Nintendo Is Ramping Up Switch Production Following "Good" Pre-Order Demand

Nintendo is really Switching it up!

More Switches woohoo!

Hell yes.........
Excellent news 😁

Great news! I initially bought a grey Switch but cancelled and ordered a red and blue one instead. When I first saw it I didn't like it but it's really grown on me.

And people were saying that the Switch wasn't selling well.

Let's not get too excited yet, this could just be marketing talk.
In the UK many stores failed to sell out on launch.

I hope they are not basing demand purely on pre-orders, as I have three separate ones! I will cancel two of them closer to launch when it is clear which one will definitely be shipped on time.

@bobba_knight Yep, people be seeing dem grey joycons be all like 'wut? is dey finking Ima grandad or summit?'

@SaKo only because people who don't know many people didn't know anyone who was getting one.

@pinktothelast I'm cancelling my only order unless something big happens regarding the first year line up before launch.

Good news,the more consoles in peoples homes early on,the more support it will receive which in turn will result in more sales,simple really.

I hope this extra production results in my store receiving them on launch day.Their website still has 31st March without a price,they've said they'll know more info soon but doubt they'll have one for launch.Worst thing about it is it's my only option. without spending a fortune on import fees.

Hopefully this means I'll be able to get this thing on release, as I haven't been able to pre-order anywhere since they started taking pre-orders in Japan.

@gcunit it's not a red/blue one by any chance? I was slow to realise I liked that one more, and now all the preorders have gone!

They'll need 15 million this year I guess. One of those is mine:)

@pinktothelast Same here, still need to pick which 2 I will scrub.

@bobba_knight It's grown on me too but I still feel a bit unsure when the Joycons are attached. Just looks a bit too "cobbled" together. I prefer the matching grey look when in portable mode.

Though I'll make sure when the time comes to buy another set of Joycons they will be coloured.

@pinktothelast if you are in UK then check Argos. I pre ordered one from there at the weekend.

Would be great if this was Nintendo's usual approach to combat the NES Classic shortages.

I'm holding off on one for the moment. The only thing that will lure me into getting one on/around launch is if they simultaneously release Gamecube games (particularly Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door and/or F-Zero GX) on the eShop.

@bobba_knight
That's exactly what I did. I said no way when I first saw the neon ones, I liked the look of the all grey premium look of the Switch that would look good along with my other devices but the neon ones soon grew on me. I had to go elsewhere for the neon pre order.

This is great news.
Fill those pre orders and meet the demand, we don't want another Nes Mini fiasco.

With how Nintendo have their games catalogue spaced out I hope they create a snowball effect and entice more and more people to jump off the fence later on in the year.

Now if they would just announce Metroid, a new F Zero with 8 player local and online multiplayer they could just about double pre orders, oh and while I'm wishful thinking throw in Wave Race with the same options thanks.

Cancelled my switch preorder today. Then i asked about nes mini and the store gets 100 consoles every 3rd month so i guess i have to wait until summer to get one or longer.

The problem is that, like PS4 & Xbox One launches, a lot of consoles are snapped up by people that the sell them on eBay. I think the Switch will sell very well at first but Nintendo need to carry the momentum and secure the 3rd party support.

@bobba_knight
huh, you're right. They claim to be able to send it for launch, whereas it is out of stock everywhere else. Any idea if Argos are reliable?

Great news!

How one defines 'success' in the home console market is really no longer clear, given the fragmentation of devices and software. Rather than reading too much into numbers, I think Nintendo would be happy just to have a steady and supportive user base. It's like the saying goes; you can make some people happy sometimes, but not all the people all the time.

@pinktothelast yes they were the only people I found offering Day One delivery. Honestly I don't know because I have never done home delivery with them before. But they are well rated on Google and obviously are a big provider so could well have the infrastructure to manage this. I will be waiting next to the front door all day on 3rd to see if they deliver!

@bobba_knight Just remember Argos takes all the money up front on a pre-order. You can still cancel and get a refund though.

So, the system won't be on store shelves for almost a year, people will be selling theirs on Amazon and Ebay for 50% more cost, nintendo will still have barely any manufactured, which will get more 'nintendo-doomed' related stories on the internet...and the people that actually want one, will be waiting for almost a year like they had to with the Wii. Great to see that nintendo just now saw this...maybe if they would have seen this after they had the presentation, they could have had another 2 million ready for launch...this thing will be just as hard to find as the Playstation VR.

What a con! Smokescreen and mirrors. More likely, now we've ramped up fake demand we'll uncover the reality, MANY units were always available from the get go.

In UK, both Amazon and Nintendo Store sites still have the grey available to pre-order. Only the Neon out of stock

Yeah ordered the switch with grey joycons but as time has progressed I preferd the red and blue so ordered the red and blue joycons and a charging grip.
Job done

I always wonder at UK pre-order stock. Many companies, especially catalogue stores, seem to oversell stock they aren't actually allocated and leave many people disappointed.

That's supposing the 2 million was the actual amount available and not a line to create artificial scarcity. Finding it hard to trust anyone these days. Not sure if that's sensible or lamentable.

@Judgedean Thanks for the heads up. Also meant to say that they offer £10 voucher when you buy the console. So can put it towards a game.

@BensonUii I think it's a given more colours will come. I want a silver one to sit beside my Gamecube.

@Bunkerneath

Amazon have a disclaimer on that grey one:

"Note: Please be advised that Amazon has sold through our allocation of Nintendo Switch."

@pinktothelast Yes, I ordered the Neon pack from Amazon. Tell you what, I'll make it yours for £450 rofl

I'm so happy to hear this! Can't wait for my grey Switch with limited BOTW on March 3rd!

Thank goodness, I can only mirror other commenters relief that this won't be as bad as the NES mini situation!
Nintendo needs to learn that actually having stock to sell will result in higher sales!!

@Sakura As someone who worked in Gamestop Ireland for a while, this is pretty much true. So many times the company oversold its preorders (the gamestop business practice is literally PREORDERS PREORDERS PREORDERS) not just on Nintendo stuff but everything. Consoles, games, accesories, limited editions.

Either Gamestop isn't told their exact allocation, or they're told but don't pass that info onto stores (most likely the latter, given the incompetent clowns at head office). Not to mention the absolutely terrible POS systems that aren't even live and can't lock things out, like sold out preorders, because that updates once a day.

@TbobB So they cant honour their pre-orders?
Isn't selling something which you do not have stealing?

Good, that means they aren't betting their futures on scalpers.

I still hope we get more units in March for those that just want to walk in and buy.

@Equinox based on what I've read in the comment sections here it's going to fail miserably, Nintendo probably read the comments here and decided to be cautious.

@Damo
"Did someone say hot cakes?"
More like: "Did someone say pie?"

Also, if the console sells well... what about the naysayers?

I'll round up all the naysayers, whether they were such out of spite, out of usual Nintendo mockery or, worse, out of their selfish desire to see Nintendo go third-party and release their games on other consoles... AND THEN I WILL FEAST ON THEIR TEARS.

