Even fake Ring Fit Adventure controllers are running out of stock in China

The coronavirus has disrupted factories making real and fake Ring-Cons alike

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The grips on the original Ring-Con are gray, while the fake one comes in red and blue. (Picture: Hawaii Duan)

Xinmei Shen

Published: 5:00am, 3 Mar 2020Updated: 1:29am, 4 Mar 2020

This article originally appeared on ABACUS

People who want to play Ring Fit Adventure have found the game hard to buy as the coronavirus epidemic has sent demand surging and disrupted supplies. But in China, even the fakes are becoming harder to find.

The new Nintendo exercise game comes with a Ring-Con and Leg Strap. Players slot their controllers into the two accessories to track their movement across a range of activities in the game. It’s become a hit in China recently, because it allows people to stay active while stuck at home during the outbreak.

The game hasn’t officially launched in China, so scalpers have been selling Ring Fit Adventure at twice its original price of US$79.99. On two of the country’s biggest ecommerce sites, Taobao and JD.com, the game can be found on sale for more than 1,200 yuan (US$170). (Abacus is a unit of the South China Morning Post, which is owned by Alibaba, which operates Taobao.)

Ring Fit Adventure has become a popular way for people to exercise while quarantined at home during the coronavirus epidemic. But first they have to find a copy. (Picture: Nintendo)

Pirated games are common in China. With hacked Nintendo Switch consoles available on Taobao, gamers can easily download a copy of Ring Fit Adventure -- but the game is useless without the Ring-Con and Leg Strap, neither of which Nintendo sells separately.

Counterfeit combos of Nintendo’s Ring-Con and Leg Strap have been selling in China since at least November, a month after the game launched. Sellers call the products “domestically produced” Ring-Cons on ecommerce sites and charge roughly 200 yuan (US$28.50) each.