartered in Kyoto, is one of the world’s largest video game companies by market capitalization, creating some of the best-known and top-selling video game franchises, such as Mario, the Legend of Zelda, and Pokémon. Of the top 50 best-selling video games, 19 were developed or published by Nintendo.
The NES, an 8-bit video game console, was initially released in Japan in 1983 and was the best-selling gaming console of its time.
You can oder the Nitendo Classic Mini via Amazon.
