Costco and Sam's Club are already selling Lego's highly anticipated Game Boy set for $49 - five days before the official October 1st launch date and $11 cheaper than retail. The early availability at warehouse stores has sparked frustration among collectors who pre-ordered through official channels, while savvy shoppers hunt down pallets using insider app tricks.
Costco just pulled off the retail equivalent of a surprise product drop. The warehouse giant is selling Lego's brand-new Nintendo Game Boy set for $49 - not only five days ahead of the official October 1st launch but also at a significant discount from the $59.99 retail price. Sam's Club has followed suit with similar pricing and early availability. The move has sent ripples through the collecting community, where early availability often means the difference between scoring coveted sets and missing out entirely. According to The Verge's hands-on review, the 1,822-piece set delivers an "incredibly faithful, fun, and clever build" that recreates nearly every detail of the iconic handheld. But it's not just one or two warehouses breaking the street date. Reddit users across the country have been posting photos of towering stacks of the sets, from Oregon to the East Coast. The evidence suggests this isn't an isolated inventory slip-up but a coordinated early rollout by both warehouse chains. The $49 pricing represents serious savings in the Lego world, where adult-focused sets rarely see discounts this substantial, especially before launch. While Amazon still lists the set at full retail price for October delivery, warehouse shoppers can walk out with theirs today - assuming they have the required membership. Both Costco ($65 annually) and Sam's Club ($50 annually) require paid memberships, which could actually offset the savings for casual buyers. But for existing members, particularly those with children or Lego collections, the math works out favorably. The early availability has created some tension in collecting circles. As one Reddit user noted, scalpers were already trying to flip the sets on Amazon for $98 before the warehouses broke the street date. Now those secondary market premiums look ridiculous. For treasure hunters, mobile app offers a backdoor into inventory tracking. By searching for item number 1917022 under "Search Warehouse Inventory," members can see exactly which locations have the Game Boy sets in stock. The feature even shows nearby stores with availability, turning what used to be a guessing game into precise intel. The sets aren't hiding in back rooms either. Most locations are displaying them prominently in toy sections alongside other products, though some have placed them near store entrances - possibly hoping to drive membership sign-ups through impulse purchases. This early launch strategy makes sense for warehouse retailers. Unlike traditional toy stores that depend on coordinated marketing campaigns, and thrive on the treasure hunt mentality. Members expect to find unexpected deals and early access to products, making street date flexibility part of the value proposition. The timing couldn't be better for , either. With holiday shopping season approaching, getting products into consumer hands early generates social media buzz and word-of-mouth marketing that money can't buy. Every TikTok unboxing and Reddit post serves as organic advertising for the official launch.
