Super Smash Bros. for Wii U GameCube Controller Adapter Sold Out Already in Most US Stores

My hometown store has some. Too bad I don't use Gamecube controllers

Never underestimate the power of Gamecube!

Never underestimate the power of nostalgia.
I'd be running out to the store of they sold the Super Famicom Wii controller in North America.

Well...crap.

I've got mine preordered. Then again, I can't see it being as popular in the UK.

I'm just refusing to play the game until I can get one. It's okay though, I have WoW...

Dang. So it's really sold out. That sucks. Look like I'm stucking waiting for weeks..-.-

Meh I don't even want to pay $30 to order it from Nintendo Australia when the game costs me $80 and pro controllers are better than gamecube controllers. Still, perhaps I should order one for collectors purposes.

Well, that guarantees the controller will be in all future editions then...

That and there's more then enough owners of the adapter to warrent Gamecube VC support.

I knew I forgot to look for something on my Friday shopping run. No big lost even though I wanted more for my DDR games then Smash Bros. I rather wait for as long as it take for a restock then pay more than msrp from other sellers, especially that much.

$233? hahaahahahaha.. No

I am not sure if the fact these are selling out is because Nintendo drastically under evaluated the popularity and so never produced that many to begin with or whether Nintendo simply cannot manufacturer enough to meet the demand.

Somehow I can't see this being the case in the UK. I don't think Super Smash Bros is going to be anywhere near as big over here.

LOL no I wouldn't get it at that price

Meh...how about people just wait until more become available. Patience, young Padawans. I'm probably going to just use my pro controller anyway once I get the game.

Guess i'm not getting this for Christmas

I liked the Gamecube controller when I had a Gamecube. But the Pro controller is so much more comfortable.

Glad I have mine pre-ordered.

It's a good thing I've mastered using the 2ds as a controller

Yeah I think there's a variety of factors here. Nintendo underestimated, stores underestimated, and people bought two at a time for 8 player smash perhaps?

I had my bundle pre-ordered at Best Buy, two weeks in advance, and when I arrived they didn't have it. But that is a separate issue, I think.

I ended up getting the game (alone) from Gamestop. True enough, all the stores in my area are sold out of the adapter. But I'll have one in a few days.

Now to just hope my significant other preordered the version with the adapter/controller for Christmas like I requested. If not.. Oh well, I will just have to wait.

This is just going to encourage people to try finding clever ways around the shortage. This might include buying 3rd party adapters which have been around for a while (such as Mayflash wireless Wii U to Gamecube controller adapter, sells for $20 on Amazon); or even softmodding the Wii U to run HBC, then experimenting with various GCN controller to USB adapters to force the software to run a USB controller connection.

How ironic, that Nintendo just waltzed into this inevitable situation without thinking about what would happen when supplies run out... Not everyone's going to patiently wait or fall for the predictable price hawks.

@PlywoodStick This thing has been out for two days. Are you expecting a second shipment to come out of nowhere?

@WaLzgi I'm expecting those thirty-five $20 Mayflash adapters listed right under the ten $120 official adapters on Amazon to sell out before the holiday is over.

Had mine preordered for weeks from amazon with a promised delivery on launch day. My amiibo made it, but amazon didn't give me an out of stock notice or anything. First time amazon jacked something up for me, pretty pissed. Won't be here till 29th it said

Well you imply that Nintendo was unprepared just because their first shipment nearly sold out in less than two days. Can any company prepare for that?

Thankfully I got mine with the bundle pack.

I too wonder if they just shipped horribly low stock or if people really love the Gamecube controller. I don't really get it. I think the Pro Controller for Wii U is the best controller they've ever made. So comfy, and if it had analog triggers (and maybe the Xbone's force feedback ones) it would be perfect.

What bothers me is some people are walking out of the store without the game over this. I keep trying to tell them that GC controller isn't required and that the latency between wiimotes and pro controllers and classic controllers and gamepad is too small to have an impact on game play. Honestly the user's tv will usually add more latency. It is driving me nuts. While I have gamecube controllers I refuse to use one for this game. worse case I bought a luigi fight pad (for other games actually) and I'll use that.

