Demand for Wii Fit, Nintendo's fitness-based Wii peripheral, has reached a fever pitch in the UK.

At Videogaming247.com, no less than five major video game retailers were reporting Wii Fit shortages and sell-outs as consumers clamoured for pre-orders.

Play.com, Amazon.co.uk, Game.co.uk, Shopto.net and Zavvi.co.uk all greeted customers looking for Wii Fit pre-orders with similar messages. "Sorry, Wii Fit is temporarily out of stock, please check again soon," read the response at Zavvi.co.uk.

For its part, Nintendo is advising consumers to "shop around" for Wii Fit, as it anticipated high demand and the supply chain constraints that have become synonymous with Nintendo product launches.

In a statement released to GamesIndustry.biz, Nintendo said: "All retailers in the UK and Ireland have been aware of their Wii Fit allocations for launch since early March and as such we would see any stopping of pre-orders a sensible precaution on their part to ensure all current orders are met. Many retailers are still accepting pre-orders and we would advise people to shop around to secure their copy."

Wii Fit launches in Europe on April 25, and will cost £69 in the UK.

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