Weirdness: Lorry Thieves Make Off With Splatoon Special Editions in Europe

Update:

Nintendo UK has now provided the following statement:

We can confirm that the lorry transporting the Splatoon stock from Nintendo's European warehouse to GAME UK has been stolen. Included as part of this delivery was GAME's allocation of the Splatoon + Squid Inkling amiibo and as a result we are unable to honour pre-orders for this item in GAME. We are working with GAME to contact those customers affected. Whilst these unfortunate circumstances were out of Nintendo UK and GAME's control, we apologise for any inconvenience or disappointment that this has caused.

Original Article:

Pre-ordering any Nintendo limited edition is a stumble in the dark, as we blindly hope an order isn't cancelled just before it's due to be shipped. When you add amiibo to the mix cancellations seem inevitable, with the excuse often being that not enough stock was received from Nintendo.

GAME has a new reason though, and it tells the tale of high-stakes crime, speedy getaways and dramatic action scenes straight from a Hollywood movie. That's our interpretation, anyway.

Some pre-order customers in the UK - including your humble writer - are now being told that their Splatoon Special Edition (with included Squid amiibo) order can no longer be fulfilled. Unbelievably, it's due to the lorry transporting this precious cargo being stolen on the road from Nintendo's warehouse in Europe - it's a case of devilish squidnapping.

Below is the email we received.

We regret to inform you that the lorry transporting the Splatoon stock from Nintendo's European warehouse to GAME UK has been stolen. Included in this delivery was our allocation of the Splatoon + Squid Inkling amiibo. As a result, we are unable to honour your original pre-order due for delivery on the 29th May 2015.

Due to these extraordinary circumstances, we will unfortunately not be getting replacements for these missing items. We have no option but to substitute the Splatoon + Squid Inkling in your order with the standard version of the game. You will still receive your Inkling Girl and Inkling Boy amiibo. We will be discounting this edition by £10 from £52.99 to £42.99 to apologise for this inconvenience. We will also be sending your order by First Class post on Friday 29th May, as we want to make sure that you are happy with this substitution.

If you wish to cancel your complete order, or cancel your Splatoon game order and place an order for just the Inkling Girl or Boy amiibo (priced £14.99 each), please contact customer services on 0208 827 0099 or email us at [email protected] by midday Friday. If you wish to accept this substitution you do not need to contact us.

In fairness to GAME, it's trying to make amends by offering a discount on the game + both the boy and girl amiibo, though with this deal it will come after release day. So your scribe and others affected can either have the game late with the Boy and Girl amiibo, hope to get it on time from elsewhere, or sod it all and get it with the demo discount on the eShop. It's only the Special Edition - the only way to get the Squid amiibo in Europe - that's unavailable from GAME.

It's quite a tale - some day it'll make a great heist movie.