14 DAY TRIAL // Nintendo's newly announced Amiibo figures are already available for pre-order online, as a retailer is already rushing to capitalize on the early excitement associated with the unveiling of the thematic miniatures.
The figures are available through ShopTo, which reveals some pretty hefty price tags attached to them. The bad news is that the company is usually rather accurate in its estimations, so Nintendo's upcoming toy line may end up costing quite a bit.
The figurines are designed to allow two-way communication with the hardware, which means that as players use them, they will be able to gain experience and evolve their stats.
Reggie Fils-Aime, the president of Nintendo of America, has stated his belief that the figures will become a system seller for the Wii U console, which has been struggling a lot since launch and just can't seem to find its footing.
Considering the magnitude that the Skylanders and Disney Infinity franchises have gained and the popularity of the iconic Nintendo characters, it certainly seems like a match made in heaven.
The company even believes that Amiibo has the long-term potential to become much more successful than the two aforementioned examples, as the NFC-enables figures can appeal to a much wider audience than the similar toys from the competition.
Nintendo's fans have also been known to be fond of collecting various video game swag and merchandise, so it should be doubly advantageous for the Japanese software and hardware giant.
Amiibo is currently set to launch for the Wii U sometime this holiday season, and at a later date in 2015 for the Nintendo 3DS handheld gaming device, to be used with a special add-on.