Card Format amiibo Confirmed to be Heading our Way This Year

WHAT?! Yes!!! Now I'm going to have to make a video about this after school,

Interesting, but I will be sticking to getting the Figurines. I can't even find the AR Cards that came with my 3DS at all, so I wouldn't want to chance it in this case. Link the most popular amiibo? Zelda U hype confirmed...

Now this is more like it

Niw i can get the figurines im actually interested in because they look cool

The only reason those amiibo are "popular" is because they're all that are ever available. >: /

It would've been great if the cards had been included in the original releases and if the option to get cards instead was there from beginning. They should be so much more convenient to take with you and take up a lot less space in your home.

Figurines? Cards? C'mon... Give us what we really want: Amiibos underpants!!!

@andreoni79 : "Grind against the GamePad to proceed."

@sillygostly Honestly, I hope they add StreetPass too.

Okay then. I don't really care about cards. I get amiibo to display, so having cards just isn't for me.

@NinjaWaddleDee Yeah, I love having all my amiibo on a shelf, on display. Nintendo, just rerun the rare amiibo! Don't make them cards only! D:

Awesome! So now I can relax in trying to get all the ones I want that can't get. Hope the cards are no more than say €6 each.

@Inkling I'm honestly pretty much done with amiibo right now. The combination of stock shortages, and now this card crap is making me annoyed.

Those are the only Amiibo that I ACTUALLY see. I would not say that they are "popular." By the way, I have not seen a single Fox Amiibo, and I have checked at least two dozen Targets, Gamestops, Walmarts, and Best Buys!

Yeah! I hope they are durable and decorative like thin cartridges.

I personally think the cards are mostly a waste of time. Majority of people collecting amiibo are collecting for the nintendo figurine. The skins/dlc you get from amiibo are lagniappe. I doubt there is even a small number of people who are only interested in the game content and not the figure.

I have purchased amiibo because it's a chance to have nintendo merchandise, especially those of lesser popularity.

I don't expect them to flood the market with reprints, but when NOA is facing scalper issues, I'd like for things to be a little easier to grab than having to have in stock alerts/checking forums every few minutes to see if the next wave is up for pre order or in stock.

Cards are a terrible idea. I'd rather more availability of figures.

I hope there will be software to transfer information back and forth from card to figure. Figures for home Cards for travel!

@Deltadon example : I sure that if you missed out on wii fit trainer, you want her for the collection and you're not dying to get a card so you can have that character level up

I too, hope that they don't use the cards as more of a reason to not produce more of the rarer Amiibo figures. It is clear that figures are what the people want, and surely they have already seen the demand for the Out of Stock figures, as they sold out almost instantly, and the pre-orders sell out straight away too such as for Ness

Ugh, all Nintendo seem to be focusing on these days is Amiibo. That's great if you're into them, crap if you're not...

That's nice and all, I was interested in some features of the amiibos but not in the figures themselves, but what about the price?

Cards are lame IMO. Just stock the figs in reasonable quantities like Skylander / Infinity seem to do.

What if discontinued Amiibo's appeared as cards? Is a scalpers price for a figure better? I would like both but I would like the card to hold me over until I get the high priced figure.

I simply want both. Figure and card. ThankYou Nintendo!

Hopefully there are reprints for Pit and Marth. I need, like, fifteen more pits, please. And Marth for Codename Steam.

I'll take the cards too, please. Make the cards cost a lot less. It would be sad if they outright replaced the figures with cards, though.

If you're getting rid of the figure, why bother with a physical presence at all? Just sell the data via the e-shop.

I've come this far in buying all the figures, I'd be frustrated if Ninty made them even harder to get because of this.

So aussies are not fond of Samus.

I dont want cards but it would be nice if they help us to get some rare amiibo. By shifting demand from the toys to the cards. They are easier to carry too.

I'm not interested in cards at all. I collect amiibo because they are cool figurines. The functionality comes in second in importance for me.

That said, I'll probably buy the cards to collect them too. But the figures will always be my first priority. I wonder if they will be similar in design to the e-reader cards of the past.

@Deltadon
I agree except the part where the card are mostly useless. Now that I have a New 3DS, I'd take the card format over the figurine when I bring my N3DS with me.

Anyway I'll only buy those cards which have some interesting use on 3DS games. Or they are no more than 5€ each and their amiibo figures counterpart aren't that great to behold.

