NES Classic Edition sold 2.3 million worldwide, Reggie apologizes to those unable to find the system

By Stephany Nunneley

Nintendo’s NES Classic Edition was a hit with fans, so much so, it sold out everywhere despite more shipments being sent to retail.

Speaking with Time, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime said despite the NES Classic selling 2.3 million units, up from 1.5 million in February, the firm decided to discontinue the mini-console in order to “focus on the future.”

“We had originally planned for this to be a product for last holiday,” said Fils-Aime. “We just didn’t anticipate how incredible the response would be.

“Once we saw that response, we added shipments and extended the product for as long as we could to meet more of that consumer demand.”

The last shipments for NES Classic started rolling out this month, and of course, stock sold out almost immediately.

Fils-Aime offered an apology for those “frustrated about not being able to find the system,” but Nintendo is focusing on key areas it “needs to drive” instead of producing more NES Classic systems.

“We’ve got a lot going on right now and we don’t have unlimited resources,” he said.

Nintendo’s future obviously lies with Switch, which shipped 2.74 million from March 3-31.

There’s also a rumor going around the firm’s working on a mini version of the Super Nintendo Entertainment System, which it plans to release later this year.

If true, like the NES Classic, the “SNES Classic” is expected to arrive on shelves in time for the 2017 holiday shopping season.