It's Still Quite Easy to Secure a Launch Day Nintendo Switch in the UK

Amazon may not state launch day isn't guaranteed, but do they state it will be guaranteed? I wouldn't say it automatically means you'll get one if you pre-order now. Plus my pre-order delivery date was shifted back to March 7th because I chose standard delivery (apparently) so you'll have to select expedited (at a price) if you want to guarantee it for March 3rd.

I'm not sure if Amazon is for launch. Mine is still listed as arriving on 9th march as I changed payment details. Surely if they had more stock in for launch, they would fulfill orders like that first?

Delivery is March 9th now on Amazon for Neon. 6 days really not so bad. I got my order 7am on 13th Jan so I'm sorted anyway.

Of course it is, there's no compelling reason to own it yet other then it's the new thing. Lets just hope EU doesn't continue the downward trend of the last 10 to 15 years or so for Nintendo.

I ordered mine from Shop To last Friday, they only had they grey version that was guaranteed delivery for launch

If it wanted the coloured version (which ideally I did) I would have had to wait for the next batch

I went with Shop To because it can be paid on finance so didn't have to find £279 all at once

Since the Switch is region free, I don't see why you shouldn't order one.

Ordered mine, might even get a game with it.

I doubt there will be a shortage, you could always pick one up on eBay for twice the price.

Hopefully will waddle down to Smyth's on launch day and pick up my preorder- I was the 2nd one in their book so I'm pretty confident.

@Spoony_Tech The most ambitieus Zelda is no good reason to buy a new system that you can play anywhere? You would rather have Knack or something?

I like Neon Blue Joy Cons.
But I can wait until Switch got price cut and more color variation.
Well... time to buy Switch games first.

I will have to hope I can get out of work early on the day in order to get to Game to pick mine up. They did say they would keep it for 48 hours, but I want it day one not day two. Luckily they will be open until 5.30.

@plusjkb I don't want to advise you to risk your order coming later than what you have already been told, but I recently made an order with amazon and had delivery stated as two days away, I went back to the product page and it was listed as available for next day. I made a second order and sure enough that one was stated as, and arrived, next day.
Tl;dr amazon order system is full of gremlins don't necessarily expect it to update itself, maybe order one on another account and see if it has an earlier delivery date.

The fact it's still available to pre order in Ireland and the UK a few weeks from launch shows Nintendo have their work cut out for themselves to make the Switch a success here.

@Anti-Matter if your waiting for price cut. Wouldn't it be clever to also wait for the game prices to come down too.

No use just staring at the games if you can't play it

not really a launch day. I have ordered it and it says 11th of March delivery

What if I bought switch from Amazon UK ... it will be PAL but what about eshop ? Will I still be able to long with US account to the eshop with no problems ? Help please

Yup got mine ordered due on 9th, now just need the cash to pay for it, ebay here I come wonder what an Atari jaguars worth.

@peeks You get the eShop that your Nintendo Account's country is set to, so if your account is US, you get the US eShop for that user on the Switch, but another user on that Switch can have an EU registered account with the EU eShop for their profile

@BLP_Software cool ! So I will order mine from U.K. With no fear ! Since I can't get one on US ... sold out and I had the chance to get the grey but I want the neon ... thanks my friend !

Just tried to order one (just to check) and it shows delivery estimate of Mar 4th which will probably end up as March 3rd. Going to hold off for a long time though. Will get Zelda on Wii U and then re-evaluate when Mario is out.

Unfortunately I've been unemployed for six months so won't be jumping on for launch day. I am still sceptical about some aspects of the console but will still get one. Having got a job today, I suspect I'll jump on around the release of MK8 deluxe I suspect.

Interestingly, the impending upgrade has made me play the Wii U a lot more recently to clear the digital backlog I have. I'm now thinking of NOT trading in the Wii U and keeping it in case some of the digital classics I have on the HDD don't make it to Switch. It will make a great first console if I can persuade my children in the value of gaming, and retro gaming in the future. My nine month old already recognises the music from Mario galaxy and loves watching me playing - giggling every time I jump on a Goomba!

