Reggie Fils-Aimé explains the phone call that broke Nintendo and Amazon’s relationship

Former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aimé has shared a revealing story about Nintendo’s past relationship with Amazon. Speaking about the Wii and DS era, Reggie said Amazon asked for what he described as an obscene amount of support, even though Nintendo products were already selling strongly. That request reportedly led Nintendo to withdraw from Amazon at the time rather than accept terms it felt were unreasonable. For players, this is not just retail gossip. It helps explain why console availability, online retail listings and platform-holder relationships can shift for reasons consumers never see. During the Wii and DS boom, Nintendo had enormous leverage because demand was already high. Amazon, meanwhile, was becoming a central force in online retail. The clash shows how even the biggest companies can misread each other when negotiating around hot hardware. In 2026, as Switch 2 hardware, bundles and accessories remain important, the story is a reminder that distribution strategy can shape what players can actually buy, where they can buy it, and at what price.