Nintendo's highly-anticipated mascot fighter Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) has sold over 1.4 million copies in the week and the day since its North American on March 9, the company announced today.

According to Nintendo of America, the title has become the fastest-selling video game in the company's history, moving at a brisk 120 units per minute. Of the over 1.4 million figure units sold, more than 874,000 copies were sold on the first day of availability.

"Super Smash Bros. Brawl has made the leap from video game to cultural phenomenon," said sales and marketing vice president Cammie Dunaway.

The next big Wii title from Nintendo is Mario Kart Wii, which will be available at North American retailers on Sunday, April 27.

Despite inquiries from Shacknews, the company has yet to concretely address criticisms that Brawl's online component is suffering from... Read more

The dual-layer DVD used in the production of Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) may cause the game to be unreadable in "a very small percentage of Wii consoles," Nintendo has revealed.

Released yesterday in North America, the highly-anticipated mascot brawler has a roster filled with characters from the company's past efforts, along with Metal Gear protagonist Solid Snake and iconic blue speedster Sonic the Hedgehog.

According to Nintendo, some Wii consoles may have difficulty reading the game disc due to "contamination on the lens of the disc drive," the remedy of which mandates a visit to the nearest repair center.

To resolve any potential problems, the company has created a dedicated support page for those afflicted in North America. There will be no charge for the repair or shipping of the console itself, and the company notes that it is upgrading its inbound and outbound shipping "to expedite the total repair process."

To put it simply, Super Smash Bros. Brawl is more of the same. But as we've observed with several franchises, more of the same isn't always a bad thing—especially when it's a lot more. In fact, there's so much friggin' content in Super Smash Bros. Brawl that it's awfully difficult to see the bottom, and after a solid nine hours with the game, I've only barely touched on all that the game has to offer.

Hardcore Melee fans will be pleased that the core gameplay hasn't changed much. Tweaks in physics and reworkings of characters seen in previous installments of the series make returning to the franchise a little jarring, but those... Read more

Maybe it's no surprise that the creator of one of the more basically joyous fighters in gaming history is a fan of action figures.

"This is a Micro-man poseable action figure. It's about four inches tall and sold all over Japan," said Super Smash Bros. Brawl director Masahiro Sakurai in his morning Game Developers Conference lecture. The veteran designer then explained the figures were used to illustrate combat animations for the benefit of his design team.

"We created virutally all of the animations in Brawl without the aide of motion capture. Everything was done by eye," added Sakurai. "Visually communicating the moves for each character [with action figures] was very useful."

Sakurai later compared the jump animations of Mario and Samus, noting... Read more

Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl has sold 1.08 million copies in Japan through the eleven days since its January 31 launch, Reuters reports.

Brawl reached the one million milestone faster than any other Wii game to date, including Nintendo's bestselling Wii Fit and Wii Sports, which broke a million units sold in seven weeks and eleven weeks, respectively.

Developed jointly by Game Arts and Sora Ltd., Super Smash Bros. Brawl is currently slated for a North American release on March 9. Gamers losing their minds in anticipation can ease the pain with Shacknews' massive Brawl screenshot gallery which includes over 150 image sets.

Already available on FileShack, we bring you a little late-night streaming entertainment: the introductory cinematic from the the Japanese version of Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii).

Alongside its epic portrayal of the game's mascot brawling antics, the trailer also packs a small surprise; the previously unconfirmed return of a beloved Super Smash Bros. Melee (GCN) combatant.

Releasing in Japan this Thursday, Super Smash Bros. Brawl hits North America on Sunday, March 9. For more, scope out our ridiculously packed screenshot gallery.

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Smash Bros. Brawl Campaign Penned by FF7 Writer Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) lead designer Masahiro Sakurai has revealed that the game's Subspace Emissary single-player component was written by Kazushige Nojima, scenario developer for Square's Final Fantasy VII (PC, PSX).

In the latest of an ongoing series of discussions between Sakurai and Nintendo president and CEO Satoru Iwata, Sakurai explained that the Nojima's original vision for the story was very different from the final product.

"It went something like this... 'Some of the characters are on a bus on the way to the stadium. Samus is there. Donkey Kong is there and Snake is... Read more

The latest round of Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) revelations by game director Masahiro Sakurai, as delivered via the game's official site, include a level based off the classic Super Mario Bros. Stage 1-1 and the inclusion of timed demos of classic titles on the disc.

