While Other Toys-To-Life Products Struggle, Sales Of amiibo Continue To Grow

How? Are Amiibo's even being made still?

Surprising, but not too unexpected. Nintendo has been putting out less and less Amibo, but people sure are buying them.

Still waiting on Cloud Player 2 to be less than £40

I have about 100 amiibo and will keep collecting as I see them. I like the use they have and think of them as DLC

Glad this trend tapered off. My kids went thru a Skylanders phase then a Disney Infinity phase. Thankfully they got bored with them just before the bubble burst so was able to sell and get a decent return. We only have about 12 amiibo but it is surprising that they're still making a decent amount from them.

I see almost no amiibo represtentation at local stores now. Walmart is an amiibo wasteland, Target has the same mountain of animal crossing amiibos they can't sell, GameStop doesn't even display amiibos anymore, and Toys R Us is out of business.

In any case, there needs to be an actual amiibo game. Something like Skylanders or Disney Infinity. Something to let your characters pop in and share a game world that you can control. This would give an actual solid reason to own them besides table decorations with unlockable costumes...

They should keep them in stock too. Taking advantage of the (relatively limited) advantage of merchandising to increase brand value to get them in more people's hands would be even better.

Of course, they can't pull what they did with Metroid: Samus Returns with Fusion Mode locked behind an amiibo. Fortunately, I think they learned from that in recent releases.

Amiibo was smart about it. The figures have some use in most games. So even if you have 1 or 100 you can use all of your figures. I do hope that Nintendo makes a stronger push on the card format though...although how they are going to undercut the Chinese on that is beyond me. I love all my amiibo but with the portability of the switch I need them in a travel friendly format.

I don't expect any massive waves of figures in the future, but this strategy of putting out an occasional figure here and there is a smart move.

I like them! We're not crazy collectors (nothing wrong with that). We buy the ones that we think are cool to us. I do wish that they had a bigger use in games though. To this day, my favorite use of them in a game is tie between Super Mario Maker and Mario Kart 8. Every time I race, I almost always use my Mii with a costume from an Amiibo....favorites are Pac-man and Captain Falcon. If I go Falcon, I will usually pick the matching kart.

How? The amiibo sections keep on getting removed from my local stores...

Wow, really? The hype has died down so much, and I often see amiibo sections in stores understocked, so I'd assumed the amiibo train was slowing down.

Sales of amiibo figures have grown, but the cards went from 9m to 5m so in total it's actually a drop. And given that they've sold a shed-load more hardware and software the amiibo sales haven't increased in proportion.

They need to make more for the new smash!😬

Nice that they're still doing fairly well. I will not rest until we get Toadette and Dixie Kong!

I am amazed at my self-discipline at not buying a single one. Yet....

They would sell more if they made more. The Splatoon 2, Metroid, Zelda and Mario amiibo continue to fetch high prices online on the secondary market.

This is fake news. I can barely find any in stores, and if I do it's woefully understocked. A lot of retailers have them in the bargain bins. Gamestop has a very small section for them by the Nintendo stuff.

@LastLife I agree. If nintendo did actually release a dedicated amiibo game that was good (actual gameplay in both skylanders and Infinity was very solid) and re-released most of the older ones as cards instead of figures I think it could be very profitable for them.

I'll continue to try and keep my collection complete but I just hope they don't make another whole line for the new Smash Bros game. The last game had 60+ amiibo dedicated to it, and with the trend of Smash Bros games having an x amount more characters than the previous, if they go this route again with the new Smash, there'll be 80+ amiibo. Maybe even 100+ if they also make one for every character's alternate costume (if they have one). That would be so much overkill. My poor wallet can't handle it if they do this!

I don't know how is it possible. I almost find no amiibos in stores that used to have dozens of them. I pretty much abandoned the idea of getting some that I was expecting to get re-released with the Swtich, such as Sonic or Mega Man, amiibos I've actually never seen with my own eyes, live.

I don't understand why Nintendo doesn't take advantage of the opportunity Switch offers to bring back a product that was stalled because it was very tied to the Wii U, a system that was a commercial failure.

So they launch a new console with amiibo support, but don't release new figures nor it means that the hardest ones to get are back on stock. It's a shame.

Don't forget Tiki and Chrom! Those are the last amiibo I bought, and that'll probably be it for me.

Am I correct in saying the only cards ever released were animal crossing ones? (Excluding the odd pokken card). If so that is alot of animal crossing

I never really care for Amiibo. But imported the set from Monster Hunter Stories... maybe it just reminds me of the "How to train your dragon" movies. But as soon as I saw them I really wanted them.

@neyoung8 Mario Sports Superstars for 3DS had amiibo cards also.

A handful of the more rarer ones were available in my local TRU, Best Buy, GS, & Target.

Thank God I got a good 10, & they are all ones I wanted, not just the Smash line. There's only 5 I'm still really wanting: Dr. Mario, Rosalina, Lucina, ZSS, Duck Hunt.

I don't need to collect them all, nor am I willing to go on such a venture. I don't have the shelf space, anyway.

