As Smash Bros. sells 2.8M, Nintendo readies the Wii U version for Christmas

Nintendo said today that Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 3DS has sold more than 2.8 million units worldwide -- and confirmed that the Wii U version will launch in November. The 3DS version launched in Japan last month, and worldwide last week. The game already sold 1 million copies in its Japanese opening weekend alone. Now Nintendo says that the Wii U version will be available on November 21 in the U.S. and December 5 in Europe, while the first wave of amiibo figures for the game will also launch on November 21. This is Nintendo's big move to shift Wii U units -- the Smash Bros. and amiibo combo -- and the company plans to go hard at it, with another wave of amiibo figures releasing on December 19. The aim is to make sure that the Wii U, Smash Bros. and amiibo characters are on as many Christmas wishlists as possible. To this end, there will be Smash Bros. and amiibo bundles available for the holiday period.

The company will also launch a special set of Smash Bros. GameCube controllers for the Wii U over the holiday period, as well as adapters for existing GameCube controllers. Gamasutra's Christian Nutt recently talked to PlayStation All-Stars lead designer Seth Killian and Skullgirls animator Jonathan Kim about Super Smash Bros. for the Nintendo 3DS as part of the Gamasutra Talking Devs podcast. Nintendo also said that Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker will be out on December 5 for Wii U.