At least it's not as crazy as Amazon Spain's 3rd party sellers selling amiibos for 142€ (and that's discounted) since Amazon Spain itself is sold out for pre-orders except for Pikachu and Diddy. (It went for as low as 9,91€ each which I missed and now back up 12,81€). And why the hell Europe's SRP for amiibos is 14,99€??? At least Amazon France is selling them discounted for 12,99€.

@Grumblevolcano - Well on the bright side they'll probably make more now. Unless it's going to be Xenoblade all over again, but I just can't imagine that happening. If Wii U ever gets VC Gamecube support these will sell even better.

So, anybody yet know why 1 USB is black and 1 gray? Maybe there's a shortage b/c they ran out of gray? Or black?

2 Questions:

A. How many people do you think bought 2 adapters?
and
B: How many actually have more than 3 friends who want to play Smash with them at one time?

The latency actually does matter if you're in a situation that has a lot of wireless communication going on. For example, in the student lounge at my campus the one guy who does use Wiichuck for Smash complains about dropped inputs all the time because so many people are using bluetooth, accessing the wi-fi, and other such things. It also matters for tournament players, since you'll have a large gathering of consoles in one place.

Just playing at home, though, you're completely correct, and I've been using my pro controller while I wait for them to restock the adapter. I got the game digitally, so I don't need to swap discs around, but I couldn't find the adapter anywhere cause I didn't pre-order it. The gamestop I went to though did say they were supposed to get a new shipment in after Thanksgiving, so we'll have another shot at getting it next month.

@WaLzgi Nintendo has done a reasonably good job preparing to prevent even essential software-specific peripheral shortages in the past, when I recall games like Pokemon Stadium and Donkey Kong 64. Nintendo also has a long history of gauging the balance between Nintendo's hardware requirements, supplier's materials availability, and consumer demand.

The scope of their business is larger now, so it's more difficult to manage, but for their inventory managers, it's still just a matter of ordering adequate supplies to match demand. (Which their analysts may have either misgauged or glossed over.)

Then again, their supplier could have also not had much to offer for the first shipment. Unless they divulge that information to the public (probably not happening), it's hard to tell. It still amazes me David Sheff was able to procure any kind of trade records in Game Over...

@KeithTheGeek For tourneys I totally agree. The problem is when I ask customers about where they plan on playing this... most of them say at home. I've had a few say they want to do tourneys so I suggest for them to wait for the adapter. However the homebodies? Buy the game now...it is not like you can't get the adapter later. I may still buy on on the hopes that Nintendo adds more games (Or VC which is what i want) that can use it.

I feel like a complete idiot for not purchasing the darn thing right in front of me when it was in stock...

Glad I pre-ordered mine then. Honestly, I didn't need it, but lord knows everyone has those friends who cant/refuse to play unless they're using a GCN controller.

It's kinda ironic that this adapter actually prevents folks to adapt. :V I acknowledge the benefits though (8-player Smash and especially tourneys).

@PlywoodStick Honestly I expect a second shipment to be made before Christmas. Even Nintendo wouldn't overlook this opportunity. Plus some retailers hint that they may receive more later

I'm kind of glad that it won't be that popular over here. Especially when you get the adapter that cheap in the bundle(game and adaper only w/o contoller). Only 5€ for it, if you subtract the game's price. Whoohoo!
And others are willing to pay up to $95 for it... pfff...

@Ryu_Niiyama Yeah, the pro controller works great for the game. The gamecube controller is still my preferred controller, but unless I was doing the tournament thing I'd be fine with using the pro controller.

@justlink
yeah I was gonna get the bundle with it, and I was like.... weird I would have an adapter for one controller. I couldn't find a wavebird anywhere, and all the gamecube controllers looked like a two year olds dog played with them!!! lol

Long live the GC controller!
Problems? What shortage problems?
Solution, Nintendo needs to make a GC Wavebird U without the need of a USB adapter.