As long as the cards are a reasonable price, I'll be happy to take them over the figures. All I want is to unlock in game content for the games I have.
Don't get me wrong, the figurines are cool, but the price puts me off just to unlock that content.

I wonder how they'll sell the Amiibo cards. Could they be in packs with random cards inside like Pokemon cards? But then a pack would contain a few for a much lower price than an Amiibo figure, giving the buyer access to all the DLC and Amiibo functionality included for ridiculously cheap. This would make the figures not even worth considering for someone who just wants the functionality, making the figures only attractive to people who collect figures anyway. Not to mention there are only a few Amiibos at the mo so you would have a fair chunk of them from one pack?

I wonder if the cards will be launched alongside some sort of Amiibo game? This would allow dozens/hundreds of new cards to be available in the packs with functionality only for that specific game, with the regular Amiibo characters being in there occasionally as rare cards, solving all the problems above. If this happens I hope they make a pokemon trading card game for Wii U next where you buy actual packs and unlock them in the game through that!

The more I think about it, the more I realise the possibilities are endless, but then I think this with most new Nintendo announcements and they never seem to follow up .

Dammit now I have to buy all the cards to, the collector in mean is a pain in the ass

There are only a few more amiibo I'd prefer to get in figure form (Yoshi, Donkey Kong, Samus and Fox) to complete my collection of original Super Smash Bros. starting roster characters. Beyond those few, I'd be all for amiibo Cards.

Well I still want the Pac-Man amiibo because I want the figure; not for unlockables. I'm very likely to get cards for figures I haven't scanned to get unlocks in Mario Kart, so that cheaper option is appreciated.

I think the regional sales chart is really interesting but what exactly is the sell through rate chart?

Stiiiilllllllllll waiting on wave four. Honestly, I only want one figure (take a guess which one) and having to wait so long for it is kinda annoying. Especially when I hear about all the problems others are having trying to grab their favorites and such. I constantly have to worry about whether I'm going to get mine at all C'mon Nintendo, we shouldn't have to wait MONTHS for waves to be shipped. Heck, I haven't even SEEN any amiibo at all in person yet over here.

Now I might start buying them, let's see the price and how much you get.

If amiibo cards are coming, i'd probably get the cards for use on 3DS and the figures to use on Wii U.

@dandantheman100 has Ness ever been open for pre-order in the States? I know it has across the pond, but I missed the window and didn't get a chance to...

Meh, I mean part of the fun is the collecting, the hunt(even if it has become nearly impossible to find many of them), and the showcasing, just as much as they are actually useful in games (and growing), I'm uninterested in the cards, but I like the idea of offering something for those on a budget, or can't find the ones they want to use in game.

@Sir_JBizzle - I'm based in the UK myself, where it has gone up on a few sites, and is not available anymore

Cards are a good counter to the current situation for several reasons:

1. Not everyone is going to be fortunate enough to find the figure they want. One can say, "They're useless!" or "They're no fun!" only because they happened to either be fortunate enough to acquire their choice, or spent an amount of time and effort on finding them that would be more appropriate for something that is not being mass produced.

2. Unlike most digital DLC, one can actually share these cards with others, so you don't have to buy the same digital DLC multiple times for everyone. Having physical ownership of the means of DLC has pros and cons, but it ensures you actually own that copy of the delivery medium, rather than being licensed it, so it cannot be suddenly taken from you by a gaming related company for arbitrary legal reasons.

3. They're economical. Not everyone has spare money vaults to burn on collecting these things, so the cards are plainly more accessible. Besides, not everyone has physical storage to keep all of these figures. The matter of economics also raises the question of why anyone would pay $30 and upwards for DLC that may, for all we know, be worth less than $5.

4. It's more environmentally friendly to produce millions of cards, even if the paper printer company still uses outdated and toxic methods of producing them, than to manufacture millions of PVC figures. Polyvinyl chloride is one of the most toxic consumer product materials to work with, recycle, and allow to leach out in trash dumps; we should be abolishing the use of PVC, not encouraging it.

5. Nintendo was once a Hanafuda card company, so this is another way to continue carrying on that tradition. A physical representation and record of tradition is arguably more meaningful than something that is purely digital, of which is without any physical legacy to share or leave behind for future generations. (Yes, Nintendo has some history as a toy company, but compared to their contemporaries, Nintendo more closely identifies with quirky Gunpei Yokoi style gizmos like the Ultra Hand, rather than with the ever popular action figure.)

