The line outside of the Nintendo World Store this morning. Photo credit: ZeldaUniverse

In addition to the standard edition of Hyrule Warriors that went on sale today, Nintendo offered a special Limited Edition through its Nintendo World Store in New York City. With there being a very limited number of copies available even for those willing to arrive hours early, many walked away without the LE. Worse yet, a reported gaffe in the handling of the launch event may have resulted in some people expecting to receive a copy the store didn’t have–leaving eBay as the only place to now get a copy.

The store’s official Twitter account announced the Limited Edition’s availability earlier this month. “On 9/26 this exclusive Hyrule Warriors bundle goes on sale at 8am only at Nintendo World!” reads a tweet sent out on September 9. A follow-up tweet indicated, “Quantities are limited, due to high demand pre-orders will not be available for this item.”

The Limited Edition consists of a copy of the Wii U game, and a special, Zelda-branded scarf. Being in New York City today (or knowing someone who owes you a favor) was the only way to obtain one in the US, much to the chagrin of Zelda fans who live outside of the city.

Fans began lining up well in advance of today’s 8 AM opening, as evidenced by firsthand accounts on forums and in videos. The fan-run Zelda Universe Twitter account reported at 7 AM that the line “wraps around three blocks.” Wristbands were distributed for the allotment of copies that were available, and according to someone speaking with Wired‘s Chris Kohler, these were all gone by as early as 3:30 AM.

There was apparently some mistake made with the wristbands, however, with the number of wristbands not matching the number of copies of the Limited Edition the store had on hand, Kohler reported on Twitter. This meant that many of the people who waited, believing they’d get their hands on the LE, were left with no option but to pick up a standard copy. GameSpot spoke with a manager at the Nintendo World Store, who declined to comment on the launch, citing store policy. We’ve also followed up with Nintendo, but have yet to hear back.

Within a few hours of the Limited Edition selling out, copies appeared on eBay, as is customary for any kind of special edition of a game that is truly limited in quantity. As of this writing, one auction is up to $355 from 20 bids with nearly a full week to go, with two other listings offering buy-it-now prices of $500 and $1,000. These are likely to be the last copies to appear on the site; it’s proven to be a way to make large amounts of money for those who get their hands on limited-edition games, as we saw with Destiny earlier this year.

Image source: ZeldaUniverse