In Nintendo speak, this probably means one more than usual

I really hope it sells well, I know I'm holding off at the moment but intend to buy one around the end of the year. But at least if it gets a decent consumer base then there will be no reason for third parties to abandon it or just give it half-assed ports.

@Bunkerneath
hmmm.. not sure, Amazon aren't charging any money at this stage so they can probably get away with taking more preorders. If they do get more stock, those on the preorder list get first dibs.

What about sales in May, June and July? I expect the launch to be successful and a strong sales in April for people who couldn't grab one in March and waited to get one. However, what will sales be like after that? Mario Odyssey is what will probably tempt me to buy a Switch.

I'll try my luck at the local stores a few days after launch. It happened a lot in the past especially with Nintendo products that all online shops were sold out but the stores in my area still had several pieces in stock.

I imagine Switch will continually be sold out everywhere. Personally, I don't think it's a bad thing. It just says to me that there is interest in it and that it'll continue to sell reasonably for the first few months. Pre-orders aside, I can't wait to see what the actual sales will look like. Fingers crossed for any number higher than the Wii U.

I think once people see it in person, sales will increase. Plan to take mine to work to show off

I regret not preordering. I was in a tough spot, not knowing if I should preorder and somehow have to get one in March or wait for April and get one for my birthday. If more.become available, I'm gonna take the plunge

@Monkeyofthefunk I still don't understand how this happens. Don't stores have a cap for items when there's limited quantity? No one should be allowed to buy more than one console at a time to curb this ridiculous practice

I can't wait for all the stable Switch updates. We will be so stable.

I haven't pre-ordered because I'm waiting to see what games come out first.

I will buy it when I can get it off the shelf in a regular manner.

Which I expect I will be able to do relatively close to launch.

Its on good demand on ebay

@UmbreonsPapa There are limits at some shops but they preorder through many outlets, local shops, big retainers and there's at least 15 online stores as well. The only way to really so it is for people to have to register on a central database but that isn't gonna happen.

My local EB just told me today they have over 70 consoles preordered and they are hoping to get 80 before launch.

Considering I go to a smaller run store - this seems like pretty good news! Sadly may not be a midnight launch yet 😡

Good news. And indeed i saw that the pre order pages where crashed just 30 minutes after it was opened.
Many people where comaining they want to preorder bout couldnt anymore. Another one said they are now sold out, but took the sold out part away. So its a good thing they are ramping it up. Keep em coming. The switch is a hot item. So be sure to put some gloves on before u burn urself lol.

Cant wait to get my hands on it.

@letsplay so much stable. We'll be bored of stable.

@JLPick shows how well you and many other people read.Nintendo done stated that more will be sent 3 weeks after launch lol.so they are doing this and that.eBay sellers won't make nothing as long as Nintendo does this

@Nintendofan83 Nintendo said every 3 weeks more will be shipped

I've been saying for months that I'm done playing Nintendo's low stock games. I refuse to buy their products at a penny more then suggested retail, and I refuse to wait in lines to purchase...and especially to wait in lines to pre-order. Honestly this practice of not stocking enough to create a demand has left a bad taste in my mouth for a company that I once thought could do no wrong. When they chose to not make enough NES Classics and to wait until January to release the Switch details, I chose to buy a PS4 instead! So now I'm in absolutely no hurry to buy their new system. Do I want one? YES. But I'm prepared to wait potentially a year now until the library develops. But I'm also prepared to buy NOW if this news of ramping up production is true.....which I doubt. Didn't they say the same thing about the NES Classic....and I still can't find one of those.

Dear, Mr. Tatsumi Kimishima. Please add more color variation for Nintendo Switch like White or Blue or Aqua color. If 3DS can come in so many colors, Switch needs it also. Thank you.

@Lord ??? Failed to sell out at launch? The thing hasn't launched yet!
Maybe there are still pre-orders that are still available, but it still hasn't failed to sell out at launch. Europeans still have over a month to save their money

I wish I could pre-order a second one. I got one for me, but I should have thought to snag one for my wife too

Same as others. Sounds like many preordered just to hold a spot and are still deciding whether to keep it or not. And many people are reluctant at $300, so scalpers probably won't be able to mark it up too much. I will wait and try to buy local.

@erv They will be lucky if they sell 2 million by years end.

I wondered if the grey or the neon would be the more popular preference. Sounds like the neon. The neon sort of has the arcade Lethal Enforcers vibe. Word on the street is that the neon looks even better in person.

Yep, I will be keeping an eye out for any additional stock availability before launch. I hesitated after that brutal presentation, but now really excited for FAST RMX and redout before Splatoon 2 occupies my free time.

I may be the only one here hoping for another Wario Land title.

I hope it's available launch day. I didn't have the money to snap it up until the day after the presentation and now I can't find one anywhere. Get them out there, Nintendo!

@Slim1999 Well thanks for the 'bust and put down on me'...I can read, and even if they continue shipping out every 3 weeks, that doesn't mean a thing. They did the same with the Wii console, and...at least where I lived in Florida at the time...was still impossible to find for over a year. Plus, they also stated that same story with the NES Mini...and we see how that has happened. Also, I can READ and don't appreciate the rude comment in the beginning. Please do not respond to me again in that way.

@Lord have they sold out yet? Launch isn't for another month. 2 million units it quite a lot for presale especially when comparing to the poor Wii U sales overall.

Not a bad idea; sell out preorders early by being conservative, then drive up demand which you then meet in time for launch day so everyone who wants one can get it. Hope this thing sells well and fast. I adored the Wii U and it's a shame how little love it got.

@JLPick I still haven't seen or had the opportunity to purchase an NES classic but I really don't think this will be the same. The Wii was something of an anomaly. While I love for Nintendo to be successful I don't see this selling like the Wii because it's more of a game console and less of a novelty for Gram-pa to practice his golf swing. Stores get like 5 NES classics in a shipment which is why they are so darn hard to find. This is Nintendo's flagship product, I don't think it will be long before stock at the big stores starts to flow back onto the shelves.

@BensonUii yeah the Japanese have that option, they always get the good deals...I always liked that spice Gamecube they brought out...

Everyone seems to be saying that there's loads left in the UK. Where?

GAME says that they're sold out. They'll happily take your money but you're in the 'second wave', so not launch day.

Argos says they've sold out. Again, they'll happily take your money.

I've got a pre-order thankfully. Even with a pre-order I'm worried I won't get one. On top of that, my girlfriend wants one and, because she's not pre-ordered, is unsure if she can get one. That sucks!

Good news, because I haven't managed to find a place to preorder. All my local stores are sold out. Lol

Nintendo launches are usually pretty good. Wii U, as I recall, had a great launch. It's all about keeping that momentum going and staying competitive in terms of price (questionable so far, to say the least) and software.

I'm hoping the thin launch lineup is just evidence of Nintendo staggering big releases in order to avoid any early droughts.

I'm optimistic, though. The console itself is awesome, BotW is a GREAT launch title, and I have faith that Nintendo will put all of its weight behind this innovative new machine.