Good. I currently have 71 Amiibos, and am still missing about 25 before I consider my collection complete. I hope they reprint some of the rarer ones, since I refuse to pay a dime above MSRP to any scalper.

@Moroboshi876 You should try the japanese versions. I was able to buy all of the expensive Zelda amiibos from HobbyLink Japan, at even below the MSRP, with excellent service.

The Sonic and Megaman amiibos shouldn't be hard to find on amazon, I got both there, but you do need to check the prices regularly to get them at MSRP.

BTW guys if you are interested pick up Lego Dimensions now All the add ons are pretty cheap at the moment

I still remember the Disney Infinity guy scolding Nintendo for producing relatively conservative quantities, as it was "disrespecting the consumer".

Fast forward just one year and Infinity was closed down altogether because it was making money, but not 'enough' money.

Nintendo are still adding funtionality in new games for amiibos purchased four years ago. I'd say one company respects the consumer more than the other.

@flapjack-ashley thanks

@nab1 I made the mistake of buying some of the BOTW ones on that site, and I say mistake because soon after that they all were easily available again in stores, so I actually paid a little bit more because of shipping and currency exchange

But I got my Bayonetta there, and that one was really scarce.

I'm watching the mentioned amiibos on Amazon, but all I see is third-party products, a.k.a. scalping. Thanks anyway.

I still haven’t bought one. Not one has offered enough content to make me even consider purchasing.

"While Other Toys-To-Life Products Struggle, Sales Of amiibo Continue To Grow"

Title of the article clearly misses the mark and is not what amiibo are all about. A better title would probably be - "Nintnedo likes what it sees in Funko Pop, continues it sales of collectibles"

This is a dry, but pretty good read if you are interested at all in sales numbers.

https://seekingalpha.com/article/4119527-funkos-strong-revenue-growth-agile-business-model-make-ipo-collectable

Funko is trying to be as big as Ntinedo, and Nitneod is trying to sell toys like Funko Pop.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/debraborchardt/2017/01/16/ever-hear-of-funko-they-plan-to-be-a-billion-dollar-toy-company/#752213f82e4d

amiibo have barely been about "toys-to-life" from the beginning, they've always been an item for collectors. And they will continue to be an item for collectors.

I'm glad Ntineod is doing them - we have a few - but until Nitneod makes a "Nintendo Kingdom" game or "Nintendo Land 2" where we actually play as our amiibo, amiibo are collectibles, not toys-to-life. Nobody is playing in games with them on the Switch.

Will be interesting to see what happens in SSB, but I predict NO amiibo usage in game, amiibo are done as toys-to-life. If they are in game Ntineod would need to reprint all 50 or however many there are, not worth the hassle. Which is also why SSB will be a new game, not a port, no amiibo support. Maybe some skin colors, but that's about it. Guess we'll know for sure in 6 weeks at E3.

I only ever bought 1 amiibo, only because I really like Shulk.

Pretty much all amiibo sections in stores nearby have disappeared or at least shrunk significantly, and the distribution has always been awful.

@rjejr That. There's really little similar between them.

Cya
Raziel-chan

My interest has largely waned as they are being used in less and less interesting ways and any unique functionality is usually limited to new amiibo released alongside the game in question.

E.g. Non Mario series amiibo should have unlocked outfits in Oddysey.
Shulk amiibo did nothing in XC2

Everything now is early unlocks or randomised loot.

Early on we had things like Yoshi's WW and Mario Maker tailoring things for each amiibo and Code Name Steam which made the Fire Emblem characters playable.

Hopefully the new Fire Emblem game will at least justify the half dozen amiibo in that franchise...

Amiibo don't get only bought for a game to use them. People buy Amiibos just to have Mario, Link etc as a figure. That's why Amiibo will always sell I think.

Nice to see it’s still going strong. Don’t want them to stop supporting them anytime soon. Still have so much potential that is not being used (Read/Write data).

I just wish they have a bigger use in-game, or at least close to before. They swing so far to please amiibo haters lately that the latest games and amiibo just unlock contents earlier. Not worth using Detective Pikachu for unlocking all “Pika Prompts” unless you’re OCD.
With that said, I brought said amiibo (number 100)

,marina and Pearl will sell 3 million alone!

If they actually start doing something in games again, then I'll start buying them again (if I can find them).

I like Amiibo, but the only store around me that keeper them in stock was Toys R Us, and we all know that there going out of business. My Target and Bestbuy Amiibo selection has been anemic for over a year.

Could've fooled me. Seems like every store in my area has either gotten rid of them or nearly gotten rid of them, with the remaining ones on sale prices.

Get ready for another 100 figure+ Smash series later this year!

They look nice. I have about 20 but I kinda regret it now. I don’t have the space. Plus they really didn’t do much and was expensive dlc

@Matthew010 I really hope they just produce more of the existing Smash amiibo instead... Another Smash set would be overkill.

@justin233 that's the trick isn't it. If they put something of worth on one, the "no amiibo" group get very vocal about locked content and Nintendo ends up giving really minor stuff with amiibo

I never cared much about them as far as what they do in games, but they make nice decorations. My son has a Kirby one and I have ZS Samus and Bayonetta. I doubt I'll buy any more, but kudos to Nintendo for putting out another neat product that people like.

