Walmart Cancels Zelda Switch 2 Pre-Orders a Day Before Release

Image: Nintendo

The Zelda-themed Switch 2 is out this week, and Walmart has reportedly cancelled some pre-orders at the last minute.

As highlighted by Kotaku, some buyers have apparently received a message from Walmart notifying them that their pre-order has been cancelled as the item is now out of stock. They won’t be charged, but this information was only shared a day before the expected arrival, so they’re no longer getting a system.

Unfortunately, there are similar stories in the past about preorders being cancelled like this. Some individuals have reached out to customer service reps, with Walmart supposedly confirming it “oversold” pre-orders.

Here’s one of the many customer responses to Walmart’s cancellation of pre-orders:

“This is unethical sales practice. They shouldn’t allow pre-orders beyond what they can stock. This denied their competitors a sale and denied an excited customer a chance at limited edition merch. I’ll try again elsewhere but think consumers should be aware.”

“This is unethical sales practice. They shouldn’t allow pre-orders beyond what they can stock. This denied their competitors a sale and denied an excited customer a chance at limited edition merch. I’ll try again elsewhere but think consumers should be aware.”

Although the system is still “out of stock”, new listings on Walmart are now showing up for higher prices on its website. As Kotaku notes, the prices attached to these listings may be “set by a third-party seller using Walmart”.

While this update from Walmart is no doubt frustrating for customers who pre-ordered from this retailer, Nintendo has reiterated on a few occasions now how restocks for the Zelda-themed Switch 2 are on the way. So there might still be other ways of securing this limited edition unit.

Webseite Vooks.net also reports the official Nintendo Store in Australia has received additional Zelda Switch 2 stock this week.

Did you secure one of these systems in the end? How did your pre-order experience go? Let us know in the comments.