If the early sales reports are any indication, the Nintendo Amiibo figurines constituted a stroke of genius. Since the Wii U launched in 2012, it has only sold about 7.29 million units. Industry analysts have called the Wii U sales disappointing, to say the least. However, thanks to the Amiibo program, it looks like some of Nintendo’s fortunes will change for the better for the holiday season.
Nintendo even partnered with Loot Crate to release Amiibo bundles. Well, Loot Crate already sold out of all those Nintendo Amiibo bundles. On Amazon, the Amiibo figurines appear to be selling out as well. Getting in on the toys-to-life market, or interactive toys for video games, gave Nintendo an edge it certainly needed for the Wii U.
According to Tech Times, Disney Interactive earned $500 million in global retail sales of Disney Infinity for 2013 alone. One can only imagine how much more Nintendo earned after launching Disney Infinity 2.0: Marvel Super Heroes earlier in 2014. In addition, Activision earned over $100 million globally in the same year with sales of the Skylanders franchises. That number probably rose significantly in 2014, after the launch of Skylanders: Trap Team.
Amiibos are only good for Nintendo products, so that benefits Nintendo. Since the Amiibos are exclusive to Nintendo, fans and players may only utilize them for Nintendo consoles. Not only that, but the Amiibos have collectible appeal. So even if a gamer is not a fan of Wii U, that gamer might still be interested in wanting to buy Amiibos. The Amiibos are nice figurines in poses, and they are great for displaying. Nintendo has a cornucopia and library of beloved characters to produce for the Amiibo program–another reason that crossover characters for Super Smash Bros. Wii U was a brilliant move. It means that Nintendo could produce Amiibo figurines for other characters who originated at other game publishers, specifically Mega Man, Sonic the Hedgehog and Pac-Man.
As one of the top games for the year, Disney Infinity saw global retail sales of $500 million in 2013. In the United States alone, Activision reported selling more than 100 million of the figures in the same year, adding to the Skylanders franchise’s overall revenue of $1 billion. In short, Nintendo is sitting on a veritable gold mine with the Amiibo figurines. Based on early reports, the Amiibos are basically a license for Nintendo to print money.
All the recent news around Nintendo had been quite grim, so the news about the Amiibo figurines sales is encouraging for Nintendo. Things definitely appear to be looking up for Nintendo with sales of Super Smash Bros. Wii U and the Amiibos. Nintendo Amiibo figurines are now available at retail. Super Smash Bros. is now available for the Nintendo Wii U and 3DS.
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