Starting on the morning of April 6, stuffed animal seller Build-a-Bear Workshop will begin selling products themed around Nintendo's Animal Crossing: New Horizons. Crucially, the priority is going to people who sign up for a virtual waiting room, who will also have to shop in a limited window that day.
People who join the waiting room after 9:30 AM but before 10 will be assigned a random place in line. As their shopping window approaches, customers will be alerted through direct notifications on their computer, or else via email. It's not clear how long the window will last or even which characters will be available - buyers will, however, be able to customize their orders to some extent. Typically for Build-a-Bear this includes choosing clothing, accessories, or even sounds and smells. Options could be restricted by Nintendo's interests in protecting intellectual property.
Joining the waiting room requires subscribing to Build-a-Bear's email list, through which people will receive a special link. Orders will still be possible without joining, but anyone hitting the site after 10 AM on April 6 will go to the back of the line. Build-a-Bear says that the Animal Crossing: New Horizons collection will migrate to its retail Workshops sometime this summer.
The company has been keen to capitalize on pop culture brands like Disney and Harry Potter. Game-wise it launched a new Pokémon collection this year, and a Yoshi release is coming sometime before the end of 2021. Limited shopping windows are often a way of building up publicity and short-term sales - but in this case, they may be necessary to a degree because of the general popularity of Build-a-Bear. Most or all of the initial Animal Crossing run is likely to sell out, and offering unlimited sales at launch would create more opportunities for scalpers. This is akin to Apple's iPhone launch policy, which sometimes limits orders to two per person for the same reason.
As game franchises go, Animal Crossing: New Horizons is well-suited to stuffed animals because of its cute, often fuzzy protagonists. It was also a staple of many gamers' lives in 2020, since it launched early into the COVID-19 pandemic and lets players share highly personalized virtual spaces. Players are further encouraged to check-in on a regular basis for rewards and special events, yet they don't have to pay for subscriptions like they would with a game like World of Warcraft, or for expansions like Destiny 2.
Animal Crossing: New Horizons is available on Nintendo Switch.
Source: Build-a-Bear