Ah, I just can't afford to splash out right now. Got my Wii U the day Super Mario 3D World was released, and I have BOTW pre-ordered for it. I'll get a Switch for sure, but our Wii U is played daily in my house so I can wait.

@norwichred great post, congratulations on your new job! My son is Nintendo mad he absolutely loves Pikmin 3, Splatoon, Rayman Legends, Mario, I've really loved playing with him and even just watching him play.

@Spanjard If you don't own a Wii U then there's a good reason but how many Nintendo fans are left that doesn't own one? We can all play Zelda for the cost of a game or shell out here 400$ to play Zelda anywhere.

I really think if Nintendo really wanted to sell out they would delay or even cancel the Wii U version.

It's hardly surprising considering how badly Nintendo products sell in the uk.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE
I think we both know that this is not going to change the UK game market.

Can't see the SwitchTwitch been a success here in UK. Sony rules here followed by Xbox

Unsurprising given the price tag. It's a funny one, because it almost seems destined to drop to £250 at some point and bring it in line with other countries; maybe that was Nintendo's intention.

But when one also considers that Nintendo practically handed the home console market on a plate to Sony and MS during the last-gen, it's no wonder that a generation of young people now see Nintendo only through the eyes of the mobile space. The marketing has been spot on so far, so let's hope it has a deep effect.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE no it doesn't. it's also available for pre-order again in germany and france. it just simply means that nintendo managed to make more units available for europe.
you would be the first to complain if people had massive problems to find a switch at launch, wouldn't you?

@Spoony_Tech The Wii u install base is already very low. Not to mention the U.K. is pretty much nonexistent within that same install base. So again. Zelda should be a system seller.

@Emperor-Palpsy um, to bring it in line with other countries nintendo would have to RAISE the price in the UK. 280 gbp = 324 eur. that's 6 eur cheaper than in mainland Europe!

@Spanjard if you have a WiiU or not a Zelda fan then...No

@manu0 Manure. So has there been any more stock made available in Japan? No.

@Spoony_Tech Portable Zelda is a compelling reason for many, coupled with the fact that the it'll place the game as the first of this console's library as opposed to the last of the Wii U's.

Many people only have one console at a time sitting under the TV, meaning many Wii Us may be tidied away at some point in the next year or so. Zelda is likely to have a fair bit of replay value given its scale, so it'll be much more convenient for people who want to replay it to be able to to swap the game card (or boot it up from the system menu) on the Switch than to dig out a last gen system and play it again on that. Half the attraction of remakes and VC games is simply to avoid having to dig out and plug in old systems, as many people already own the games on one, if not multiple systems.

I agree the Switch will probably drop a little bit in price towards Christmas, so there's something of 'portable Zelda tax' for picking it up at launch, but having the system in the many months before then seems compelling enough reason to swallow the cost for me (I doubt it'll drop more than the price of a game).

And out of curiosity, was your usage of "then" rather than "than" as a comparative preposition deliberate, or a typo? I've noticed "then" being used to compare things more and more recently, and I haven't worked out whether it's a deliberate grammatical choice or not. I mean, I don't mind! But I didn't used to see it until quite recently, so I'm curious.

Buy it up!!

@SLIGEACH_EIRE NoE, NoA, NCL all allocate their stock independently. But you're still wrong because there actually was more available just a couple of days ago on Amazon Japan.

@diwdiws What are the chances of both of those things being a reality?

@BensonUii Yes, you can do that. The Switch is region free and they did say while it is recommended to have an eShop appropriate to your region for support reasons, there is nothing to stop you creating a user with a US account if you live in the EU, to get the US eShop on that user account, while at the same time, having an EU eShop on another user account.

Each Switch can have multiple users, and each user has their own Nintendo Account, so the eShop each user gets depends on which country their Nintendo Account linked to their profile is registered to.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE And yet if it was sold out, cries of 'artificial shortages!' would be ringing across the internet.