I did pre-order and I'll download Zelda at launch. I'm also interested in that paper clips game and might even get 1,2 Switch.

Seeing how people these days make and then cancel pre-orders like it's a joke or a statement of something, I wouldn't trust those numbers. But anyway, this is good news, I really hope the Switch launch isn't anything like the Wii, where it took what felt like a year to get one from amazon at the right price.

@Monkeyofthefunk Not a problem for Nintendo if scalpers buy 3 preorders for $300 a pop. Even if the scalpers cancel their preorders Nintendo can still decide to choke launch supply to meet demand. Wii, NES classic, and now Switch. There is no way Nintendo is going to produce too many. If scalpers were smart they would keep their preorders. Of course I think there are a lot of trolls masqurading a scalpers that say they are going to scrap their preorders. Nintendo is already past the date they would need to start producing for day one deliveries. I am betting any increase will hit mid April, if that.

@MarioPhD It will be loved in 5-10 years like the Saturn and Gamecube before it my friend. However, I hope the Switch is loved right out of the gate.

This is proof that the Switch is the WiiU all over again!!! </sarc>

It's too early to tell. As many others have said, some preorders will cancel, some are scalpers, and pre-orders are always going to be among the most loyal customers. Even WiiU had a strong launch and sold out. It's what happens after the first month that really shows how the system is doing. But it's still a good omen to have a very strong launch out of the gate, and they're explicitly avoiding the travesty that was the post-WiiU launch (new console: no new games for months, and then none again for months after those 3 or 4 came out.) News on Project Cars was pretty much the only WiiU news from January until late March. It shouldn't be difficult for Switch to avoid that first-year blues.

@Ralizah
The price issues are so overstated online. It's cheaper than competing consoles at launch. Not cheaper than older consoles that have been around for a while, which is generally the argument people have, that someone walking into a store will buy the cheaper one, but if you haven't bought a PS4 in the past 3 years, it was either too expensive or you didn't want one. If you haven't bought one since the last price drop, but are still interested in buying a gaming console, the most likely reason is just not wanting a PS4. Meanwhile Switch is new and PS4 is old. Everybody walking into a store to buy a console (or any tech) knows that the newest ones will be more expensive than the older ones. I don't think Switch needs to price itself down to old tech levels to sell. If people are buying PS4 after 3 years it's because they wait until inevitable price drops to buy tech rather than paying new product premiums (or because they actually looked at the game library for the first 3 years ), and would apply the same purchase delay to a Switch.

But yes, Reggie specifically has mentioned that horrible drought cycle on WiiU and that they're staggering the launches because of that. Sadly he had to do it in a defensive response about the lackluster launch day (seriously, who's buying launch day except the people that don't need convincing to buy one?)

WiiU is a case study in everything that can go wrong going wrong. The WiiU itself wasn't even the worst of the problems, it was a good machine that was just hit with a mix of bad marketing, some design oversites, and far too many conflicts both from the market and their own short sighted planning. One would have to try excessively hard to replicate that failure given all the converging problems that led to the result.

Good! I really, really wnt this thing to be a success. It probably won;t sell as much as the Wii but I hope it sells at least 30 million.

@Anti-Matter
I like how you think. White and blue would be my dream mixed color. But if I could get a bundle of just one color, I would love gold. Don't see that happening though

@Wexter Gotta add the Dreamcast to that list as well.... all machines struck down before their prime. But here's hoping thew Switch turns out to be a new Wii, but with better support from third parties beyond party games and such.

Perfect timing Nintendo, pick the week that all the factories in China are closed to celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year to say you are making more. Nice. It started Saturday 28 this year.

http://www.supplychaincowboy.com/preparing-for-chinese-new-year/

These things are made in China - not this week - need to sail on big cargo ships to the US, then have to be unloaded and sent to regional distribution offices before being shipped to stores. This can take 4 - 6 weeks. Any orders Nintendo puts in now will not be in the US for launch. Japan is right there, I'm guessing the EU gets stock by train, so probably shorter turn around, but they still need to be produced and sent.

This is why I have continually said Nintendo should have opened pre-orders in November or December. These werent "pre-oders" in the traditional sense, Nintendo wasn't trying out find out how many to make to meet demand, this was just simply Nintendo selling the amount they had already decided to make. It was pre-selling. Now that they know what demand is it's too late to meet at launch, it's physically impossible.

It's good that they are making more, but these are for late March and April, not launch.

I got the neon preordered, I'm glad to hear it's moving well. It's a good first step. I'm interested to see what stock looks like in may personally. I think as people see others with the switch, demand might increase, and if there isn't stock on shelves, the interest might wane.

@dkxcalibur
One thing that we all forget about the NES Classic is that it's a Western product ONLY. They have to run special production just for non-Japan to produce the shell, and probably produced it expecting demand was going to be very small since all the 3DS/WiiU owners wouldn't be wanting one. (Stupid judgement, but that's the judgement they made over in Kyoto.) Switch on the other hand is the same console for Japan and the West so they don't need to worry about special production runs for us, they just need to match supply with global demand. It's logistically a lot easier for them to manage.

I DO think getting one in March if not pre-ordered will prove challenging though. I don't think it will be a year-long wait either though. It won't be Wii, which was almost a living room toy more than a console. By E3 I think all the early adopters will be able to have one.

@Anti-Matter Oh you can bet they will! That was a given even before we saw the Red/Blue. But I don't know they will make many special color CONSOLES for a while, just JoyCons. I think you'll see the first limited edition console, whenever the first Pokemon launches. Or maybe Monster Hunter.

@NEStalgia I agree they're overstated, and I've said before that $300 is most definitely not an unreasonable price for a new console in 2017. It's not really competitive at the moment, though (and to be fair, at launch, it doesn't need to be). I'm just hoping that Nintendo prices it aggressively during the holidays, black friday, etc.

@Anti-Matter It would be nice if there was a watermelon theme. Seems like it would work pretty well considering the placement of the Joycon's and the console. The console would probably work fairly with two tone variations thanks to the design, kind of tired of seeing single tone consoles really.

@th3r3ds0x I hope so. I ended up getting lucky one day with the Wii...a few weeks after it's launch, I walked into Gamestop to get some games (not even for the Wii), and they ended up getting two Wii's in...guy asked me if I wanted one, I said yes and bought it. Will never get that lucky again, but I've been glad that I was able to buy the PS4 at launch (without stores running out or waiting in line for one...never even preordered) and I even got lucky with the 3DS. Hopefully I can do the same with Switch, because I wasn't one of the lucky ones able to preorder, and I'm waiting until income tax return towards the middle of Feb to be able to get one preordered with at least 2 games for my wife.

I live in the US does Nintendo UK ship here?

@letsplay I like your avatar!

Also with no more region locking does it matter where I buy the console?

