SNES Classic coming September 29th

[Ziggy]

I was able to get one yesterday. Here's my story...

I was out with my brother in an area that had a bunch of retail stores in close proximity. So I decided to check all possible stores. First I checked a Best Buy, but "Some one just bought the last one yesterday!"

Then I tried a Target. When I walked up to the guy in electronics he was like, "SNES mini?" I said yeah, and he told me to go up and check the courtesy counter because they might still have one. He said stop what you're doing and go now. So I wait in line at the courtesy counter. One lone employee is behind the counter, a middle aged women. As I figured, when I asked about the SNES Classic she was like "What?" So I explain it to her and she's like "Oh, we don't have that." But I'm not feeling the confidence, so I say, "Are you sure?". She's says, "Yeah, it would be right here." She motions to a spot on the counter that's labeled "Beauty," as in that's where the returns go for the HBC department. Then she says, "Oh, wait..." and goes in the back for a split second, only to come back out and say, "No, we don't have any." I told my brother, I wasn't totally convinced they didn't have any. I'm not even convinced she knows exactly what I was asking for.

So next I stop at a Toys R Us. I figure most stores wont actually have them on shelves, so we just go straight to the customer care counter. No one is there to help us, so I tell my brother to wait at the counter and I'll check the department. As I'm walking to the video games, there's someone in one of the isles that keeps looking over at my, kinda shifty, and I honestly thought they were trying to pocket stuff. Then I notice this person is wearing a blue shirt, and I start to think they are an employee. They have a blue shirt on, like employees, but they have another shirt over it, but not totally on. It looks like he started to put on a pullover sweatshirt but gave up halfway. So I ask, "Do you work here." The reply is like, "yeah." A total whisper, but I think he said yeah. So I ask if they have any SNES Classics in stock. "No, I don't think so." You don't THINK so? So I ask, "Can we find out?" He radios someone in his whisper voice and the reply comes a few seconds later, "Did you just page me?" He asks about the SNES Classic, and the person on the other side said they had none. There was a confidence in her voice, at least.

So then I go to Wal Mart. There's ONE women in the electronics, and she's ringing people up. Great. So I wait patiently for her, being totally sympathetic since I worked in retail for so many years. So I finally get the chance to say, "I know you're very busy, I just want to know if something is in stock." She says she'll be right with me, then turns her attention to the next person wanting a piece of her. It's a couple of day laborers, and one of them printed out an item from WalMart dot com to show her. It's a Leviton light switch, the kind you would put in the wall. As in, wire into the building wiring. This guy is asking where to find it. She says, "That's in hardware." But the guy is INSISTING it's in electronics. I'm rolling my eyes. Finally, she asks me what I want. I ask for the SNES Classic. She says, "Oh, we just got some in yesterday." So I'm following her now. To where, I have no idea. I tell her, "By the way, that switch IS in hardware." She turns to me and says, "THANK YOU!" and we both have a laugh. She explains that she was told the SNES Classics where being locked up in photo. She checked with the employee in that department, who wont even give her the time of day, and says they don't have any. We walk back to electronics. There's another employee in electronics now. She asks him, and he says they don't have any. She keeps insisting that no, they do have them, they just got them in yesterday. Now, this is Sunday. If they got them in on Saturday, there was all of Saturday and half of Sunday for them to sell out. So I'm worrying that this lady, as nice as she's being, is mistaken and doesn't realize how fast they sell. She's finally walks me back with her to layaway and she goes into the back stock room. She comes out once or twice and keeps insisting, "I know they have them SOME WHERE." Finally, I hear her page a management to come over with keys. I guess they have a cage to lock up high priced items in the stock room. FINALLY, she comes out holding a SNES Classic. My SNES Classic.

Honestly, I don't believe I've ever had a retail person go this far for me. After the lady in Target that didn't even know what I was talking about, after the kid in Toys R Us that was like, "I don't think we have any," and after two Wal Mart employees told this lady they didn't have them, she was determined to find one for me. If I would have asked any other employee in that store for a SNES Classic, I don't think I would have left with one.

So the point of my story is this. It's not bad enough that they don't stay in stock. Dumb retail people make it harder to get, especially the ones that don't even know what a SNES is!

Good luck, Fast!

[Michi]

Sounds like Ziggy had an adventure

And yeah, the employees can make it harder. I too, got stuck with a couple employees on the phone and in store who had absolutely no idea what I was asking about. Thankfully, the day I noticed the website say that they'd gotten some in stock, was also the day when a knowledgeable employee was on duty. Bless him.

[Xeogred]

That was a great read Ziggy. And people wonder why most of us stick with Amazon and online thesedays...

[Tanooki]

Drama. shiftiness, and intrigue -- it works. I'd have bet that TRU employee was like (we don't have them, but for us.) That's what happened when I tried a walmart, they didn't want to sell them as the employees off shift would be pissed as they'd been waiting. Really? :\

[fastbilly1]

Ill get one when I get one.

[bmoc]

Drama. shiftiness, and intrigue -- it works. I'd have bet that TRU employee was like (we don't have them, but for us.) That's what happened when I tried a walmart, they didn't want to sell them as the employees off shift would be pissed as they'd been waiting. Really? :\

It is also possible that he was just a poorly trained seasonal worker. Christmas shopping is going to really pick up soon. My time as a seasonal worker at TRU about 15 years ago involved about 5 minutes of actual training.

[Sarge]

I'll be honest, since securing and losing my Walmart preorder, I haven't really tried to get one of these. If one pops up in front of my face, I'll probably bite, but I'm not going out of my way anymore for one. I am glad that the supply seems to be much better, though, and that folks here seem to be able to score one.

I do think it's a quality piece of kit, though, and that game selection is nearly perfect. I'm still ecstatic that they finally started doing Super FX emulation.

[marurun]

It's also clear that Nintendo learned some lessons from the NES Classic Mini. The SNES Classic Mini is the same hardware, but the software improvements are so valuable to the experience.

[SNESdrunk]

I couldn't find anything earlier in the thread, but has anyone added any English-patched games or ROMhacks to theirs yet? Any problems?

[SNESdrunk]

FWIW, I've asked around and found people having sound issues with later Quintet/Enix games like Illusion of Gaia and ActRaiser 2. Also text resolution bugs with Seiken Densetsu 3 (although that probably shouldn't be surprising). Anyone here run into anything?