Here in the UK Nintendo is hated lol it's a PlayStation country, my Switch will blow em away!

@tjhiphop 2 million is nothing. I expect to see scalpers come launch.

@UK-Nintendo
I ever did that for my 3DS and Wii U. The reason I buy the game first because in my country, if I am too late to buy certain games, I probably can't find it anymore. Don't worry, I am patient enough to not play my Switch games until I got Switch with my desire color. Beside, while waiting I can finish my unfinished Nintendo games.

@norwichred
Oh, i'm so sorry to hear about your experience became an unemployed.
Glad to hear you finally got a job.
Keep up your work and later your salary will be increased, chance to buy Nintendo Switch.

@SLIGEACH_EIRE I'm pretty sure PS4, the fastest selling game console in history I think, sold 2.4 million at launch week during a Holiday season (1 million on day one in North America). After 6 weeks during peak Holiday season it had 4.6 million. Seems with Nintendo Switch we are nearing sell out for day one at 2 million with more to come. Not sure what you are comparing to when you say "2 million is nothing".

I don't think that the Switch is going to do well in the UK. My friends that are considered 'hardcore gamers' don't even know what it is! It's a sad state of affairs, people are so into their Xbox and PlayStations here, they're not even aware there's a third option. Nintendo need to go BIG with advertising so people even know what this thing is... I mean adverts on daytime TV, billboards, on the sides of buses - maybe even sponsor a football team or something.

Not only that though, but I don't think the games that Nintendo have on offer are enough to win over that Xbox/PS crowd. People are hooked on trophies/achievements, the latest football game/the latest shooter. That's all they really want, and even if Ninty were to get those games... why bother Switching if they've already got a console that can do all that?

Anyway, I'm HUGE into Nintendo so I pre-ordered mine - but my girlfriend hasn't bothered yet. She's pretty confident she'll be able to just pick one up on the day, if not it won't be long till she can find one and she can use mine in the meantime.

It's also worth trying Sainsbury's as they've got pre-orders in store for only £5.

For what it's worth Walmart.com (US) recently had a blip where it was available again and then disappeared. Best Buy gets them but they blink out so fast. Seems like there are more numbers being opened up.

I wonder how this all works, though, and I don't know enough to make any conclusions. There is a balance between preorders and how many are available at retail on day one for people who show up without preorders.

Could Nintendo simply be letting the ratio slide to keep people preordering? Is there some combination of production numbers ramping up so there is expectation of more during the launch week so they feel safer letting more preorders go?

I think it's a different game in every region, too. I always hear about people having preorders cancelled in Europe, but to my limited knowledge most of that has been worked out in the US where retailers don't offer something they aren't guaranteed by the supplier to have on day one. Maybe I'm just hoping.

Anyway, being able to get a preorder you can count on, even if it is for a week or so after launch, is a great luxury and I hope more people can get one that want one.

If Nintendo sells out that 2 million during launch week or the first couple weeks, it will crow about it because that would be a tremendous success. (PS4 made major headlines with selling 1 million in the US on day one. Nintendo has the advantage of a simultaneous worldwide release where PS4 was staggered by two weeks so it could get a nice headline. It has to earn it first though!)

@SILGEACH_EIRE Rekt

@Thermoclorn Thank you

My Amazon.de preorder is still saying March 3rd with it being sent off the day before so I'm hopeful. Still checking if anything's changed multiple times a day, though.

"Since the Switch is region free, I don't see why you shouldn't order one"

That's what people think, no problems whatsoever. But what about guarantee, online-functions, e-shop, updates, etc. I think this will deliver lots of troubles. For example, you may not get English-language games from the e-shop if you have a Japanese one. And European online-functions may not work if you have a American one.

I don't know if this is all the case, just something I suspect.

Tesco have them too

@norwichred congratulations on your new job buddy. And best wishes to your family. You sound like a lovely bunch of people. I'm not selling my WiiU either

Hold on, so if Nintendo products aren't available to buy in store on launch day then Nintendo have once again failed to produce enough units to meet demand and if they are available then Nintendo is failing because no one wants to buy them? Gotta love the internet.

