Nintendo president Reggie Fils-Amié says the console sold over 2 million units before being discontinued after five months as Nintendo focuses on driving its 'key areas.'
Nintendo’s recently discontinued NES Classic Edition sold 2.3 million units during its five-month lifespan, according to Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Amié.
Speaking to Time, Fils-Aimé said that Nintendo had originally planned to sell the pint-sized system during the holiday season last year, but upped production following unexpected interest.
“We just didn't anticipate how incredible the response would be,” said Fils-Aimé. “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 system retailed for $59.99 and came pre-packaged with 30 classic Nintendo titles popularized by the original NES in the 1980s and 1990s. Demand quickly surged past supply, and the mini-console was infamously hard to find in stores due to its popularity.
Despite this, the company officially discontinued worldwide production of the NES Classic Edition earlier this month, explaining that the plug and play console was never intended to be a permanent addition to Nintendo’s roster.
“From our perspective, it's important to recognize where our future is and the key areas that we need to drive,” he told Time. “We've got a lot going on right now and we don't have unlimited resources."
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