Super Smash Bros. for Wii U is coming on November 21, Nintendo announced today.

Alongside the game, Nintendo will also launch its amiibo figures, whose reason for existence remains slightly head-scratching. (They look nice, though.) 12 figures are coming on November 21, and another six are scheduled for December.

It's unclear if Nintendo has been cagey about the Wii U release date for Super Smash Bros. because it was possible the game might miss 2014 or the company was simply hoping to sell as many copies on 3DS beforehand.

Nintendo also confirmed a December 5 date for this year's dark horse game of the year candidate, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, which will retail for a slightly lower-than-usual $39.99.

That soon. Awesome

Good, it's great on the 3ds but I'd really like to play on the big screen.

Sweet. Now I know what day to take off from work!

Yeah I'm leaning towards Nintendo holding off on release date info so that they can have more focus on the 3DS release

I gotta add that the amazing looking Princess Zelda amiibo comes in the December release, and those who want it for in-game purposes should pre-order it because people are on it just to have it on their shelf. It looks THAT good.

I'm very excited for this! Can't wait.

For some reason I was thinking that Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker was like a $20 downloadable or something. I'm not sure where I got that idea from.

I don't know about that. Personally, I like Link and Samus much better. Which is cool, since they've always been my main Smash characters, along with Sheik.

So glad they've finally announced it. I looked at the official page (UK) it said the 5th of December. Kind of frustrating having to wait two more weeks in the EU!

@bisonhero: Same. I'll be buying it either way. Easily my favorite new addition to Super Mario 3D World.

@hammondoftexas: Jeff would have to like Nintendo.

I'm glad SSB for Wii U (I hate that name so much) is coming out sooner than later.

And $40 for the Toad game? That seems too much. I was expecting it to be $20. Unless it's more than just the small levels that were in 3D World.

That was sorta my impression, too. Maybe it's a more ambitious game?

This bodes well for Captain Toad.

I'm reasonably likely to pick up the Wii U Smash Bros. as long as it has some sort of decent single-player component, but man, the news about Captain Toad has me WAY MORE EXCITED for some reason.

I really need to buy a Wii U...

Yeah, I'm leaning towards "wait until all the suckers buy the inferior version first".

Can't wait to look over someone's shoulder while they play this...

Not as far out as I was thinking it would be.

@larrydavis: The 3DS version is a quality game. You don't need to be a sucker to buy it. That said, I'm looking forward to the Wii U version and what it adds. I'm also curious about how the 3DS and Wii U versions interact.

I told myself I wasn't going to buy any amiibos.....not sure if I can resist the Captain Falcon and Little Mac though.

@patrickklepek: I'm excited to see what the Galaxy team can do with a puzzle game. The Captain Toad segments of 3D World were fantastic, and I imagine we'll see some cool uses of the gamepad here.

What the fuck is this world when Jeff is more hyped for "Drobot" than fucking Mario. I mean c'mon!

And so concludes the only WiiU game I'll buy this year.

I got the 3DS version 2 days ago. I should have waited. I'll be getting the Wii U version too.

Nintendo, you have all my money now.

can't wait to get my arduino on

Man I don't really like Smash Bros in general but there was no way in hell I was ever going to get the 3DS version. I might get the Wii U one to goof around with people, I guess, but at least in that case I only need one copy of the game and one Wii U for an optimal experience. You know, instead of 4 people needing 4 copies of the game and 4 3DS's to have a kinda choppy experience.

To be clear, I didn't say, "bad version," I said, "inferior," and I don't really know how that can be disputed.

Super Smash Bros is love, Super Smash Bros is life.

@larrydavis: You implied that only suckers would buy the 3DS version. I'm not disputing that the game is inferior to the console version, but again, I don't feel suckered for having bought it.

Wow. I'm surprised. I thought there was no way it was going to release this year despite their repeated comments to the contrary.

... I do kinda think buying a worse version of the same game (which would obviously be out this year anyway) for 40 gosh dang dollars is something a sucker would do, yes. Am I a sucker for buying Ground Zeroes? Absolutely.

@haz: It's all Kyogre now?

@larrydavis: The 3DS and Wii U versions feature different gameplay modes and some connectivity features, so in that sense, getting only one version is not getting the whole experience.

I find articles like this to be a little... I don't even know how to put it, but it basically consists of the exact same information as this thread here -- in fact the user-made thread includes more information related to the game courtesy of its European and Oceania release date info. I guess this includes the NA release for that Captain Toad game, but still...

Well then Brad.

The trailer says December 5th for Europe.

@larrydavis: That won't necessarily apply to everyone though. The 3DS version can be played on the move, so if you're waaay into Smash Bros and regularly commute or are away from home then the portable edition of the game will let you get your fill when you can't be at home. That could easily make it worth 40 bucks. Personally I made the judgment call that the Wii U version will be enough to satisfy me, but there will certainly be people out there who will benefit from owning both.

Anyway, I'm glad they've confirmed a date! I'm eager to finally get my hands on it come December.

Good, they make a cute couple.

Captain Toad looks partially like the annoying levels from 3D World. Kinda hoping its not.

Also I'm sort of out of the loop on this but has Nintendo actually said what the Amiibo things will do?

@matatat: Captain Toad is pecisely an expanded take on the style of puzzle levels in SM3DW. And that's pretty cool.

As for Amiibos, they have different uses from game to game.

It's coming out on the 5th of December over here in the UK... WHAT DA FOCKKKKKK.

No you're right, it's lacking in information. GB is based in NA but has an incredibly diverse audience, poor form to not include the other release dates. I'm not gonna lose sleep because Patrick wrote a short little news story and forgot some details. However, when the users are frequently doing this stuff better it does speak to a general lack of thought being put into the work and I don't care for it.

If it means playing with a circle pad on a tiny screen I'm okay with missing some of the experience.

CAPTAIN TOOOAAAAAAAD!!!

@larrydavis: And that's fair.

Good on Nintendo for being able to get it out this year. No offense to Hyrule Warriors, Bayonetta 2, and Captain Toad but I doubt any of those games would have pushed too many Wii U sales for the holidays. Smash totally can.

Also, hopefully the rumors of new characters launching with the Wii U version is true. That would be sweet.

@hailinel said:

I only did those levels for the sheer amount of stars you would get from them. Definitely wasn't my cup of tea. Although maybe a more focused experience might be a better stab at it. Plopping it randomly in 3D World was a bit offputting.

Suck it, Bradley.

Captain Toad is coming home for Christmas!