I got my preorder firing hour one here in the US so I haven't been following availability. Are they really impossible to find in the States?

@Henmii Ill refer you to what I said above.

Nintendo has stated you can create a Switch profile with any Nintendo Account regardless of what region the Switch is in/purchased in. So if you are a US customer, you can create a profile for your Switch using an EU registered Nintendo Account, and get access to the EU eShop but at the same time, another account on the same Switch can use a Japanese linked account.

Alll they said to the contrary is for support purposes you don't want to use a foreign eShop primarily.

@ThomasBW84 can we have a permanently pinned article on this? Ive had to type this three times now XD

Honestly, as strange as it sounds, all Nintendo would have to do to sell me a Switch is announce Gamecube VC support with Metroid Prime, Super Mario Sunshine, Luigi's Mansion, and convince Capcom to release Viewtiful Joe and Resident Evil 4. That's all it would take.

@BanjoPickles Hope it happens for you. I wouldn't mind that one bit, myself. Cool thing is you don't feel the need to ride the early wave which means you'll save a bunch of money and only get it when it provides what you really value. Smart move.

I'm getting it at launch because I value exactly what it has at launch and I've always enjoyed the crazy new tech from Nintendo. Even the Wii U was amazing for my family and I. Nintendo Land was the highlight of that system for us for years believe it or not. Not expecting that from 1-2-Switch but that and Zelda and 4-player Bomberman anywhere with no setup. I'm sold, myself.

@ThomasBW84 I'm amazed people are so baffled by Nintendo doing something like total region unlocking that they have to ask how accounts work. XD Its fair not pinning it, but it shows how unaccustomed folk are to the concept of getting whatever eShp you want with each individual profile on one machine. I don't even think Sony does that.

I'm interested to see how this sells in the U.K. My mate in Brentford actually preordered at Game, but he says only a couple of his friends got one. It's so tough to pry Sonys hold.

@aaronsullivan

Don't get me wrong, I am so tempted by the allure of being able to take Breath of the Wild to my favorite coffee shop. I liked my Wii U, but it was one of two Nintendo consoles that I didn't love (N64 being the other). I have to slap my left hand with my right whenever I get this urge to buy at launch. Ha!

Sheesh, I've always known Nintendo wasn't popular on that side of the pond, but for any preorders to still be available by now, just how much do you guys hate Nintendo over there?

Heck, I'm a little envious, only because I've been stuck hoping nothing goes wrong with my preorder for the elusive machine, and that's not even a problem there!

It's very hard to tell if it's selling well or not?

Best bit of advice I can give is cancel your amazon order, order with Argos and receive a £10 off voucher. Then order Zelda!!

Send those to the US. We actually care

My mate works in our local Game shop, where I ordered my Switch and according to him, including mine, they've had 3 pre orders.

@NEStalgia Historically I don't think Nintendo's ever done great here, when I first starting picking up American games mags in the late 80s I was shocked at how big the NES was over there. It barely registered here.

Well put a new preorder in and now stating 3rd march. Odd system but have kept my details of the old order just in case this new one slips further than 9th march!

YES THANK YOU NINTENDOLIFE! Amazon UK changed my release date to MArch 4th after a payment method change and I was too worried to cancel the order and re-order as it was a huge risk if it would end up being delivered later. So thanks guys. My switchmas was saved thanks to you!

@plusjkb I had the same issue happen to me. Lets just be glad we've got March 3rd again!

Living in the U.S., this is very, VERY tempting. Be nice to get the console stand alone and buy Breath of the Wild separate and cancel my pre-order with Gamestop that includes Zelda and two other games that I have no interest in.

It would also save me some change in the mean time.

@norwichred Hope you can find another job soon (assuming you're after one). I would say it's pretty reasonable to wait until this winter or later to get one. Wait for some more AAA games other than Zelda which you can play on your wiiu anyway. There's also some good price drops on wiiu titles now.

The negativity some of you have...