In recent days, Sakurai has also issued pictures of Captain Olimar's rocket ship-tastic Final Smash and Zelda's giant arrow of a Final Smash.

Other details include the ability to use stickers during The Subspace Emissary campaign to beef up characters and the appearance of the Pokemon Manaphy. "It appears from the Poké Ball!" exclaimed Sakurai, who then explained that Manaphy briefly transfers a player's control to another character.

Largely developed by the staff at Game Arts, Super Smash Bros. Brawl arrives in North America on Sunday, March 9. For more media on the mascot fighter, check out our overwhelmingly populated main gallery, which sports well over 150 different image sets.

In a surprising bit of information in an extensive interview between Nintendo president Satoru Iwata and Super Smash Bros. series creator and designer Masahiro Sakurai, it was revealed that Tokyo-based Game Arts, developer of the Lunar and Grandia RPG series, handled a bulk of the development of Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii).

Sakurai retained complete control over the game, apparently even more than he had in the previous two HAL Laboratory-developed entries, and the staffers who worked on Brawl were specially hired for the project.

It is not entirely clear of Game Arts was involved at the corporate level, or if many of its employees were simply hired for the duration of Brawl, but based on the wording in the interview, the former possibility seems more likely.

Iwata, who once served as a programmer under Sakurai's design... Read more

While fans may be miffed at the recent delay, they now have little reason to cancel their orders: Nintendo's anticipated party fighter Super Smash Bros. Brawl has earned a perfect 40/40 score from the popular--though often controversial--Japanese magazine Famitsu.

The news also comes with plenty of new images from the Smash Bros. website, courtesy of the game's director Masahiro Sakurai--who, coincidentally, writes a weekly column for Famitsu.

Check out Captain Olimar's special moves, the new challenge mode, Solid Snake's final smash, and the Pikmin-themed stage.

Also of note is the appearance of Sheik--not a new character, but rather a transformation of Zelda. Interestingly, Sakurai notes that the model of Sheik is based on an early design drawn up during pre-production on The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, a game in which Sheik does not appear.

Nintendo has once again delayed Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii), this time pushing the North American release of the game back until Sunday, March 9.

The company had previously specified a February 10 release (also a Sunday) for the highly-anticipated mascot fighter, itself a delay from the initial December 3 date, which fell on a Monday.

"I deeply apologize to the people who have looked forward to playing the game for so long and ask that you hold on just a little longer," director Masahiro Sakurai pleaded on the game's official site. "Thank you for your patience."

The game has also been postponed in Japan, but only for a week; it will now arrive on January 31 instead of January 24. European regions, meanwhile, are still without a specific release date, though it is possible the title may arrive there as soon as April.

Captain Olimar, protagonist of Nintendo's Shigeru Miyamoto-designed Pikmin series, is the latest character to be revealed as a playable character in the upcoming Wii fighter Super Smash Bros. Brawl. As usual, the announcement was made by series designer Masahiro Sakurai on the game's official site. Olimar fights with the aid of his small, plantlike Pikmin companions, which he picks from the ground. A snippet of newly-arranged Pikmin music from Brawl is available on the site.

Along with the Olimar reveal, this week's updates contained details on Multi-Man Brawl, a single-player challenge that pits a character up against... Read more

New details and screenshots of Nintendo's Wii mascot fighter Super Smash Bros. Brawl have appeared on the game's official site, showcasing even more of the title that hits North America on February 10.

Included in the barrage are depictions of Sonic's golden Final Smash (official post), the various looks of Kirby (official post), and Wario's alternate costume, which highlights his muffin tops (official post).

Other galleries illustrate the coin-launching trophy-winning shooting mini-game (official post), use of the trophy stand item in campaign mode (official post), and the three items that assemble into the destructive Dragoon (official post).

Also pictured are the steps to enable Smash Service, which allows users to send screenshots and download data from Nintendo (official post).

New Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) stages, options, assist trophies, and summonable Pokemon have been revealed, courtesy of the game's official site.