So... yeah, this is a good move.

This is smart. Certainly they cannot keep up with making more figures, especially as the gradually release more and more. Plus it has to be insanely cheap, not that amiibos are expensive to begin with. Plus, now amiibo content is easily accessible on the road with the 3DS.

Me personally, I don't care. I want the figures so I can brag to my friends when they come over.

This is all fantastic news. Would love to see them re-release some of the Amiibos that sold out quickly (I bought two Pits for $35 each) so more have a chance to grab them.

"Iwata-san revealed that the big N still plans to release an external NFC reader/writer to enable 3DS owners who haven't yet upgraded to "New Nintendo 3DS" hardware to use amiibo within games such as Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS - this add-on device is now planned for a Summer release." Glad to hear an update on this, thanks!

Nintendo should just sell Amiibos directly. I can understand why stores might not want to carry all these figures for space constraints. I think they could still sell a sizeable amount of figures that were discontinued.

Well, the "sales ranking" results are to be expected when you limit quantity of certain figures moreso than others... So, of course you're not going to see an exclusive shop's character up there, even if the demand were high enough to ensure it... It's a rather pointless chart.

The sell-through rankings are more interesting, if their meaning is how quickly individual figure models sell out. Again, though, varying quantities of stock for individual models skews the results of this chart, making it a somewhat less clear indicator than if every amiibo were shipped in at least nearly equal numbers.

For example, in my local Gamestops, Bowsers languish on the shelves, while Shulks were sold out by preorder 1-2 weeks ahead of time. Not to menion, a stock of 15-20 Bowsers for a single store, compared to closer to 5-10 Shulks, combined with the Xenoblade exclusivity, creates a recipe for no Shulks to ever be seen on Gamestop store shelves throughout this region of the USA.

IMO the amiibo card form got a nifty idea: 1.) for those who rather to use Amiibo 'DLC' content than owning figures and 2.) for those a creative people who creates very own DIY custom figures and stick a card on it..if it's small enough.

"This is exciting news for amiibo fans who have struggled to obtain some of the more collectable figurines;"

@Deltadon replied to that best, if people wanted a card of an amiibo they could just print a photo of it off the internet, most people aren't getting these for the in game DLC, which is mostly next to worthless, but for their collections.

BTW - both Disney Infinity and SKylanders figures have always come with cards packaged along w/ the figures. Both Disney Infinity 1.0 and 2.0 are free to play on a PC when you enter a code off the card, and theres a Toybox version for Apple (no Android yet). Skylanders Lost Islands is a free game on Android where you can enter the codes from the cards to get those characters in game.

So Nintendo isn't doing any favors by selling out of amiibo and then selling cards, they are really charging twice for collectors who will want both figure and card yet not helping out those who want a figure they can't find.

And what's w/ Fox not being on the US list? it is one of if not the best detailed figure.

I don't really care for amiibo. I certainly don't have to room to display dozens of figurines, so even if I did buy them they'd most likely end up in a box anyway. Cards are a good alternative. The concept isn't strange at all, people have been collecting cards for ages, they're cheaper to produce and easier to use. I've said it last year, and I'll say it again; I'm interested.

I'll pass if i wanted to keep collecting cards,i'll go back to Yu-Gi-Oh.

It appears that either Nintendo is phasing out Link or his sales are extreme because I have a hard time finding him. At the beginning of Amiibo it seemed like he was in stock everywhere.

I think this is happening to Fox.

The cards are a cool idea, but unless they're just a piece of paper with a chip inside, I don't think I will buy them. Maybe they could persuade me by putting them in bundles for a good value or maybe if you didn't like them, you could trade some in for an amiibo figure. Having the in game content from the amiibo is cool but I mostly like to get amiibo so I can display my favorite nintendo mascots

@StarDust4Ever I dunno, I haven't seen Venom very much...

As long as they're cheap I might get them. Should be less than $5 each. Or $3.

@rjejr

I totally get what you're saying, but I think you're forgetting that the 3DS now uses amiibos. Sure, who wants cards in place of figures when you're sitting at home? No one. However, having cards allows much easier portability with the 3DS.

