Nintendo didn’t hold a Nintendo Direct this morning, but you’d be forgiven if you thought they did. The company announced a new handheld – the Nintendo 2DS – and now it’s detailing its holiday plans for the Wii U.
First and foremost, the Wii U Deluxe is finally getting a price cut. The 32GB Wii U variant launched last year with a copy of Nintendo Land for $350. The same bundle will retail for $300 starting September 20.
Nintendo also announced a Wii U/Wind Waker HD bundle that will also retail for $300 on September 20. The bundle includes a gold trimmed Wii U gamepad, a digital copy of Wind Waker HD and a digital download voucher for the excellent Hyrule Historia book.
Speaking of Wind Waker HD, Nintendo pushed up its release a little bit for those who don’t mind buying digital copy of games. The eShop version of Wind Waker HD will release on September 20 and cost $50. The game will then release at retail for $50 on October 4. GameStop will be carrying a special edition version of the game for $55 that includes a Ganondorf figurine.
What about Nintendo’s other Wii U titles for the holidays? The company announced that WIi U Party will launch on October 25 and come packed in with a black Wii Remote plus for $50. Super Mario 3D World has been pushed up from its original December launch date to November 22 and will retail for $60. Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze will launch on December 6 and retail for $50. As for Wii Fit U and Mario and Sonic at the Sochi 2014 Olympic Games, both titles are still listed as holiday releases.
As for the Nintendo 3DS, The Legend of Zelda: A Link Between Worlds and Mario Party Island Tour will both launch on November 22 for $40.
The Wii U price drop and the earlier release dates show a Nintendo that’s really confident going into this holiday season. With a console that’s $100 cheaper than the PS4, Nintendo might have a shot at gaining some solid holiday sales from parents looking to get their kids a game console this Christmas. It just might lure over some older gamers as well with new entries from its popular franchises.
[h/t: Kotaku] [Image: Nintendo/Facebook]