@NEStalgia I happen to disagree. You do bring up some great points about production of the NES Classic being specific to the west while Japan got the Famicon Mini. However, it is my belief that this would not be a problem for any company the size of Nintendo to work out. Also, they did the same exact thing with the Amiibos early on and those are region free. I strongly believe that part of Nintendo's marketing campaign for it's new products consist of creating a demand for their products. The media will report that the products are hard to find and are being sold on ebay for insane amounts and it creates a demand. Now people who might not have even wanted one will see the system months from now on a shelf at Target and say, "wow, they actually have a Switch here, I should probably buy it because they're a hard to find item".

I'm a father of two and I've been burnt by this too many times over the last 2-3 years. While we love Nintendo systems & games, I've grown tired of the antics. But just to be clear, I am not a Nintendo hater. In fact, I love Nintendo. They consistently make games that you come back to over and over again. They make games that you keep playing for years. I've played great games on other systems but those games don't have legs IMO. Once I play them thru I'm done. We're still playing Mario Kart 8 and we bought it day one. Nintendo systems are built to last as well.

@AlexSora89 Your comment #44 deserves SO many more likes, but currently, there are once again more people wanting to be whining and moaning about all the things Nintendo is doing wrong "again".

This thread is still reasonably palatable, for now. I already wondered where all the numbskulls were, but they're probably still busy complaining and spouting their nonsense in the "Yooka-Laylee confirmed for Switch" thread, another REALLY positive message that they are determined to turn sour for whatever deluded reason...

It's a sad state of affairs, far as I am concerned. I hope you have many, many tears to feast upon soon.

@NEStalgia #88 Spot on, but most (if not all) of the whiners still won't understand that reality check...

Everyone on the Internet knew 2 million global wasn't enough, without data. What's wrong with Nintendo's estimates every dang time??

@rjejr They had a 2M volume to sell for what reggie referred to as "3 weeks" in March (probably a second wave was expected week 3) , and not all of those were allocated for preorders, some of that is reserved retail stock, and that includes Japan. If a second wave arrives late march or early april, that's fairly solid timing.

More importantly we're assuming the new production is going to ship to the US. It would make more sense to ship the already made inventory that was going to Japan to the US and EU, and just bring the newly made ones to fulfill Japan's orders, which is almost certainly already what they planned when they said long ago that they can scale production if demand requires it. They could get the reinforcements here for launch week or so, don't have to wait for Chinese factories to produce again, and the ones made in China can be made up to the last week in Feb. It only takes days to get it to Japan. IF Nintendo knows what they're doing, that's all simple enough to do. And the closed week won't matter. Some parts are made in Japan, traditionally, so advance production of components may be starting this week before they can even supply final assembly in China anyway.

@dkxcalibur
I've thought for a long time Nintendo relies on the "Cabbage Patch Doll" marketing scheme of shorting supplies, however some of their recent issues really show more of them just mismatching demand and supply. WiiU, they made tons of, and expected to sell tons of....and then got stuck with the supplies. Amiibo...who actually thought they would be successful? After years of Skylanders fatigue I think Toys to Life was considered a good side cash cow before it fades, and they never expected they'd be the leaders in the segment (none of us here did, that's for sure, I doubt they did either!) Yeah, they should have ramped up faster...but then they didn't want to be stuck with surplus when the demand suddenly dropped out (which did end up happening). I think they're just very conservative with their estimates because they'd rather fall short and generate fake demand than have a surplus and have to eat the loss (like WiiU and later Amiibos.) But I do now believe they try to actually get it right in the center. I do wish they'd produce more and meet demand better. But I'm not really convinced it's all a marketing scam these days either.

One thing is "a company of Nintendo's size" isn't really that big. Most of that size is in software development, distribution, marketing, etc. etc. If we look at just their hardware department, it's not particularly large, and lets not forget that they don't actually own their own manufacturing facilities like, say, Sony. (Then again neither does Apple in terms of iPhone.) So when you have to buy manufacturing services it's generally quoted per wave for x number of production days, with minimum quotas, and an advance for tooling etc. So they had to know many months ago how many to order on wave 1, wave 2 had already been scheduled long ago as well, but apparently with a clause to increase the quantity. , etc. It's a really weird world where manufacturers don't actually manufacture anything unless they're really specialized in the manufacture. They just make the design and spec out the build, then hire another company (usually Foxconn/Hon Hai) to actually manufacture things. And the world has moved to JIT production, where you aim to never have a spare unit in a warehouse at any time, which is, IMO, a really beautiful ideal that has no place in the real world. I don't envy the people that have to get that right. But personally, I do think they should realize by now their estimates are always low.

@Ralizah Yep. Though I'm still not expecting "aggressive pricing' for the holidays. It will depend on demand. I expect demand will remain high enough at current pricing that they won't need any price cuts through year 1. I think they're prepared to do it if they must, but only if they must. I DO think there will be bundles at the holidays (of course) with a game and/or accessories to increase the value perception (and that was planned from the start.) That's probably part of the reason for a March launch. Get the early adopters in the door without having to give too much incentive, then toss the incentive in.

@rjejr Yes. Thank you. I noticed many people here taking this to mean that there would be more Switches on day one of the launch which isn't very likely. However, I consider late March and early April still part of "the launch". Not everyone is busting down doors to get one on the first day. I'd expect a fair amount of fence-sitters and more careful consumers to suddenly start looking in earnest after the first or second weekend when they will get to see one in person.

It's actually really important timing to get these well-stocked before April 28th when Mario Kart drops. I'd say that's the critical point of the launch window. We'll get a good idea how much gamers care by then. A better idea at E3 and will be able to make some judgments about the longer term fate of the console by early 2018 (after Holiday + Mario if it makes it under the wire).

I was lucky enough to get a pre-order in for my switch and breath of the wild. I then found a pre-order for breath of the wild special edition. Now I just have to hope that the special edition is here launch day so I don't have to open the regular one. And no, I cant just wait, it's Zelda.

It's really good to hear about pre-orders selling out which is a good sign for the Switch and Nintendo now.

I'm still really annoyed Japan gets to choose the color of their joycons.

Pre-order pending tax refund. I'm on the case!

Wow I'm very surprised. Nintendo is FINALLY ramping up the supply of a product to, ya know, ACTUALLY meet demand for once. This is a nice change of pace unlike how they handled the release of the original Xenoblade, Majora's Mask Limited edition, Majora's Mask Limited edition 3ds, amiibo, NES Classic Mini, Black Friday 3ds, Fire Emblem Fates Special Edition, etc.

@remag I know right! I needed good news today after some disheartening news from my favorite comic book franchise. So seeing that at least Nintendo is succeeding somehow is encouraging.

@Jessica286

Isn't it just......... its looking really promising tbh

@aaronsullivan I think it's very important to have a steady stream of them, not like NES that really seemed to sell out and disappear. Does anybody even talk about NES anymore? But yeah, seemed like people were thinking "at launch", March 3rd or 4th or 5th, but these won't make it for then, these are the "keep it coming" stock for after the launch. Weeks after, not days.

But my main point still stands, pre-orders in early Nov or even Dec wold have given them an idea of how many to make in time for them to be ready at launch on March 3rd, not March 23rd.