Look at Code Name STEAM for instance with Fire Emblem characters. You have to re-scan the chip if they die in the game. If you're on the road, who wants to carry around amiibos with their 3DS? Cards allow for easier transportation for those interested in the extra content. Plus these will be insanely cheap to produce and sell, nor do I believe that it will take sales away from amiibo figures. I find this to be a rather smart, low risk move.

Great!! I'll place priority on the figures more than the cards of course, but I'll buy cards of the characters I can't find or have multiple functionalities in different games that would require wiping my amiibo's memory.

Hopefully the cards get here soon, I'm not a big enough nerd to buy the figures.

I hope that they don't sell the amiibo cards in booster packs. Buying random cards would be awful.

My Kirby is still in the box, I just couldn't bare to mess up the beautifull packaging, so a Kirby card is very welcome.

If they sell a complete pack for a fair price I could see the value in that.

YES!!! thank you Nintendo! im more interested in the cards format

@TwilightV
If that were true I would expect to see figures like Marth at the bottom if the list, but he's not.

@rockodoodle I've been thinking about that, and it would seem like a no-brainer for Nintendo. They could even adopt a Tee Fury style model have orders for amiibo open for a period of time, then when that window closes, print and ship them en masse. Though I don't know how economically feasible that is, as printing T-shirts are a heck of a lot easier than molding a figurine surely.

@dandantheman100 Ahh that's what I thought. I've only ever checked Amazon UK, it's where I was able to pre-order Wario, Charizard and a couple of Toads. The Super Mario line opened up for pre-order a some-odd weeks ago in the US and I initially missed out on US Toad (that I eventually got in) but still have yet to hear about pre-order for the other Wave 4s. I wish Nintendo would announce pre-order dates for these things, all these small sporadic pre-order Windows are extremely hard to keep up with. Haha

But I buy amiibo's because they look cool I don't want cards.

I'm happy for the card format.

Honestly, I bought a DK Amiibo and have it still in the box, but I don't have the room or desire to collect a bunch of figures at $13 a pop...and having to track down rare ones means the few I might buy I didn't buy because it's not worth the hassle.

So I'm looking forward to the cards. I grew up collecting comics and (American) Football and X-Men cards...I'd rather have a deck of quality cards then pay $13 for each figure.

Question: In America, sports cards are really popular with kids and collectors. Do you have them, and if so, are they popular in the United Kingdom or Europe in general?

It's not surprising Link is the most popular. He's the only one that supports all 3 initial games (unless you count the crap you get from others in Hyrule warriors, I don't)

Cool, I'll just go ahead and stick those cards riiiiight next to my Amiibo figures. That's a good substitute.

I wonder what will be on these cards, because I'll gladly pass if it's just the figurines without... well, a figurine.
I'm kinda expecting popular NPC's and bosses coming to us this way - Kid Icarus alone would have over 20 of those!

Also, while the amiibo cards have potential, I'm mostly hoping for some 3rd parties to get involved with this.

Maybe if they continue bringing more figures to stores.

@Captain_Gonru

"I think what @rjejr was saying is that perhaps we should have had BOTH in the box from the start, as is the case with the Skylanders and Disney Infinity figures. Then, they could be rereleasing cards only (presumably at a lower price) after the figures have run their course."

That's fair. I don't think Nintendo was really "ready" when it came to the amiibo release. I believe it was a reaction to the poor shareholders meeting last year so they could sidestep the heat they were getting for neglecting smartphone games. It kind of seems shoehorned into Smash Brothers if you ask me. Who in their right mind would willingly make a Luigi figure like that? Just saying.

I just don't understand the backlash here. The chips aren't the problem, it's the making of the molds that will always be the issue here. No manufacturing will be lost by making amiibo cards. If people don't want to buy them then who cares? It's not like they will lose money on this venture. I'm not directing this at you, btw, I'm just not understanding why people are so upset by this.

I think it's a good option for the people who don't want to spend all their money on the figurines and want the DLC that can be unlocked with them. I just hope Nintendo keep restocking the rare amiibo, I REALLY need Shulk >:C

Yay! This is good news indeed.

@Jahir

I'm not sure if you have Gamestops where you live, but my wife got lucky by ordering Shulk from their website while in the store with the help of a manager. That's complex, I know, and I'm not sure what allowed for such a transaction, but she's apparently set once they get more shipments. I'm not sure if you can still order them, but you may want to investigate it.

