Back in 2014, Nintendo introduced its toys-to-life line of figures known as amiibo. For the next few years, it seemed that amiibo figures accompanied nearly every new first-party Nintendo title, like Super Smash Bros. for 3DS and Wii U, Yoshi's Wooly World, and Animal Crossing: Amiibo Festival. The NFC-chipped figures even found their way to third-party series like Mega Man and Diablo.
Lately, it seems Nintendo has pulled back a bit on tie-in amiibo releases, but just last week, the Japanese video game company announced that an all-new Zelda and Loftwing amiibo will be releasing alongside The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD this July. Now, despite other controversies such as debates over the figure's $25 price tag and its questionable functionality, it is already being scalped online ahead of its release.
Of course, the Skyward Sword HD amiibo has not released just yet, so individuals have resorted to selling pre-orders for the figure at insanely high prices. Just a quick search on any online third-party reselling site will display hundreds of listings for the amiibo at more than double its retail price. Popular YouTuber Spawn Wave tweeted out a photo showing that the figure is now even selling for more than Skyward Sword HD itself.
At the moment, it seems difficult to find any listing for a Zelda and Loftwing amiibo pre-order that is below $45. Additionally, there seem to be some hopeful outliers as well, looking to charge well over $100 for the figure. Although amiibo figures have been known to increase in price over time, the COVID-19 pandemic has halted the supply of a variety of products for the past years, and it seems that collectibles have especially been affected by such supply constraints. Namely, trading cards such as the Pokemon TCG have seen numerous instances of scalping, with some retailers even opting to stop selling the cards due to violent outbreaks in their stores.
The Zelda and Loftwing amiibo was met with quite a bit of controversy upon its reveal last week. While many amiibo release at around $13-15, the Skyward Sword HD amiibo's $25 price point caused debate among some fans. Additionally, the amiibo will allow fans to access a sort of fast-travel quality of life feature, which many argue should not be locked behind a paywall, but should instead be included in the base game as it is a remaster.
It may be worth noting that the limited-edition Skyward Sword HD Joy-Con controllers set to release alongside the game are also being heavily scalped online. However, with this year marking the Zelda series' 35th anniversary, hopefully fans will be able to get their hands on some other Zelda-themed goodies.
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD releases July 16 for the Switch.