@babyguess That isn't a solution as you can't play Gamecube games with it.

@FragRed
I have a sneaking suspicion that there will be many bargain bins full of the Amiibo figures nobody will want, such as the wii fit trainer, and possibly Marth.

@Grumblevolcano Unless one enlists the aid of a gecko...

...COUGH...

I bought the adapter at Best Buy but haven't opened it. I actually am fine using the Pro Controller. Now do I sell it on Ebay or return it to the store?

I saw about 3 left at my local Gamestop yesterday

Had Nintendo allowed the GC pads to work with more than JUST the new Smash, I would have nabbed one. Maybe a future system update will add more functionality.

I did not preorder it. Because I do not care for it.

So it makes you wonder if Nintendo had other uses for it, if they would have sold out sooner. Can't wait to see the exclusive amiibo figures repeating this scenario.

@FragRed I beg to differ. Smash bros is a worldwide hit and anyone from any country would like it.

But on the other hand, there would be MANY stores that are gaming and non-gaming specific that would sell this.

It's a good thing that I pre-ordered it.

Might as well add this to the laundry list of things that the ball got dropped on in the course of making this game.

I was able to preorder one when I preordered Smash Wii U. So glad I did. They didn't have any that weren't preorders at my local store. Clearly I should have pre-ordered more. Oh well, its hard to tell these things in advance.

Well derp, this doesn't matter to me too much as I'm getting pretty good with the Classic Controller and Gamepad. Though I will buy an adapter once Nintendo ships out some more.

This explains why Europe gets the game after us. If they can't make them at a sufficient rate for one region, then the situation would be worse for multiple regions.

That's what happens when GameStop only puts 5 up for stock with over 200 people lining up at midnight.

Gamestop was sold out of them in my city, but I found one at Best Buy. I rushed up there to get one.

NO! I ain't got mine yet!

I haven't settled on a preferred controller yet but I'm glad I preordered it. My local EB Games (Canadian version of GameStop) was sold out on day one.

While I don't expect many Wii U games will support it I hoping in one of the firmware updates they will enable GC controller support on the Wii Menu,

I went to multiple sales outlets on Friday - the release day here - and NONE of them had the adapter in stock. Most disappointing, but I'll wait for their restock to show up. The game is perfectly playable via the other controller methods, and I wanted it mostly so I could use my 10 year old GC controller a few last times (if it even works anymore!).

I don't know why people are paying these crazy prices. Just wait for more stock to arrive, or in the mean time get the Hori controllers that hook up to Wiimotes.

I suppose nintendo will make more. If they are many controllers left, they NEED to make more adapters :<

@RedYoshi999 the gamecube controller is way better than the pro controller and damn near better than any other controller ever made

I doubt this will happen in the UK so I am in the clear

Wii U saved? This is a mix of good/bad news. The good because this things are selling way better than expected and the bad because that prices on ebay are insane : /

Honestly? This is the first time I have ever preordered a product that then sold out

LOL! Like anyone would pay $100.00 for something that is going to be mass produced anyway... whisper whisper What's that, Twinkies!? whisper whisper $1,000.00 a box!? whisper whisper... Oookay I guess I was wrong.

"Not a single store in Georgia has any".

I can attest to this. My brother and I went to pick up our copy (well HIS copy) at BestBuy, which he pre-ordered. And they said "Oh sorry, we don't have any".

One weekend that would've been nice to sit down and play smash gone!

I pre-ordered the adapter, but the GameStop I went to did not have any shipments of the adapter, and the clerk said other GS stores in the area won't have any until next week.

She also said that Nintendo simply failed to get the shipments out on time, as the game and controller were on time but only the adapter wasn't. I am thinking this is mostly Nintendo's fault if other stores are sold-out as well like Best Buy.

I pre-ordered and received 2 of the Gamecube adapters. * player smash on the same console is perfect.

