Super Smash Bros. Awkward Release Spells Headlines For Nintendo
Super Smash Bros. will be coming to 3DS this Summer, Nintendo announces. The popular game will be available on Wii U this Winter. Nintendo offered a 40 minute presentation on the wildly popular game introducing new characters such as Greninja from Pokemon and the return of favorites such as Yoshi and Charizard. The Super Smash Bros. presentation also introduces new game modes, stages and items.
While Nintendo did not release any exact dates for Super Smash Bros. they did offer 2 release windows, which is certainly an odd way to release a game. Nintendo, never one to shy away from unique sales techniques, will release the game in 2 parts. The Summer release will be on the 3DS only, the Winter only on WII U. Nintendo has yet to comment on the release strategy, however the 3DS is more popular than Wii U, topping 40 million sales to the Wii’s 5 million. Super Smash Bros. will be Wii U’s most anticipated game release since the release of the gaming console. It would seem that Nintendo would want to boost console sales for the Wii U rather than focus on the 3DS. That being said, only Nintendo knows the reason for the staggered release and which console to release Super Smash Bros. on first.
Common thought can deduce that the Winter release of Super Smash Bros. may be disastrous. Will the two games be different enough to require a double purchase? Will enough people purchase a Wii U by the busy shopping season? Will the game still carry enough buzz between June/July/August until November/December? These are all questions that Nintendo surely would have taken into consideration.
Many fans believe that the 3DS release of Super Smash Bros. will cannibalize the Wii U version, marking the beginning of the end of the Wii U system. However, one compelling argument is is Nintendo will package the Wii U with Super Smash Bros. for a holiday bundle to help boost sales of the struggling console. Also, gamers were already informed that Bayonetta 2 will be released in Japan this summer and Monolith Soft’s X had been announced for 2014 in February which may be enough to entice people to come back to Nintendo and give the Wii U a chance, making the Winter release of Super Smash Bros. a genius move.
Any way you look at it, Nintendo is generating buzz without actually releasing information about the release of Super Smash Bros.
