September 11, 2015 is a day of mourning, first and foremost. On a much lesser note, Nintendo will release not only Super Mario Maker for the Wii U, but also a variety of Wave 5 amiibo, for which, we expect long lines and sellouts.
Similar to previous amiibo launches, success will vary depending on your location and plan of attack. Will you go for the exclusives, or visit stores projected to have the most stock and pick up the hardest to find characters off eBay later on?
If you’re at all in the dark about what’s happening Friday, we a short list of every available figure.
Dr. Mario – Target Exclusive
The doctor is in, or rather, for sale exclusively at Target. Whereas Rosalina (the first Target exclusive) was somewhat hard to find, we expect large quantities of Dr. Mario. In fact, you can still pre-order this character through the Target website. Providing you show up early (Targets usually open at 8AM), you should walk out with this amiibo.
Bowser Jr. – Toys R Us Exclusive
TRU’s previous exclusive, Greninja, was quite easy to obtain. This doesn’t mean Bowser’s bratty kid will flood the shelves, but similar to Dr. Mario, those who line up minimum one hour before the doors open should come out smiling. Then again, Bowser Jr. is supposedly in-store only, so perhaps you should make it two hours; there still exists the possibility of TRU making him for sale online, but this seems unlikely.
Super Mario Maker Console Deluxe Set – Walmart Exclusive
If by chance 1.) you don’t own a Wii U, 2.) want one and 3.) also want Super Mario Maker, Walmart will sell a $299.99 bundle containing the system, game and the rarest pack-in, the Classic Mario 30th Anniversary amiibo. It’s a sweet bundle, but we don’t know how many each Walmart will receive.
Classic Mario 30th Anniversary amiibo
Naturally, those of us who own a Wii U will likely pass on the Walmart system bundle in favor of buying the 8-bit styled amiibo. A word of warning: unlike other Mario-themed amiibo, this one may be tough to find. Don’t go in expecting to see several of these unwanted in a nearby shopping cart. They’ll be gone within minutes.
Zero Suit Samus, Olimar and Ganondorf
You will be able to purchase these amiibo from any participating retailer nationwide, though quantities will vary. Pikmin’s Olimar will likely be the rarest, followed by Metroid’s Zero Suit Samus and Zelda’s Ganondorf, but this is merely opinion.
What’s your September 11 plan?
We have a few scenarios, but cannot guarantee 100 percent success.
Option 1: Pre-order Dr. Mario from Target (if he’s still online) so you don’t have to go to one of the stores. Why is this a good idea? Target will allow at least two of each type of amiibo per customer, so if you’re tenth in line you may be out of luck. With Target out of the way, line up at Toys R Us at least two hours ahead of time so you get Bowser Jr. and whoever else you want.
Option 2: Go to Target in preparation of the 8AM opening, buy your amiibo(s) ASAP and then go to TRU. Depending on how orderly Target is and the distance to TRU, you could theoretically leave the store at 8:30 and then stand in line for Bowser Jr. around 9AM for a 10AM opening.
Option 3: Sit around all day refreshing the r/amiibo subreddit in preparation for when Amazon puts the figures (sans Dr. Mario and Bowser Jr.) on sale; make sure your shipping and billing info is up to date.
Option 4: Buy everything off eBay. If Nintendo floods Target and TRU with Dr. Mario and Bowser Jr., respectively, prices for these amiibo won’t skyrocket on the auction site. If you’re against paying more than $13.99 per amiibo, however, this is probably a bad idea.