Well, thankfully I don't really need a GameCube controller. I feel that the Wii U pro controller and the Wii U gamepad are perfectly fine for the type of smashing I like to do. So no harm or foul for me.

$230 for the bundle is just insane. I almost didn't get mine on friday because of best buys error on the pre orders.

@rjejr One of the usb's will be just for power so a different colour. (Can be plugged into anything).

When I picked up my games on Friday the employee at GameStop said that they only received three Smash GCN Controllers and Adapters in their shipment, ridiculous.

I looked around online for it on Thursday night, and the only place that still had it was Walmart who promised it would arrive at my home the next day. They shipped it already, but spoiler alert, it did not arrive the next day. Which is fine because I haven't bought the game yet.

Thankfully I got the bundle

I don't need it, happy with GamePad

I was going to pre-order one of these since my brother likes to play with a Gamecube controller, but he said he's gotten used to the classic controller. I may let him use the gamepad while I use my 3DS. I tried using the 3DS on the Wii U version, and it worked surprisingly well!

I have an adapter from Mayflash, got it on Amazon for about 12 bucks, and it allows me to plug my Gamecube controllers into Wiimotes which read them as classic controllers. Tried it today and it works beautifully for Smash while allowing the pad to work with any other title that likes classic controllers. It's a very frugal option if all you need is one port.

Glad I pre-ordered that bundle. My fiancé and I happily put over 10 hours into the game since Friday night.

@Grumblevolcano #43 And how is that a problem? It doesn't need to play GameCube games, it needs to play Smash Bros Wii U. GameCube games are a long way from being supported on Wii U, people holding out for a virtual console surprise along these lines probably shouldn't hold their breath...
@sleepinglion Does that adapter also completely register the GameCube controller's analog shoulder buttons? Or are they only usable as pro controller shoulder buttons?

ON TOPIC:
I wouldn't be surprised at all if new batches of this adapter would appear exclusively in Nintendo's Star Catalog for at least 7000 stars so no one would be able to get one any time soon...

Any reason why an imported Japanese adapter wouldn't work on a North American Wii U?

@foobarbaz Maybe they think they are a limited thing for whatever reason.
Or they are just totally impatient. People tend to do really stupid things to get hands on something. lol

I really hope for Nintendo's sake that Smash Bros and Amiibo sells as well as as Mario Kart - they really need this to stay in the game

Glad I went to the store early on Friday!

So lame, i didnt think it would be a big deal for most so i didnt pre order it. Got the game at midnight just thought id get the controller adapter later... So wrong and i know better too thats the thing. Never again, will always preorder what ever device is coming out in the future.

Playing without it is hurting my online play , using the cc pro isnt helping at all. Moves dont come out like you know they would on the gamecube. Its sad, specially to lose on glory from a controller screw up. These are adapters are nowhere in sight thats for sure.

I should pick some up and sell them online

This is why I preordered the UK pack with the adapter. Getting it later would have been expensive and the cost was the same as buying the eshop version.

Dang looks like I'm going to wait and in the mean time vicariously live through the other fortune folks out there who got all thee above. I've strongly considered buying smash wii u digitally but I'm afraid for whatever reason if my wii u died would I have to repurchase it or can games you buy digitally transfer from one console to another?

@Reznor52 You can transfer from one console to another provided both of them still work. If your game system breaks, ship it back to Nintendo and wait. If it's out of warranty or due to negligence, they'll bill you for the service. If it's lost, stolen, or destroyed (flood, fire, etc...), beg to Nintendo and pray. For stolen consoles, you'll need a copy of the police report. I'm assuming also if it's destroyed (flood, fire, etc) you'll likely need to provide an insurance claim. Don't carelessly leave your 3DS on a bus or somewhere or drop it in a lake or your eShop purchases are screwed. It makes me so nervous to carry my 3DS around. I've even thought of affixing my name, phone, and return address in case I lose it and a good samaritan finds it out somewhere. Honestly it's just assinine now that they have eshop accounts across both Wii-U and 3DS, they don't offer cross buy or the ability to transfer an account without having access to both consoles, like cough Sony PSN does.

