Being an amiibo collector in 2021 is tough. In recent times, scalpers have been going crazy, and if you’ve been keeping track of eBay listings you’re no doubt aware of this fact. At the time of writing, the newly-revealed Metroid Dread amiibo two-pack has sold out on most major retailers. Its recommended retail price is $29.99 USD, yet you can’t find it second-hand for any less than double the price. And while it’s impossible to guarantee that you’ll be able to get your hands on these figures for MSRP, we do have a list of tips and tricks you can employ to maximize your chances.
First, we need to discuss what the amiibo actually do in this game! The two-pack includes figurines of Samus and E.M.M.I. The Samus amiibo will increase your health the first time it’s scanned, and then after that it can be used once per day to refill your health. The E.M.M.I amiibo increases your missile capacity by 10 the first time it’s scanned, and then can be used once per day to refill missiles afterward. Nothing too crazy, then, but at least the figures look cool! Here are some suggestions that will help increase your chances of nabbing these amiibo on release day:
- Use social media to keep you in the know. If you’ve got a Twitter, you can follow accounts like Nintendeal or Wario64 — they’ve been keeping tabs on the Metroid Dread amiibo and will tweet out purchase links whenever a major retailer has stock available. Of course, accounts like these may be part of the reason why the Metroid Dread amiibo sell out so fast, but you know what they say: if you can’t beat them, join them.
- Import the amiibo from another region. The two accounts listed above occasionally post overseas listings that don’t sell out quite as fast. You can also monitor the amiibo subreddit; users there are generally more consistent in posting listings outside of the USA.
- Make sure your payment details are all settled. There have been many cases where the Metroid Dread amiibo will actually sell out while a user is entering their payment details, despite it being in their cart. Sites like Amazon and Best Buy will log you out after a few hours of inactivity — make sure you’re still logged in in case they make the figurines available for purchase again.
- Look in-store on release day. You might be tempted to give in and purchase the two-pack from a scalper. Don’t do that! Stores like the aforementioned Best Buy occasionally have extra units available in-store on release day. The best part is, you don’t have to pay a scalper premium to buy them! If you’ve got a store near you that sells amiibo, it might be best to exercise patience and wait for their release in October.
- Don’t get them! Instead, you can wait a week or two after the game’s release and then check sites like Etsy. Creators there often sell custom-made NFC cards or tags that function exactly the same as the original amiibo. There will no doubt be listings for the Metroid Dread figurines, and if worst comes to worst, you can pick up some cool custom-made tags instead.
We wish you the best of luck in grabbing these elusive amiibo! We’re hoping that Nintendo notices the high demand and allocates more stock in response; no one wants to pay $100 to a scalper for two figures, after all. Please note that these same tricks also apply to the Metroid Dread Special Edition — the Nintendo Switch is region-free, so you’ll be able to play the cartridge on your Switch even if it’s from another continent. In the meantime, the game and its two amiibo release in the US on October 8, 2021.
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