I can guarantee that sales will not continue to grow as almost all stores have clearanced them out or stopped carrying them. I occasionally see a few here and there but they are getting to be non existent unless you shop online.

'In Your Face, Previous Fiscal Year!'

Haha, laughing out loud

I'm surprised to hear that the sales are still growing since they haven't had major presence in the games. They kind of feel like the cheaper version of collectible figures. Not poorly made, but easier for the average person to take the plunge on.

I really hope that they bring back the amiibo compatibility in Smash, I still feel like its amiibo fighters that learned as you fought hit the perfect sweet spot of being not necessary for the game, but still being a cool addition that you wanted. Also, I really want there to be reprints for the amiibo so I can add to my collection (come on, Spring Man, get into Smash, it's the best way I'm going to get an amiibo figure for you!)

If only they could restock Ocarina of Time Link...

@-DG That makes sense

These are my Amiibos so far.

There are still no ARMS amiiboo though, and the FE "line" could also use some more attention. FE Warriors was really a missed opportunity in that regard =(

I love amiibo, I just wish Nintendo would utilize them more like they were originally intended to. I remember they were supposed to offer unique ways to play across a variety of games, so I'd like to see that original vision actually be realized.

But they do so little! they haven't even bought mini Mario and friends to the switch yet

Yet my walmart fails to stock any kind of amiibo.....

I wish they would reissue some of the rarer ones. Still waiting to find a Bayonetta one at a fair price.

I've had a hard time finding them as of late. I wanted the Metroid samus return amiibo but never found them.

They're not going anywhere. Smash Bros is coming this year!

well skylanders is techniclly still going, just not the same way as in the last couple years
since this year (2018) we are getting a mobile rpg in summer & season 3 of the netflix series in autumn

Pokemon Amiibo Cards should be a thing.

I think not tying them to strongly a particular game probably helped. Skylanders were a bit reliant on the game being popular and Disney Infinity stylising all the characters probably reduced interest in them as official figures.

Whereas if you wanted a figure of say Ness from Earthbound you'd probably buy the Amiibo even if you never intended to use it in a game. I'd have a feeling they'd still sell even if Nintendo completley stopped supporting Amiibo in games.

To me, Nintendo made the smart move of having Amiibo universal rather than being tied to one game.

There will only be more.. the market for amiibo is growing all the time and they can just keep innovating with it if they want. Also they just scratched the surface with third parties amiibos. The problem remains annoying stock problems and infuriating exclusivity deals like the one with Dark Souls.

I have ten that mostly function as decoration for the game shelves I want to get more I really do like them but I can't justify the price for very little returns in game. A full blown amiibo game would be cool but unlikely I'd be happy with SOME exclusive content.

Splatoon 2 3-pack, please.

Skyward Sword and Twilight Princess Link, also. They left money on the table pulling that retailer exclusive crap on something so sought after.

Amiibo aren't toys-to-life products. They dropped the ball on functionality as soon as they realized people would buy them anyways. In that sense, they weren't even competing in that market. They're basically just toys.

I just really want a proper amiibo game that’s good. Like a good mario party where I tap Captain Falcon to play as him or something like that.

I am still holding out on the unlikely hope of Pokemon Amiibo cards. It would be so cool if 1 card, perhaps the reverse foil or the rare, in each Pokemon TCG pack doubled as an Amiibo card supported by Pokemon Switch.

Either way, Nintendo has many ever-green characters that people missed out on before, but you can finally find now. So people pick them up.

Amiibo has never been important to me. Especially since it doesn’t add a significant amount to the game. But people have been buying Nintendo things that I never understood for years and years. I know that i’ll Just never understand it

I want card versions of Amiibos. I live in a small space & don't have room for all these toys. Also, it would make traveling with them much easier. I'd buy every Amiibo in card form.

Yet you can't find any of the one you want anywhere but you can find peach and daisy all day long where I live.

@Anti-Matter

They look great!

I mean, Nintendo sold like ~25 million figurine amiibos in 2015, so while sales have grown slightly from last year, they are still far, far, far from their peak.

With the resounding success of the Switch and its software, amiibo has largely become an afterthought. It was a tool created to help Nintendo weather the Wii U storm. Now that the storm has turned into piles of money, amiibos aren't really needed.

CeX have been offtering the starter sets for Skylanders and DI for as low as £2.50 lately so they must be really wanting to get rd ASAP.

Heck, even the Lego Dimensions starter pack on Wii U is just £12, a once £70 game.

I love amiibo so this is good news. A new wave of figures will get into homes when Smash Switch hits.

My local Best Buy only have the leftover Animal Crossing amiibos that didn't sell. It's pretty dire. And my Walmart has practicly given up on them. I'm shocked they are still doing so well.

"While Other Toys-To-Life Products Struggle, Sales Of amiibo Continue To Grow"

Lol, that's why they are discounted everywhere! I don't believe it one bit.