@ZenTurtle The good news is they intentionally let very few of these make shelves. I have a feeling most will fetch a high collectors price later on.

@ZenTurtle Nintendo anticipated that. While Mario, Peach and Yoshi had ~100 units per store, those you mentioned (and Villager and Fox) got 0 - 10 units per store (Villager and Marth, for example, only got 4 of each at my local Toys R Us, 0 of each at my local Fred Meyers and 2 of each at my local Target)

Walked in and picked one up sat at my local GS. The clerk said they only received 4 adapters total. Looks like nintendo just didnt send many out. Honestly ill probably flip it to some dope that just cant wait and make myself a profit. The pro controller is superior to me anyway.

@ZenTurtle ha! WFT and Marth are the ones that I can't find anywhere.

we only got enough adapters to fill preorders and two extra. I snagged one yesterday because somebody missed the preorder window. I sorta bought it just in case...don't plan on using it at this point.

I am perfectly comfortable with my pro controller, I'll wait to get one, maybe when it's compatible with more games, even then, probably not. The pro controllers are awesome! I did order a Hori controller which i will be receiving today, and That will work with wii u and wii mode.

Best Buy sold my preorder bundle, so I am not pre-ordering anything from those greed mongers again. This is the one of the reasons I stopped shopping at GameStop, which also includes lazy and shabby used game quality, and that GameStop basically makes their money on the hard work of other people.

I never had the option to preorder this at Target, where I preoder most of my retail version games. Anyways, I picked up our copy of the game Friday around 5pm and the sales clerk had no clue what I was even asking about so my guess is that they sold out of the adapters very early in the day.

This makes me irate that Nintendo failed to produce enough of these. I don't own a Pro Controller because of the price. So we're stuck playing Smash on wiimotes and classic controllers....and one 3DS. By the way, in case you didn't know, you need to own a copy of Smash for each 3DS you plan to connect to the Wii U!!!!! I thought you could connect any 3DS to use as the controller via download play or something. Now I need to go and buy another copy of the 3DS Smash to connect our second 3DS to the Wii U!!! Who knows how long we'll be without the adapter, so I guess our 3 gamecube controllers will continue to gather dust. Not happy.

Its doesn't bother me to much Im sorta liking it more with the pro controller. I just wanna get the smash controller for my gamecube for when people come over to play so classic melee and I think my local gamestop still has the adapter so I might get it.

What I want to know is how long the cables are.

Does anyone know?

I got super lucky when I went to pick up my copy. I had just pre-ordered the game and was planning on picking up the adapter and controller separately. When I got to the counter the cashier asked if I was interested in getting the bundle, as they had 1 person cancel their pre-order that morning.

@Pod :
The cables on the adapter itself are about 4 feet, and the cables on the new gamecube controllers are much longer than original GC controllers. The new ones look to have 10-foot cables.

Nintendo:

I thankfully grabbed the last adapter at a best buy.
I couldn't find the bundle so I ended up spending more money than I wanted to. Oh well, thankfully playing with my wavebird!

@OdnetninAges HAHAHAHA

I didn't pre-order this game and learned my lesson! My family was in disagreement on who was preordering and it just never happened. Thus it has created a huge fiasco and upset everyone. After being hyped every day for this game for over a year its quite anticlimactic and disappointing. Luckily they have the bundle available online at walmart (even if i did have to do rush shipping)

I pre-ordered the game, but not the gamecube controller adapter, which is proving to be a real pain the ass to locate at a non-hiked-up price. Will just have to be patience on that one.

@Nabecoat

Four feet's just enough that the multitab can be on the ground, even if the console is part of a setup, which is what I was hoping to hear. Thanks!

I'm not going to be buying new GC controllers, but it sounds good that the cords are longer. Nintendo went particularly cheap on those with the GameCube.