The cards seem like a great idea but id prefer the figurines more cuz they are cool! But when the cards do come out they need to be cheaper then the figurines cuz unless u r a collecter, people won't buy $14 cards. They need to be atleast 5 or less.

Nintendo, I thought you were concerned with producing less waste and being a more "earth friendly" company??? At least that is the impression I got with the low energy using Wii U, the lack of manuals, and the flimsy game cases nowadays but now you are creating even more physical waste for the environment with these products. Oh, and for the record I am not one of those environmental people (I have over 10 amiibo); I just find it funny that it is a reason they gave for lack of manuals and the weak game cases I feel like I can rip in half.

I think the cards will come in randomized packs sealed in foil wrap so that they cannot be scanned. You buy a 15 pack of Amiibo cards for like $15 (because NFC chips aren't "free"), and you get 12 commons, 2 uncommons, and 1 rare. So you have to buy a metric ton of card packs and trade the rare cards at swap meets and resell shops in order to get a complete set. This is how nearly every collectible card game or series works.

As a result, there will be bazillions of unwanted Marios, Yoshis, Pikachus, Kirbys, etc floating about. Knowing Nintendo, there will probably be a Mario in a minimum 2 out of every 3 decks...

I would prefer this. Cards or coins.

@sarethums Coins would be cool, but they would have to be plastic because metal would interfere with NFC operation.

Now I regret opening my figure collection... Cards would have made it pointless...

@MoonKnight7

I ordered Shulk online and actually got him delivered. For the most part, I have little interest in these things because Nintendo doesn't want me to buy them (or they'd ship enough so that I could without going to ridiculous measures), but wanted Shulk because Xenoblade was my favorite Wii game by a long shot.

I'm not opening that one.

No Luigi love. sob

@MoonKnight7 I live in Mexico, so it's kinda hard to get rare amiibo. The biggest retailer (Gameplanet) hasn't even put it on pre-order yet, wich is worrying

I think It'd be really cool if Nintendo put a Shulk amiibo in a Xenoblade Chronicles 3D bundle (console, game and amiibo) given the rarity of it. A man can dream...

@Flowerlark Little Mac is Wave 2...

@stardust4ever i was thinking something similar to the base of the amiibo figures

@Jahir Hi, i´m from Mexico too and I agree here are very expensive games and the Amiibos are expensive too and very rare to found (except 5 figures that are in all stores, the most common).

@DarkEdi I usually buy games at the frikiplaza, they're a lot cheaper there than in Gameplanet or Gamers. Last weekend I bought Majora's Mask 3D for 630 pesos, wich is just 30 pesos more than the "real" price (40*15=600).

I also found some rare amiibo there, but the prices are kinda ridiculous, they sell a Little Mac amiibo for like 600 pesos.($40 USD for the curious)

@StarDust4Ever (Reggie reads comment) S-stock... figures...? What's that supposed to mean?

I'm already not a fan of low quality Amiibos and the gimmick DLC they are used for, but if all games have their Amiibo DLC like Codename Steam, where you need to keep rescanning to ensure you didn't sell, trade, or share your Amiibo, it's an even bigger ripoff than before. With the card, you get the disadvantages of having to abide by the same "don't sell or share this" restriction, but you don't even get the figure.

@Jahir I´m from DF too. My Wii U ID is edi_tena

@MoonKnight7 - Cards make sense for the 3DS - my wife and I actually had that discussion over lunch - but cards won't replace amiibo for the collectors. And as I pointed out in my ealrier post the cards could easily be included in the amiibo box, just as both Skylanders and Disney Infinity figures do, though not with NFC, but they do have bar codes and serial numbers.

So yes, cards are a nice option for 3DS owners, but not for collectors, which was the original comment in the artucle I was replying to:

""This is exciting news for amiibo fans who have struggled to obtain some of the more collectable figurines;""

If you are an "amiibo fan" I don't see how cards would excite you as you struggle to collect figures.

Just gotta get a Ness and then I never have to worry abouy Amiibos ever again. I managed to get a Rosalina at Target, so how hard can it be to get a Ness which, so far, seems like it won't be a store exclusive?

Great. For us people who cant get an amiibo locally, this will be easy to import.

The way my amiibo collection is looking right now, it's a little too late for me to go the card route. I already start collecting to complete series and it would be weird to have figures of Marth and Ike but cards of Robin and Lucina.