But it's still good for them to say this. Though I wonder how many more they'll really make, are we talking 5 mil more or 50k more? Will they all be on eBay in 5 minutes or on store shelves for a few days? 1 more month.

@NEStalgia "IF Nintendo knows what they're doing"

I'll bet against that "IF". Every. Single. Time.

@ThanosReXXX
You mean the pie part or me sadistically rambling about those delicious tears, flowing from the empty eye sockets of millions of skulls belonging to all those poor, misled souls?

Ehm... in my defense, I blame this on Tycho's ramblings on Penny Arcade. That guy can pull off some twisted imagery!

@rjejr I can't disagree, but this time it's no longer happy-go-lucky everybody's-my-friend Iwata at the helm, it's Kimishima the banker. I'm going to guess he runs a much tighter ship overall.

Not to discredit Iwata, the man was wonderful and the world is a worse place for his loss. And it was always a joy watching him play investors like a fiddle, as they walk away thinking he said what they wanted him to say, and he really made an elaborate version of "I'm doing what I want, so buzz off." But he wasn't exactly a corporate shark or an expert in resource management.

@SaKo lol wut? It's not even out yet. These are pre orders.

Got mine preordered...sounds good to me.

It would still be fantastic if Nintendo (or any other maker of scalped electronics) would just flood the market with supply so that all the scalpers would have to sell their stuff at cost (or hopefully less!) and get no benefit from their immoral activities.

@AlexSora89 The tears if course, hence me wishing you plenty of them. But most of your comment was good, so all in all a well deserved like...

@gatorboi352 Some people were saying that the preorder numbers were low.

@ThanosReXXX
There will be tears regardless of what the Switch will accomplish. Will it sell? Then those who keep trying to jinx the Switch will drop them. Will Mario Kart 9 instead be the first Mario Kart on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One? Then make sure to pay me a visit, and you'll never die of thirst.

Exciting times for the Switch, so many devs jumping on board with so many Switch titles to look forward to!

Since when its 2 million for launch a bad number or a low estimate if i recall correctly that´s about the number of ps4 sold on the first month and is always taken to be a good launch if not better, you people really are hoping for too much overproduction.

Nintendo is actually ramping up production because the system is on high demand, that stupid notion of under stoking products started with the wii because of a bad estimate and the console shocking success leading to a serious problem to find the thing, and now every time Nintendo has a successful product that is sold out, everyone puts their thin foil hats and yells "artificially created demand", wake up people the first orders of any product are based on data of similar products, the reason for low stock is that the item in question is selling more than expected, this is nothing more than great news for the system

I want to pre-order the console too but it seems the pre order at Amazon has not started yet
https://www.amazon.com/Nintendo-Switch/dp/B01MUAGZ49/ref=sr_tnr_p_1_videogames_1?s=videogames&ie=UTF8&qid=1484346353&sr=1-1&keywords=nintendo%2Bswitch&th=1

Sounds promising for the system. But yeah I have a feeling that this console will sell pretty well.

@AlexSora89 I'm pretty sure only the first option is a safe bet. Nintendo on PS4 is never gonna happen...

@ThanosReXXX
Hopefully! The last thing I want is to say "wanna play some Mario Kart? Let's go back to my place then".

@AlexSora89 Well, my current reply would be "look me up on the Wii U and I might just say yes... "

@electrolite77 I think it would be fair to say that both sides are equally tiresome to the other.

I can't speak for anybody else, but a lot of the negativity comes across to me as whining because we can, not really well-argued, or solely based on mistakes made with the Wii U that these negativists so desperately want to copy/paste upon the Switch, which simply doesn't fit.

Just because something seems to be the same, doesn't mean it actually IS, and the truth of the matter is that it isn't.

Currently, there are over a 100 games announced in total, there's actually a very healthy 2017 line-up, contrary to popular belief amongst the complainers, but they categorically refuse to see it like that or just keep moving the goal posts.

positive person: "Look at all the games being announced, and more being added almost on a daily basis"

whiner: "no, those don't count, because they are indies and not REAL triple A games"

You just can't win with these people...

And needless to say that it would also be stupid to be a blind fanboy and eat up EVERYTHING that Nintendo does, but constant negativity is equally bad, and personally, I just don't like negative-minded people or people that have a constant need to look at life with a glass half empty view.

And besides all that, there's bigger and more important things to worry about in life than a hobby concerning a games console...

@ThanosReXXX
Thing is, I'm more of a portable guy, so there's that.

@AlexSora89 Then it would be that "other" handheld that is still valid this generation: the good old 3DS...

@ThanosReXXX
Of course! But if the Switch fails... the predictions of Nintendo "going Sega" would loom even closer, or worse, could just come true within 2021. And what with the Vita's failure and subsequent lack of successors, with Nintendo going third-party the handhelds would die for good, with their rightful place usurped by phones and tablets.
Likewise, my love for handhelds is also why I hope the rival manifacturers will see the Switch's success and follow suit with more hybrid systems. I wouldn't mind a high-profile GTA game on the go, personally.

@AlexSora89 Well, the Switch isn't going to fail, I'm pretty certain of that. It has a pretty decent first year line-up, more and more titles are announced almost every day, and a lot of people in the know are genuinely enthusiastic, so maybe they'll hit a rough patch or two, but it will not fail, mark my words...

@ThanosReXXX
With all the doom 'n' gloom surrounding this poor console already, it's really nice to see the mad titan cheering me up in that regard.

@AlexSora89 Ma certamente, non c'è problema...

And agreed on the staggering amount of negativity. It's almost unrealistic to witness. And the most annoying thing to me is that all these poor deluded individuals actually believe they have a point with all their jammering, whining and wailing, while only a handful of them actually do...

@ThanosReXXX
Grazie! ^^
And yeah, while there are some valid concerns and complaints...

@AlexSora89 Here, have four more pages of reassuring info:
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=nvidia-tegra-x1&num=1

And please take into account that this concerns the standard X1 chipset, running an Android layer, already taking away valuable processing power, and it also doesn't have a custom API like the Switch has...

@ThanosReXXX
I really want to drink those tears I mentioned, you know!

@AlexSora89 Chances are you will be able to before the year is done...
This bit of info I shared with you is simply one example of cold, hard facts that cannot be denied and it firmly plants the fist of reality straight in the middle of the face of all these whiners in order to give them the rude wake-up call they so desperately need.

I always like to back up my claims with actual info, instead of basing it off of personal opinions or what happened with previous consoles...

P.S.

I forgot to add one thing in the previous comment: once you've read what this baby can actually do in its standard configuration, then add all that we know about the Switch, the no-Android layer and custom API to that, and finally, the one thing I forgot: you will read that the X1 has 3GB of memory, and we already know that the Switch has 4GB.

So, more memory, less obstructions to get the power out of the system, AND a custom API to squeeze even more out of it...

In short: it's a win-win for all people who are willing to accept the Switch for what it is and who are not trying to forcefully cram it into the box labeled "weak, crappy home console"...

P.P.S.

And on top of all I mentioned and that one memory thingy that I forgot, I also forgot the Vulkan API that is ALSO designed to squeeze more power out of modest hardware...

