According to a reliable source close to GameStop, some chain stores will no longer be selling the 8GB Wii U as of June 18th. This means that the stores would stopping the sale of the basic Wii U one week after the Nintendo E3 kick-off event. The original report comes from Kotaku, whom the source contacted with the information. The source gave them this little bit of information.
“Nintendo Wii U Basic Recall – Two Week Preparation On Tuesday, 6/18, all stories will need to return all new/unopened Wii U Basic (020359). .. Stores that have 10 or more in stock will receive shipping cartons from the [distribution center]. .. All other stores will need to save shipping cartons for this recall.”
It is unclear what exactly the reason for the recall is. Kotaku has reached out to both GameStop and Nintendo. GameStop has yet to reply to them, and Nintendo stated:
“We do not comment on our business practices with retailers.”
The recall could be for many different reasons. It could be a product defect, they could be trying to clear inventory room for a price drop on the higher end model, or they might discontinuing the 8BG model all together.
The basic model of the Wii U sells for about $300 and is white. There have been complaints that some of the games for the system cannot even fit in the meager space that is afforded to them on the basic model. The deluxe version of the Wii U sells for $50 more than the basic and has 4 times the space available. That is a much better deal than the basic. Although the Wii U has had a lack of highly anticipated first year games, there is hope on the horizon with games like Pikmin 3, and potential new adventures from the Zelda and Mario franchises.
