Japanese customers anxious to get their fitness fix have found Ring Fit Adventure sold out pretty much everywhere they’ve looked in the country. Ring Fit Adventure seems to be selling like gangbusters in Japan, and that situation could very well translate to the West as well. Although we can’t necessarily say it’s something that you absolutely should buy, one has to consider that Nintendo of Japan publicly apologized for the situation.
Stock shortages and high sales in Japan have been bad enough that it’s almost impossible to find in Nintendo’s home country, and there’s the risk that something similar could happen in the West. You see, Ring Fit Adventure is in a somewhat unique situation in that it requires a physical peripheral for the game to work, and that adds more difficulty to manufacturing and shipping.
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The difficulties in getting this game onto store shelves in Japan has been bad enough that Nintendo issued an apology. Here’s what the machine-translated apology says:
“Ring Fit Adventure” Apology and Notice
Thank you for your patronage of our products.
The Nintendo Switch software “Ringfit Adventure” released on October 18, 2019 continues to be in short supply throughout the domestic market.
We apologize for any inconvenience caused to customers and dealers who are waiting.
We continue to ship every week, and we will increase the number of shipments toward the end of the year so that as many people as possible can deliver.
Some retailers may be able to make reservations, etc., so please check with your retailer regarding sales methods.
We will continue to make efforts to deliver as many customers as possible, so we appreciate your understanding.
Thankfully, there haven’t been any widespread problems in the West… yet. The elements of a perfect storm are brewing, and you might go to purchase this game only to find Ring Fit Adventure sold out:
- Ring Fit Adventure requires a physical controller, meaning it’s harder to manufacture, ship, and stock on store shelves.
- It is Black Friday, and some places have discounts on the game and/or the controller.
- Nintendo has had problems with hardware shortages in the West; most recently with the Nintendo Switch and with other consoles like the Nintendo Wii in the past.
Combine these three elements, and people who want to pick up this game for the holidays could be in danger of not being able to get it at all. Hopefully, you won’t find Ring Fit Adventure sold out when you go to buy it. If you have decided to grab a copy for the holidays, though, it might be best not to risk waiting.