Soon enough, the more positive ones among us, will be singing the beautiful song of the Nintendo Switch. I'll give you a kick start, and you can finish it by changing the lyrics to make it a Nintendo Switch song:

"se bastasse una bela canzone"...

From the album In Joy-Coni HD senso...

@ThanosReXXX
Wait, you know that song by Eros Ramazzotti?
You're into Italian music, neat to know!
I once translated the entirety of an Italian song in another article, but it's lost within the rifts of time. I only remember I tagged Sligeach_EIRE and that it dates back to 2016.
Also, yep, hopefully the Switch will be able to prove its worth from the get-go.

@AlexSora89 I sure do know Italian music: Eros Ramazzotti, Zucchero Fornaciari, Laura Pausini, Andrea Bocelli, Tiziano Ferro, Jovanotti, Riccardo Cocciante, Matia Bazar and even real oldies like Umberto Tozzi, Al Bano & Romina Power and let's not forget Luciano Pavarotti...

I actually know a lot of European music, also French, Spanish, German, Belgian and obviously Dutch, since I'm living in Amsterdam. One of the perks of living in Europe since the 1970's...

@ThanosReXXX
Well, what do you know... awesome, you've got quite the good taste indeed!
And given you also happen to like the late Pavarotti (then again, who doesn't know him?), well...

@AlexSora89 Also comes with liking your language and having an affinity for learning foreign languages in general...

Mind you, my Italian is on a " going on holiday" level and extremely rusty, since I haven't been anywhere near your country in decades...

@AlexSora89 And nice duet, so grazie...

P.S.
I'm always distracted by Pavarotti's eyebrows, though:
looks like he always painted them extra black, but that's probably just my imagination...

@ThanosReXXX
From an outsider's perspective, learning Italian could be a nightmare for anybody. Not only because of the various irregular verbs, double consonants (including "bella", from the same verse you mentioned) and all the other stuff that might seem to be there just for the sake of making learning the language hard, but also because of those darned accents.
Not only we have a different dialect in just about every region in Italy (scratch that: in every provence, or, heck, even individual towns may have their own dialect at times - I'm speaking from experience here!), but even the folks speaking Italian have their own accent. And it's deeper than the differences between, say, Irish English, British English, Californian English, New Englander English, Australian English et cetera... no no no, we're talking Megaman difficulty here. Simply put: if you want to come across regular, vanilla Italian... good luck.
To put it in perspective: have you seen the Family Guy episode parodying/reenacting Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope? It had a throwaway gag featuring an "Italian neighborhood".
Contrary to, say, China banning the "Goo Goo Gai Pan" episode of The Simpsons or Brazil doing the same with "Blame It On Lisa" from the same show, we're used to jabs at our country and we (usually) take it all in stride: we're self-deprecating, smart backsides (ever heard of "memento mori"? Look it up!), we just can't help it. So when a character makes an Italian accent, we just correct his or her aim in the dub and turn it into a regional accent.
As for the episode of Family Guy I mentioned? We took that scene and changed it from "a bunch of Italians" to "a bunch of individually different Italians". Here's the result: feel free to panic.

@AlexSora89 I don't panic that easily (anymore): I'm 46, Californian, grew up in Europe, had a slight speech impediment, was bullied, have bullied, landed in Amsterdam, still live and work there to this day, have done hardcore business to consumer sales (going door to door) before I landed a job in a telesales center and finally ended up in sales and marketing. Does wonders for one's confidence and knowing your own strengths and weaknesses...

That's also why I'm never impressed by ranting fools that seem to attach more importance to a hobby than their actual lives...

As for the video clip: because my Italian is so basic, I could only make out the barest of difference in the dialects, but I know that you are not alone: have you ever tried regional Spanish? Actually, if I said it like that in the actual area, they'd probably chase or threaten me for insulting them, because it should be called Catalàn or Basque, or whatever region you're in. And the French have some similar regions, and then they also have this island Corsica, whose people are insulted by being called French, and then you have the wonderful Gaelic language on the British island... now THAT is something that can permanently damage every moving part inside your mouth if you try to master that dialect as a foreigner...

And don't underestimate German languages and dialects, which are different in all German-speaking countries and regions too. And the Swiss and the Austrians also have their own accents, and then there are the countries that have languages that derive from others, but sound almost alien, like the language they speak in Luxemburg.

And over here in the Netherlands, we have the Frysian language, which is as close to pre-medieval as you can get. It sounds alien as well, compared to regular Dutch.

@ThanosReXXX
Hang on a sec, you're telling me that German has dialects?!?
Man, now that's a challenge!
Also, you've got quite the backstory yourself. "Was bullied, have bullied"? I guess I understand where you took your name, Thanos! Mad props for your achievements, mad titan.
In case you're curious, the dialects in the clip were, in order: Sicilian, Neapolitan, Roman, Tuscan, Sardinian, Sicilian (2), Milanese, and Tuscan (2). Additionally, Chris Griffin's speech pattern is a teenager's stereotypical way to pronounce the vowels in an open, nasal way.
Speaking of nasal voices, I have one last video for ya - Italian rapper Caparezza. This guy is kind of interesting for three things: his distinctive voice, his biting social satire, and how he flawlessly juggles alliteration and rhymes, at times within the same verse. Which is why I'll translate this one: missing out on so many gaming references (used for the sake of metaphors and hyperbole, of course) would be a pity. Title is Abiura Di Me, literally "Denial Of Me".

"Se pensi che possa cambiare il mondo ti sbagli alla grande. (If you think I can change the world, you're dead wrong.)
E' già tanto se mi cambio le mutande. (It's already a lot if I change my underwear.)
Voglio solo darti un'emicrania lancinante (I just want to give you a painful headache)
fino a che non salti nel vuoto come uno stuntman. (until you're knocked back like a stuntman.)
Pensavi che sparassi palle? Bravo! (Thought I was shooting balls around? Bravo!) ["balls" is an informal way to say "lies", with "balls" being meant in that sense]
Io sono il drago di Puzzle Bubble. (I'm the dragon from Puzzle Bubble.)
Come Crash, mi piace rompere le scatole (Just like Crash [Bandicoot, duh], I like breaking boxes) ["breaking boxes" means "(to) annoy people"]
ma rischio le mazzate che nemmeno Double Dragon. (but every time I barely avoid a Double Dragon-style beating.)
Sarà per questo che c'è sempre qualche blogger (Maybe that's why every time some blogger)
che mi investirebbe come a Frogger. (would run over me just like in Frogger.)
Gli bucherò le gomme e bye bye, (I'll pierce his tires and then, bye bye)
al limite può farmi una Sega Megadrive. (all he could give me is a Sega Megadrive.) ["Sega", accidentally, is also Italian for "saw", which in turn is a slang term for a date with Rosie Palms. Yeah, many Sega fans have to deal with that innuendo on a daily basis here.]
Non mi vedrai salvare un solo Lemming, (you won't see me save a single Lemming,)
né stare qui a fare la muffa come Fleming. (nor you'll see me covered in mold like Fleming.)
Non darmi Grammy né premi da star, ma giocati il tuo penny e premi 'start'! (Don't give me no Grammies, nor star awards, just insert your penny and press 'start'!)