Well at least the line about the additional production and the Nintendo direct with Project S.T.E.A.M and Marth bring me some comfort. Fingers crossed for a good King Dedede and Metaknight stock this week.

@JaxonH I think the bottom list represents how quickly an amiibo sold at retail, while the top list shows how many were sold overall. Marth isn't on the top list for US + Canada, obviously because of a shortage of stock.

Around the functionality that you say Mario amiibo from Smash works on Party and vice versa from Mario Party works on Smash same as its one amiibo figure or each have uniq things or each game recognize own Mario amiibo figure ? That i would like to know

@rjejr

Absolutely, cards ≠ figurines. There is no comparison, and the quote from NL just silly. Those of us on here want collectibles cause we're die hard fans. Well most of us anyway, haha.

I'm just looking beyond the article. I assume we haven't gotten all the information yet from these translations. I expect an article later saying the real purpose of these cards is to address the 3DS's portability.

@Quorthon

My wife absolutely loves that game as well. She loves it so much, that she's considering getting the 3DS one. She loves gaming on the go.

@Jahir

I wouldn't give up hope. I'm sure you'll get it eventually. Your bundle idea is a good one!

I'm fine with this. It's a good way for people to get the Amiibos they want to actually play with. Although I play with all of my Amiibos, I collect them more for the purpose of collecting, since they're figures. If I just bought them for the functionality, then I would definitely go for the cards instead since they would definitely be cheaper.

As long as they don't see the cards as a lazy way to release the rest of the Smash Bros roster... they honestly have nothing to lose by releasing both card and figure versions of the Smash Bros roster tbh.

@MoonKnight7 - "No manufacturing will be lost by making amiibo cards."

From a manufacturing perspective that's likely true as the cards will probably be made in a different location from the amiibo.

BUT, I'm guess Ninteod's thinking is they don't need to make more of an amiibo like Wii Fit Trainer or Villager b/c they are making the cards instead, so in that regard manufacturing IS LOST by Nintendo taking the easy way out and making the cards instead of more of the hard to find figures.

@Captain_Gonru - "Wii Fit Trainer AI buddy"

Something about that statement makes me think life sized and inflatable

@MoonKnight7 - " I expect an article later saying the real purpose of these cards is to address the 3DS's portability."

I expect several articles on "amiibo cards" or whatever they will be called. Mostly about their lack of availability and how much they are going for on eBay

If they sold them in packs, i would consider getting them (for a fair price, of course). I wasn't interested in the figures, due to space and $$$ restrictions.

@rjejr

Hahaha, well played sir, well played.

I wonder if the cards will sold in blind packets.

@Ryno
Right?! The rest of the game makers used the same lame excuse, when in reality its We'll save a couple bucks not printing the manual! I think EA started this trend of no manuals and now, its the norm as gamers kept buying anyways. At least on the Wii U, you can use the home button to bring up the manual, unlike with Sony or Microsoft's consoles, where you have to go to a website to download a PDF.

That is all well and good but one of the main reasons that I want Amiibo is because they are a nice collectable figurine. Not too eager for one in card form.

Hope the Captain Falcon sales prompt Nintendo to seriously consider making a new F-Zero.

I honestly don't have any interest in getting amiibo in a card form. If I can't get them as a figurine, I probably won't be getting them at all. It is cool for those who want them though. I am only planning on getting the characters I like most anyway. I don't need them all.

Regrettably, my ship has sailed and now I HAVE to complete my collection with the figures. I do not regret them making cards because this can and will be good for those who can put them to good use. But my ambitions override my better judgment.

Look inside and you will find the amiibo within...

Edit: Well, that was fast! Okay, I do regret the cards a little bit. Why not make new shipments of the figures?

The only Amiibo figures I'm interested in is Rosalina, Fox, and maybe Lucario. Don't particularly care for the rest, but would like the perks that others grant in the various games, so cards would be a good option there.

@MoonKnight7 - 2 laughing replies in a row, my work here is done

@Captain_Gonru - I typed "otto pil" into Google and when google auto completed to "otto pilot inflatable" I decided not to finish the search as my family is eating dinner behind me. Maybe later after they're all asleep.

Well, atleast one good thing will come out of this, more legitimate sales of amiibo and fewer people being ripped of by scalpers.