I'm deciding if I get the grey or the neon since I pre-ordered before they revealed there were neon joycons. I feel sort of silly buying a new console for one game but for me Zelda will be worth it! Portable Zelda is what sold me.

I'm still keeping my Wii U though, love my Wii U

I pre-ordered with Game a week before the presentation and I am just hoping they do a midnight launch, as I am looking forward to it!
3 Weeks left to wait

People didn't buy Nintendo products in Ireland when they were doing well. I don't understand how it's such a hard sell here and in the UK. Too serious with their 'dark and gritty' games I expect.

Got an email from Amazon yesterday saying that my order had been upgraded to release day delivery... I was expecting that anyway, but I do consider this confirmation that they haven't oversold preorders.

Here in Australia my local EB had 40 pre orders and it's the smallest in my area.
The other 2 in my area which are much larger have over 60 each.
Plus if you don't intend to pick up your order within 2 days you get pushed back to the second shipment to allow for walk ins.
That's just EB, Big W (Australian version of Walmart) are not taking pre orders any more as they've already sold all their allocated stock. There are also a heap of other games retailers in my area not taking any more either.

"Switch is sell available to pre-order it means they aren't selling many here"

"Switch is out of stock Nintendo have created a stock shortage to drive up demand this will be a terrible launch FAIL LOL"

Sound logic that.

Anyway, looks like Amazon are upgrading all their orders to arrive on launch day. Had an email about my Switch and Zelda pre-orders.

@NESTALGIA
It's not that Ninty is hated here it's a matter of Sony is more loved. I choose Sony first but buy Ninty machines as a decent 2nd machine to own but not this time though after getting my fingers burned with the Wii U. This time many Sony fans will sit back and see what happens to Switch but some will dive in though. It must be noted that Xbox is also popular here aswell. PS4 passed 3ds lifetime sales here a long time ago and Xbox sales r just behind 3ds and sometime this year xbox will pass it. So yeah Ninty is loved by many but not anywhere near as much as Sony home consoles

If you imagine that the UK is about the size of 1 large US state then it muddys the waters a bit pre order wise. Seems always more likely to sell out in the US with such a large land area. Obviously they get more units then the UK but it must be a logistically nightmare to accurately predict stock demand in the US compared to here. I am surprised though that UK stock is so easily avilable. Hoping it's down to Nintys production and not weak sales

I still maintain that when it comes to Nintendo here in the UK, anyone over the age of 18 suddenly becomes "too cool" and "mature" to play on a Nintendo system. They can't possibly talk about the latest Zelda in the staff room at work because that game is for children and will show them in an immature, childish light, but it is however perfectly acceptable to talk about the latest Fifa or Call of Duty as these are for grown ups.

IMO it's just the British being the British; tight lipped, prudish and scared to show any emotion such as grinning like a cheshire cat because the latest Mario game is out or whatever.

I myself don't give a damn; I will happily shout from the roof tops that I am a Nintendo fan and that I am damn proud of it.

Same goes for wrestling for example; on April 1st this year I will have been watching wrestling for 27 years. I never took a break off when it got boring like a lot of others did. Watching wrestling is also perfectly acceptable in the UK.......until you reach about 15, or it is WrestleMania season. After the age of 15 it is not permissable and is completely embarrassing to talk about wrestling or admit that you watch it, so everyone becomes a closet wrestling fan and just crawls out of the woodwork around WrestleMania season (or they just keep up to date with it online at work when no one is looking). It is only really permissable to talk about football.

Unlike Americans and other countries in Europe, the British just seem to have a hard time expressing themselves in a genuine manner. It's like they need to be at a football game and p*ssed to show any emotion or let their inner child out lol. Same goes for gaming. If it's not an 18 and dark and grey, then it is for children.

Excuse the rant and please accept my apologies if I have offended anyone. It is not my intention, just my opinion.

@BLP_Software,

Ah, that sounds much better!

Unfair... >:[

I've stumbled upon one store here in Japan that started taking pre-orders again which hopefully is a good sign regarding stock