[Refrain]
Io voglio passare ad un livello successivo, (I wanna take this to the next level,)
voglio dare vita a ciò che scrivo. (I want to bring to life what I write.)
Sono paranoico ed ossessivo (I'm paranoid and obsessive)
fino all'abiura di me. (until the denial of myself.)
Vado ad un livello successivo (I'm going to the next level,)
dove dare vita a ciò che scrivo. (where I can bring to life what I write.)
Sono paranoico ed ossessivo (I'm paranoid and obsessive)
fino all'abiura di me. (until the denial of myself.)

Io faccio politica pure quando respiro, (I deal with politics even as I breathe)
mica scrivo musica giocando a Guitar Hero. (I surely don't write music by playing Guitar Hero.)
Questi argomenti mi fanno sentire vivo (these topics make me feel alive)
in mezzo a troppi zombie da Resident Evil. (among too many zombies from Resident Evil.)
Macché divo, mi chiudo a riccio più di Sonic, (Not a star at all, I curl up more than Sonic,)
fino a che non perdo l'armatura come a Ghost'n'Goblins. (until I lose my armor like in Ghost'n'Goblins.)
Mi metto a nudo io, non mi nascondo come Snake in Metal Gear Solid. (I lay bare, I don't hide like Snake does in Metal Gear Solid.)
Ho 500 amighe, intesi? (I have 500 Amigas, okay?) [Not sure what this line is supposed to means, but probably it's "Amiga" meant as a metaphor for actual female friends.]
Faccio canzoni, mica catechesi! (I write songs, not sermons!)
Prendo soldi con il pugno alzato come Super Mario (I earn my money by raising my fist like Super Mario does)
ma non li ho mai spesi per farmi le righe come a Tetris. (but I never spent it by doing "lines" Tetris-style.)
La scena rap è controversa, (The rap scene is controversial,)
sfuggo con un salto da Prince of Persia. (I leap my way out, like in Prince Of Persia.)
Io non gioco le olimpiadi Konami, se stacco le mani l'agitazione mi resta. (I don't play the Konami olympics, if I get my hands off, I'm still nervous.)

[refrain, just as before]

Io non vengo dalla strada sono troppo nerd, (I don't come from the streets, I'm too much of a nerd,)
non sposo quella causa, ho troppi flirt. (I'm not married to that cause, I have too many flirts.)
Vivo tra gente che col Red Alert passa la vita sui cubi come Q-Bert. (I live among people that with Red Alert live their own lives on cubes like Q-Bert.)
Ho visto pazzi, rievocare vecchi fantasmi come Pac Man e Dan Aykroyd. (I've seen madmen summon old ghosts, like Pac-Man and Dan Aykroyd.)
Ho visto duri che risolvono problemi alzando muri che abbatto come ho fatto in Arkanoid. (I've seen tough guys solving problems by raising walls that I tear down as I did in Arkanoid.)
Nemmeno Freud saprebbe spiegarmi (Not even Freud could explain me)
perchè la notte sogno di aumentare le armi. (Why I dream of equipping more gear and weapons at night.)
Perché la Terra mi pare talmente maligna (Why does Earth look so evil to me)
che in confronto Silent Hill assomiglia a Topolinia. (so that, by comparison, Silent Hill looks like Mouseton.)
Io devo scrivere perché sennò sclero, (I have to write or I'll go insane,)
non mi interessa che tu condivida il mio pensiero. (I don't care if you share my worldview.)
Non cammino sulle nubi come Wonder Boy. (I don't walk on clouds like Wonder Boy.)
Mi credi il messia? Sono problemi tuoi!" (You think I'm the messiah? It's all your problem!)

[refrain, once again]

Robotic voiceover: Stai calmo. (Calm down.)
Female voice: Che punteggio basso. (What a low score.)

@AlexSora89 Well, you've certainly put in quite a lot of work on that one, so hats off to you. I'll have to save watching and digesting it for tomorrow, though, because it's close to bedtime and I still have some chores to do... See you around.

@ThanosReXXX
What did I put work on? I just translated the song, that's all!
By the way I also went to sleep for your very reasons. Good morning!

@AlexSora89 Well, I always find translating stuff to be a bit of a chore, so I tend to not spoil my spare time with that, hence my appreciation towards you for doing so.

@ThanosReXXX
Why, you're welcome! Besides, Caparezza (literally "curly head"... what a stage name, right?) creates some pretty neat songs at times, so a catchy song filled with gaming references deserved at least to be posted once.

@AlexSora89 And so it did...

This will probably be (one of) my last comment(s) on here today:
I was already tired from a hard day at work, and having to wade through delusional comment after delusional comment (in the Kimishima on Switch sales numbers thread) of people that all think that they have the capacity or expertise to make financial or marketing-related estimations, something that even I after almost 25 years in sales still haven't entirely mastered (not for lack of skill, but simply because the business keeps changing and adapting, so we have to do the same and keep on learning) but they are almost all WAY off base.

And where at first I thought to drop some bombs of wisdom on them (I'm all out of those friendly pearls of wisdom) to give them a much needed wake-up call, I decided to just not bother, because I would end up being in all kinds of useless discussions with people that'll never learn anyway.

I just posted my thoughts on the matter here, because I did need to get it off my chest either way, and at least in that thread, I was talking to someone who was actually using his brains...

@AlexSora89 P.S. That's one weird-@ss song... bit too niche for my taste and not even because of the language, but there is hardly any video game related song that I like, if any.

And ehm... "Sega is slang for... " and so on:

But even so, glad to be a Nintendo fan, then...

@ThanosReXXX
Will check out the other thread and reply to your thoughts, although you give my intelligence - or lack thereof! - far more credit than it's actually due.
As for the song... well, Caparezza also did a song titled "Kevin Spacey", which is nothing but movie spoilers (from famous ones such as the verse saying "You haven't seen Star Wars yet? Cool! Darth Vader is Luke Skywalker's father!" to slightly more niche ones, with a verse saying "In Deep Red the mother is the killer, in Psycho, Norman is the mother's killer"... the fun with homophones is kind of lost in English, sadly), and another using Disney characters for an entire allegory of the middle class ("Held back in school, first of the class clowns, out of a back alley to pierce the tires of Ludwig Von Drake's car"), so yeah, it's that kind of guy... think Weird Al Yankovic meets Eminem or something like that. I'm no stranger to weird songs of his, and it's actually been a blast to share one of my favourites of his with you!

@AlexSora89 Glad to be of service. And NEVER underestimate yourself. Always be aware of potential or skills, whichever ones you have.

And it's not like I was calling you "the professor of songs" or something like that...

Just appreciated you translating it, is all...

@AlexSora89 P.S.

And unintelligent people don't speak other languages, let alone master them enough to do a song translation.

Now accept that feather and wear it with pride...