@rjejr
I don't know if it will really help with supply of the figures, but I know it will help when there is functionality I want to unlock, but I'm not as interested in the figurine. For instance, the Kirby figures. King Dedede looks fantastic but I'm unlikely to find one. I'd still like to get his features for the game and a cheaper card would be nice for that. Also, I already have several simple toy figurines for the main Mario crew — love my Bullet Bills — so the simple Amiibo ones don't appeal to me much, but it might be fun to do the extra boards in Mario Party 10.

I get that I won't be able to find every figure (really want that Kid Icarus, but not for $50), but when I can't get functionality in a game either that's even more disappointing.

Also, some people will see the cards for cheaper and say, "I don't really need the figurine." How many remains to be seen, but if it helps 5 to 10 people per store maybe I'll have a better chance once in a while.

I welcome the cards.

The Amiibo card is actually a great idea. The figurine looks quite cheap in quality, and to be fair, for $13, we can't expect a lot.

For card, we can expect it to be better quality (hopefully plastic, we can't get much better than that), nice illustration and cheaper. I'm actually leaning toward collecting an Amiibo card than figurine, as I don't have space for figurines.

It's also makes more sense to go to your friend house and bring a couple of cards around and have a Smash Amiibo match, than bringing a figurine around.

That said, I disappointed that they don't have a premium Amiibo in plan. Imagine if Nintendo teamed up with Good Smile and bring the range of Figma Amiibo! That's profit right there Nintendo!

As much as i would like more stock, the cards won't sell me.

Nintendo has been really bad lately about keeping up with demand for physical products. I don’t have a lot of faith that they’ll do any better with cards than they have with New 3DS systems or gamecube adapters.

If they’re removing the figure aspect then they ought to just sell DLC keys that would unlock content in multiple 3ds and Wii U games at once. Of course that would require a unified account system and Nintendo is really reluctant to catch up with their competitors on that front.

Even if the can make enough cards, how are they going to be sold? In packs? Then you run into the rarity problem all over again because we all know more Marios than Marth’s will be made. Individually? Then the stores that didn’t order enough Villagers … still won’t order enough Villagers. That’s assuming stores stock these at all; I’m sure theft is a bigger problem for small items like cards than slightly larger items like toys in bulky packaging.

I wonder how well this card-amiibo will work, as the most benefit right now from amiibos as a whole comes from the figure itself (and most people complain that the current amiibo content offered isn't enough).

If the card-amiibo are cheap, like $2-4, that may work, any more expensive and Nintendo will have to improve the content offered/unlocked by amiibo, methinks.

I'm going out on a limb here and thinking Nintendo is making an amiibo sandbox game, and the cards is there counter to "high price DLC", so people can get the chars they want for a buck or 2 each, and then collect statues as needed.

Sadly, I check the amiibo set picture that leads into this story, and I total up 9 more I want well done Nintendo, my money going to you yet again

Link also seems to be the most played character online in Smash...

@mantez If that is the case, than each amiibo 'pack' should cost about $4/£3, as that is the price of most trading card games. Wait a minute...Trading card games! Nintendo need to make way more amiibo and make it into a TCG. But I don't know how that would work with all the data storage stuff.

Somebody mentioned coins... I like that idea as well. I don't think I'll jump on the cards unless they have REALLY nice artwork. Guess I'm going to have to start importing the amiibo I'm missing...

@MoonKnight7

I see little not to love in Xenoblade Chronicles, except that I thought the ending took longer to conclude than necessary. Essentially, I thought I was nearly to the end at the 95 hour mark. I finished at 115 hours. At that point, it starts to feel a bit like a slog.

The same thing happened to me, but to a more detrimental effect with Lost in Shadow. I was all "yeah, almost done!" then the game pulled a "surprise! Game-doubling fetch-quest!" and my interest crashed. Pity, up to that point, that was such an enjoyable game.

Game length doesn't concern me, but artificially lengthening the game, especially when it should be logically near the end, not so enjoyable. Xenoblade was still enjoyable, but I had moved fully into rush mode at that point, and stopped exploring much of anything.

I have found it tempting to get a New 3DS just for another round with XC, but I don't have the time to do it all over again!

@Jahir

If it makes you feel any better, those rare Amiibos aren't any easier to find in the US. I don't just live in a city, but in the home state of both Best Buy and Target--so we have no shortage of these stores, and these things are still impossible to find.

I'm only really interested in amiibo for the figures, with any unlocks being an additional bonus, so doubt I'll be picking up any cards...