@joshposh except a limited edition console and what's under the hood have absolutely NOTHING to do with each other (hey look, I can use caps too!
![Wink ;) ;)](data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7)
). It's not one guy (let's call him Bob) at Nintendo that's working on what's "under the hood" for the console and suddenly a suit comes up to him and says "Stop what you're doing Bob, I need to you to grab a paintbrush and make this console Poké-themed". It's two very separate departments that do very different things so you're not taking away
any resources by offering themed consoles, it's a benefit. To you it's a gimmick, but to most it's not and it's fun to have a unique console.
The fact is that you are getting more, because you're getting a different console than what 99% of the people have. Obviously it's a perceived value, everything is a perceived value. People will spend money on something because they feel it's worth it to them. Whether I think that console will rise in value or not is debatable, but if I take a quick look on eBay under the sold listings, some of them do increase in value. That's called supply and demand, a pretty basic principle.
Nintendo's mascots and 30 year old characters have proven that they are still a strong stable of characters that market very well and drive in sales. I think the amiibo craze proves this, but also the fact that we're getting a Yoshi game, a Star Fox game, etc. These are characters that people know and love and they drive sales.
[...] you think *you're special, but *you're not.
And I disagree on your very last point: I am special, and I know I am because my mom tells me every day. And mothers know best.