@ThanosReXXX
If I had mastered English, I could also be fluent enough in it to be able to speak and listen to it, but as of now I'm limited to the realm of the written word. Regardless, thank you for all the kind words you said!

@AlexSora89 Well, the written word is the basis, the rest will follow, although I can understand that depending on the country or region you're from, an accent will always remain, even if you speak a foreign language fluently.

There's only a few countries in the world that have accents that are neutral or soft enough for them to be nullified by another language. French, Spanish and Italian or any other derivative of those languages, as spoken in South American and some African countries, are amongst those languages that have more persistent accents.

Nintendo even pokes a bit of fun at the Italian language, as you may well know. It's exaggerated of course, but in my own experience, a lot of Italian people speaking English also have that "extra a" after almost every word. I always wonder about why that is, it's like a short outlet of breath after a word, or something.

But it does make some people easily recognizable, or at the very least, it's a good opener for a conversation when you meet someone, for example on holidays or something...

@ThanosReXXX
From an insider's perspective, I can assure you that the "extra a" you mentioned is part of a speech pattern shown by people who try to talk another language without putting actual effort. Some of that accent might still slip through, but it all depends on how the context of dialogue is actually meant to be perceived... okay, this is tricky to explain.
Take Roberto Benigni for example. I haven't seen his movies in other languages, but I just know he redubs his lines himself. I've seen his interview with the always amazing Conan O'Brien (the one where they swapped their pants... yeah, with those two in the same room, I wouldn't expect anything less!), Benigni's English is clearly unpolished, and those "extra As" often slip through. Now compare that with, say, Monica Bellucci's scenes in the Matrix trilogy. There's a basic difference between the ways the lines are delivered because Benigni's works are meant for an Italian audience first and for the rest of the world later, while the Matrix, being the brainchild of an English-speaking director (or directors in the Wachowskis' case), features dialogue that English audience can feel to be flowing from the get-go throughout the entirety of the total screentime.

Another, albeit mixed, example is the brilliant "The Italian Bob" episode of The Simpsons (really, season 17 of that show has pretty much no bad episodes, whatever the naysayers say about its later years), where actress Maria Grazia Cucinotta provides dialogue for her character, Francesca Terwiliger, in both the original dub and its Italian one. Again, I'm mostly guessing here, but I'm pretty sure that her original lines are both flowing and meant to sound also kind of "broken"; her Italian ones just go for a Southern Italian accent, both referencing her VA's background and in general our dubs' tendency to enrich and accentuate the "Italian-ness" of Italians in other media by throwing actual regional accents into the mix, as I mentioned a few comments ago (if you've seen the episode, just bear in mind that Salsiccia - which means... sausage - is a fictional village, of course, and that Tuscany is not a city but a whole region; the episode got most of the rest straight).
Now, where was I going again...? Oh, yeah. The aforementioned "extra a" mostly has to do with how many words in Neo-Latin languages in general tend to end with a vowel rather than a consonant, so breath has little to do with it. It's more of a force-of-habit matter, so to speak.
You might also be wondering why stereotypical Italians tend to gesticulate that much while speaking, and... it's something that Italians actually do, just not as often as you'd expect them to. We kind of ham it up when we're emotionally invested in any given conversation, but otherwise we're pretty much, er, normal people.
And of course, well, Mario being Italian due to the whole history behind the naming of the character makes his speech pattern kind of a given, and I love everything about it. What with Mario's humongous mustache and his job as a plumber, a plump one at that, makes anyone expect a gruff voice, and that's what makes Charles Martinet's Mickey Mouse-esque delivery in falsetto all the more hilarious charming.
I hope all of my rambling here proves to be helpful, somehow!

@AlexSora89 It did, but some of it doesn't click:
agreed with you on some actors making more effort, indeed Monica Belucci is a very good example, but some can make all the efforts they want, you'll still hear a rather present accent. A good example of that is Antonio Banderas, Spanish actor, speaks fluent English but has only ever been able to "lessen" his accent, but not lose it.

And as for the whole words ending with consonants or vowels... not really sure on that one. I'm a bit of a language afficionado, hence me being anything but the standard American and speaking at least 4 languages, and I can't see how or why a word like "parlo" should change into "speak-a". That just seems extremely lazy. If you know the English word, then you know how it is supposed to sound, and then you pronounce it as such.

It doesn't have to be perfect, but come on. Lord knows I've had some troubles with some languages myself, even with "proper" English, since I had to "unlearn" my American English over here in the Dutch schools I went to.

@AlexSora89 Oh, and as for the copious amounts of gesticulating: that's just a southern European thing. Spanish, Portuguese, French and most other Mediterranean people do it just as well as the Italians...

@ThanosReXXX
Ouch, ouch. "Unlearning" is always a painful procedure to go through. Sorry about that.
As for Banderas - he voiced Puss In Boots in three dubs of the Shrek movie franchise: the English one, the Spanish one... and the Italian one! The guy is just awesome. Well, when not doing commercials in Italy that have him talking to a hen, that is. (I just know @Ichiban will have a field day with this one.)

Told ya.

@AlexSora89 Yeah, it was. Imagine yourself in my place: more fluent in the language than any other kid in my class and some dumb-@ss Dutch English teacher telling me to pronounce my words "better".

There's even a song about it, you may have heard of it, or at least of some lines coming from it, since these are still used to this day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZ3fjQa5Hls

@ThanosReXXX
Oh, "tomato, tomayto", yeah, I've heard about that one! Reverse-engineering one's knowledge must be as hard as it gets, so... I'm really sorry. Teachers can be pretty unsensitive at times, with apologies to the actual teachers among NLers of course. Changing schools is already hard as-is, questioning the language must be even harder.

@AlexSora89 I do have to add that I was mostly bored, because all that was written in those school books was already clear to me, so it was only my pronunciation that needed some polishing, but I couldn't even be bothered to ever study for an essay. I even did my high school English exam without hardly ever having studied.

And now all you have to do, is a little work on your phonetics:

If a reader needs to understand the difference between American English and British English, that little sentence should be "you say to-may-to, I say to-mah-to"...

@ThanosReXXX
"I say toe-meh-to."

@AlexSora89 Now that we've shifted to the topic of tomatoes: let's see you understand this one, funny guy...

A couple of tomatoes are on their way to town (yeah, I know tomatoes can't walk, but just go with it: it's a joke) but at some point one of them falls WAY behind because he is starting to get seriously tired.

So one of the tomatoes in front shouts back to him: "hey, you alright back there? Should we wait for you?"

And the tired tomato answers: "no, just go on. I'll catch up"....

And if at first you don't get it: it's a phonetics joke, in honor of what we've been talking about...

@ThanosReXXX
I get the joke, it reminds me the one of the two tomatoes crossing the street:
"Watch out for that--"

"Which--"

@AlexSora89 I don't get it... Watch out for that which? What, sandwich?

@ThanosReXXX
The complete sentence would be, "Watch out for that car".

@AlexSora89 Ah, okay. I was searching for a phonetics joke in there...

@ThanosReXXX
I can't always be fully functional!