Inspired by past Nintendo classics are stages based on Mario Kart's Mario Circuit (official post) and Metroid Prime's Frigate Orpheon (official post).

Meanwhile, lesser-known Nintendo characters such as the purple Luigi wannabe Walugi (official post) and the adorable Stafy (official post) show up in the form of non-controllable assist trophies that sporadically appear and wreak havoc.

Other revelations include being able to summon the incredibly dense Bonsly Pokemon (official post), a rotation game mode (official post) for when more than four players are around, the team healer item (official post), co-op event matches (official post), and the game's options menu (offical post).

Super Smash Bros. Brawl arrives in North America on February 10, with the Japanese release slated for January 28. For more on the game, check out our unbelievably mammoth main image gallery.

It's obvious that the holiday spirit is strong with Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) director Masahiro Sakurai, as he has issued a plethora of new details and screenshots via the game's official site.

First Sakurai brings word of returning classic stages from past games in the series, then he graces us with picutres of the many Pokemon that can be summoned during battle.

Along with sequential images depicting the Final Smashes of King Dedede and the pajama-clad Wario, the director has illustrated the process of acquiring the fabled Smash Ball that allows such powerful attacks. In short, players must first... Read more

Responding to yesterday's news that the European edition of Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) might not arrive until after June of next year, Nintendo of Europe has issued a statement that offers hope of an earlier release.

Only the list of Q1 2008 releases was all-inclusive, the company told CVG. Though any games slated to arrive in Q2 are indeed confirmed to hit within that time period, that portion of the list was incomplete.

In other words, there's a chance the hotly anticipated mascot brawler could smack Europe as early as April.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl is currently slated to hit Japan on January 28, with a North American release following on February 10.

A recently-issued list of Q1 and Q2 2008 releases from Nintendo of Europe lacks any mention of the highly anticipated Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii), suggesting the mascot fighting title won't arrive in Euro-land until the second half of next year.

Super Smash Bros. Brawl is currently slated to hit Japan on January 28, with the North American version following on February 10.

Fortunately, the delayed European release of Smash Bros. Brawl does not appear to set a new precedent for all Nintendo-published games in the territory. The Euro rendition of Mario Kart Wii is listed as a Q2 release, coinciding with Nintendo of America's promise of a spring release in North America.

Like a relative eager to be rid of holiday leftovers, the official site for Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) continues to offer gamers a virtual cornucopia of goodness in the form of new details and screenshots.

Updates on the eagerly anticipated mascot fighter include a look at the alternate color schemes of various characters and a glimpse of what happens when their special attacks are charged. On a more specific note, there are sequential images depicting the Ice Climbers' chilling Final Smash and Lucas' telekinetic firestorm of a Final Smash.

Moving on to items, Saki, the main character from Treasure's Sin & Punishment (N64), turns up as one of the game's many unplayable assist trophies. There is also a demonstration of Fox McCloud using one of the game's smart bombs, as... Read more

The latest mode unveiled for the unbelievably feature-packed Super Smash Bros. Brawl (Wii) will allow gamers to observe online matches and gamble away their hard-earned coins by placing bets on who they think will win.

"It feels like there's a continuous broadcast of matches on your television," game director Masahiro Sakurai wrote on the game's official site. "Even if you don't play, you can enjoy the battles of other characters!"

To be a part of what we here at the Shack are calling Smash Bros. TV, players only need to enable the "Allow Spectators" selection in the options menu.

As previously reported, other additions to the latest entry in Nintendo's mascot fighting series include video replays, user-created screenshots, and a level editor, the creations of which can all be shared online. Nintendo's Super Smash Bros. Brawl arrives in North America on February 10.

Straight out of Compton Nintendo's official Smash Bros. site, Shacknews is proud to present the latest still images depicting Nintendo's fiercely anticipated Wii mascot fighter, Super Smash Bros. Bawl.

First up in the media onslaught are the various introductory animations displayed when characters first appear on-screen, as well as some of their taunts. Coinciding with those are shots of Meta Knight's Final Smash, Ike's Final Smash, and the various attacks of Lucas.

Digging a bit deeper, we have two newly unveiled stages: one inspired by Ice Climbers, the other set in the depths of Metroid's Norfair.

Resident Metal Gear Solid ninja Gray Fox makes an appearance in... Read more